USG Hosts Forum with Dean Latham

According to Latham, approximately one-third of FCRH students study abroad, a statistic he is looking to increase. Acknowledging that the fact that merit money does not follow students abroad is a major hindrance, Latham said he will work to provide more opportunities for students to get grants and scholarships that enable them to cover the costs of studying abroad.

"I would like to have a situation in which any student who's qualified can study abroad regardless of their financial need," Latham said. "So, one of the things that I'm trying to do is make sure that that happens."

A symposium at which undergraduate students will have the chance to present papers on research they have been conducting will be held on April 21, and, for the first time, humanities and social science students are invited to participate. 

Latham encouraged students from all different disciplines in the college who have been conducting research or are interested in doing so to pursue it because it will benefit students in their postgraduate endeavors.

With regard to internships, Latham has an interest in encouraging students to take advantage of the wealth of opportunities offered by New York City's many non-government organizations (NGOs), many of whose missions support the University's Jesuit values. To this end, Latham has been working with Fordham's International Institute for Humanitarian Affairs to help students secure internships at places like the United Nations and the Red Cross. 

"These are some of the things of which I'd love us to take advantage," Latham said.

Appealing to the science students present, Latham acknowledged both Fordham's strengths in science faculty and weaknesses in science facilities, promising to work toward increased funding for renovations.

"If we were to fully fund these programs, if we were to really bring forth the resources that would allow these facilities to rise to the level that they should be, we could do some truly spectacular things," Latham said.

During the question and answer portion of the forum, students raised issues from credits to grade deflation and from freshman advising to intensive introductory language classes.

Though unable to commit to tangible solutions in the course of the hour-long forum, Latham was willing to listen and seemed excited to engage with students on topics that were of great importance to them. He invited many of the students to send him a memorandum detailing a proposal about which they were asking, and he urged some students to appeal directly to the faculty to whom their problem related, calling faculty office hours "under utilized."

Perhaps one of the hottest topics, introduced by Caitlin Meyer, FCRH '12, executive vice president of FCRH on USG, was grade deflation. 

"The concern is that maybe this idea of having to maintain a B- average for the course is being mandated a little too harshly with our untenured professors," Meyer said, in seeking feedback from Latham on the topic.

Latham responded that the average grade point average has climbed over the past decade at FCRH, rising from about 2.7 or 2.8 to a current average of about 3.0. 

"The average grade in the college has risen pretty dramatically, which is a little worrisome," Latham said.

He explained that Fordham wants to avoid a phenomenon at some schools in which inflation of grades has caused the institutions' values to decrease in the eyes of graduate schools and employers.

"For an administrator, like myself, to impose a set of standards upon a professor in terms of grading violates the principle of grading," Latham said. "Instructors have to have the authority to grade as they see fit."

In response to Latham's earlier indication of interest in increasing study abroad, many pre-med students voiced concerns about the difficulty in studying abroad while completing the pre-med requirements, a nearly impossible feat. Latham pledged to look into the matter.

Latham received a barrage of comments when he asked about what students think of the core curriculum in the college, ranging from those who thought they built character to those who considered the entire experience a waste of time. One student shared a story in which, at first skeptical of the core requirement in philosophy, she ended up majoring in philosophy.

Other students cited an established drive toward a certain career and major as reason for the core to be considered a hindrance. 

Latham seemed receptive to comments on the core, but emphasized the cross-discipline approach that Fordham embraces.

Finally, Latham addressed the increasing academic impressiveness of each successive incoming freshman class, saying that he thought the University was moving in a positive direction.

"I think we are an outstanding liberal arts college," Latham said. "The challenge now is to figure out how to become a truly superior one."