Low black enrollment may boost PSU tuition By LaVerna Fountain The low enrollment of blacks at Penn State University may result in Capitol Campus students pay ing higher tuition. President John Oswald stated that if Penn State does not receive the $14.6 million increase in state aid (which is five times more than Governor Dick Thorn burgh recommended), the tuition cost may increase by more than five percent. Several legislators have criticiz ed Penn State’s low enrollment of blacks, and have warned Oswald not to even count on the gover nor’s proposed funding level. “I’d hate to think this legislative body, because of non compliance and foot dragging, might have to punish Penn State,” Rep. Edward Wiggins threatened. Blacks account for 1400 of the University’s 56,500 resident undergraduates. This 2.5 percent enrollment interestingly matches Capitol Campus’ low enrollment of 48 black undergraduates out of 1800 undergraduate students, or 2.7 percent. Oswald contends that during his 13 year tenure, he has made great efforts to recruit more black students and faculty members. “As a satelite campus, it is difficult recruiting blacks.’ * Mary Gundel Director of Admissns. Citing the establishment of the Paul Roberson Cultural Center, Black Scholars Scholarship Pro gram, and the President’s Oppor tunity Fund to attract black facul ty by increasing salary offerings, Oswald asked the legislative body to appropriate the money based on his “good intentions” and not Guess what... toucan get pregnant the first time. Ltfe u n TRICOUNTY W PLANNED PARENTHOOD l9lO North Second Street; Harrisburg. Pa 944-1421 *4 Htghspire Plaza. Middletown, Pa 2 'a. 03 U the actual recruitment. It is unlikely that the House of Representatives will decide in favor of the $14.6 million based on intentions. As Robert Col eman, Chairman of the Penn sylvania Equal Rights Council puts it, “You can’t measure in tention, but you can measure results.” “I’d hate to think this legisltive body, because of non compliance and foot-dragging, might have to punish Penn State.” Mafy Gundel, Director of Ad missions for Capitol Campus, said, “As a satellite campus, it'is difficult recruiting blacks. We have several programs to recruit blacks, but we,don’t want to compete with the main campus. Because most of our students come from within a fifty mile radius, we concentrate our recruitment efforts on the com munity colleges and surrounding areas.” There are many excuses for the low enrollment of blacks. Most blacks attending the main campus cited low black faculty members. Oswald cites the rural setting of the main campus for low enrollment. A massive study, done by James E. Blackwell, Professor of Sociology at the University of Massachusetts, found that the single most important factor in recruiting, keeping, and graduating black students is the presence of black faculty in more than token numbers. Blackwell says the absence of significant numbers of black faculty and black students “may suggest lack of institutional com mitment to equality of employ ment and educational opportunity as well as a negative institutional climate.” Penn State faculty and ad ministrators interviewed recently in the wake of renewed controver sy about the status of blacks at the University offer two reasons for the University’s low percen tage of blacks on staff and in class. - blacks find Penn State’s main Rep. Edward Wiggins campus in Centre County unat tractive because it is rural. a higher proportion of blacks than whites leave Penn State before graduating, which keeps the proportion of blacks low. Using the first excuse of the rural setting of the main campus can be refuted for two reasons; 1) such a statement infers that blacks are unwilling to defer gratification of the urban lifestyle to obtain a better lifestyle in the future, and 2) each of the 13 - ,* SELF SERVICE STORAGE CORNER MILROY & GRAYSON ROADS AT CHAMBERS HILL LIGHT 381 MILROY ROAD HARRISBURG, PA 17111 Why carry everything home and back again? Store extra stuff with us. Low Prices. Burglar Alarms. 566-6012 236-7283 SELF SERVICE STORAGE a"** Storage Units from $l5 per month satellite campuses have approx imately the same low black enroll ment - 2.5 percent. Blacks offer other reasons for the higher drop out rate and lower enrollment. - black faculty membership is low. -- the university has shown no real financial commitment to ex panding its black enrollment and staff. - blacks feel unwelcome at Penn State and encounter problems that range from feeling that the pro fessors expect them to fail academically to attitudes of white student hostility or a simple lack of undestanding of those with a different cultural background. - the absence of cultural and recreational activities of interest to blacks rather than the rural setting, leads to a sense of isola tion for blacks. Regardless of the good inten tions of both Capitol Campus and the Main Campus, the fact remains-that if black enrollment does not increase, it is doubtful that Penn State will obtain the desired funding from the state. Without this funding, students on all Penn State University cam puses will be paying more for tuition. OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK I L i * x_i HBG. 4 MI. 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