AU President Benjamin Ladner delivered his annual "State of AU" address Thursday, and he spent most of the time patting himself on the back. He explained the increased cost of an AU education by citing the school's rise in national rankings during his tenure.
Indeed, Ladner has done a good job, improving on most aspects of his 15-point plan of improvements to AU that he proposed in 2001. With a success record like his, Ladner has earned the right to toot his own horn a bit. He has greatly improved alumni donation, as evidenced by the construction projects on campus. He has also presided over the expansion of the AU name internationally, making AU a global institution. Ladner has also achieved his goals of making the school smaller and more selective. However, that does not mean his job is done.
Part of the 15-point plan revolved around instilling the ideals of social justice and fairness. But as AU grows more expensive and more selective, it runs the risk of lowering campus diversity even further. It's vital that the school create scholarships to help those students who should attend AU but can't afford to. Diversity is one of the school's big selling points. It should not be thrown to the wayside in favor of extra profits.
Another forgotten aspect of the 15-point plan was increased physical fitness on campus. Though there's talk of expanding the Fitness Center, there have not been any extraordinary changes since the initiative was first announced. Lines are now commonplace in the main Fitness Center, and the Letts Hall Fitness Center is out of date and hardly ever open.
Also, there are other problems Ladner, of course, didn't mention, like the WAMU overhaul that had to occur after financial mismanagement in 2003.
Once again, such complaints are just a reminder that Ladner's job is not done. For all his various successes, there will always be more improvements needed on campus. But Ladner has done well since his hiring in 1994, so we hope it continues.
