Topic: Cincinnati: University of Cincinnati News & Info

[thomasbw]

Another positive enrollment trend is that 72 percent of incoming freshmen are planning to live on campus or in housing developments affiliated with UC

what is the normal amount?  UC has always seemed to have a large commuter student body

[David]

I thought it was higher than 72 percent lol.

[UncleRando]

72% actually is higher than what I thought it would be.  I would have thought that commuters made up a larger share (given the strong commuter dynamic present at UC).  It's good to hear that the budget is getting worked out, enrollment is going up, and the amount of people living on/around campus is going up!

[thomasbw]

Are strafford heights, McMillan manor, and the various frat houses the properties that are affiliated with uc?

[David]

I read that half the students at UC are commuters. I figured freshmen would be a very high percentage for sure since UC requires all freshman to live on campus if they're not living with their parents.

[David]

Are strafford heights, McMillan manor, and the various frat houses the properties that are affiliated with uc?

You can only live in University Park as a UC student. I'm pretty sure it's the same with Stratford. They're basically just dorms. Don't know about McMillan Manor, it seems more like traditional apartments to me. I checked out UPA, it was 550 a month per PERSON to share a 1bdroom. The apt. couldn't have been any more than 300 sq. feet! And there's RAs, 250 dollar application fee, high cost for replacement keys, etc. Sadly, it's the same price as the crappy dorms though.

[UncleRando]

You can only live in University Park as a UC student. I'm pretty sure it's the same with Stratford. They're basically just dorms. Don't know about McMillan Manor, it seems more like traditional apartments to me.

Are you sure about that...it was my understanding that they were open to other individuals, but typically only attract students.  I'm not positive, but that was my understanding.  I kind of like the privatizing of the student housing that is occurring around UC...it's making the community a better place in my opinion by cleaning up deteriorating areas.

[UCplanner]

Both UP and Stratford require residents to be students at The university, although at stratford you are also allowed to be a student at cincy state and live there

[David]

Yeah, aside from the frat houses, they're just new dorms, and with UC's property already being really dense, its a great way to sort of expand campus and make the neighborhood look nicer at the same time.

[UncleRando]

UC running out of slots
For first time, new students might have to wait to enroll
BY KIMBALL PERRY | June 19, 2007

If you're one of the more than 4,300 who hope to be incoming freshmen at the University of Cincinnati's main campus, you'd better let UC know soon - or you could wind up on a waiting list.  This is the first time in UC's history that it has had a wait list for students it has accepted.

UC sent a letter last week to 3,600 prospective freshmen who have been accepted but have not confirmed that they will be attending UC. The letter informs them that they have until June 29 to confirm their enrollment at UC or face the wait list.

Read full article here:
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070619/NEWS0102/706190366/1077/COL02

[atlas]

thats good news that more people want to go to UC, but is this frosh class their best ever?  I am sure that is their goal but with their budget woes, it wouldnt surprise me that they eased their requirements.  I know here at osu, every incoming class has been the best class academically for years now.  and the crazy thing is we still increase enrollment every year as well!  go bucks!    ( i am going to be a bearcat this fall so go cats too!)

[dmerkow]

Basically the developments were a way to add dorms without have to go to the state for money. Get some outside capital working for the university. There is all sorts of weirdness about funding for dorms in Ohio. At Toledo, they battled over it quite a bit.

[UncleRando]

^You're spot on...UC has been suffering from a shortage of on-campus living options.  So they have managed to create more living options in the immediate vicinity around campus with private dollars.  Sure UC has help foot a lot of the bill, but not all of it; and that is an improvement over what they had been doing.  Plus they are cleaning up the area around campus at the same time.  What's that they say something about two birds with one stone...

[dmerkow]

I think we would all feel a little better about it if they hadn't screwed the pooch completely on their plans for the rest of the McMillan/Calhoun corridor. The plans for the part of project were downright laughable. 300k condos across from the university, right...

[UncleRando]

I don't think so...the idea was/is to market many of these owner-occupied units to professionals at the university, hospitals, EPA, zoo and what not.  There are a lot of high paying highly educated jobs in that area.  Uptown Consortium's goals are to get those professionals living in the community.

