To whom it may concern:
I am writing this letter on behalf of the Creighton University Non-Traditional Student Union, which represents the community of adult learners at Creighton University. After reading the article in The Creightonian titled “Faculty members oppose ads,” I felt compelled to voice concern with some comments that were made. First, I agree with the majority of Creighton students and alumni who are dissatisfied with the “Be More” campaign, I don’t believe it adequately represents Creighton or its students.
As the president of the Creighton Non-Traditional Student Union, an adult learner and a veteran, the comments made in this article by Christina Clark, director of the Health Administration and Policy program and associate professor of Classical and Near Eastern Studies were especially disheartening.
Adult learners at Creighton face tremendous challenges in order to be successful both in and out of the classroom in a world where they already have established responsibilities such as children and careers. This is not to say that traditional-age students do not face challenges and adversity in their academic careers, simply that adult learners face much different adversity, which must be considered by any university hoping to be in the front running in recruiting and retention of this population of potential students.
Christina Clark stated that she believes the University is “…putting its soul at risk, so to speak, by doing so in a way that does not reflect our mission, and by de-emphasizing Creighton’s traditional strengths, such as the College of Arts & Sciences.”
This statement is rebutted quite easily by simply looking at a portion of the mission of Creighton:
“We exist for students and learning. We challenge our community to reflect on transcendent values — including their relationship with God —in an atmosphere of freedom of inquiry and belief. Our core values include service, family life, the inalienable worth of each individual and appreciation of diversity.”
To say that the University is “putting its soul at risk, so to speak” by attempting to attract more adult learners is absurd. If anything, by attempting to attract more adult students, Creighton is very much strengthening its mission and promise to the community. The majority of adult students at Creighton are taking classes with traditional age students to earn degrees through the College of Arts & Sciences and the Heider College of Business, so I fail to see how adult learners de-emphasize the College of Arts & Sciences. Adult learners bring a wealth of experience, knowledge and maturity to the table, the kind of values and qualities that Creighton represents.
Dr. Clark also stated: “This new emphasis on adult programs aimed at people wanting quick certificates in order to move up the corporate ladder and make more money seems to trivialize Creighton’s Jesuit motto ‘For the Greater Glory of God,’ which encompasses being agents of change, living in service of others, developing one’s talents for the betterment of the world, caring for the individual person, unity of heart, mind, and soul, for the greater glory of God, to ‘For the Greater Paycheck’ or ‘For Greater Power Over Other People.’ And this is a shame.”
There was a man, a long time ago, who believed in the education of all. An adult student and a veteran himself, he enjoyed teaching children, and directing adults in the spiritual exercises. When choosing his apostolates, he felt that all else being equal, choose the apostolate that will influence those who have the most influence on others. He was truly all about love and acceptance.
His name was Ignatius of Loyola. Before making statements about our own personal understanding of the mission of a university, perhaps we should better understand the foundations of the mission or the religion that we choose to conduct business based off of.
We are proud to be students at such a prestigious university; we are a minority, which does not mean that we are less important than other students, and our degree programs and distance learning options are different from traditional-age students because we are different from traditional-age students.
According to NBC News, in 2009, students older than 25 comprised roughly 40 percent of all college and graduate students. By 2020, that number is expected to rise to 43 percent. Also, the average adult student takes more than four years to earn his or her degree, making allegations of a “quick fix” pretty outlandish.
With the number of adult students rapidly rising every year, it would seem appropriate for a university such as Creighton to attempt to recruit this population, and create programs that would ensure its academic and professional success while still following its mission.
On behalf of the Creighton Non-Traditional Student Union, as a veteran and as an adult student, I am deeply saddened by the statements made by Christina Clark in this article, and welcome a conversation with her.
Editor’s note: The author would also like to add that the NTSU recieved an apology letter from the Interim Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences Bridget Keegan about the remarks in the article.