Academic Programs

Arguing that Maryland has failed to desegregate its colleges and universities, an advocacy group with ties to Morgan State University filed a lawsuit yesterday demanding the dismantling of several new academic programs at traditionally white campuses, including a joint MBA program at Towson University and the University of Baltimore. The Coalition for Equity and Excellence in Maryland Higher Education is requesting a court order that will mandate parity in "all facets of ... operations and programs" between the state's four historically black campuses and their traditionally white counterparts.

The decision last week by Morgan State University's governing board to oust Dallas R. Evans as chairman appears to have been the culmination of a bitter struggle over the school's leadership between Mr. Evans and University President David Wilson. In December, Mr. Evans tried to orchestrate Mr. Wilson's dismissal after only 21/2 years on the job by persuading the school's 15-member Board of Regents not to renew the president's contract when it ends in June. But then an outpouring of support for Mr. Wilson from students, faculty members and community leaders forced the board to reverse its decision a few weeks later.

SINCE AT least 1978, Maryland has tried to make sure that new academic programs at its state universities do not unnecessarily duplicate programs at sister campuses. That policy ensures some degree of uniqueness in campus roles, missions and programs. It also provides a rational system for allocating programs and a prudent investment of state tax dollars. Now, as universities face competion from a surge of courses offered on the Internet, some ask whether the state's policy still makes sense.

A little more than a year after groundbreaking, the first classrooms are ready to open at the Higher Education and Applied Technology Center near Aberdeen, part of a state and county project designed to foster high-technology business and education.Classes will begin Sept. 5 at the 10,285-square-foot academic building off Route 22, the first piece of a project that includes more classroom buildings and several manufacturing and office complexes on a 150-acre tract next to Interstate 95.On Wednesday, about 300 elected officials, representatives of Maryland colleges and universities, and others gathered at the site to mark the HEAT center's official opening.

Facing unprecedented state budget cuts, the University of Maryland Board of Regents today approved a one-semester, 15 percent tuition surcharge, to take effect in January, and a plan to restructure the UM system by merging some campuses and academic programs.The January tuition surcharge will average $150 a student across the system. Students at UM Baltimore's professional schools will pay a 7.5 percent surcharge.The regents also approved a preliminary increase of 4 percent in 1992 tuition charges, effective next fall.

A chart in Dec. 12 editions of The Sun suggested that all graduate programs in management and accounting at the University of Baltimore would be eliminated by the University of Maryland Board of Regents. In fact, only the post-baccalaureate certificate programs in those fields will be discontinued.The Sun regrets the errors.COLLEGE PARK -- The University of Maryland Board of Regents yesterday unveiled a landmark cost-cutting proposal that would eliminate or restructure nearly 100 academic programs at campuses across the state, ranging from computer sciences to nursing and philosophy.

IT'S NO EASY JOB running the University of Maryland, Baltimore. When David J. Ramsay took the job of president nearly four years ago, fresh from the University of California at San Francisco, he'd been preceded by eight men in the previous decade.A Prince George's County state delegate had called UMAB "a collection of fiefdoms, populated with strong personalities."The British-born Ramsay vowed to halt the infighting and move the schools of dentistry, law, medicine, nursing, pharmacy and social work into the top ranks of their fields.

Because of federal regulations, Goucher College has to move this winter's Cuba study-abroad program. The new location? Probably Miami. "Obviously, Little Havana isn't the same thing, and it would radically change the context of the class," said Eric Singer, Goucher's director of international studies. "We have no choice." Schools across Maryland and the nation are scrambling to deal with the federal government's recent ruling that prohibits academic programs in Cuba unless they are at least 10 weeks long.

The staff cuts Coppin State University President Reginald Avery announced last week drew protests from union members represented by the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees, along with faculty and students concerned about the direction the school is headed. Mr. Avery insists the layoffs and contract non-renewals were necessary to balance the budget and protect academic programs, but it remains to be seen whether his ambitious efforts to boost student retention and graduation rates will bear fruit.

The NCAA this morning announced stiff penalties on the Penn State football program, acting with unprecedented swiftness in response to a report detailing the repeated failure of officials there to act appropriately in response to long-time assistant coach Jerry Sandusky's serial child sexual abuse. The football team, already reeling from the scandal and the firing and subsequent death of legendary coach Joe Paterno, faces a four-year ban on post-season appearances, a $60 million fine and the vacating of all its victories from 1998-2011, the time period when officials knew about Mr. Sandusky's crimes but failed to stop them.