Gannon University - Lance Yearbook (Erie, PA)

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Gannon College is only one fragment of your life. How- ever, it will yield memories that will most likely influence the rest of your life. You will look back on your college years and remember those parties, finals, basketball games, friends or professors and relive those days over and over. These are the images in your mind. They are the reflections of time. 19

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Reflections 18

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Gannon . If one thing could characterize Gannon Col- lege as an institution during 1978-79 it could be its ambitious and often controversial move towards becoming a university. When the stu- dent body left Gannon in May of '79, it didn't know whether it would return to a college or a university. A nine man evaluating team had reported to the State Department of Education that Gan- non should become a university. The team commended Gannon's balanced budget, en- rollment stability, and growth in endowment. It called the four or five blocks of facil- ities and the faculty impressive, and it said the faculty was ready and qualified to as- sume the responsibilities of university. In conclusion, the evaluating team said that the college had support for its university quest from the trustees, faculty, administration, stu- dent body and alumni. But, that support had been preceeded by concerned controversy about the need and motive for Gannon's move toward university. Although everyone left that Spring with antic- ipation that Gannon would achieve U-status. What characterized the year was the contro- versy and questioning about it. The first steps toward university status had been taken before everyone returned to school in September of '78. An ad-hoc committee had recommended that Gannon apply for U-status as a liberal arts university. The committee defined liberal arts university as one with many large undergraduate and masters level programs, but as one with a limited mission in doctoral programs and research. This was a new twist in the state's concep- tion of university. In '72, Gannon had applied for U-status but was turned down because, according to Gannon President Dr. Joseph Scottino, the state did not make universities out of colleges with Gannon's size and academ- ic structure. The state's new thinking had al- lowed a college similar to Gannon to become a university. Now, Gannon too, was attempting to change its name. The new Liberal Arts concept of university meant that if Gannon did 'go university' it would not become a Harvard or a Yale. It would not have a large research purpose. It would not increase its size. Scottino said, It would remain a medium sized, liberal art, Catholic community, char- arterized by its personal and friendly environ- ment. But that simplistic statement did not answer the many questions circulating about the change and what it would do to the atmos- phere of the college on the lake. 20