A student-drafted petition calling for KSU to increase its class sizes and availability has gained more than 2,000 signatures as of Monday, Nov. 14.
Kameron Patel, a sophomore finance major and the creator of the petition, voiced concerns that the university does not provide enough opportunities for its 35,000 students to register for the classes they need to graduate.
“There are not enough classes offered to students for us to be able to complete the requirements in time to apply for our college of choice without having to take a summer semester of college, which costs more money,” the petition reads.
According to the most recent data available, only 41 percent of students graduate from KSU within six years.
Ken Harmon, the provost and vice president of Academic Affairs, expressed sympathy for students’ registration difficulties, pointing to the rapid growth of the university as the reason for the limits on registration opportunities.
“We are keenly aware of and genuinely sorry for the bottlenecks that currently exist in some classes,” Harmon said in an email. “Unfortunately, our funding has not kept pace with our growth, so we have not been able to hire the number of faculty members required to teach these classes.”
Harmon noted that the university is working with department chairs and deans to find solutions to the problem, including increasing class sizes and hiring temporary faculty members. Additional sections, he said, will be opening soon.
“I encourage students to get on waiting lists and to stay in touch with their advisors and department chairs to get the status of possible openings,” he said.
Currently, the petition is short of its goal of 2,500 signatures. If it reaches its goal, it will be delivered to the offices of the provost and academic advising.
The petition can be found at www.change.org.