tl19610224-000 "SPECIAL EDITION TOWER LIGHT SPECIAL EDITION Vol. XIII, No. 15 State Teachers College, Towson 4, Maryland February 24, 1961 Open Letter To The People Of Maryland � February 10, 1961 To bring before the people of the State facts and viewpoints ignored or played down by the Warfield Report, Citizens for Public Higher Education prepared the accompanying brochure. � � . In December the Governor announced his intention to refer both the Warfield and the State Board of Education recommendations to the Legislative Council. � � . The Council indicated it would not consider the matter until after the adjournment of the 1961 Legislature. Taking these statements at face value, the Committee decided to defer distribution of the brochure. RUT � Recent developments call for immediate release of the brochure. They demand answers to these additional questions. 1. Why is the matter being agitated in one section of the State after the Governor had indicated that the whole situation would have further careful study? 2. Is this really a ""grass roots"" movement, or is it politically inspired to demonstrate the ability of a particular party to ""get things"" for Allegany County? 3. Is it true that people of Western Maryland are being told that the only way they can get a general college is to became one of the branches of the State University? 4. Who is assuring the citizens of Western Maryland that generous appropriations for buildings can be expected if Frostburg becomes a University branch? 5. Why would a branch institution be of higher economic value to a community than would a strong liberal arts State college�unless appropriations are deliberately withheld from the State college? 6. Is this latest development intended to divide and conquor�to attach the teachers colleges one at a time? Copy of Brochure Prepared By The Citizens For Public Higher Education � A Commission appointed by the Governor in 1959 to study expansion plans for the University of Maryland�often termed the ""Warfield Commission"" after the name of its chairman�wisely recognizes that college enrollment in Maryland is likely to double within. the next decade, and asks if the University can or should double its facilities at College Park. As a solution, the Commission recommends the establishment of six regional li centers"" (in addition to its present locations at College Park, Baltimore, and Princess knne). Three of these ""centers"" would be made by making the present teachers colleges at Frostburg, Salisbury, and Towson into branches of the University. Three others are Ilr�Posed for construction later�one each in Southern Maryland, the upper Eastern Shore, and the Hagerstown-Frederick area. As decisions made on this situation will affect the development of higher education in, Maryland for decades to come, the Citizens for Public Higher Education present the I.ollowing 14 questions for the State's taxpayers and parents to consider: 1 VVould the proposed merger be the most economical way for the State to meet the needs of higher education? It would be extremely costly to taxpayers and students alike. A large institution with a great deal of overhead would cost more to operate than a group of state colleges and a system of locally established and controlled junior colleges. (See Item 12). 2, Has a ""university system"" as proposed by the Commission been developed in any other state in the same way? No. In no other state has the state university expanded by annexing a group of teachers colleges. Many persons have received the erroneous impression that what is being proposed has ""happened in 26 other states."" That is not the case. What has happened in many states has been an evolution from normal schools to teachers colleges to state colleges and sometimes to state universities, but this evolution has occurred outside the expansion of the existing state university. It is true that there have been a few instances of former teachers college combining with state universities, but under a different situation from the proposed for Mary-land. In Minnesota, for example, the former Teachers College at Duluth is now a branch of the University of Minnesota, with both institutions favoring the move. h owever, a later attempt of the University to absorb, likewise, the other five Minnesota teachers colleges was successful opposed by these colleges. In New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut the former state teachers college have been converted to state colleges with in the last five years, but in each case the 110�v ""state colleges"" are still under their board; they were not placed under the 1. control of the state university. Mr,Th�uld the supply of teachers be affected adversely by the proposed merger? I ne number of teachers prepared under the proposed merger could be seriously t:dlleed because of one or all of three factors: s'Irst, cost to students would be raised under the. proposed plan. . eebltd, teacher education would not have the central place on the campuses that it does today. I'llw it'd, there is no guarantee that admission pressures from general college students is�111d not crowd out prospective teacher education applicants. The three colleges t4'ave already projected a doubling or even tripling of enrollment taking largely aseacher-education students. Should the University be in control there would be no tiosuranc- e that teacher-education students would continue to make up the greater 9. I rtIon of the student body. Ilse there any basis for thinking that the State's program of teacher preparation will 1,, iftroved? ,s_,`"" Commission Report does not claim that the merger will improve teacher 7tteation