The resignation of Vice President Richard Porter from NU’s co-op department may pull the chair out from underneath the students at the university. The unexpected announcement comes at an unfortunate time of complete transition throughout all administrative offices, due to the infamous semester conversion.
In a letter to the university, President Richard Freeland said Porter would end his role in the cooperative education department to pick up where he left off as a faculty member in the mathematics department. Porter, who has been at NU since 1975, will also start his role as Special Assistant to the Dean of Arts and Sciences, James Stellar, and as Senior Researcher for the Center for the Study of Practice Oriented Education.
Freeland assures the NU community that Porter will not completely abandon his experience in co-op because as senior researcher, “he will focus on the integration of classroom study and co-op experience continuing a major theme of his years in the vice presidency.”
But what happens when spring quarter comes up in a few weeks?
The co-op department needs someone to oversee any possible glitches like those seen in the past. There may be an arsenal of capable advisors, but there is still a need for leadership.
In an October 24 article in The News, sophomore business majors talked about the difficulty they were having in securing a job due to the economy, by this spring some students will be venturing out on their first jobs, possibly facing the same fate.
It would have been to the benefit of the co-op department had Porter waited until the search for a replacement was complete before he resigns. Freeland said a nationwide search would be taking place immediately. What students need in order to find a co-op should be taken into account while searching for a replacement. Students need three main things when considering to go on co-op: stability, excitement and prestige.
Stability is necessary for students. Many of the business co-ops who had trouble finding co-op jobs did not have that when they found themselves waiting in long lines at employment agencies. Finding a stable job that fulfills the co-op time is necessary.
Excitement is needed because students can get bored. We look to advisors to help place us in the co-op jobs the university displays on their million dollar ad campaigns. We want to help build bridges for the Big Dig and we want to help make a difference in a company.
Finally, we need prestige. The point of co-op is to help build a resume so Northeastern students graduate a step above other competing graduates vying for employment. A more aggressive search for exciting jobs should be conducted and in other areas from Massachusetts. Not every student desires working near the university and coordinating co-ops further away could branch Northeastern’s name further out of the Boston metropolitan area.
According to President Freeland’s letter, and the U.S. News and World Reports’ ranking, under Porter’s reign the co-op department has seen the fruits of his labor.
Using every positive aspect Porter brought to the university, the search should look at other amenities to complete the university’s smorgasbord of positive attributes and make it supreme.
