Monday, February 26, 2007

We the people

Actually, you the people. K-State's student body presidential candidates vary from the irrelevant ---"We at Hilburn-Feeley don't really care what students have to say and we don't want to know about anything that students like," Hilburn said -- to the mundane ---Wagner said deferred maintenance is a problem that needs to be resolved quickly.

Someone in my humble lot should not criticize budding public servants. After all, it was my era at K-State when "Brownbackers" elected Sam to student body president. Who know, maybe one of KSU's group will aim just as high.

Are there no other issues besides online textbooks, parking and deferred maintenance? What about the new security policy at residence halls? Yea or nay? Of course, taking a position on a policy that hasn't been announced yet is tricky...

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Top....Men

When I was first asking for a review of residence hall security measures at K-State, I was assured they are continually evaluated and updated. I had asked why video cameras are not employed at the doors to the residence hall. No need to worry, I was assured.

It went something like this scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark:

Indy: "The situation is totally unacceptable."
Intelligence: "Well gentlemen, I guess that just about wraps it up."
Brody: "Where is the Ark?"
Intelligence: "I thought we settled this. The Ark is somewhere very safe."
Indy: "From who?"
Brody: "The Ark is a source of unspeakable power and it has to be researched."
Intelligence: "And it will be. I assure you Dr. Brody, Dr. Jones. We have top men working on it right now."
Indy: "Who?"
Intelligence: "Top... Men..."

Scene shifts to ark being lost in the middle of a warehouse...


Anyway, when I went online and compared KU and K-State security measures, I found K-State's residence hall security was quite a bit more lax and prone to breaching than KU. I pointed this out to the Administration. I give credit to K-State that they listened.

I like this quote from C.S. Lewis.

"Who can endure a doctrine which would allow only dentists to say whether our teeth were aching, only cobblers to say whether our shoes hurt us, and only governments to tell us whether we were being well governed?"

Or Anderson Hall to tell students they are well protected.

Monday, February 19, 2007

I drink the Kool-Aid

Don't think I don't. I grew up listening to Fred White call games on 580 WIBW. I cut my eye teeth cheering for Mack Herron and Lynn Dickey. Lonnie Kruger was a friend of my mine.

My father is on K-State's Viet Nam memorial wall and I'm a graduate myself.

And I'll be cheering for the Cats tonight against the Hawks.

So it makes it tough when the University you believe in doesn't accommodate you in the most basic of ways. I'll put that aside today.

Go Cats!

Friday, February 16, 2007

Customer satisfaction

We were at a high school parent teacher session and the teacher asked if our daughter had decided what to major in. No, we replied. He got online and showed K-State's Web site that shows all the possible fields of studies, all the possible majors, etc.

He said, "Back when I was in school I was only paying $300 a semester for tuition so they didn't care about us, but now you guys are paying much more so they offer a lot more guidance."

Or something to that effect.

I didn't take issue with him there, but I thought to myself. Does K-State understand the need for customer satisfaction? Or are they still stuck in the 1970s?

I have often heard it said that you get much better service at restaurants in Manhattan than you would in Kansas City. I agree. In a competitive college town job market, customer service is pretty darn good.

But does the K-State the institution get it like the Holiday Inn or the Honda dealer gets it? I have my doubts. You tell me.. if you are not big time athlete or classroom champion, do you matter to K-state?

After spending month upon month following up with K-State about security issues following middle of the night attack on someone in my family at a residence hall, I have not met with anyone at all from the University. I should say I haven't sought a meeting out, either. I did ask to sit in on a security committee meeting last summer but was not welcome.

Still, I find it curious that there is not a more aggressive effort to seek out and find a common ground with a dissatisfied, if difficult customer.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Read this

Read this from a student newspaper in Wisconsin.
Here is a short excerpt from a recounting of an robbery at a Wisconsin dorm:

Every student who has ever lived in a dorm knows what happened: Someone let in the wrong person. He followed someone up the elevator and found an open room




KC: This is what happened to me(not me, but "me" for the purposes of this narrative). I was attacked in my room in the middle of the night. I had to go to the hospital and get a ct-scan with hospital bills totaling over $4,000. I suffered hearing and vision loss and a concussion. I felt like I could have been killed had not a neighbor come to my aid. How did the intruder get in to the residence hall? From what I was told, the attendant at the front desk instructed a group of guys to open the door to the dorm when my soon to be attacker was pounding on the door to get in just minutes before.


How should "KC" or her/his family feel when K-State declines to assist in covering any unpaid medical bills not covered by insurance? How many thousands of dollars does K-State pay their lawyers each year to tell them not to extend a helping hand to a student attacked in one of their dorms?

Accountability

You will note yesterday that I commended K-State for its review of its security policy last summer. That is not to say that I'm overjoyed with all aspects of the Administration.

I would suggest that students' accountability to K-State is greater than the Administration's accountability toward students. Anderson Hall can put a lightning quick stranglehold on enrollment, graduation and even life itself by virtue of an unpaid parking fine.

But if you ask K-State for reasonable and justified assistance(and you will see what I mean), my experience is disappointing.

I've got to go for now..more later

Monday, February 12, 2007

The new policy

Here is a link to the letter describing KSU's new security policy. You might note that I photo shopped the recipient from the letter for privacy reasons.

I asked K-State for a review of their residence hall security. I commend them for their work and I hope that the new security policy will prevent the type of incident that caused me to ask for it in the first place.

Thursday, February 8, 2007

Time for a new plan

While K-State has talked about how much they are raising the cost of student housing for 2007-08, they haven't talked much that I can tell about the need for and the plan for a new security policy at the residence halls. Perhaps they thought it easier to just ease into next year and not worry about explaining why things need to change.

campus crime - Bing News