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UA To Create Texas A&M Style Corps of Cadets


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I'm sorry, but this has to be the stupidest thing this university has ever done. UA already has a legit ROTC. Why on earth are they spending money (that they don't have) to create some TAMU style fake army. This is beyond ridiculous.

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2015/07/university_of_akron_to_create.html

Beyond ridiculous?

Ahem. Maybe you didn't read this part. . .

UA students in the Corps of Cadets "will enjoy unique opportunities to grow as leaders and participate in activities that fit perfectly into the polytechnic identity1of the institution," the release states.

1Emphasis mine.

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Coming on the heels of announcing UA launching only the second center for choreography in the country, the announcement of only the third university corps of cadets in the country pretty much cements the notion that Dr. Scarborough is not shy about making dramatic changes. Of course it will be years before we know for sure how successful these will be over the long run. But at least UA is in pretty good company with this latest one:

Only two universities in the country have similar programs – Virginia Tech and Texas A&M – both great public universities with polytechnic identities.

Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets

Texas A&M Corps of Cadets

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I kind of like this idea. You're right, Dave. Scarborough is showing he isn't afraid to make drastic changes, and while I still take issue with a lot of what he says, I can respect him for doing something. When I watch TAMU football games, one of the first things I notice is the cadets.I think its a good idea to begin establishing a differentiating identity that people can actually see.

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I like the potential of this...but this seems like it has huge bust potential. This is a unique idea that has the opportunity to increase student involvement with something related to UA, which is something all of us have been scratching our heads about for sometime. Since it is not limited to members of the armed services, and open to other potential leaders or students with leadership capabilities, it's very inclusive. If paired with the new Roo spirit group that is supposed to be at the games to help pump up the crowd, there's a lot of potential (if well organized, and some forward thinking/revolutionary thinkers are included) to become something very special.

On the flip side: It also seems that Scarborough is completely ignoring what UA is to the NEO community. This entire Cadet Corps thing doesn't fit with NEO's perception of the University. Now that perception could change...I'm highly skeptical of that. If it's not highly organized, and planned with a high level of forward/revolutionary thinking, this will bust.

I could be wrong, it'll be interesting to see. The students section might -- strong emphasis on might -- look like it's more engaged in games if you have the AK Rowdies, the Band and the Cadet Corps in three sections next to each other. I have my doubts.

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On the flip side: It also seems that Scarborough is completely ignoring what UA is to the NEO community. This entire Cadet Corps thing doesn't fit with NEO's perception of the University. Now that perception could change...I'm highly skeptical of that. If it's not highly organized, and planned with a high level of forward/revolutionary thinking, this will bust.

I could be wrong, it'll be interesting to see. The students section might -- strong emphasis on might -- look like it's more engaged in games if you have the AK Rowdies, the Band and the Cadet Corps in three sections next to each other. I have my doubts.

What is the NEO community's perception of UA? (probably nothing we should worry about maintaining).

PS- I think part of what entails the "leadership" part should be mandatory attendance to major home sporting events. I like the idea. I think it will work if given a chance. However, my bigger concern is student interest. Something tells me that 2k annual scholarship will help with that! If this were implemented a few years ago, I know I would be in.

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What is the NEO community's perception of UA? (probably nothing we should worry about maintaining).

PS- I think part of what entails the "leadership" part should be mandatory attendance to major home sporting events. I like the idea. I think it will work if given a chance. However, my bigger concern is student interest. Something tells me that 2k annual scholarship will help with that! If this were implemented a few years ago, I know I would be in.

I completely agree LZip. I think attendance at all major, home, sporting events should be mandatory. What I meant by my comment of the NEO community's perception is if we're the type of school people would look to come to to be a part of something like a Cadet Corps. I hardly think because akron now is 1 of 3 schools in the nation to have a Cadet Corps, it's going to magically win over some people to come to Akron. I do think NEO has a positive look at UA for engineering, nursing and polymer science, but are those students going to be attracted to a "Cadet Corps".

I also think NEO views Akron as a regional campus for students in Summit, Medina, Wayne, to commute too. I know there's a desperate attempt to make Akron not a commuter school...but the reality at present IMO, is that more students are looking to commute to local colleges than less, and that students aren't going to consider living at a school if it doesn't have the program they're looking for. Improving All of Ohio's view of Akron starts in academics IMHO, not with adding leadership opportunities.

I like the creativity, don't get me wrong. I'm very hopeful it's going to be a very positive addition to an already robust UA student life. The press release said it was going to include the Glee squad (off which there are many on campus) and I think that's a fantastic idea, I've been calling for that for a long time. Give Current student-run organizations the opportunity to get involved.

I'm just skeptical, until proven otherwise, that this is really going to be effective.

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I'm in agreement on the creativity of the move. And as I stated in the other thread, I've come to support the name change because it defines UA as a statewide institution rather than commuter or regional. My problem with a corps of cadets is probably due to the fact that the Corps causes Texas A&M to be something of a joke within its state to all but its most die hard constituencies. It's also an identity that probably turns off three students for each one that it attracts. I think it has the negative potential to define UA in a very narrow manner when the goal should be to broaden the appeal of UA both within NEO and throughout the state. And lastly, we're broke. I'm not sure this is the soundest use of scarce resources at the moment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AOgN-4QnZ4

In fairness, I will say that VaTech's Corps doesn't seem to invite the same level of ridicule and scorn that A&M's does.

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If it produces a large group of dedicated students who exhibit pride in their University, especially at athletic events, I'm all for it.

I'm just doubting if a large group of those types of people even exists here these days.

Although, I have a little bit more faith in this idea, as opposed to the Dedicated Section "Cheerleaders" idea for basketball next season.

