Help Ohio Northern Decide What to Cut (Hypothetically)

DISCLAIMER: This exercise is completely hypothetical, although it is derived from real financial considerations being made by Ohio Northern University. Northern Review is NOT an agent of the university, and the results of this survey carry NO authority.

Two major developments are happening at Ohio Northern: one is the decision to cut faculty and programs, and the other is the prospective renovation of facilities on campus. This occurs in anticipation of the coming enrollment cliff in higher education. Given this, and given the university’s necessarily finite budget, a number of tough decisions will soon be made about ONU’s priorities.

As part of my work for my Policy Analysis class, I’ve devised a (hopefully) fun exercise for the student body: we’re all going to (pretend) vote on how Ohio Northern should spend its precious little money. My survey makes use of a quadratic voting system, which is a little different from “regular voting.” Instead of just voting for or against each option, you will have 100 total points to distribute however you’d like. So if you feel very strongly about renovating Kinghorn, you could place all of your points into voting for Kinghorn. However, if you only moderately want a Kinghorn renovation, you can place one half of your points into voting for Kinghorn, and disperse the other half across other options. Quadratic voting is also designed so that each successive vote for the same option is more expensive than the previous, according to the following table:

I know this seems confusing, but I promise it’s more intuitive when you’re doing it.

Kinghorn Renovation

This option is derived from BHDP Architecture’s recommendations. This hypothetical renovation would primarily concern athletic facilities. Exercise physiology labs may be updated, as well as weightlifting and training spaces. For the sake of argument, suppose this option includes a small expansion of a space equivalent to one new gymnasium.

Health and Wellness Center

This option also stems from BHDP’s recommendations, and it would consist of a new building. Unlike a potential Kinghorn renovation, this would not primarily concern athletic facilities. Intead, the exercise space would be recreational in purpose, and the building would include the student body’s clinic and counseling center, replacing the currently dispersed locations for these services.

Hill Renovation

This option would not substantially improve the amenities of the Hill Memorial building, but would rather simply address the deferred maintenance which has accumulated on the building. For the sake of argument, assume that if the “Hill Renovation” option is not one of the highest-voted options, the building will be decommissioned and demolished.

Founders Renovation

This renovation would focus on both addressing the reliability of the facilities (i.e., less frequent flooding, more reliable fire alarms) and on improving the quality of amenities (i.e., new lounges).

Save all Academic Programs

This option would save all academic programs which are currently planned on cancellation.

Save Half of the Faculty that will be Cut

This option will save ONE HALF of the faculty whom the administration currently plans on firing. For the sake of argument, assume that the remaining half of the faculty who do get cut will be determined by a fair process of your choice (i.e., the faculty who are cut are those who you think deserve to be cut, OR, the faculty who are saved are those you think most deserving of keeping their jobs).

Renovate McIntosh

This option would NOT include extensive dining overhauls, but would rather renovate the Bear Cave, the lounge in WOW, and the lounge outside the dining hall to have better amenities for social engagement. Think new lounge furniture, televisions, a new game room, etc. To balance out the cost of this option relative to others, assume also that the offices on the second floor (used by both students and staff) will be renovated.

Increase Financial Aid

This option is relatively self-explanatory; the relative cost of any one of the other options will instead go towards giving more financial aid to students. For the sake of argument, please assume whatever framework of aid allotment (merit based, need based, combination) you prefer.

Third Major Dining Option

This option would introduce another dining option somewhere on campus, with a separate kitchen and a menu size somewhere between those of WOW and Mac. Assume that, due to the University’s existing contract, this dining option will be managed by Sodexo. Please further assume a “neutral” quality of food, for whatever your subjective tastes indicate.

Other

This option is not a “fill in the blank,” as much as it is meant to indicate whether the nine preceding options are not identifying what you believe to be the most pressing issues on campus. If you have any particular project in mind which you believe should take precedence over all those listed above, please imagine it to be in this place, and allocate your votes accordingly.

Survey