The Griffin spoke with junior USA Senator Carlo Mastrodonato about his thoughts on Canisius “University” and whether student government should voice its opinion to administration on the issue.
Q: Should we become Canisius “University”?
Mastrodonato: “I don’t understand where the hesitancy is coming from. Maybe it’s because some of the trustees are traditional, but we should move towards Canisius University in order to compete for more students. We need to be doing all we can to increase our competitive ability and get international students in.
“It’s a dangerous position to be the only college in the area. It would be pretty damaging to be by ourselves. We are a Western New York school and we are right near the border of Canada. If we want more Canadian students, who already make up a big proportion of the school, we need to become ‘university.’”
Q: How would the change affect students?
Mastrodonato: “It will be weird for those who have ‘college’ on their resume. I don’t know all of the implications, but I have to wonder if there might be some sort of discrepancy for those who received a degree at Canisius ‘College.’ It might cause an awkward conversation in an interview. It might open the door to more questions if the name on peoples’ degrees are different from what the institution calls itself now.
“Current students won’t be affected. The effects will largely be long-term. We’re not pulling in the students that we need. There is a huge expectation in higher education admissions that there will be an enrollment dropoff after 2025. If Canisius really wants a chance, Canisius ‘University’ could cement a future and open us up to dialogue with more students.”
Q: Should the Senate have a voice in the decision?
Mastrodonato: “As a senator, I definitely recommend that students spend time looking into this. There must be some reason President Hurley spent a significant amount of his time at Canisius urging the Trustees to do this.
“Any official conversation should be held off until next semester, but I highly urge all students to start researching it now. If everything checks out, students should want the change because it opens our name up to more students. Especially with the new administration, it’s something we [the Senate] should talk about. Student resolutions really do have an impact with administration.”