When people ask me what my major is, two options for a response pop into my mind. I can tell them I am a Social Sciences major with a concentration in Law and Society or I can mumble something indistinct and make an excuse to leave before I suffer any embarrassment. When I glanced at the latest enrollment statistics for Spring 2010, I felt very alone. Only 38 students share my major; just a handful share my concentration. Not having mathematics or science in my curriculum is a challenge at Michigan Tech, one I expect to keep confronting until graduation.
The most common accusation I face from engineers is having a “fake major”. Unless my tuition bill and countless hours spent writing papers are a figment of my math-deprived imagination, I am fairly certain my major is indeed real. Some say that my major is easy and is only in place for those who find engineering too difficult. Judging by the spelling and grammar on friends’ Facebook stati and the scrawling on whiteboards, I have serious doubts as to whether some would fulfill the expectations of my major without some difficulty.
Without going into the depths of the various types of learning and ways of measuring academic success, I believe many students at Michigan Tech have a very fixed idea of what constitutes a difficult or easy major. Usually if a bubble sheet can accurately measure it, a subject is worth studying. If, however, the measurement is a bit more abstract or subjective, the subject becomes simple and obsolete.
I assure you, I do not believe this prejudice is directed only one way. I have seen many humanities majors turn up their nose at calculus or engineering and bury themselves in Milton, pausing only to sip their latté or green tea, believing that they are in pursuit of “what really matters”.
Surprisingly, the constant testing of my major’s worth has actually been beneficial. Being barraged with negative criticism has caused me to question the validity of my subject many times and constantly have I reaffirmed my belief in the importance and legitimacy of my major. Had I gone to a small, liberal arts college, I would be bombarded with positive feedback and collegial propaganda, which would never tempt me to explore studies outside my own. It is important to be tested; the more faith is shaken, the stronger its foundations become.
I will say that as frustrating and difficult as Algebra and Calculus have been for me, my most challenging class has been without a doubt Creative Writing.
I am sure many people choose the class looking for an easy A. If one fills their journal with nonsense and completes the assignments on time, an A wouldn’t be too difficult to achieve. But to do well in the subject is an entirely different matter.
Academia is ill-equipped to judge success of students who pursue less measurable forms of study, such as Creative Writing. Throughout the semester I have been continually frustrated, not with the grade that appears on the computer, but with the merit of my work.
To be one of only 38 students in my major, which is large for non-technical students, can make one rethink choice of schools. But I have always had full confidence in the curriculum and faculty in my department. Michigan Tech provides a quality education, whther you’re an engineer or an artist.
Additionally, my program is small enough that class sizes are kept to a minimum. Professors and advisors are also extrememly accessible. Although my computer lab is the smallest on campus, I’ve found comfort in old-house smell and piles of unwanted books mounded around the computers. The maze of offices (known affectionately as the “rat warren”) in the Academic Office Building has become as familiar to me as the faces within the cramped rooms.
There is certainly no supremacy of one subject over another. Engineers and authors alike change the world, who is to say which is superior? I would like, however, to be able to tell people my major without them having to suppress a smirk or a giggle.

Dear Sassy,
I have always wanted to be a writer. However, when I showed a short story that I was very proud of to a writing professor, they basically told me I should start over. This discouraged me quite a bit. What if I just don’t have the talent to be a writer? Should I start considering other options?
Sincerely,
Wannabe Writer

