University of Utah/Dixie State College
The UofU and DSC are contemplating a more formal affiliation. I think it is a wonderful idea – and have for years. I think it needs to be publicly stated that members of my community overwhelmingly think it is a wonderful idea. Sure, there are some concerns over the governance of the institution and its name, but those are details that can, and will, be worked out. The Commissioners Office has put together a task force, comprised of members of both institutions, to work through some of those issues. This is a golden opportunity for higher education.
posted by steve u. at 11/02/2007
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3 Comments:
Steve,
Why did Dixie approach the U for such an arrangement instead of USU?
I thought a downgrade to community college status (esp. for athletic purposes) makes sense while still offering four-year programs but under USU’s charter.
It seems like USU would be more equipped for such a proposal since they already do it in multiple locations as our state's land-grant institution.
Anon makes a good point. USU would make a lot more sense. Or even better yet, why not SUU? Except for the whole problem of Dixie hating SUU, which kind of caused the whole move to 4-year status to begin with. St. George is bigger than Cedar City, so certainly they deserve a bigger university, right?
Bigger doesn't always mean better. That should be the lesson we learned from Dixie's failed attempt at moving to four-year status. But by pursuing the University of Utah instead of other more logical solutions (USU or SUU), it appears they still haven't learned that lesson.
Dixie was a great community college. Why not embrace that niche instead of trying to be someone that they're not?
Since something new is being contemplated, anything is possible, including an affiliation with any institution. The logical approach would be to affiliation with one of the two research institutions -- the UofU or USU. To increase coordination and efficiency in the system, I anticipate that down the road Utah will have a University of Utah system and a Utah State system -- much like some other states have (e.g., California).
Something might evolve with USU and DSC. That is a possibility. Currently though, the UofU of DSC already have many collaborative projects in place. President Young and President Caldwell have worked for years to build programs between the two institutions. This could serve as a foundation for additional affiliations. That shouldn't be taken as an affront to anyone else. We're simply at the beginning of some important and complex conversations about DSC. The outcome shouldn't be pre-judged.
Second anon., institutions evolve and progress. Just look at SUU.
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