OPINION: UT-Tyler's 'Traditional Experience' Focus Threatens Affordability Of Public Education

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On February 15, UT-Tyler President Kirk Calhoun told student government, in response to a student’s question, that student government can help the university attain its new strategic goals by making UT-Tyler “feel more like a traditional college campus.” 

“We want to move in that direction,” he said. According to President Calhoun, “that means getting students excited about athletics, joining clubs, being involved, getting other students involved in student government,” and so on. 

Presently, over 60 percent of UT-Tyler’s student body lives off-campus. Yet, with talk like this and infrastructural plans for new student housing and athletic facilities that they have, it appears leaders aim to transform the commuter university into a residential university. 

However, while the amenities of a traditional experience sound great—and there is certainly merit to the traditional college experience—it is hard for a close observer to overlook the price tag that comes with such additions.

As I previously reported, UT-Tyler has plans to redesign its athletics logo, something it did just four years ago, in preparation for its big plans to promote its brand through athletics. On top of this, the institution’s athletics program tried but failed this fall to raise the student athletics fee to fund its new endeavors in Division II athletics, something the program entered and later found out it couldn’t afford. 

The traditional college experience may be great, but it is also expensive. The traditional college experience comes with a price tag and it is undoubtedly one paid for by the student. 

Yet, supporters of the traditional college experience will say that it is helpful for the collegiate’s development. They will say the dorm life, introduction to a diverse array of people, the expansion of one’s social skills and social networks—all of these benefits help provide the young person with a strong foundation for successful adulthood. And it does. I experienced something like this and I am much better off because of it. 

However, the traditional college experience has its downsides, too, and none of as much as the actual financial price of four years of residential life. While many students may receive scholarships, a large number fund college education with student loans. These loans can stay with them long after the good times of college end. Students’ financial debt can delay their purchase of a house or other important life moves. 

Given the lasting effects that the price of college can bring to bear upon a young person, is the traditional experience really worth it? And while it is easy for administrators to support it given that it promotes the university’s brand, it is the students, not the administrators, who have to pay for the traditional college experience. 

The traditional experience is nice, but given the financial cost to students who pay for it, publicly subsidized institutions like UT-Tyler should find ways to lower the price of education, rather than increase it with costly excesses. Affordable access to education is key. It is the foundation of public education. 

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