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February 22, 2005
Campus reaches capacity with little room for growth
Trevor Maine
Reporter
For decades, Hamline has prided itself on being a small, private liberal arts college, one dedicated to the mission of a comprehensive liberal arts education. The university has increased the first-year class size each year for the past four years, filling classrooms and housing with more bodies than ever before. As a result of this increase, Hamline is officially at capacity.
“What it means to be ‘at capacity’ is that we don’t feel we can be any bigger at this time,” said Garvin Davenport, CLA dean and vice president of academic affairs. “In the CLA, we don’t have room or facilities to increase the size of the student body at this time.”
Members of the student body are worried that because inflation will invariably rise in coming years, the university will need revenue from larger first-year classes but won’t be able to get it.
In that case, Hamline would have to turn to other sources of income in order to maintain the same level of excellence it enjoys today, namely from tuition hikes or department cuts.
Davenport addressed these concerns, saying, “Tuition is usually driven by inflation and the cost of an education here at Hamline. It’s important that we do everything we can to contain costs, and that’s what we’re trying to do.”
Davenport also spoke unfavorably of the idea of department cuts, instead outlining a plan to make
“strategic hires,” where the only positions added are those that address the most significant needs at Hamline.
The university has always prided itself on small class sizes, but if it plans to expand, it faces difficulties.
Hamline has no space to expand, with Snelling Avenue on one side, the railroad to the north, and residential areas on the other two sides.
“We strive very hard for good neighborhood relationships,” said Davenport.
For this reason, he said, Hamline is hesitant to do anything that would threaten the community that Hamline has been a part of for so long.
“There has been discussion of a new fine arts center and a new student center here on campus, but there are no plans on the table right now,” said Davenport.
“When and if we had the means to finance these projects, we would move forward.”
What does this mean to the future of the university, and what can students who are already here expect in the next four years? This will be explored in a follow-up article on this issue.
Posted by msveum at February 22, 2005 04:19 PM
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