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Recently, Dr. Madhukar Vable, associate professor in the Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Mechanics department, decided he had had enough with both the way the State of Michigan funds public universities and how Michigan Tech values research more than the education of its undergraduate students. Vable, in a bold effort to spark change and discussion among Michigan’s lawmakers and Michigan Tech administrators, returned both his Michigan Association Governing Board of State University award and his Michigan Technological University Distinguished Teaching Award. He also resigned from the Michigan Tech Academy of Teaching Excellence.
Following the return of his two awards, Vable wrote letters to Michigan Tech President Dr. Glenn D. Mroz, members of the Board of Control, Governor Jennifer Granholm and members of the Michigan Tech Academy of Teaching Excellence. These letters have been made available to the Michigan Tech student body online.
In his letters, Vable explains the system that is used within his department to assign the number of courses each professor must teach. According to Vable, each professor is expected to teach six courses per year. This number was reduced by one course for each graduate research assistant advised. The system which is used to calculate salary increases – a merit points system – rewards a professor with 19 points for each graduate student advised but only three points for teaching an undergraduate three-credit course with up to 500 students. “…in other words, 600% more merit points for teaching each graduate student over teaching a class of undergraduate students,” Vable says in his letter to President Mroz. “These changes…have made mockery of undergraduate education, unfunded scholarship and represents a massive transfer of resources from undergraduate education to finance funded research.”
Vable, in his letter to Michigan legislators, asks that the State reevaluate the way in which it funds university research. “Universities have an established accounting system in which each research project of a faculty member is tracked and budgeted. Demand that the same accounting model be used to cost each course the faculty member teaches and use this information to obtain the average cost of each degree awarded by the University.” Vable goes on to suggest that this information be made available to the consumers of education: the students. By publishing the difference between the cost the University incurs per course taught versus the tuition received for taking the course, students will be able to evaluate the actual cost of obtaining their degree.
In the more than 25 years Vable has been teaching, he says that there have been countless reports published about the deteriorating environment for undergraduate students in our nation. The cause, according to Vable, is “the way we fund research and education, however no individual or an institution can use this as an excuse for what happens in their university.”
“The…proposal will accomplish several things,” Vable states. “First, it will put public pressure on universities to reduce the difference between the list price and the actual cost of a degree and thus moderate the increases in tuition.”
The proposed requirement for universities to publish this information would help keep tuition increases in-check. By making this type of information available, students would be able to more effectively evaluate the brand value of each public university in the state and would force universities to think twice before further increasing the financial burden placed upon undergraduate students.
Vable hopes that his proposal will also help place the emphasis back on the education of the undergraduate student within the educational system instead of on the amount of money that can be brought in for research. He argues that “[t]he worst part of the evolving culture at [Michigan Tech] is the inversion of our fundamental values. The primary mission of teaching is less respected and rewarded than the secondary mission of research.”
Under Michigan Tech’s current policies, the impact a professor makes upon his colleagues is valued more highly than the impact they make upon students. Students surely can benefit from having a professor who actively engages in research. The added knowledge a professor can bring to the classroom as a result of research is invaluable. The funding brought into the University by research, however, should not trump the importance of a quality education. By reevaluating the funding process and increasing the transparency of each school’s expenditures, undergraduate students would, once again, become the focus of an educational institution.
“Transparency and information are very powerful mechanisms for change,” Vable added.
In an effort to make more students aware of the proposed changes, a Facebook group was recently created. The group, titled “Plight of the Michigan Tech Undergrad,” had over 600 members earlier this week. On the group, students are urged to express their concerns about Michigan Tech’s current funding systems to members of the Undergraduate Student Government who can, in turn, convey the message to the Board of Control at their meetings.
“…I love teaching and cannot remain silent and do nothing about the damage to the undergraduate teaching that is taking place at [Michigan Tech] and in our nation,” Vable said. “I hope you, too, will speak.”