in the State. It merely says that the University will continue to stress it the 3, ur,""'"" Proposed centers. u ""It are the unique functions of a University? Does this Report recognize them ,rhequately? of e unique functions of a true university are generally considered to be in the areas research, graduate studies, and various professibnal programs. Undergraduate ti_uca. tion is also in its domain, but in very few states does the state university :41it, mate or monopolize the field of undergraduate education. It shares that field fli 11,, various state colleges, private colleges, and community colleges. of ""le field of preparing teachers, a university can perform the important function te4_,eclueating graduate students who can enter the college teaching field. Providing Ittry crs for rapidly expanding junior and community colleges is a task which the to v_ersitv may well assume, leaving the bulk of undergraduate teacher education wil4""te state colleges and private colleges. 1'11,1, are the hazards in building a big ""empire"" of higher education? it wo are considerable! If the University should carry through the full plan proposed, edileitUl'd operate on nine different campuses and would control the bulk of higher tion in the State. Such concentration can lead to lack of flexibility, lack of ii wholesome competition, and reduce incentive for diversity, originality, and experi-mentation. Many people have expressed concern about the outcome of such con-centrated power. 7. Do the Commission's proposals really represent a plan of expansion for the University? No. It is rather a plan of absorption. The University would not be adding three empty campuses; it would be acquiring three crowded campuses. Additional buildings would have to be constructed immediately, or very few additional students could be accommodated, or the number of teacher-education students would have to be decreased. 8. Would the proposed conversion of Frostburg. Salisbury, and. Towson into regional centers of the University at College Park increase their prestige and /heir potential attractiveness to students? The three colleges involved in the proposed merger are fully accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education. Absorption by the University would add nothing to their accreditation status. Were the three colleges to become identified with the State University, it is likely that there would be continual demands to have at the centers various additional programs offered on the main campus, and when this obviously could not be done, the inference could be that the branches were -inferior."" This ccenparison would not be made if the institutions were to remain separate colleges. On the national scene state colleges are prestige institutions. In many states they are growing to the point where their aggregate enrollment is greater than enrollment in the state university. 9. Why did the Commission recommend taking only three of the Rs* Teachers Colleges for University centers? This question has never been answered satisfactorly. Not only are Bowie and Coppi' not included in the expansion plan, but the report completely ignores or overlooks Morgan State College. Morgan College is located in Baltimore City, only five miles from Towson, and is the largest and most completely equipped public college in the State outside of the University. Furthermore, it seems odd that Salisbury is to be developed as a University branch when the University is already operating a branch (Maryland State College at Princess Anne) only twelve miles distant. No mention is made of any coordination between the two campuses, which are the only public institutions of higher education on the Eastern Shore. 10. To what extent were the Teachers Colleges consulted? They were not contacted in any way by the Commission. They merely received reports that they might be ""taken over."" After the report had appeared a representative group from the University and some of the State agencies visited each campus, but the visit could in no way be called a consultation. The visitors came to collect data regarding faculty, students. and facilities. They obtained the information they desired and left, without discussing their proposals. 11. Has the State Board of Education any plans for expanding the services and facilities of the various teachers colleges? For nearly two years, the college presidents, the State Board of Education, and the State Department of Education, assisted by various outside consultants, have been considering very carefully the future role of the teachers colleges. A report, which was the outcome of these deliberations, appeared in May of this year and included the following basic recommendations: (a) That the several teachers colleges extend their offerings so as to prepare senior high schools teachers, as well as junior high and elementary teachers. (b) That a limited number of non-teacher education students be permitted to pursue a four-year liberal arts program, culminating in a B. A or B. S. degree. (c) That the institutions be re-named ""State Colleges"" instead of ""State Teachers Colleges."" These changes would provide for the school systems of the State a wider variety of teacher-education graduates and would extend to four years the two-year liberal The Student Government Association at State Teachers College, Towson, is publishing this special edition of the newspaper to bring students, their families and friends up to date on the developments in the University of Maryland Power Grab. Students are requested to send copies of this paper to parents and friends. Additional copies may be obtained from the S.G.A. office. "
