Despite the program's many accolades and successes, it is undeniable that that university has shortchanged its Audio Technology students. The program - more affectionately referred to as A-Tec - lacks crucial resources and ample practice space, as well as deprives dedicated students of the opportunity every AU student should have, regardless of their field of study.
If anything, the inadequacies of A-Tec's facilities are in no way indicative of a prominent and successful liberal arts institution. There's only one recording room on campus, located in McKinley, that is supposed to host entire classes. The room has no chairs, occasionally reaches an unbearable 90 degrees and lacks a modern soundboard with a sufficient number of audio channels that students need to produce their work. And the best part: The College of Arts and Sciences does not anticipate addressing much of the program's shortfalls until the School of Communication takes its permanent residence in McKinley - whenever that might happen. In the meantime, at least one professor has invited his students to his residence so they may finish projects they can't complete on campus. That, to state the obvious, is deplorable.
Granted, AU has a limited endowment, and there exists a plethora of programs at AU that could use a bit of an overhaul. Moreover, there are comparable A-Tec resources available in other buildings on campus; Katzen, for example, hosts some of the program's most coveted technology, including an expensive and important microphone and computers with up-to-date software. But the inconveniences of such a disjointed (and likely bureaucratic) system are obvious: It should not be that difficult for students to complete their work, for class or otherwise, no matter how tiny their field of study.
At the very least, AU needs a temporary solution to A-Tec's resource woes; waiting until McKinley is renovated to overhaul the program seems sensible, but that kind of resolution takes a number of years, which most students about to enter the real world don't have to spare. AU should afford A-Tec, regardless of its size, the same respect, understanding and concern for the future it provides its other liberal arts fields. Anything less is a slap in the face to the students who pay upwards of $40,000 to come here.
