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Florida International University (FIU) in Miami, like so many colleges and universities these days, has been experiencing financial difficulties. As part of their plan to reign in costs, the university is cutting back by laying off staff, trimming its academic offerings while also eliminating the university’s cheerleading team and marching band. Yes, the school that only began playing Division 1 football in 2002 and has one of the worst won-loss records of all won’t be having the two most important crowd cheering programs in attendance for its games this year.

Cheerleaders Ranked Fourth In The Nation

The cut to the FIU cheerleading programs is perhaps the biggest surprise given that cheerleading is the one sport program at the university with a consistent and proven track record.. While the football team tries to show its prowess on the gridiron, the cheerleaders have been racking up awards and are currently ranked #4 in the nation among small coed Division 1-A programs.

According to the Beacon, the student newspaper for FIU, the cuts to the cheerleading program are part of a one million dollar hit to the university’s athletic budget. The school says that they will save $78,000 by axing the cheerleaders while the program’s director says that figure is closer to $25,000. Curiously, the university plans to keep the school’s Golden Dazzler dance squad in place, a team of jazz and hip hop dancers who will be seen at upcoming FIU games instead of the cheerleaders.

Even when the cheerleading coach, Maria George, offered to coach for free, FIU turned her down citing that expenses would still be incurred with running the program. George added that several FIU bound students chose the school for its cheerleading program and might end up going elsewhere as their athletic program closes.

Fundraising And Sponsorship Sought

There is a slim chance that the cheerleading program might be restored if the fundraising efforts now underway by students raises enough money to fund the cheerleaders. FIU officials say that recurring sponsorship of the cheerleaders would help their cause, emphasizing “recurring” so that the program won’t be jeopardized again next year.

Source: Beacon News, FIU

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Tags: cheerleaders, cheerleading squad, FIU, Florida, Florida International University, Miami

The American College of History and Legal Studies (ACHLS) has gained approval from the state of New Hampshire to open its doors in August 2010 becoming the first ever history-only school. The New Hampshire Post-Secondary Education Commission, which oversees advanced education in the Granite State, approved the Massachusetts School of Law (MSL) application last month.

ACHLS will be a rarity among colleges for two reasons – it will become the first school to offer nothing but history studies and it will operate as a completion college which means that only the junior and senior years of college will be offered. The school will operate in New Hampshire because the state of Massachusetts requires that two-year schools offer associates degrees or transfers to four-year colleges, whereas New Hampshire has no such restrictions. MSL is located in Andover near the New Hampshire border while ACHLS will operate from an office park in nearby Salem, NH.

Small Classes, Limited Admission

Regarding its method of operation ACHLS has this to say – Its curriculum focuses exclusively on American history and legal history, with attention to U.S. history in the context of world history and to the history of important American legal subjects such as constitutional law and regulatory law. All of its professors teach by the discussion method — not the lecture method: in every substantive class the professor leads a discussion among the students of the subject at hand (as done in the best law school teaching). Its classes are all small — no more than a maximum of 20 students.

Annual tuition is expected to cost around $10,000 an amount significantly lower than what most private schools charge. MSL says that ACHLS will start out with a minimum of fifty students during it first year, but it might consider accepting as many as one hundred students if demand proves high enough. MSL believes that ACHLS will be of particular interest to lawyers who often become lawmakers and that the history emphasis will help future politicians make good decisions with a historical aspect in mind.

Curriculum And Application

ACHLS is currently hiring professors and staff while assembling its curriculum. The school plans to teach courses such as: The History of Women’s Rights; History of Sports in American Society; American Reform Movements; Race In American Law; and more. Persons interested in obtaining information about ACHLS and/or in applying to enter its first class, which will matriculate in August, 2010, should contact Paula Colby-Clements. She can be reached by phone at 603-204-3919, by email at colby@achls.org.

Photo Credit — Lize Rixt

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Tags: ACHLS, American College of History and Legal Studies, completion college, Massachusetts, Massachusetts School of Law, New Hampshire