Big things are happening in Oxford

How is the University balancing growth and maintaining integrity?

You would have to be blind not to notice that the Ole Miss community is ever growing. In my three years here, every year has boasted “the biggest freshman class yet”, five new dorms have been erected, and constant expansion and renovation is occurring on campus.

The growing student body storms the football field in celebration of a huge win.

This is an exciting transitional time for the University.  However, with the increase in students, comes the responsibility to maintain the integrity and tradition that induced the growth in the first place. I sat down with Dr. Linda Spargo, who is the Special Projects Coordinator and Academic Advisor in the Office of the Chancellor, to discuss what spurred this growth and how the administration plans to accommodate the increase in students on campus. “I think [the growth] is not by accident. When I started here 19 years ago, it was our academic mission to grow the University through great programs. Since then we have added a Phi Beta Kappa chapter, the honors college, major renovations to the library, and the school of accountancy which is number four in the nation now.”

Ole Miss is not a secret to the world anymore. This beautiful University has the feel of a small private school while in reality it is a large public SEC University. “I stepped on campus one time during high school and knew this was where I belonged”, said Charles Himel of Virginia.

So how does the administration plan to keep up with and accommodate the rising population? The answer is expansion. With many renovations in progress, a few more are slated to begin, namely to the Student Union and the Turner Center. “I literally use those two buildings almost every day. I'm excited to see what comes of it”, said Himel. Dr. Spargo went on to discuss how the administration plans to facilitate growth while maintaining small class sizes, and continuing to place an emphasis on the outstanding freshman and sophomore instructors, who she calls the backbone of this institution. The administration has a detailed ten year plan to expand, but not too quickly. It must be done correctly.

Ole Miss has also experienced a huge increase in freshman retention rates, which Dr. Spargo is especially proud of. "Ole Miss retains almost ninety percent of its freshmen, which was at seventy-five percent 15 years ago. " This is something to be truly proud of as an institution.

Watch out, world, big things are happening here in Oxford and I feel sorry for those who are missing out.