[The_Cincinnati_Kid]

Costs put pressure on UC
Deficit fight brings look at degrees and services
BY LORI KURTZMAN | LKURTZMAN@ENQUIRER.COM

The numbers seem daunting: A debt of $1.2 billion. Deficits totaling more than $150 million. A budget cut this year of $27 million.  The University of Cincinnati is not in financial crisis, says Monica Rimai, senior vice president for administration and finance, but "I think we have a lot of explaining to do."

UC's trustees heard about it Tuesday, as Rimai and UC President Nancy Zimpher talked about what Zimpher called UC's "elephant in the living room" - financial struggles that stem from unexpected construction expenses; rising health care and energy costs; and operating deficits in housing, student services and other divisions.  The debt, resulting in large part from a decade of campus construction, was planned, said spokesman Greg Hand; just shy of 7 percent of UC's budget goes to paying it off.

Read full article here:
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070627/NEWS0102/706270343/1077/COL02

[dmerkow]

Outsourcing services such as housing, parking and utilities.

The bolded line is what really hurts. A lot of life and energy at UC may get hurt in the process. It also doesn't make a lot of sense to cut programs as the institution tries to grow its enrollment unless the plan is push them into a few 'profitable' subject areas. Arrgh!!! 

[David]

900 a quarter to co-op?!?!/

[UncleRando]

900 a quarter to co-op?!?!/

Yeah...that will probably happen around the same time that UC switches over to the semester system.  To put it plainly...it's not going to happen very soon, or at least not while we're still there.

[UncleRando]

UC's harsh lesson
Trustees to run tighter ship after surprise cost overrun
BY DAN MONK | July 20, 2007

University of Cincinnati trustees resolved this week to keep closer tabs on the school's construction programs after they were surprised to learn of an $89 million increase in the cost of a long-planned renovation project.

The board's audit and finance committees now will receive quarterly progress reports on the $204 million renovation of UC's medical sciences building, a 945,000-square-foot refurbishment that has been planned since 2002. UC revamped its cost estimates for the project in January but didn't brief board members on the changes until July 17 - when trustees were asked to approve a new two-year capital budget at a special meeting. Those changes included a $21 million increase in project scope - adding air handling and lab animal space that wasn't part of the original project - plus $12 million in additional soft costs and $56 million in increased construction and contingency costs.

Trustee Thomas Humes said the board had been expecting an increase but not the 77 percent jump detailed in the July 17 report to the trustees' administration and finance committee. The report accompanied a resolution to increase UC's borrowing authority for the project by 140 percent to $410 million.

Read full article here:
http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2007/07/23/story1.html

[The_Cincinnati_Kid]

UC institute gets $5.5M boost
Gift to improve Parkinson's program
BY CLIFF PEALE | CPEALE@ENQUIRER.COM

A $5.5 million gift to research treatments and potential cures for Parkinson's disease will help expand one of the growth areas at University Hospital's Neuroscience Institute.  The money from James and Joan Gardner will go mostly to recruit clinicians, researchers and the staff they bring, and add to the more than $5 million investment in the Parkinson's program in the last five years, officials said after the announcement this morning.

"We think it's important to come up with a cure for the disease, but also to do something to arrest the progression and research more medications," said James Gardner, a retired executive at Cintas Corp.  Joan Gardner was diagnosed with Parkinson's several years ago and that gives the family a personal interest in the project, she said.

Read full article here:
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070908/NEWS01/709080358/1056/COL02

[UncleRando]

UC starts school year with biggest freshman class ever
September 12, 2007 | CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER

The University of Cincinnati will welcome its largest student body in 16 years, and its biggest freshman class ever, to its campus for the start of classes on Sept. 19.  Total enrollment is about 36,500, up by nearly 1,000 over the 2006-07 academic year, the university said in a news release.

The main campus' freshman class of 4,150 has an average ACT score of 24.2, the highest ever for UC, and includes 71 valedictorians, 20 salutatorians and 29 National Merit finalists, UC said.  The school's UC-21 strategic plan set goals to improve the size and the academic quality of students entering the university, as well as the retention rate, which rose from 77 percent in 2003 to 82 percent in 2007, according to the release.

Read full article here:
http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2007/09/10/daily34.html

[UCplanner]

GO CATS!

