Town and Gown (and All Points In Between)

In San Marcos, my case study, Texas State University is a dominant player in the community (and a tremendous resource and talent pool). It was founded in 1899 in response to the state's need for trained public school teachers (see the theme here?). The school opened in 1903, just over 100 years ago, and has grown and morphed to reflect its potential ever since. Consider this progression.

1899. Founded as "Southwest Texas State Normal School," originally conferring only teaching certifications.
1918. The college began offering bachelor's degrees and the name changed to "Southwest Texas State Normal College."
1923. The school's name was changed to "Southwest Texas State Teachers College."
1937. The first master's degree was awarded.
1959. The word "Teachers" was dropped from the name.
1969. "College" was changed to "University."
1996. Doctoral programs in geographic education and environmental geography began.
2003. On student initiative and with a cooperative Act of the Texas Legislature, "Southwest Texas State University" becomes "Texas State University."
History of Texas State University and Texas State Name Change

I'm no expert on university name changes, but this seems like a lot to me, even in 100 years. One thing I can reflect on is that this town was blessed with an early start and because of its proximity to the state capital and its strategic central location in the state, it had an opportunity to grow and change with the times, and its name changes, including the most recent change, reflected as much as led the changes in its attitude and mission.

In the realm of metropolitan broadband, an area that I'm more familiar with, I find the intersection of municipal government and the university community, as well as the larger city community life and the secondary education system, to be a fascinating area rich in potential. Because when it comes to kids, education, and the future, we have an area of almost universal interest and everyone has an opinion. It's hard to find someone, anyone who cannot relate to the parent-child dynamic and who does not see the future of a community in its children.

Arguably, the potential for the university to influence the community in San Marcos has never been greater, and the advent of wireless broadband communications on the campus and in the city only hastens and highlights the university's potential, and that of its students, faculty, and staff. Now, if we can only get them to focus on the school district and help to inspire change for the better: the university could have a major impact on the school district.

So as I continue with this meme, see also this article in the St. Stephen's Episcopal School Newsletter, written by the dean of the Middle School that my daughter attends. Note the theme of this article, which highlights the work of Marc Prensky, a consultant who challenges traditional education methods, and references also the terms Digital Natives (Baby Boomers and older) and Digital Immigrants (Children of Boomers).

Is your community moving in this direction, adapting its methods and processes to incorporate new technology tools and maintain relevance with its students? Are your leaders innovating in education? Point is, we all need to start acknowledging the dramatically different perspectives we have on technology and society in the ways we educate our young, and coming up with improvements, or our kids are at risk and we are letting them down.

Many secondary schools are slow to adapt to this trend - I can't believe all the money we still spend on textbooks in this state! - but these two books start to make the same point. Technology is dramatically changing everything, including how we can / should educate our young. Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms by Will Richardson is chock-full of good information and references. I bought it last year and have benefitted from both its insights and its websites...

And Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams comes highly recommended. This one is next on my book list.

So, isn't it ironic? A metropolitan broadband network starts off as an innovative way for citizens to get city services more efficiently and to make broadband access more affordable. But then it turns into a project to enable technology to work on a school and provide new, more effective and affordable ways to teach our children. It enables them to learn in ways that they enjoy more.

And if metropolitan broadband keeps more kids in school and improves their collective lot in life, isn't that yet one more significant benefit that we need to acknowledge? The future is bright indeed, and we are on the threshold of major change, not unlike 100 years ago when earlier generations in San Marcos were inspired to donate land and create the Southwest Texas State Normal School. It looks like metropolitan broadband may be but one more step on a well worn path.

As they say in France, "Plus ca change..."