Nontraditional student rebuffs columnist's remarks

To the Editor -

I am speaking on behalf of the nontraditional students who met April 17 to discuss the opinion article by Sarah Cox entitled, “Nontraditional student admission standards need reevaluation.”

We felt we were negatively portrayed by an article that was filled with vague, non-factual information. Sentiments were that the article served no purpose except to exacerbate an already-existing gap between traditional and nontraditional age students.

Christian Uhler, vice president (elect) of the student government association, attended the meeting. He did not believe that the statements in the article were indicative of the beliefs of the entire traditional age student body.

We could not find any professors who “push nontraditional students through the system,” like Sarah Cox claimed in her article.

According to five faculty members, nontraditional students are welcome and appreciated on campus. They said that often nontraditional students raise the standards in the classroom to a higher level.

Richard Hinshaw, vice president for enrollment management and dean of admissions, welcomes nontraditional students.

Hinshaw denied that “less-than-intelligent” students are admitted or that favoritism is shown to nontraditional age students. The standards are the same for all students.

To continue with the high standards VWC expects from nontraditional (and traditional) students, the admissions office has raised the required GPA for Tidewater Community College graduates wishing to transfer to VWC from a 2.0 to 3.0.

Dr. Carol Johnson, associate professor of english, said that she did not believe the percentage of nontraditional students who cannot pass freshman English is any greater for nontraditional students than it is for traditional students. And according to Dr. Pat Lang, professor of mathematics, it is not true that students have failed the math placement test to such a degree that there are no remedial math courses for them.

Hinshaw also addressed the comment about “special consideration.” Special consideration for students over 23 and veterans is standard for most colleges. It simply means that admittance to a college is not based on SAT scores. It does not mean that simply being able to afford tuition assures admittance to VWC, as Cox’s article indicated.

We believe in Cox’s right to be heard; however, we were surprised that a fellow nontraditional age student would make generalized, uninformed statements. As a columnist, she should know to investigate the facts. We are likewise upset that the Chronicle did not show better discretion when printing their columnist’s article.

Nontraditional students don’t want special favors to get through college, nor do they need them. All of the students at the meeting agreed that labeling students as “nontraditional” or “traditional” helps to create a divide, and we would like the phrase to disappear. There should only be one type of student - a student of Virginia Wesleyan College.

Lisa Healy