For the past two weeks, the Tech Theater Company has performed a rather different style of play. Theater of the Absurd was the theme as the Company put on two of the Romanian-French playwright Eugène Ionesco’s one-act plays: The Bald Soprano and The Lesson. The Company had been rehearsing the plays since the first week of school, according to actress Lauren Dedow, who played the part of the maid in The Lesson. The plays attracted a fair amount of interest: as of the third performance over one hundred people had attended, and even more attended the remaining performances.
The Bald Soprano was the first play to be performed. One of the most-performed plays in France, and holding a record for the greatest number of interpretations, The Bald Soprano showcases an evening of a stylized British couple and their guests for the night. The play is notable for its non-sequiturs and nonsensical dialogue, including a line how the characters “ate our British salad” and “drank our British water,” and an infamous scene in which the characters discuss multiple individuals named Bobby Watson, without ever seeming to notice the absurdity of having so many people all named Bobby Watson. The play also took the interesting step of displaying certain stage directions on a screen above the stage, which allowed the audience to see how the stage directions further tied into the theme (“The clock strikes seventeen British strokes”).
Following a ten-minute intermission, the performance resumed with The Lesson. In contrast to The Bald Soprano, which primarily focuses on the humor in absurdity, The Lesson explores the dark side of the absurd. The story of a professor taking on an eager new pupil, the play initially seems to be another absurd-humor play as the gaps in the student’s education become apparent. Yet, as the play goes on, the professor’s reactions become increasingly disturbed, and the play becomes increasingly dark, until the very end, which results in a twist ending that exemplifies the concept of the Theater of the Absurd.
Overall, the performances went fairly well. There were certainly a few minor issues, such as the fake English accents of the actors’ in The Bald Soprano occasionally slipping, but they did not generally detract too much from the quality of the performance.
The Tech Theater Company’s next performance will be Vaster than Empires, a collection of stories by science-fiction writer Ursula K LeGuin. It will be shown Nov. 12-14.

Dear Sassy,

My roommate started sleeping with my ex-boyfriend. This makes me feel uncomfortable, especially since he is around the room several times a week. I would prefer that they hang out somewhere other than our dorm room. Should I approach her about the issue? Help!
Sincerely,
Uncomfortable Roommate

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Last Friday, Professor Richard E. Honrath, of the Geological and Mining Engineering Sciences department, passed away in a kayaking accident.

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If you are a Tech student and happen to be graduating in 2009, you have the unique opportunity to go on the record and thank those who have helped you along way. As an added bonus, you can also help out your fellow scholars. For a donation of $20.09, you can participate in the Class Tribute Gift Program launched in 2008 by the Michigan Tech Student Foundation. All proceeds go to the MTSF Endowed Scholarship Fund. Prices increase by one cent every year, so graduate as soon as possible.

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Dear Editor,

Harvey Milk said, “I cannot prevent anyone from getting angry, or mad, or frustrated. I can only hope that they’ll turn that anger and frustration and madness into something positive, so that two, three, four, five hundred will step forward, so the gay doctors will come out, the gay lawyers, the gay judges, gay bankers, gay architects … I hope that every professional gay will say ‘enough,’ come forward and tell everybody, wear a sign, let the world know. Maybe that will help.”

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Dear Editor,

Harvey Milk said, “I cannot prevent anyone from getting angry, or mad, or frustrated. I can only hope that they’ll turn that anger and frustration and madness into something positive, so that two, three, four, five hundred will step forward, so the gay doctors will come out, the gay lawyers, the gay judges, gay bankers, gay architects … I hope that every professional gay will say ‘enough,’ come forward and tell everybody, wear a sign, let the world know. Maybe that will help.”

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One enters “Profiles of African-Americans in the Keweenaw” (which opened at the Carnegie Museum, the former Portage Lake District Library building, on Feb. 12) by passing an African-texture-draped table. Curated by Kari Brown, the University’s Interim Coordinator of African-American Student Support, the exhibit shows photographs and biographies of many African-Americans currently resident in the area, everything from butchers to bakers to nanotechnologists.
Kedmon and Chipo Heungwe are originally from Zimbabwe. Kedmon is an Associate Professor of Teacher Education at Tech and Chipo an adjunct assistant professor in the same department. She is also the secretary of the board of the Barbara Kettle Gundlach Shelter Home for abused women.
The exhibit features nanoscientist Dr. Frank Underdown and Tech’s well-known Betty Chavis, Dr. Olanewaju Aluko, Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Devin Harris, the Donald F. and Rose Ann Tomasini Assistant Professor in structural engineering, and senior at BRIDGE High School Janario Johnson.
There are also biographies on Dean of Students Gloria Melton and her husband, professor emeritus and this author’s former sociology professor Willie Melton, who has had a very impressive and diverse record of scholarship over a career that included 33 years at Tech.
While the exhibit is somewhat interesting, one cannot help but think that a broader exhibit covering the largely unknown history of African-Americans in the Copper Country, of adventurers, miners and some of the earliest ice-hockey players, would provide a richer context.