C.C. Reader
C.C. Reader interviews the Provost
The following interview
was conducted on Than., Jan
17 and was edited for clarity
by Lyda Baker, interviewer
and
Theodore L Gross.
The interview concerns
Dr. Gross' future plans for
expansion d Capitol Campus.
C.C. Reader It is obvious
that the Capitol Campus is in
need of change. After all,
change is an integral part of
education.
Why do you believe that
the expansion of Capitol Cam
pus into a "university pre
sence" is a needed change?
Gross For one thing, the
campus is already a univers
ity. It has graduate programs
in place already. So it is not as
though one is creating a uni
versity presence, it already
exists. It is a question of
making the community aware
of the fact and of strengthen
ing the programs.
There is no university in
South Central Pennsylvania.
There are universities in Phil
adelphia, Pittsburgh and at
State College. In the Greater
Harrisburg Area and, by ex
tension, South Central Penn
sylvania, there are many col
leges, but no single univers
ity.
It seems unfortunate that
in a state capital one does not
have a university. In other
state captials in the country -
Austin, Texas; Sacramento,
California or Albany; New
York - there are significant
universities. And the need for
a university here, I think, is
self-evident.
C.C. Reader As indicated in
the working draft of "The
Pennsylvania State Univers
ity, The Capitol Campus:
Status 1980 - Prospectus
1990; almost every aspect of
the campus requires improVe
ment.
Listed in the draft. for
instance, is that improve
ments are needed in student
scholarships, cultural pro
gramming, research and
teaching facilities; psychology
laboratories, engineering labs
and classrooms and, also
needed is the modernization
of the library and what
was titled "The Next
Step," a Science Center.
Which of these needs will
be fulfilled first? That is, what
is the order of priority?
Gross Several things will
happen at the same time. But
in terms of buildings, the
building we are trying to
establish first. is the Science
and Technoiogy
Students in eng . ineeeinv
technology desperately need
1 , ) have ,aboratories for their
Pn atAition. we are think
ing of moving ahead in the
area of allied health,
Capitolizing on our future
there is a great need for in
this area.
The university has already
made a request of the state
legislature for a 2.4 million
dollar appropriation so that it
is not as though we are all
alone in that effort.
The university is support
ing us. We also hope to go out
into the community to seek
additional monies from corp
orations and industries for
that building.
Mani industries in the
area hire our graduates, so it
would be to their advantage
to let their future employes
have a decent facility.
At the same time, we are
going to mount a scholarship
program throughout Penn
sylvania. We hope to attract
the best prepared and most
talented students from two
year institutions.
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And then, at the same time,
we are going to be looking for
monies to establish endowed
chairs what are called Fac
ulty Fellows.
Probably the first thing
we will do will be to try to find
funds to develop certain
beautification projects. There
will be immediate physical
change to make Capitol look
more like a campus. One of
our first projects is the sign in
front of the campus; then
Vendorville; then the lobby ...
C.C. Reader How did you
come to the decision that the
Science and Technology
Building is more important
than, say, a theater for the
performing arts or the ex
pansion and modernization of
the library?
Gross We began by ask
ing Dr. Nancy Tischler to
be editor of an academic
master plan. Dr. Tischler,
together with the pro
gram heads and the ad
ministrative sthff, met at a
day long retreat last Spring to
review the first draft of the
master plan.
In the last few months she,
together with Mark Dorfman
and several other people, has
been refining that academic
master plan, sharing new
drafts with the program
heads and the entire faculty in
terms of setting priorities and
n .A.rms of writing the %ar
io.us sections. The• neveiop
inent of the 'Status
do4'umc;ll items
that i3l,3)e—!',
Thursday, Jan. 24, 1980
We are trying to propose a
plan that will work - not a
wish list, but something that
will work. The two buildings
we have proposed, are first,
the Science and Technology
Building and a Conference
Center, or a Continuing Edu
cation Center.
Now, we had in mind the
establishment of an arts
building - a humanities build
ing. But, we were advised by
people in the. community that
that probably will not attract
funds as readily as a Contin
uing Education Center that
will serve the needs of the
community in a more com
plete way and include in it
facilities for the humanities.
What we decided to do
was to establish the Continu
ing Education Center and in
the Center have an auditor
ium that could be used for the
arts and humanities. We could
have dance performances,
concerts, lectures. And in that
Conference Center also, we
hope to build an extensive
library.
If- you have ever traveled
to Berks Campus, you will see
a beautiful multi-purpose
building that is similar to the
one we have in mind. There,
you have different units. You
have a student unit, cafeteria,
a theater and a library. That's
the sort of facility we have in
mind.
