The nearly century-old tradition of admitting any student who applies to Weber State University will end next fall. High school graduates will have to compete academically to attend Weber State. President Paul H. Thompson says this is “the most significant event at this institution in the last decade.” Dr. Thompson says Weber State decided to limit enrollment because insufficient funding began to threaten educational quality. This year, for example, the state budget provided money for only 28 percent of the new students expected on campus. In March, Utah’s board of higher education adopted policies that will curtail the growth of student populations on university campuses. Beginning next fall, high school graduates must qualify on an admissions index that combines gradepoint averages and test scores on college entrance exams. At Weber State, admission will be guaranteed with a 95 on the admissions index — equivalent to a grade-point average of 2.6 and an ACT score of 24. Students who rank between 80 and 94 — meaning they have lower grade-point averages and/or ACT scores — will be admitted if space is available. Those with scores below 80 will be denied admission. Students 23 years of age or older will be exempt from the admissions standards. Many campus faculty leaders support the new admissions policies as the only way to preserve educational quality at the University. Robert B. Smith, vice president for academic affairs, says faculty and staff shouldered heavier work loads during the past three years when state funding fell far behind enrollment growth. ““We’ve stretched both personnel and material resources tighter than a drumhead,” Dr. Smith says. “One of the strongest motives for adopting new admissions standards is to relieve that pressure on faculty and staff.” That sentiment is echoed by Thomas R. Burton, professor of English and chairman of the Faculty Senate. “The faculty has been anxious for this kind of change,” Dr. Burton says. “We’ve been feeling enrollment pressure for three years and it became particularly critical last fall. This step should have been taken long ago.” Dr. Thompson says the doors of higher education will not be shut so tightly that students won’t have the opportunity to overcome a poor high school record. Utah’s community colleges will continue to accept all students who apply for admission, he says, and anyone maintaining a 2.25 grade-point average in a community college will be eligible to transfer to a state university. The University also will expand its continuing education and offcampus teaching programs to provide an “educational safety net” for those who can’t meet the new admissions standards, Dr. Thompson says. “We’re running the risk that a few people will be excluded from higher education because they get discouraged by the enrollment standards,” Dr. Thompson says. “To counter that, we’re trying to communicate that we don’t expect to be excluding people for a long time. But we are saying that unless youre well prepared academically you can’t come and be a full-time student right now.” Dr. Thompson says the longterm effects of new admissions standards will be positive. “They will change the way students think about Weber State,” Dr. Thompson predicts. Students will know they have to work hard in high school to meet the University’s admissions standard, he says, and that means freshmen will be less likely to drop out. Students also will be more uniformly prepared for higher education, he believes. “When the ability of students to absorb knowledge varies widely in the classroom, instructors are forced to gear their teaching to the ability of the 40th percentile rather than to the top 12 percent,” Dr. Thompson says. “It will give faculty more freedom to provide a better education.” The creation of admissions standards also may improve the University’s public image. “For better or worse, exclusivity is one of the criteria used to judge institutions of higher learning,” Dr. Thompson says. “When it is reported by one of the college-ranking services that Weber State is admitting only 80 or 90 percent of those who apply, the institution’s reputation will be automatically enhanced.” OVERCOMING pee ee Goes BY: ROUNAED Do CANTERA affected his friends and family, and The best-known voice in Utah has been silent for more than two years. Since October 1990, when he what he’s done about it. Why did Mr. Kinard decide to grant this interview? resigned as announcer for the “T’ve had a sense recently that it’s Mormon Tabernacle Choir and news director of KSL-TV (Channel 5), Weber State alumnus J. Spencer Kinard has declined every opportunity to discuss the controversy that cost him his career. time for me to let people know how my family and I are doing,” he says. “T don’t want to open any old wounds, but at the same time I don’t want to hide what happened, or give the impression I didn’t do anything wrong.” News reports at the time said Mr. Kinard’s relationship with KSL-TV And what made Mr. Kinard anchorwoman Jennifer Howe raised questions about his personal behavior and “sparked a newsroom revolt.” His only public response: a choose University Times for his first interview? “pence Kinard letter of resignation, in which he wrote that “the events of the past few weeks (October 1990) have made it impossible for me to be effective.” Finally, at the urging of University Times, Mr. Kinard has decided to break his self-imposed silence. In an exclusive interview with his former KSL-TV news colleague Ron Cantera, he explains why he resigned, how it “T feel a special attachment to Weber State,” he says. “My experi- ence at Weber changed the course of my life (see page 10). I was just another student on campus, but Weber, for some reason, has paid attention to me. I’ve had a great deal of recognition for someone who attended for only one quarter.” RON CANTERA: Some people thought you should have RC: When you resigned, what was the reaction of people in left Utah after you resigned. You probably could have landed a good TV news job someplace else. Why did you stay? your business — your peers and colleagues? Did they pry or probe to find out what happened? SPENCE KINARD: My reasons were mostly personal — SK: Other than those who were assigned to do a story — the Associated Press (AP) and a couple of tabloid television support structure, family and church. I realized that it’s a lot easier to run away from troubles than to face them . shows (“Hard Copy” and “A Current Affair”) — people We needed to confront our challenges, correct them and get back on our feet. Then, if I leave town, I’m going to leave would say, “We don’t want to pry. We just want you to know we’re willing to support you.” No one said, “Hey, on an upbeat note. tell me what really happened.” They sort of accepted what