The UB Post

Freshman Steve Lioi created the Facebook group so that freshmen have a forum to discuss the FSP program. [Click to enlarge]

A number of Facebook groups have been created by and for the University of Baltimore's first freshmen class in 32 years. One, called "UB Class of 2011: Staying?? Leaving?? Not to [sic] sure??" was created by freshman Steve Lioi, real estate and economic development pre-major, to give students a chance to express their concerns about the First- and Second-Year Program (FSP).

Lioi began the Facebook group in November to find out how freshmen feel about UB and to see who may be transferring to another institution and who plans to stay.

"I want to make UB a better school and I want the school to succeed," said Lioi, who plans to continue at UB. "I want to be able to tell people outside of the state about UB."

The Facebook group was originally "open," meaning that anyone in the UB network could join; as of Jan. 23, the group was made "private," requiring an invitation to join.

Postings on the Facebook group's wall ranged from the negative—"If UB got rid of these learning communities more people would stay" and "build dorms"—to the positive—"I am staying…there never was doubt in my mind" and "UB just got freshmen, they're adjusting to us like we're adjusting to them. Give it time."

Each freshman has their own reason for attending UB, but most are in agreement that the free first year was a factor.

Lioi said he likes his unique major and the fact that he is able to save more money for graduate school because of the free year.

Freshmen have mixed feelings about learning communities—students with similar majors take a core set of classes in the same classroom with the same group of students.

"I wasn't a fan of the learning communities," said freshman Daniel Althoff, real estate and economic development pre-major who plans to stay at UB. "I only got to know a small classroom of people instead of meeting a wide variety."

However, freshman Justin Sealover, entrepreneurship pre-major who plans to stay at UB, has a different perspective. "I feel that it really brought people together to form strong relationships on a deep level."

Most freshmen would like to see changes made to the FSP. The top complaints on the Facebook group are the program's learning communities, the freshmen seminar and UB's lack of dorms.

Freshman Nabiha Khan, computer information systems pre-major and Undergraduate Student Senate (USS) freshmen representative, said, the FSP administrators "should listen to the students and have the students speak out, have meetings with the students individually and get more feedback."

Khan is staying at UB and plans to complete her masters here.

"The only thing I think [UB is] missing is the dorms and campus living which takes away from the 'college experience' but that's not something that happens over ngiht [sic]," Lioi posted on the Facebook group's wall. "All of us did kinda [sic] know that ahead of time when we picked the school."

"UB is new to the freshman thing," said freshman Heather Young, corporate communications pre-major, in a posting to the Facebook group's wall. "I think it is useless to sit on Facebook and complain about how they don't have dorms…UB has committed so much to our program to make it the best that they can…If you want to make it better, get involved!"

According to Marguerite Weber, Ph.D., director of the FSP, 152 freshmen enrolled for the fall semester; 14 of those—9.2 percent—did not re-enroll for the spring semester. This semester, 15 new students enrolled, bringing the total to 153 freshmen.

At the October Town Hall meeting, several freshmen voiced concerns about the structure of the FSP. Weber said that FSP administrators listened to the students and made appropriate changes.

"The feeling was that the [first-year seminar] was overly cumbersome for a two-credit course, so I revised the course for the incoming students," Weber said. "Also, the students didn't like to be in the same classroom, so the learning communities went from three classes in the same room down to two."

While student reaction to the FSP was mixed, some freshmen responded with praise and optimism that many problems could be resolved.

"The FSP program is great for me. It's exactly what I expected," said Young, USS freshmen representative. "For now, I am planning to stay at UB and see how the program improves over time."

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mandy.wrobel@ubalt.edu

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