President of St. John Fisher College Donald Bain responds to student concerns of overcrowding:

“Student satisfaction is a central concern of my administration ... We are presently working very hard to address broader issues of space utilization and student services and a fuller report will be available as our College Master plan is updated in the spring of 2007.”

Does the College have any plans to adjust and/or expand the infrastructure (parking, dining, athletics, and other facilities) to better suit the increasing enrollment numbers and student needs?

“Among other strategic initiatives, I have begun the process of updating the Campus Master plan that was developed in 1997. The completion of the College's long range planning process and the creation of the five schools within the College will provide the valuable information required to develop a valid Master plan for the future of the College. The Master plan schedule is to conduct meetings and gain information through spring, 2007 and provide an updated Master plan later in the year. One of my goals is to focus on improvements and expansion of the athletic facilities on campus, including student recreational facilities.

Independent of the overall Master plan, specific activities are underway to address some of the short term concerns on campus, including dining services. A study is in process for a parking management plan that will review the overall campus parking plan, requirements and recommendations for campus parking. This study will be complete late fall 2006. The campus classroom utilization study will be updated in spring, 2007 to provide current information on the utilization of both classroom reservation usage and seat occupancy to better understand the institution wide demand for classrooms space on campus.”

Does the College have any plans, either immediate or longterm, to address the issue of long lines at the dining hall?

I spoke with several people about [this]. I learned that while the addition of dining hall seating in 2005 helped considerably to accommodate increased student enrollment, the fact remains that people tend to arrive for meals in the dining areas at roughly the same time. It is not a matter of providing sufficient food in a timely manner but rather student schedules that tend to create lines at concentrated times of the day. I believe this is manageable and we can do better. As a result, I have requested that Dr. DeJesus work closely with Jim Liebow to try and develop a means of moderating the effects of this inconvenience and report to me the results.”

Any final thoughts?

Taken together, I believe these well developed measures will allow us to activate our clear and measurable plans that will result in significant steps towards addressing the issues [students] have raised.”