[atlas]

well im officially a bearcat now and walked around campus extensively for the first time in a long time.  the first thing that struck me is that UC needs more on campus residential halls.  Is this true?  If so, what are they doing to combat this issue?  UC has what, 4 campus res. towers?  Compared to OSU, who has 11, and 2 of them are over 20 stories(granted Lincoln doesn't utilize all floors for res.) 

[David]

UC has no room to expand, though I think they are trying to build a green ON-campus residence hall.

There's more like 8 or 9 when you include the rec center housing. There's a lot of off-campus housing affiliated with the university. McMillan Manor is nearby and has shuttle busses. University Park Apartments are right off campus, as well as the Stratford Heights.

[UncleRando]

They have torn down a few on campus halls over the recent past.  Most recently they were planning to renovate Sawyer Hall, but then decided to demolish it due to high costs of renovation.  The plan was to replace it with new housing, but right now there is a moratorium on all new building projects on campus.

There is also plans to build a new residence hall where the Alumni Center currently is (bottom of the steps that lead up to Langsam Library)...but like I said, all those plans are currently on hold.  The university is experiencing more demand than they can meet for on-campus housing.  If they had ANY money at all to add more housing, I'm sure they would...it is quite profitable from my understanding.

[David]

You're damn right its profitable. I paid over 500 a month to live in a tiny room with 3 other room mates. Not to mention forced into a meal plan that equals like 11 bucks/ meal , assuming you use all the meals, which you don't. Daniels has to be the most profitable by far, with its quads. They could have at least given us air conditioning 

[atlas]

UC has no room to expand, though I think they are trying to build a green ON-campus residence hall.

There's more like 8 or 9 when you include the rec center housing. There's a lot of off-campus housing affiliated with the university. McMillan Manor is nearby and has shuttle busses. University Park Apartments are right off campus, as well as the Stratford Heights.

Yea, but I meant towers.  OSU has over 30 res. halls and that doesn't even include the new Fisher Commons built for MBA students.  Its too bad they cant build new halls, b/c they certainly need them!

[thomasbw]

A huge number of uc's students are commuters, or non traditional students.  There is also a huge amount of low cost housing stock near the campus to contend with

[UncleRando]

A huge number of uc's students are commuters, or non traditional students.  There is also a huge amount of low cost housing stock near the campus to contend with

These are both important factors, but UC is becoming less and less of a commuter school each year.  More people from the Cincinnati area are choosing to live either on campus or in the surrounding areas.

The large housing stock is the big issue in my mind.  Why would you want to live under university regulations when you can live a perceived care-free life just across the street or a few blocks from campus...and like thomasbw said, IT IS CHEAP!  I know many people that pay around $300 a month...and that's with most utilities.

[UCplanner]

along with all of this, comes another fact about the incoming class... there isa higher percentage of people from out of cincy area, out of the state, and even international students than ever before. This higher percentage, along with the rule (if you live outside of 50 miles, you have to live on campus the first year), new residence halls are going to be required here bery soon!

[David]

A huge number of uc's students are commuters, or non traditional students.  There is also a huge amount of low cost housing stock near the campus to contend with

These are both important factors, but UC is becoming less and less of a commuter school each year.  More people from the Cincinnati area are choosing to live either on campus or in the surrounding areas.

The large housing stock is the big issue in my mind.  Why would you want to live under university regulations when you can live a perceived care-free life just across the street or a few blocks from campus...and like thomasbw said, IT IS CHEAP!  I know many people that pay around $300 a month...and that's with most utilities.

Word! And I get to have a front porch 6 feet from the sidewalk!!

[atlas]

yea but theres IMO, the dorm experience should be had by all.  its a damn inconvenient, annoying, loud, obnoxious hell of a great time. 

[UncleRando]

yea but theres IMO, the dorm experience should be had by all.  its a damn inconvenient, annoying, loud, obnoxious hell of a great time.

I wouldn't know.

*asks Mom what she is making for dinner*

[David]

It should be had by all, for freshman year. However, I couldn't concentrate or get anything done in the dorm. There was too many distractions. My room mates blasting music, watching tv, talking on the phone, their girlfriends coming over (sometimes 6 people all together in that one room). Everyone in our wing coming in randomly. I know other people on this street from my old dorm and I can call them and hang out/go do stuff whenever I feel like it. No one has a problem with the high cost of dorms because that cost is hidden by loans that cover it. They won't feel the pain until after they graduate. It's total bullsh!t. Everything is over priced.