The student centricity at Stevens is unparalleled. As a smaller university, the institution excels in actively encouraging students to make suggestions on improving the state of the institution. This is accomplished through the Student Faculty Alliance, the willingness of faculty members to speak with students, and the most recent occurrence: Pancakes with the President.
President Nariman Farvardin and his wife Hoveida welcomed fifteen undergraduate Stevens students into the Hoxie House on the morning of Sunday, February 8, 2015. Dean Ken Nilsen was also present, as he had carefully selected the attendants. The chosen students well represented the diversity of the Stevens community in terms of major, academic program, student organization, athletics, and home state. This variety soon catalyzed a comprehensive conversation about conditions at Stevens.
After a breakfast buffet in the dining room, the group convened in the family room for informal discussion. The living room features a baby grand piano, fireplace, luxurious furniture coupled with ornate decorations similar to a museum exhibit. There is an incredible view over the Hudson River from the back room. The long wooden dining room table was transformed into a breakfast buffet by Cynthia Farabaugh and her staff, who were all dressed for the occasion in tuxedos. In addition to pancakes made from scratch served with blueberry kebab, sausage links, bacon, a variety of scones, a fruit platter, orange juice, and coffee were also served.
The couches, chairs, and tables in the family room provided a comfortable atmosphere for informal discussion. President Farvardin, his wife, and Dean Nilsen ate with students in small groups to learn about the students’ backgrounds and experiences at Stevens. The president’s dog, Martini, roamed around the room to greet everyone.
The President took the time to listen to student concerns. Farvardin recognizes that students are only at Stevens for a finite amount of time, but will remain alumni for decades to come. He hopes that students will have fond memories and will take the opportunity to share both the good and bad experiences. Farvardin emphasized that although the meeting fostered informal conversation, he takes student comments to heart and will take action. Two years ago, students raised the concern that Stevens lacked a foreign language or international experiences program, which could be seen as a detriment in an increasingly global world. Since then, the university has created a Spanish course and has indicated that soon French and Mandarin Chinese will be offered in the future. Study Abroad program ideas that came about during that meeting have also been established. Clearly, effective student-faculty communication is one of the university’s top priority.
An open dialogue was encourage, with topics ranging from on campus housing issues to difficulty arranging apartment rooms with friends in the city. One issue that was discussed was Hoboken’s congested nature. Unlike NYU, Stevens still has room for growth. Stevens has the luxury of a campus. Nonetheless, there is a master plan for infrastructure including state-of-the-art academic buildings and new dormitories. Careful timing has been the key to accommodating the number of bodies before it exceeds space. The number of Stevens applicants has increased 101% in four years. The unforeseen surge in Stevens popularity has made freshman classes sixty students larger. With more students comes the need for more dorms, more food, more classroom space, and more uncertainty. Upped enrollment calls for new ways to dorm, feed, and educate students. These demands have called for two new dorm buildings and a new student center, in addition to other buildings that potentially will be added to the Stevens campus.
One building will be located at the intersection of Hudson and Sixth Street. Half of the building will lie on the present parking lot and the other half will be across the street, connected by a bridge. The student center and two dorms will be replacing Jacobus and Hayden Halls, utilizing land closer to the water.
When questioned about the construction on the Babbio Center, Farvardin explained problems with the brick façade. Scaffolding will provide safety until the university replaces the façade, which will commence this summer. The parking garage is also part of the Master Plan. The first major project is an academic building and the garage at same time. The garage is currently an eyesore and will be finished because Stevens needs more parking spaces. There will be 254 new parking spaces in the garage, which will take care of the parking shortage.
The academic building will be approximately the size of Babbio Center. This has strained relationships with Hoboken residents. Because Stevens is an urban university, it must address the needs of students and university neighbors. Farvardin stated, “The city is not one entity speaking in one voice.” The city administration, mayor, and council have been supportive, although the immediate neighbor formed resistance. “We care about the city, and we care about the residents: we want them to feel good about what is happening.” Nilsen reported twenty-one student volunteers to shovel recent snow, which has improved Stevens’ relationship with the city.
Farvardin stated, “Anytime you want to do something big and significant, it’s not going to be easy.” Residents don’t want their view blocked or have student traffic increase in front of their homes. Farvardin to speak with the residents in their homes along with the architects. It was a very contentious first meeting, but by the end of meeting, they opened up to explain more compelling reasons. Most importantly, the building would be too big for the character of the neighborhood. The Stevens team went back to the architects to address the building mass, reducing the height 25 feet. With these changes, resident support increased to 90%. This cost the university tens of millions of dollars, while the building is about 53 million dollars. The zoning board meeting is set for late February.
The demand for Stevens education has also increased needs for new departments and closer attention to other academic issues. Some professors report pulling chairs from other classrooms to accommodate large class sizes. Modern classrooms and labs are essential for remaining at the forefront of technology. The possibility of a Health Professions office similar to the Co-Op office was brought up, in light of the recently developed Biology major. This would help Pre-med applicants grow, along with an anatomy course and an on campus EMT course. Another student suggested that the registrar make the finals week schedule earlier in the semester. Farvardin mentioned that he had reorganized the office and will continue to work with the registrar until these issues are resolved.
Some offices have a huge impact on the quality of student life. Stevens administrators ask students to complete the course surveys, however there is no transparency of how the information is released or when it is released to professors in reference to final grade submissions. Students form an attitude toward the faculty because they feel that they’re not being listened to. Both parties want to communicate, but are bothered by the lack of student satisfaction with faculty. In order to improve this process of student critique, there is a student counsel initiating representatives from each grade who will meet with Vice Provost Chassapis later this semester to improve the survey system.
Another area for improvement is in career opportunities outside of the tri-state area, co-ops for business students, and internships expanded to all majors. Additionally, Stevens is focused on technology. It serves as a glue in the community and the core of studies at Stevens. Thus, the university is excited to launch a virtual learning environment. It is a platform for large scale access to sophisticated software for all students that will be functional in April. Notably, the Stevens network was completely updated with new gear and 900 routers. Because of the nature of the university, it is easy to infuse technology, transforming traditional studies into innovative programs. It is feared that implementing technology for the sake of technology is not a good idea, so it must be well executed. Moreover, Stevens cannot overlook the basic desires of students. In terms of designs for the new building, students need tables with outlets. With this information, Farvardin is connecting students to the correct people who will give attention to their suggestions.
The application form for Pancakes with the President is available on the Stevens Undergraduate DuckSync, and the link is featured in the Student Life Newsletter.
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