Jamie Wangler

University of Arkansas
A665 Arkansas Union
Fayetteville, AR 72701
December 15, 2014
Dr. Shelton & Dr. Hevel
University of Arkansas
107 Graduate Education Building,
Fayetteville, AR 72701
Dear Dr. Shelton and Dr. Hevel,
This semester in Overview of American Higher Education I learned a tremendous amount in
regards to how colleges and universities function. The main aspect is that colleges and
universities tend to be looked at with a business perspective. Even though students learning and
success are some of the biggest focuses of institutions, there are many other stakeholders that
administrators have to consider while making decisions. For example, any institution receiving
federal funds in any capacity must abide by federal laws such as Title IX and The Clery Act.
Additionally, it is clear to see many colleges and universities are working as businesses as their
mission statements are targeting external stakeholders such as state legislators and private
donors, and their websites proudly display any ranking they have received. One ranking system
in particular, The Carnegie Classification, was originated as a way to classify institutions, but
has, over time, become a large ranking system demonstrating things such as how much research
an institution completes and how many doctoral degrees they give away each year. Another
ranking system, U.S. News and World Report, has also turned into a major ranking system for
colleges and universities today. Consequently, these rankings have impacted the way some
schools operate in hopes of being seen as more prestigious and awarded with a higher ranking to
display to their stakeholders.
In addition to learning about how colleges and universities operate, we were given many chances
to understand what it takes to become a better higher education professional and a successful
graduate student. The various guest speakers provided different perspectives that I would not
have had the opportunity to hear elsewhere. That, combined with the Legal Aspects of Higher
Education course I am enrolled in, and being a graduate assistant for Associated Student
Government, I have learned many valuable lessons. Through these experiences, it is clear to
always keep the students in mind first, while always thinking of the other stakeholders you might
impact. It is also vital to continue your education by staying up-to-date with things such as state
and federal laws, how your programs compare to other institutions, and how to best
communicate with your student body. Additionally, challenging yourself, in times you best see
fit, is another way to gain more experiences, and in turn, become a successful graduate student
and higher education professional.

While I was able to learn a significant amount in this course about American higher education,
there are still a few things I would love to learn more about as well. More specifically, the main
aspect I am still very curious about is the different administrative positions on college and
university campuses. We did get to hear from Chancellor Gearhart, and about administrators
from other campuses during out site visit presentations. However, I think it could be extremely
beneficial to bring a panel of administrators to class to talk to us about their jobs, or require us to
talk to a few we are interested in meeting and write a short summary reflecting what we learned.
Not only would we be able to better understand what they do on campus, and how it ties into the
University of Arkansas mission and goals, but we could also gain a more thorough
understanding of what job positions are presently on campuses. I understand that I am the
exception in that I didnt know I wanted to go into Higher Education immediately after
undergrad, but many students, including myself, do not fully understand where this degree could
potentially take us in the future. While it would certainly add to the overall coursework, it would
also provide more insight to what general issues they are currently facing and their viewpoints of
where higher education is going in the future. By setting up a panel during class, or requiring
students to meet with a few administrators on their own could potentially help students focus in
on what path they would want to take after graduation, or at the very least, have a better
understanding of some higher education professions. Furthermore, their insight would
compliment the current syllabus and class readings during our discussions of Presidents and
Administrators.
Throughout the semester, I learned a lot from this course inside and outside the classroom. Not
only did I attend every class period, but I also came prepared and engaged with meaningful
contributions. I read for, and participated, in all but one class period; I discussed that specific day
with Dr. Hevel after class was over. While I have no excuse for not being prepared for that
specific day, I would hope my contributions and preparedness over the rest of the semester
would make up for that. Additionally, when others were speaking I gave them respect and
listened to what they had to say with an open mind. Coming to class every week with an
understanding of the assigned readings, and not being afraid to speak my mind really allowed me
to get the most of the course.
In addition to learning during the class period, I also learned a lot through our assignments. My
weakest assignment, and the one I truly learned the most from, was the midterm. This was my
weakest, not only in terms of my grade, but the quality of work I submitted. While I knew
papers were supposed to have a thesis statement, I did not know the first sentence of the
following paragraphs are supposed to be topic sentences tying back to the thesis for some
reason I always had it in mind that was a transition from the previous paragraph. Additionally,
the way my midterm was set up was very choppy, and did not flow as well as it could have.
However, I took all of the advice given to me from my midterm and applied it to the final issue
paper. Going off of that, my issue paper was the strongest assignment I submitted this semester.
This is reflective in the grade received, but again, also in the quality of work I submitted. In
addition to applying all of the tips given to me after my midterm, I also worked with a classmate
on this paper. Our collaboration, along with going to the Quality Writing Center on campus,
allowed us to submit our best work thus far.

The time, effort, and hard work I put into this class was reflected by my preparedness and
participation in class, along with the quality of work I submitted for the projects and papers. I
took each assignment, and the feedback received, seriously. Additionally, I asked for
clarification or guidance when I wasnt sure I understood something correctly to ensure I was on
the right track and would turn in what was requested of me. Conclusively, I have earned an A in
this course from the grades received, improvement shown from the midterm to the final paper,
and hard work demonstrated throughout the semester. Thank you for allowing such interactive
class periods and providing thorough feedback after each assignment.
Sincerely,
Jamie Wangler