Advisers wave GradPact goodbye

With classes so packed that students are forced to sit on the floor of lecture halls, getting into the classes students want has been a problem in recent years.\nIn order to be assured they will graduate in four years, advisers suggested students sign a simple GradPact contract. But many advisers admit that when students sign that sheet of paper, they sign away the freedom to take classes they want when they want to and in some cases, the chance of any free time.\nThat's one of the reasons why GradPact has officially died. \nOn Tuesday night, the Bloomington Faculty Council passed a resolution to abolish GradPact, a program started seven years ago, which guaranteed students the classes they needed to graduate and would pay for the extra classes if required.\nAlthough many students and advisers have criticized GradPact as unnecessary, technology was the driving factor in the BFC's decision. Chair of the BFC education policies committee David Daleke said integrating GradPact restrictions into new scheduling software from PeopleSoft would cost the University $200,000 initially and nearly $600,000 annually.\nBFC member Erik Bucy said technology should not be responsible for the discontinuing of GradPact.\n"The unfortunate situation is that PeopleSoft is already coming, and it is going to have costs. And we'll have to make decisions," Bucy said. "This is the reality. Technology is going to cost money, but that shouldn't be the driving factor in academic decisions."\nBucy said he wishes the BFC took different steps toward the decision.\n"I would like a fuller discussion on the subject," Bucy said. "The discussion should involve people who are affected by the program. I'd like to hear from the advisers and offer a chance to different parties to speak about this subject."\nThose advisers who are affected by the program have mixed opinions on the subject.\nSome said one reason GradPact failed is because of lack of enrollment in the program. Only 35 percent of eligible students apply for GradPact, and only a third of those students actually stay with the program. University Division Adviser Nick Hipskind said low enrollment may be due to the hassle GradPact creates for some. \n"In my personal opinion, I think it was more trouble than it's worth for the student," Hipskind said. "I think it is mostly a marketing ploy for the parents."\nHipskind added that GradPact served only a narrow spectrum of the student population. \n"The curricular maps were useful and will continue to be useful to some students," Hipskind said. "But I think the time blocks virtually guarantee that anyone with extra curricular activities or a job would withdraw from the program."\nYet, some advisers said GradPact had many positive aspects that have been overlooked. \nSteve Wietstock, academic adviser for the Chemistry department, said GradPact was a great tool to inform students on a way to plan out their schedule.\n"It gave the students a plan to schedule all of their classes," Wietstock said. "Prior to GradPact, their wasn't a lot of promotion to students to help them know which classes they needed to take."\nAlthough no one could answer whether or not more students graduated on time as a result of GradPact, Hipskind said GradPact worked as a form of insurance for many students. \n"I suppose for someone who is unsure of their ability to graduate, it gave them a sense of security," Hipskind said. \nDespite its time limitations, University Division academic adviser Joelene Bergonzi said those few who took advantage of the program did see it as beneficial. \n"I think it was used more widely than what is feasible," Bergonzi said. "But for students who are very academically focused, for a more narrow range of students, it was appropriate in the sense that it gave them a plan to map out their four years."\nWhether or not one believed in its usefulness, GradPact was an effective marketing tool for the University, Bucy said. \n"It was a component of the recruiting process," Bucy said. "For many out-of-state students, it's an appealing program because they know they will be able to get out of school in time."\nWithout the program in place, advisers say they have plenty of other tools at their command to make sure students graduate on time. Hipskind noted many who do not participate in GradPact already have other ways to achieve these goals.\n"I think the waitlist option is a better solution than GradPact," Hipskind said.\nRegardless of the controversy, Bucy said GradPact will not be resurrected. Although those signed up can still proceed in the program, he said he believes the program is dead as of 2003. \n"It seems to be a done deal," Bucy said.