The controversy surrounding the possible merger of UNO and SUNO has split the city of New Orleans and the state into many camps. As in most controversies, each camp has its own vested interest in having and maintaining their positions.
Governor Bobby Jindal wants the merger to obstinsibly save the state money by combining duplicate services at the nearby universities. Mayor Landrieu and the New Orleans City Council want to maintain the both universities as is. The reasons for their positions again are transparent - revenue, power and reelection. Both universities are in Councilwoman Cynthia Hedge-Morrell's district so her vested interest in maintaining the Status Quo obvious. The Black population of New Orleans wants to maintain the dual universities as SUNO is part of New Orleans Black history. But is keeping both universities good for education in New Orleans in the long run?
Both universities have low graduation rates so both are deemed as failures in their mission. But this points out a problem larger than the schools. It shows that the students are not ready to attend universites. Because of this, the schools should be merged. UNO and SUNO are both vestiges of Segregration. Today one of the reasons backers of saving SUNO is that it is needed to educate those who come out of high school and are not prepared to do college work right away.
If the value of a university education is to respected, it must not be watered down. Students today have to be ready to matriculate in college or they do not deserve to be there. Having SUNO as a safety net short changes students and New Orleans in general. A college degree is not a right, it is a priviledge.
One of the reasons that companies will not relocate to New Orleans is the lack of an educated population. The definition of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results. How many more years will it take before this patient is diagnosed.
It is time to abolish the dual systems. It is time to overhaul both universities. It is time to offer people in the greater New Orleans area quality education. It is time for all students and their parents from Kindergarden to college to realize that they must prepare for college and that college is not going to prepare for them.
