Talk:Marycrest International University

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[edit] Commentary

I have substantially reworked this entry using information obtained from several websites, as well as my own memories. I taught in the psychology department at Marycrest from 1995 to 1997 and witnessed much of the decline of this institution. I'd like to make a few additional editorial comments here, as they do not really fit into the formal entry.

As a women's college, Marycrest was always the poor sibling of St. Ambrose, down the street. During the midwest farm crisis of the 1980s, enrollment at the college dropped. Even though the college was officially co-ed, I don't think male students were ever attracted in sufficient numbers to support the campus. Under severe financial duress, the sisters of Marycrest College decided to merge with Teikyo Group in 1990. This was not a decision they made lightly and it was clearly motivated by ongoing enrollment problems and budget difficulties, not to mention the growing costs of higher education in general. The affiliation was successful for a time, putting a significant number of Japanese students in the college, but problems with Teikyo and the Japanese economy in general led to a renewed enrollment crisis in the nineties. The name "Teikyo Marycrest" was a marketing disaster that offended alumni and made the recruitment of Iowa students difficult. Was this a racist, anti-Japanese response? Probably to some extent. The third name, Marycrest International University, was better, but it was too late to offset the disastrous enrollment trends that were taking place. By the late 1990s, Marycrest had become insolvent and could no longer compete with its rival institutions, particularly St. Ambrose. It became inevitable that Marycrest would close its doors, but it was also a great loss. The university had not only a very dedicated faculty but also the life's work of many of the sisters who lived and taught there. The nursing program was always well regarded locally, and the computer graphics program was a stroke of innovation for a college of Marycrest's size and resources. In the end, Marycrest became one of many small colleges that just couldn't make it anymore. It's a shame because the mission of "developing citizens of the world through education without prejudice" is a message that our current world sorely needs. Jcbutler 20:44, 28 November 2006 (UTC)