"A GREAT CITY IS NOT TO BE CONFOUNDED WITH A POPULOUS ONE." - ARISTOTLE

“A GREAT CITY IS NOT TO BE CONFOUNDED WITH A POPULOUS ONE.” – ARISTOTLE

Likewise, a great university is not to be confounded with a populous one, and the same goes for great departments. Too often we take quantity over quality. One important obligation a university has to its students is preparing them for post-collegiate life. Those who constantly choose quantity over quality are doomed to fail.

Take, for instance, MTSU’s Department of Philosophy. The faculty listing on MTSU’s Web site is short but impressive nonetheless. Each instructor in this department has a terminal degree. What message would the university be sending alumni, students, and prospective students if it were to eliminate the department that demonstrates the highest standards of education and excellence? Can MTSU afford to alienate alumni by sending the message that their degrees are no longer worth offering?

As university officials make their final decisions, I hope they recognize that the Department of Philosophy embodies exactly what an institute of higher learning should be. Students in this department are instructed by highly qualified individuals, those who were passionate enough to pursue doctoral degrees. Don’t we owe it to our students to offer this kind of education in all departments? If any faculty positions must be cut, and I sincerely hope this is not the case, those who have demonstrated dedication to their students should be held in high regard. If instructing is secondary to a “day job,” those individuals should be held accountable first.

This is a crucial time for MTSU, because it affords the opportunity to make a resounding statement. I encourage you to ensure that statement is one of dedication to education and to students. Do not allow this university to become an institution the places greater emphasis on fiscal matters than it does on education.