SRU puts accountability, profile on new Web site

Having the facts on hand helps students decide if the academic fit is right.

By HAROLD GWIN

VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — Slippery Rock University has launched a comprehensive profile and accountability Web site that provides parents and prospective students with an easy-to-access overview of the university.

The SRU Institutional Profile: Accountability 2008 offers a wide array of information covering such things as student demographics, costs and financial aid, campus engagement, campus living, the classroom environment and more.

Slippery Rock is believed to be the first in Pennsylvania’s state college system to create the information Web site, said Robert Smith, president. He will travel to Harrisburg on Wednesday to make a presentation on the program to representatives of the 13 other schools in the system.

A federal Commission on the Future of Higher Education issued a report in September 2006 calling for, among other things, colleges and universities to be more transparent about costs and student success outcomes and to make that information available in a user-friendly format.

After seeing that report, Smith said he issued a directive in December to have Slippery Rock create such a Web site, and it went online this week, targeting the parents and students of the class of 2008.

It contains the most recent data available on the university and will be updated annually, he said.

“The ‘fit’ of student to institution is absolutely critical to that student’s success,” Smith said, explaining why it is important for prospective students to have all the information they need readily available when they look at colleges.

Slippery Rock’s site offers relevant data that can help parents and prospective students determine if the university “fits” their educational wants and needs, he said.

The data also shows the university addresses issues of high quality instruction while improving efficiency, Smith said.

He pointed out that Slippery Rock was recently identified as one of the top five “best value” public universities in America by Consumers Digest Magazine in terms of delivering a quality education at an affordable price.

The university has a current enrollment of 8,300 students.

gwin@vindy.com