It's rare that you actually get what you pay for when it comes to technology, especially when Americans are consistently wanting the "latest and greatest" tech toys available.
There's at least one exception that does ensure technical quality and value, despite what some students may think. It's right here on campus. In fact, it IS campus.
In 2002, Indiana cut its support for university technology altogether, yet BSU, having just initiated a student fee the year before, continued making improvements. Today full-time students pay $141 per semester in student technology fees, a far cry from the $65 of 2001.
Ball State, however, is estimated to be $2 million short in technology funds for the upcoming year. Despite the shortage, though, Vice President for Information Technology O'Neal Smitherman says the university will continue to enhance campus technology.
Using the fee, BSU presses on to keep building one of the most technologically advanced campuses in the country. Looking at the numbers, it's quite the value for students, despite the extra fees each semester. Compared to other schools -- such as Indiana University at Bloomington, which charges $200 a student per semester, and IUPUI, at $186.90 -- students at BSU are quite fortunate.
Students have wireless Internet, 202 computer labs, a 135 mbs Internet connection, virus protection and heavily discounted software, amongst other benefits. The $141 fee, even if it eventually raises, is worth the benefits it provides to students. How well that money is spent, though, will decide just how beneficial it is.
Half of the challenge administrators face in knowing where to spend the money is getting faculty and students to embrace the technology from the start. BlackBoard, which receives 2 percent ($2.82 per student) of the current student technology fee, is used by only 80 percent of students, and some would argue that statistic is too high. Convenient academic tools, such as Gradebook, too often go unused by professors, as well. Other tangible technology (classroom computers, projectors, Elmos, etc...) often collect dust, rather than hours of use, as they idly sit around campus.
It seems that some professors and students are still more comfortable with primitive technology, like chalk.
Regardless of reasoning, if students and faculty do not wish to use or do not actively use many of these tech tools, perhaps the school can save the money it puts toward them for other technology that would be more beneficial.
Even then, it's important for students who pay the fee to understand that it is more than just another number to their student loans. As long as the fee continues to be devoted to student needs, and reevaluated as such, their money is in good hands -- their own.
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