Higher education made national headlines this week, and it had nothing to do with academics, research, or nutty professors sounding off. Rather, two unique situations grabbed the media's undivided attention. One occurred at my alma mater, Rutgers University, while the other one unfolded at Brigham Young University. What's really interesting is that the two stories are in such stark contrast to one another that it's hard to imagine how wide the rift between them might be.
Let's start with BYU. The Mormon institution located in Provo, Utah is well known for having a strict honor code that all students must agree to abide by after being admitted. The list of requirements is long: modest, neat and clean dress and grooming; abstinence from alcohol, tobacco or illegal substances; any physical intimacy that exhibits homosexual feelings; prohibiting members of the opposite sex from going in one's bedroom areas; and regular participation in church services, be they in the Mormon or another religious faith, are all just some of the components.
A sophomore named Brandon Davies was found to have broken the code by having sexual relations with his girlfriend, and a probe is underway that could result in Davies being expelled from the university. This sort of thing happens all the time at BYU, and normally it wouldn't be a story worthy of national attention. But this time it's different, because Davies is a star player on the Cougars' basketball team.
For those not aware, BYU is having a dream season in NCAA Basketball. Their star player, Jimmer Fredette, is the leading scorer in all of Division I and a strong candidate for National Player of the Year. They finished in first place in their conference, and are currently ranked third in the entire country. Many experts believed that they had an excellent shot at earning a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament and making the Final Four. If they achieved it, it would be the first time ever in the history of the school.
But now, the dream season is becoming a nightmare. Davies has been suspended from the team for violating the honor code. In their first game without him, the Cougars got crushed 82-64 by a New Mexico team that was only 6-8 in conference play. Not a good sign of things to come as BYU prepares for the Big Dance.
Let's face it. Suspending a student for an act that is considered permissive and even routine in today's society seems to be a foreign concept to many. It's certainly foreign to the liberal press, and probably considered risible by the majority of Americans as well.
But that is why I can only applaud both Brandon Davies and BYU. First, let's be clear on something. No one ratted him out. Davies came forth himself and admitted to the violation. He could have chosen to hide it and remain eligible to play basketball through the NCAA Tournament. But he took the high road, choosing instead to come clean and maintain his moral integrity. Those who like to vilify college athletes should take a long, hard look at what this young man did and realize that painting Division-I athletes with the same broad brush is ignorant and unfair.
Kudos to Brigham Young as well for not giving Davies special treatment. They have dealt with the matter as if he were any other student, imposing the same sanctions and administering the same investigation that will culminate with a final judgment on whether he gets to remain at BYU. Again, let those who wrongly assume that all universities give preferential treatment to star athletes take notice and give BYU its due.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away on the East Coast, Rutgers University took a major step in the opposite direction. They announced that starting this fall, Rutgers University will allow male and female students to live in the same dormitory room for the first time in a pilot program designed to make the New Brunswick campus more welcoming to gay students.
The pilot program will allow gay, lesbian and transgender students to choose either male or female roommates. Heterosexual students will also be permitted to live in co-ed rooms with their boyfriends, girlfriends or platonic friends of the opposite sex. The new option — called gender-neutral housing — was created at the request of gay, lesbian and transgender students who objected to Rutgers rules that require undergraduates to choose roommates of the same sex.
Wow. That's all I can say. Wow. Do you think we have a dichotomy in the American higher education system? To think that there are private schools like BYU where students agree to an honor code and get suspended for having sex with their boyfriends or girlfriends, yet public universities like Rutgers actually create situations to facilitate pre-marital sex, is mind boggling to me.
Needless to say, I am outraged by the situation at my alma mater and extremely disappointed that Rutgers would even consider taking this step. I understand the separation between Church and State, and I know that not everyone shares my religious and moral beliefs. But let's throw religion out of the equation for a second and refer to a little something we call common sense.
By allowing co-ed dorm rooms, Rutgers will be creating an atmosphere where there is a greater risk to the welfare of the students. First, the likelihood of female students getting pregnant will increase. As much as we all love children, this may not be the best thing for someone who is attending school, not yet married, and not gainfully employed.
Second, it will make the dormitories more conducive to spreading sexually transmitted diseases. Isn't this already a big enough problem on college campuses?
Next, it will give rise to situations where rape, sexual assault, or violence against women might take place. How did anyone on the administration at Rutgers miss this one?
Yes, I know that all of these things already happen on campus. But Rutgers is essentially saying, "Students are going to do what they're going to do, so what's the difference if we make it even easier for them to do it." By caving in to the demands of gay and transgender students, the administration has opened a Pandora's box that will ultimately compromise the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of the student body.
Overall, the point I'm trying to drive home is this. When we look around at what's happening in our country, it is quite evident that the gap between Church and State is widening. Institutions like BYU continue to cling to codes that uphold moral standards and religious beliefs, while public universities like Rutgers drift further and further away from anything that even remotely resembles a moral code. But unfortunately, this is what happens when society distances itself from God. It's a sad sight, especially for someone like me who can only stand by and idly watch while his alma mater takes a huge step in the wrong direction.
If one day God provides me with the gift of a baby girl, I can all but assure you that her college choices will be narrowed to a select few. When she turns 18 and graduates high school, she'd only be attending a public college like Rutgers if it were over my dead body. No thanks. I'll send her to BYU instead.
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