A blueprint to make New College a true world-class school

In 2018, I was appointed to the New College of Florida Board of Trustees by then-Gov. Rick Scott. After serving for several years, I opted last fall to finish my tenure without reapplying for another term.

During my tenure, I advocated for nonpolitical changes that I believed would be beneficial for New College and its students. Given that track record, had I known the board would be moving in a fresh direction, I would have stayed as the new trajectory is more aligned with my philosophy of education.

I am writing to share the following recommendations and ideas, and I hope the current board will embrace them as a way to address New College's student enrollment challenges – and also improve the school’s reputation and standing. We should not forget that just a few years ago, New College almost disappeared entirely when legislation was proposed to merge the school with another Florida institution.

First: Change the name

Of the 12 institutions within the State University System of Florida, New College is the only one labeled as a “college.” This has clearly had a negative effect on admissions: Canadians and Europeans, in particular, perceive “colleges” as two-year institutions and/or trade schools – so they disregard New College on the name alone.

Also, as an institution that is more than 60 years old, New College is hardly "new" anymore. The perception of New College as a "new" institution dissuades some students from applying because many are looking for an established university. That's why New College would benefit from a name change that also incorporates the word "university," and it is even more apropos to do so in light of recent events.

Second: Start assigning grades

As a traditional policy, New College does not assign grades (except in one postgraduate program); it has opted instead for “narrative evaluations.” And there is some merit to narrative evaluations – they are valuable because they go into detail about specific areas of a student’s progress.

But while I am not advocating for the elimination of narrative evaluations, I do believe that grades need to be administered as well. Students and parents are already familiar with grading systems, and they naturally gravitate towards institutions that assign grades. That's especially the case with high-achieving students: They are already accustomed to grade point averages because they'd spent years as high school students seeking to attain the highest GPAs possible.

New College's longtime unwillingness to employ a traditional grading scale has put the school and its graduates at a disadvantage. It hurts admissions because prospective students are accustomed to receiving grades, and some just don’t understand why grades are not assigned. It also requires additional resources to explain the narrative evaluation process to students and parents – and even that fails to erase concerns among some of them.

In addition, when New College grads apply to graduate schools, including medical schools, grade point averages are often required as part of the application process. To address this issue, a “proxy” system was recently created: It requires New College to use resources to create an artificial grade point average, often many years after graduation.

This is unacceptable.

The lack of a verifiable grade point average can also hurt New College graduates when they seek to obtain jobs. Some employers may not have the time or interest necessary to read through narrative evaluations, which are lengthy and voluminous, and simply prefer to rely on grade point averages.

Finally, it is ironic that New College requires students to provide grade point averages in order to enroll in the school – yet it doesn't assign grades or use grade point averages to help existing students gauge their success.

That's why New College needs to start using grades: They will improve enrollment on the front end, assist students who prefer measurable academic achievement and better equip graduates for future employment on the back end.

Third: Deal with deferred maintenance

"Deferred maintenance" is a phrase used to refer to expenditures that keep buildings up to date, but which have been “deferred” to sometime in the future.

The state of Florida does not provide ongoing funds for deferred maintenance in higher education. But the lack of proper maintenance of buildings has helped lead to lower second-year retention rates among New College students, and it has hurt the school's perception of excellence in comparison to other institutions. Unfortunately, New College currently needs more than $105 million to address deferred maintenance issues.

When I was a board member, I requested a list that identified the outstanding deferred maintenance projects. I was concerned because the list was extensive, and there remains no mechanism in place to fund all of these projects. It is critical for New College to have a long-term plan for deferred maintenance.

New College can't avoid change

It is no secret that New College of Florida previously leaned strongly to the left. And here is my response to those who are appalled that this may no longer be the case: I firmly believe that no government-sponsored educational institution should lean strongly in any particular direction. My tax dollars should not have to fund a left-leaning school, and the tax dollars of others should not have to fund a right-leaning school.

It is my hope that the apolitical ideas and recommendations I have offered above will be implemented to increase enrollment at New College and elevate the school's standing in the community.

Garin Hoover is a local real estate broker and attorney. He is a former member of the New College of Florida Board of Trustees

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: New College of Florida needs a new direction to become a top school