The State Press editorial board sat down with the man, the myth, the legend himself — Michael Crow to discuss the present and future of ASU. The following are the most interesting things we learned from the discussion.
Expansion
While some have joked that Crow’s ultimate goal is world domination, from speaking with him today we learned that might not be too far from the truth.
ASU is comprised of five academic campuses, three innovation campuses and three centers — and is still growing.
Most recently, we’ve heard that there is a potential Mesa campus expansion to which Crow said, “The city of Mesa would invest in fantastic world class facilities, we would move programs to those facilities that would only prosper.”
This parallels the overall thesis driving ASU’s expansion practices: “The acquisition of world-class facilities to which we move our world-class programs, allowing them to grow or to be incubated.”
The big takeaway from this: ASU isn’t looking to develop satellite campuses so much as it aims to create new centers to further innovation and learning for both students and faculty.
Innovation
By this time, it seems almost superfluous to say that ASU was ranked the most innovative school in the country. However, the 2015 ranking by U.S. News and World Report isn't the end.
Innovation fosters innovation and Crow sees the way ASU models its education and all of the groundbreaking work done by students as two key areas where ASU is continually innovating.
Crow hinted at new programs, opportunities and ideas coming to each campus. From themed dorms where all students are working toward the same goal, to rethinking the look of the the Downtown Phoenix campus, ASU still has a long way to go and many ideas left to be fulfilled.
Access
ASU has made its mission to expand access to higher education.
The ASU charter states that our University is “measured not by whom it excludes, but by whom it includes and how they succeed.”
Whereas most universities are disproportionately comprised of students from families who fall in the upper-half of the income spectrum, Crow said ASU's demographics are representative of the population it serves.
ASU not only prides itself on its availability to students who otherwise would not have been able to receive a college education, but on its effective recruitment of top talent to the University as well.
Crow said that he finds "this whole thing about acceptance rates kind of weird." If we were to compare the incoming class of freshman at the top colleges in the country (such as Bowdoin or Williams) with the top students from Barrett, the Honors College, the ASU students would be found "markedly better academically be every single measure," he said.
Crow pointed out that the only difference is that the ASU students come from families with 1/4 or 1/3 the wealth of those going to the top liberal arts colleges.
Efficiency
In 2007, ASU received about $13,000 per student per year. This year, the University received less than $6,000 per student.
Crow said the University has re-calibrated the way it works so that we don’t need $13,000 per year, we need $7,500 — half of the cost required to educate students.
These numbers make ASU one of the most cost-effective education investments in the country and should only further echo the fact that the state needs to invest more into our public universities.
Crow is as aware as anyone that our universities are currently underfunded, and he is taking steps to ensure that ASU can continue to invest the money necessary to foster innovation, while also making the cost to attain a degree affordable for students.
Despite countless plans for expansion, Crow continually made a point to address the fact that money from private donors and partnerships will drive these projects, instead of tuition.
Want to join the conversation? Send an email to opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com.
Keep letters under 300 words and be sure to include your university affiliation. Anonymity will not be granted.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
