Knight Writer

Size matters … when it comes to advising and parking

by Debbie | October 12, 2009

It’s true. Size DOES matter, and in this case, small is good. I’m talking about Lynn, of course. This weekend, two articles in the Sun-Sentinel caught my attention. (Yes, I still read that antiquated relic they drop on my driveway every day, called a newspaper.)

The first article titled, “Long line to get college advice,” talked about the ratio of advisors to students at some of our Florida universities. The standard ratio, it says, is 300-to-1, and at the school just “across the street” from us – FAU – it’s a whopping, 1,332-to-1. Can you imagine? Not much individualized attention there. Clearly we have a distinct advantage with an advising ratio of approximately 25-to-1. Granted we are not a big state school, but it’s just another great plus at Lynn, where “individualized” is one of our hallmark strengths.

In the second article, “FAU students to stage protest about parking,” it says parking at FAU has become “so scarce that students are holding a protest on Tuesday, saying they can’t make it to class on time.” It was also mentioned that some schools are offering valet service (FIU); and at UF most students aren’t allowed to park on the central part of campus until they’ve earned 120 credit hours!

Here at Lynn, I know that parking is a hot issue and most students and employees, if asked, would say we have a parking “problem,” but compared to these larges universities, our “hike” across campus is much more like a walk in the park. You can really get anywhere on foot in just 10 minutes. Now, during our fast-moving rain deluges or our Sahara-like scorching heat, it can be a bit uncomfortable and inconvenient, but you’re not exactly walking a marathon.

So, Lynn’s small class size and small campus hopefully cut down on those big headaches. What do you think?