Understanding the plan

Throughout your tenure here at UB, you might have seven different roommates, four different majors, and three different jobs. But there will remain one constant: You will most certainly be hearing about the university's "UB 2020" plan quite frequently.

Though you haven't even set foot in your first college classroom yet, now is the time to start learning about the plan and the effects it might have on you as a student. We could dedicate the entire newspaper to explaining the details of the plan, but here's the cliff notes (something else you'll get used to) version:

Years ago, UB President John B. Simpson set out a vision for UB, an above-average but not outstanding public research university, that would significantly expand both its campuses and student body to make it one of the nation's top public research universities.
In theory, the university's growth would aide the struggling Buffalo-Niagara economy. Leading the way would be the now-fledgling Downtown Medical Campus, which would revitalize Buffalo by establishing a "knowledge economy" modeled after areas such as North Carolina's Research Triangle and California's Silicon Valley.

Implementation and completion of the plan would create many jobs, pump money into the local economy and attract prestigious professionals from around the world to Buffalo. If successful, the plan would also greatly improve UB's reputation as an academic institution, something that will benefit all prior and future alumni, including you, hopefully.

Everybody wins—at least that's what UB 2020 planners want you to think. Like any huge undertaking, the plan does have its drawbacks, which will require everyone currently in the UB community to make sacrifices. The key is to understand those drawbacks and sacrifices and to be prepared for them.

The first and most obvious thing to expect is regular tuition increases. Undergraduate tuition makes up a huge part of UB's available spending money, and due to the New York State budget crisis, the university now needs your money more than ever. UB 2020 backers are presently trying to push a bill through the state legislature that would give UB unprecedented power to raise tuition and enter into private agreements with third parties.
According to a report by United University Professions (a union representing employees at many SUNY campuses), undergraduate tuition could increase by as much as 40 percent over the next four years. It could increase by an even greater amount if the SUNY Board of Trustees approves the tuition hikes.
Another thing to prepare for is the expansion of the Downtown Campus. Students that sign up to come here already realize that they will not have the luxury of attending a university with one centralized campus. If coordinating classes and activities between the North and South campuses presents a problem for some students, those people are going to have an even tougher time when a third campus is added to the mix.
Additionally, prepare for the sounds and hassles of construction as the North and South campuses are improved themselves. Roads will be blocked and jackhammers will wake you up from your drunken stupor all for the construction of buildings you may never set foot in.
Finally, students here should understand that as even more emphasis is placed upon establishing UB as a premier research institution and as the student body increases, certain areas of undergraduate education may suffer.
At a university solely focused on research, faculty members are hired based on their accomplishments in the laboratory and in scholarly journals instead of their students' accomplishments in the classroom. More research-based faculty might also mean more foreign professors who do not speak English as their native language, which many already identify as a problem here. Also, research universities are often known for their graduate programs rather than the quality of their undergraduate education.
UB 2020, if implemented correctly, certainly has the potential to take this school to heights it has never before reached. It is important, however, to understand all of the things that come with such a massive undertaking.