For a school that strives to teach students solid management practices, departmental officials may want to sit in on some of their own lectures.
After working toward admittance into School of Management's minor program, students were shut out following an abrupt executive decision to dissolve this degree option.
The reasoning behind the lockout was that class sizes in the school were too large and management majors had difficulty registering for required courses.
While a solution to the overcrowding of classes was very necessary, the way in which it was handled was in terribly poor taste - reminiscent of the unexpected closing of the School of Informatics.
Students pursuing minors often need to meet a set of prerequisites before admittance, and those who put forth the effort to meet the requirements to enter into this popular program have been stripped of their academic rights.
Many students invested a great deal of time, effort and money to earn entry into the minor program, and without so much as an e-mail - or any forewarning for that matter - the School of Management pulled the rug right out from under them.
Ending a program such as the minor in management is an action that could set a devastating precedent, leading to the unanticipated lockout of other programs.
Should other students at UB be concerned that the program they are pursuing may be eliminated? Is it time for the university to issue a disclaimer to all students stating that their scholarly progression may be stifled without warning?
Officials in the School of Management should either allow those who have completed the prerequisites to enter into the business minor program, or reimburse the students for money wasted on books and associated academic fees.
Anything less just isn't good business.
Green backing green
Corporate contributions go toward Buffalo trees
In October of last year Buffalo faced one of the most devastating storms in recent history. Trees were torn apart, power lines snapped like twigs and nearly every street was impassible. Hundreds of millions of dollars went into the prolonged cleanup effort.
In the fall, the concern was cleanup. Now in the blossoming of spring, the focus has shifted to revitalization. Ravaged by the October storm last fall, the tree population throughout Western New York is in dire need of a little TLC.
Buffalo, a city abundant with fastidiously manicured green space, was one of the hardest hit communities during the storm. Sympathetic to the situation, two major contributors - HSBC Bank and M&T Bank - have stepped forward donating more than $100,000 to the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy to assist in reviving the parks originally designed by renowned architect Fredric Law Olmsted.
As far as we're concerned, it's a solid investment.
It will take decades before Western New York's trees completely recover, but without the commitment of corporate sponsorship, especially considering the unexpected circumstances, gems such as the Buffalo Olmsted Parks might never recover.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