It would be primarily a
building devoted to continu
ing education, conferences,
seminars, workshops and also
available to the arts and con
taining a library that will
serve the entire campus. That
building, we will not see funds
for until about 1984 - 85.
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C.C. Reader Are there also
plans to incorporate HACC
and the Hershey Medical
Center into the "university
presence?"
Gross No. Not at all. HACC
is a separate unit, and we do
not intend to become - we do
not need to become - involved
in freshman and sophomore
study. There is no need to.
HACC provides that very
well.
What we need to do is to
articulate as closely as pos
sible with HACC at the same
time as we work closely with
Berks Campus and York
Campus, so that people in the
general area have a sense
that they have a four year
e!.;; , :ation a , ,aiiable to them.
We are not a full univers
ity, in the sense that we have
seleaed courses of study. For
e.xainpie, w.. do not have a
program in science. You really
can't have a university with
out a program or course of
study in science.
This is one of the reasons
we are moving in that direc
tion. Our resources are lim
ited. This campus should have
a program in science that
matches the programs in hu
manities and social science.
There are gaps as a uni
versity. We are trying to flesh
this out so that we have a
more comprehensive kind of
university. But Capitol Cam
pus is very small and that is
one of its strengths. There are
only 2500 students, and there
really should be, in my view,
no more than 3,000.
It is very difficult to form a
full university on that small a
basis, but you can establish a
first-rate group of programs
that provide university study.
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We are trying to develop a
plan that meets the need of
the student population. We
have to synchronize the phys
ical development of the cam
pus with the developing en
rollment. As • I have sug
gested, we are contemplating
stabilizing the enrollment at
something like 3,000 students
over the next ten years.
C.C. Reader How do you
account for a proposed in
crease in student enrollment,
considering the fact that there
is decreased enrollment in
colleges across th'el nation, and
that educational fees in Penn
sylvania are steadily increas
ing?
That is, how do you plan to
safeguard the costly e*pan
sion of the campus from being
a futile mistake? Where will
the students come from?
Giese It is not going to be a
futile mistake if we move step
by step - cautiously.
We 'need the Science and
Technology Building and the
Conference Center right now!
Even if there were not to be
an additional student or an
additional faculty member,
those facilities would be des
perately needed for our pre
sent student body - even with
a decrease in students.
But, I contemplate a slight
rise in student enrollment
because, if you introduce new
programs, you're going to at
t ra‘l. studtnts. Second !v.
there should he an increase
part-tithe students
As you. know, there is :k
&dine in stattionts oetwecn.
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there ,s not k.ecline
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30s, 40s, 50s and 60s. And that
is the population that tends to
be one large segment of our
student body.
Then the Harrisburg area
will be less affected in popu
lation than any other area in
the state. For one thing, you
have the stability of the state
capital. Even if there is a
recession, or difficulty in the
economy, the state capital
employment tends to remain
stable.
In addition, with the infla
tion, people might not want to
send their children away to
college. School is too expen
sive. But I can see them
sending their students to a
school that is in the area. In a
kind of perverse way, I think
we will benefit from difficult
economic times.
C.C. Reader Now the inevi
table question. Since you have
become Provost/Dein of
Capitol Campus, there has
been talk of changing the
name of the campus. Are you
going to change the name?
Gross That name change has
been in the works now for at
least five years. The faculty
have wanted the name to be
changed, so I am simply car
rying out what I consider to
be a mandate of the faculty.
There is a possibility that
it could be happening very
soon. The university adminis
tration has discussed the
matter with me and what we
at Capitol are doing is taking a
vote of the faculty and hope
fully, a vote of the student
body too. These votes will be
recomendations that I will
take most seriously.
The choices will be either
remaining the same that is,
Capitol Campus -- or becoming
The Harrisburg Campus of
the Pennsylvania State Uni
versity, which, in its short
ened form will be Penn State/
HarriSburg. There are argu
ments for both choices.
The arguments for Capitol
Campus seem to be that first
of all, we have been here for
13 years and people know us.
We have established a repu
tation. Furthermore, Capitol
Campus seems to embrace a
larger area.
On the other hand, Penn
State/Harrisburg his advan-,
tages, too. If someone asks
you where you go to school,
you say Penn State/Harris
burg, and Penn State -- with
its great prestige -- becomes a
constant feature. If you say
Capitol Campus, people
sometimes wonder if it is a
part of Penn State or not.
Penn State/Harrisburg in
that sense, will be strong—for
the students, as well as the
faculty.
It is a question or making a
decision between the two. I'd
-ether not make that decision.
That decistor. must be made
hy the lacuity students,
:he Oeriiml staff, the adminis-
::'mmun-
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