There could be a number of reasons for the University of Houston's fifth-place finish (for number of students who graduate within six years) in the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board's recent performance review.
For example, UH has a higher percentage of commuter students than most universities. Being in a large city like Houston means more UH students are non-traditional ones, balancing studies with careers and raising families.
Of course, the fact that UH always seems to be up to its collar in mishaps doesn't help either. The most recent one, an apparent budget mishap resulting in a lack of foreign language courses being offered this summer, demonstrates an attitude that is, at best, apathetic about student concerns.
Although we don't know exactly what the source is (the closest Academic Coordinator Robert Askew could come to explaining this mess was, "There is a complicated funding issue in Austin"), we do know no 1000-level French or Spanish classes will be offered. This funding issue in Austin must be pretty complicated - we're still scratching our heads, wondering how classes that routinely fill to capacity can be money-losers.
Neighboring Houston Community College, apparently under no such financial duress, is licking its chops at the prospect of the extra money to be made. Apparently, these classes that UH can't afford are going to be fair-sized moneymakers for HCC.
If UH wanted to, could it not ensure the foreign language department had the funds it needs to offer the most in-demand foreign language courses to students?
We'll never know. What we do know is the humiliation of a four-year university, one that envisions becoming "the pre-eminent metropolitan university of the 21st century," effectively telling a nearby community college, "Educate our students - we can't handle it."