I must first answer another question: Why did I come to Samford?
As a senior, my undergraduate studies are almost over. But this is only the halfway point in my time as a bulldog. Next year, I will be at Beeson Divinity School, staying a Samford student for another three years. This gives me a weird, unique perspective. I have the hindsight of a senior, but I care about Samford’s near future like I did as a freshman.
I have watched Samford accomplish one, two, three and four-year goals established throughout my time here, but another three years of Samford progress are ahead of me. The reality is that Samford has planned years into the future after I graduate from Beeson.
While Samford has renovated spaces like the Caf and the Rec center, the administration’s primary aim has, from my perspective, leaned towards expansion rather than renovation. New dorms, a new parking deck and new Greek houses are springing up on West Campus. Samford Horizons, President Taylor’s administration’s plan for Samford in the coming years, details an upcoming 27-acre expansion across Lakeshore. Samford has reported record admissions for over a dozen years in a row.
Is this what students want? If you asked most students on campus why they loved Samford or what they want to see more of at Samford, I cannot imagine most students would say they love Samford because it is growing, or they wish the campus covered more land.
The truth is, I do not know what all the students at Samford want. Nor do I know what all past students, parents or future students wanted, want and will want.
But I can answer that earlier question. I know why I came to Samford. I came to Samford, among other reasons, because of its unique community.
As a tour guide on campus, I have this rehearsed fairly well: What sticks out most about Samford for me is its community; it is the reason I came to Samford and why I have stayed at Samford.
When anyone asks me what I love about Samford, everything that comes to mind is intangible. I do not think of high-quality facilities, an easily traversable campus, the quality of dining or the convenience of parking. I think of the students, professors and faculty who have served as the best springboard into the rest of my adult life.
The reality is that a new cafeteria and rec center did not radically affect the quality of my experience at Samford, although I indeed celebrated those developments and the increase in the quality of many facilities across campus during my time here.
What has always mattered at Samford for me is this unique community, which is only possible within a particular spectrum of size.
However, if Samford continues to expand 2% every year for another ten years, I doubt that it can maintain the interpersonal, tight-knit community that students come to it for. In many ways, I have already felt Samford grow less interconnected over the four years I have been here.
I cannot craft a plan for our administration to keep Samford small while keeping the tuition cost low, which may not be financially feasible by their determinations.
I do know that I came to Samford because it was small enough for me to feel connected to every part of this campus, and I do not think that Samford will be small enough to do that anymore if expansions continue and admissions steadily rise.
Should Samford continue to grow in size? I do not think it can stay “Samford” if it does.
Staff Writer
