OUR VIEW: Expansion efforts increase educational value
Once again USU is growing and more classrooms are being built, but at least this time you won’t have to deal with the hassle of construction on campus.
After receiving a $5.3 million land donation from Vernal resident Bob Williams, as well as money from the state and various community members, USU is beginning construction on an 87,000-square-foot building for the Uintah Basin Campus. Up to this point, the Uintah Basin Campus, which is the largest regional campus, has been using a building constructed in 1985, and has not truly felt part of the USU community. With the construction of the new building, and efforts to improve the quality of education at the regional campuses, USU is making strides to create a statewide higher learning experience that has the potential to benefit many more people than just those students attending USU campus in Logan.
The expansion efforts of USU should be applauded. Oftentimes expansion is looked upon as a negative thing that depletes resources and creates new problems. But there is nothing negative about bringing knowledge to more people. Let’s face it, not everyone can attend the main USU campus in Logan. Perhaps financial resources aren’t available, students need to support family at home or a much-needed job is available where the student currently lives. The motivation to leave home could be low, even if the desire to attend a university was high. This is not to say all students attending regional campuses face these issues, but sometimes these are real cases and expansion efforts will benefit these students.
Expansion to regional sites is nothing new for college campuses. Take California for example. There are 10 campuses for the University of California, and 23 campuses fall underneath the California State University banner. California has a massive population with major cities stretched across the long state. Having only a handful of major universities would not serve students well, so additional campuses under a unified direction were created, and the result has been well-respected campuses across the state.
Utah is not California and does not appear to be approaching the level of population congestion that California has, but following their example could prove beneficial. Utah has only three major universities – USU, the University of Utah and Brigham Young University – with Utah Valley University tagging along like that annoying kid brother. These three universities currently provide quality education for Utah students but as the population of Utah grows, the need for more universities will follow. Overcrowded universities provide little benefit for students.
Additional campuses under the USU name, which is nationally known as an important research university, will allow students all across the state – not just in the northern half of Utah – to enjoy a top-notch college experience.