LETTERS: STRONG COMMITMENT TO RIVER CAMPUS

To the editor:

Recent letters to the editor criticizing the university administration's handling of the River Campus issues confuse the development of the seminary property and the upcoming ballot issue with what those critics apparently perceive to be indecision or even dishonesty regarding what will happen once there. I believe the issues of the property acquisition and its value for historical preservation and revitalization of the downtown area -- and, indeed, its worth to the city and entire region -- have been sufficiently debated with a clear decision going to the River Campus concept. I want to address the other matter, which has perhaps received too little attention.

One letter suggests that the administration doesn't have a necessary commitment to programs scheduled to move to the River Campus. Another refers to moving "the same old tired faculty and programs." As one of the faculty members involved and the chair of a committee charged with studying such programs, my perception is quite different. First, the faculty members are hardly old and tired, and the current programs are solid and respectable. More to the point, however, the president of the university has very clearly charged the arts faculty to build (upon the foundation of what we already have) new programs that are interdisciplinary, innovative and superior in quality. And, yes, working together to share talent and concepts does result in what one writer facetiously dismissed as "artistic transfusion."

The need to move quickly to commit local dollars and thereby begin the long process of acquiring necessary state funding can be understood as an astute business decision. To assume, however, as those letter writers seem to do, that innovative academic and artistic programs can or should be developed and approved in the course of a few short months would be foolish at best. Not only would such haste be unnecessary, indeed it would be grossly irresponsible. Good programs take time. A case in point might be the history of KRCU, which started as an extremely small venture but has grown over the years into a radio station which has made the university and the city of Cape Girardeau proud. The promise of support for such programs as they emerge and develop has been clear and unmistakable.

One flippant suggestion was that "maybe Mark McGwire could help." It occurs to me that his patience and trust in his teammates might be virtues worth emulating.

DON SCHULTE

Cape Girardeau