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If it produces a large group of dedicated students who exhibit pride in their University, especially at athletic events, I'm all for it.

I'm just doubting if a large group of those types of people even exists here these days.

Although, I have a little bit more faith in this idea, as opposed to the Dedicated Section "Cheerleaders" idea for basketball next season.

You're probably right that they don't exist. As I said above however, that 2k annual scholarship will make (i think) a lot of them exist that otherwise wouldn't. The U needs to make sure this is properly marketed so every student knows about it. Something like this can be a win all around. More university pride/differentiator among other universities/good for student resume/lower college cost.

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http://wakr.net/personalities/jasen-sokol/item/159181-audio-ua-debuts-new-cadets-program

Per Pres. S. interview:

* cadets program rolling out this fall

* will march with band at halftime; expected to be smaller at first, like the size of a band flag corps, growing larger over time

* the band itself will be growing in size from about 150 to about 225 members

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Putting my skepticism aside; Scarborough did make a comment about about including the Cadet Corps, and increasing the size of the band as a way to increase the excitement of the "game day experience" at halftime. How much it will, we shall see, but this should be seen as a positive comment towards the football program, in the light of the "THAT stadium" comments made a few weeks ago.

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Will the students be on scholarship? How can UA even begin to afford this program?

He just cut 215 positions plus the baseball team so he could afford it. Priorities here...

Everything that has ever been released has stated the students will get a 2 grand annual scholarship. Its not an actual cost, but more-so an opportunity cost as it will be just 2 grand less revenue the University gets from the students participating. The guy going to run this is already employed at the University, so he is probably going to get a little pay bump. The only other cost I'm seeing is uniforms which will probably run a couple hundred to maybe a grand (being generous) per cadet. These costs are nothing to write home about..

I once again pose the question that has not been answered yet by the critics- If you inherited a 60m deficit, what are you cutting and why?

People want to bitch about the 50k (just to make a connection - that could have saved 1 job for 1 year, peanuts in the grand scheme) that was spent to sponsor game 6 of the NBA finals. I personally think its a brilliant move to find a way to spread the word to a middle-high class regional and NATIONAL crowd what our University is. That's free, unlimited marketing to anyone those individuals cross paths with that shirt on. Its money much better spent than on some stupid regional Super Bowl ad. The Cadets are a way for people to actually materially see that UA is different than the other run-of-the-mill Ohio universities.

Whether you agree or disagree with the whole poly-tech transition thing is besides the point, but I think he has done a good job so far at trying to make the public aware we are trying to differentiate.

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I once again pose the question that has not been answered yet by the critics- If you inherited a 60m deficit, what are you cutting and why?

I would cut spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on unnecessary re-branding. I would cut the expensive renovations to the President's residence and the tens of thousands in hotel bills that the university is paying while they wait for more meeting rooms to be added to the house. I would cut some administrative positions and reduce the salary of the rest.

But most of all, I would strive to increase fundraising and revenue as much as possible. Cuts alone won't cut it.

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Everything that has ever been released has stated the students will get a 2 grand annual scholarship. Its not an actual cost, but more-so an opportunity cost as it will be just 2 grand less revenue the University gets from the students participating. The guy going to run this is already employed at the University, so he is probably going to get a little pay bump. The only other cost I'm seeing is uniforms which will probably run a couple hundred to maybe a grand (being generous) per cadet. These costs are nothing to write home about..

When you're dozens of millions of dollars in debt, can you really afford to give up "just" two grand per student in this program? Every little thing counts.

The Cadets are a way for people to actually materially see that UA is different than the other run-of-the-mill Ohio universities.

And who, exactly, is going to see them? The empty chairs at the football games? The drivers on exchange who are busy avoiding potholes and parked cars?

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I would cut spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on unnecessary re-branding. I would cut the expensive renovations to the President's residence and the tens of thousands in hotel bills that the university is paying while they wait for more meeting rooms to be added to the house. I would cut some administrative positions and reduce the salary of the rest.

But most of all, I would strive to increase fundraising and revenue as much as possible. Cuts alone won't cut it.

I won't argue cutting some admin positions. There is definitely some fat that could be trimmed there.

You're right, cuts alone won't cut it. SS even knows this himself. The details that have been released state that there will be 40M in cuts with an expected 20M increase in revenue. I think that is a fair balance between the two being that half of that is guaranteed by increased student fees. Whether unforeseen or not, its clear that much too generous projections were made in the past about increased revenue and it would be wise not to repeat that.

When you're dozens of millions of dollars in debt, can you really afford to give up "just" two grand per student in this program? Every little thing counts.

And who, exactly, is going to see them? The empty chairs at the football games? The drivers on exchange who are busy avoiding potholes and parked cars?

Who says we are actually giving up anything? I would bet that the University will actually be bringing in revenue they otherwise wouldn't have with this program due to it being so uncommon around the country. If a 2 grand scholarship and Cadet program attracts students to come here that otherwise wouldn't (which it will), the way I see it assuming a tuition of 10k, the University is netting 8k + fees and all the other expenses of college per year.

Rag on football attendance all you want, but even as bad as it is, we still have nationally televised games and more people attending them than any other sport. What other better way is there for the University to get exposure you can actually see?

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My fear with the Corps is that, if it's seen as being a culturally dominating aspect to student life as it is at TAMU, it will drive off three or four potential students for every one it attracts. TAMU gets away with it because it is in a hugely populated, culturally conservative state with a crapload of military bases. TAMU can alienate those potential students because there are still enough who are drawn to their culture that they still are an OSU sized university. Not so sure about UA being able to do the same in Ohio.

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