Adams State called out for being 'lax' - Valley Courier 1/8/15
By LAUREN KRIZANSKY Courier staff writer
ALAMOSA A second article condemning Adams State University's (ASU) course offerings is
circulating , bringing attention to the quality of the institute's online math instruction.
The article titled "What One College Did to Crack Down on Shoddy Transfer Credits"
published in The Chronicle of Higher Education on Dec. 30, 2014 by Brad Wolverton stated
college officials found ASU "was lax in its oversight of examinations ," according to emails The
Chronicle obtained in a public records request.
The article was published the same day as "Confessions of a Fixer," another of Wolverton's
stories, which casts a dark shadow on ASU's efforts to combat cheating.
His second article states Mt. San Antonio College, a 60,000-student community college in
Walnut, California, stopped counting an ASU online math class many athletes were taking
because it "found that several failed to meet the college's minimum math requirements."
That discovery is no surprise to ASU if the concern is over Integrated Mathematics I, an online
offering through the university's Distance Learning program.
The article only names the course in question as an "algebra class."
"Math 155 by itself is not, and never has been, approved for general education credit at Adams
State," said Dr. Matt Nehring, ASU Physics Department Chair and professor in the Chemistry ,
Computer Science and Mathematics Department Wednesday evening in a press release.
"Students who enroll in Math 155 must also complete the second semester of the course, MATH
156, to receive general education credit."
ASU describes Math 155 as "the first of a two-course sequence presenting arithmetic and
algebra from a modern perspective""
"It is not unusual for college administrators to contact me regarding the transferability courses
offered at Adams State," Nehring said. "Without exception, I inform them that Math 155 does
not satisfy our general education math requirement."
Math 104 or Finite Mathematics , however, is geared to business students and does fulfill
general education requirements, he said, but it might not everywhere.
"Curriculum requirements vary among states, so a course approved for transfer within
Colorado may not necessarily correspond with a seemingly similar course in California," said
ASU Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Frank Novotny in the press release. "Adams State
attempted to reach Mt. San Antonio College representatives on several occasions this past
summer to determine their concerns, but we did not re- ceive a response."
One representative of the community college said in the article ASU's "curriculum seems very
weak, and they have testing standards that are not up to our level of rigor."
Refusing to accept classes from an accredited institution is an unusual step, according to the
article and "big time athletic departments rely on places like Adams State to help them get
players academically eligible to compete."
Ryan Squire, a top athletics-compliance officer at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign , said in the article "he raised concerns this year about the grades that certain
community-college transfers had received in online Adams State classes."
When he approached his admissions staff he said he was told quite the opposite.
"The university didn't have the ability to reject the credits," Squire told The Chronicle.
ASU doesn't agree.
"Institutions are not required to accept credits from another institution just because the sending
institution is accredited," countered the university in the press release. "For this reason, Colorado
established the guaranteed transfer (gt) Pathways General Education Curriculum. These courses
meet state-wide standards and are approved for general education credit transfer to any two or
four-year public institution in Colorado."
Institutions are prevented from determining whether the student registering for a course is an
athlete or not, and NCAA regulations maintain student athletes cannot be treated differently from
other students.
See the Fri. Jan. 2 Valley Courier edition to read ASU's response to the cheating allegations .
Rigging the game – Valley Courier 1/13/15
Virginia Simmons
From the White Sox at Chicago in 1919 to "Mr. White" at ASU, the ways to rig sports are
countless. So too are the crooks. There are unforgettable big names of individuals like Mike
Tyson, Barry Bonds, Pete Rose, Lance Armstrong, Marion Jones, Tanya Harding, a n d S t e e l e
r s ' coach Mike Toml i n , a n d t h e r e also are famous financial swindlers like Frank Abagnale
, the original Charles Ponzi, and Bernie Madoff. Space doesn't allow the long list of famous and
infamous people who have stolen the written work of others and called it their own from
Aristotle, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Joe Biden, and Barack Obama, down to Ward Churchill at
CU.
There are plenty of big institutions of higher learning, like the University of North Carolina,
rigging the game of college sports. Some recruits are capable of performing college-level studies,
but others clearly are not without the help of shadowy characters like "Mr. White."
But how did a little school like ASU out in the boonies (who ever heard of Adams State before
this?) get mixed up in a racket like this one? It was easy, as easy as looking the other way.
These so-called "student athletes" sneak in the back door, maybe even get a degree. Then some
of them even have the gall to try to parlay a B.A. into a graduate degree besides.
Brad Wolverton's article describing the shenanigans appeared in "What One College Did to
Crack Down on Shoddy Transfer Credits," in "Chronicle of Higher Education" (Dec. 30, 2014).
Sports surely was not what Adams State Normal School had in mind when it was created. It was
education. Unfortunately, the institution seems to have forgotten to keep its eye on its original
goal, where the majority of its students, faculty, and many supporters still believe it should be.
While reading the latest issue of "AStater ," just before this dismal news broke, I was once
again impressed by the high quality of the alumni magazine, its news, its writing, and its design.
It gave welldeserved recognition to several excellent programs and outstanding individuals
which represent the best that the college offers.
Now many of us will be dismayed to learn elsewhere about some unworthy activities
associated with the school. ASU surely is not alone in contending with problems in college
sports, and on-line courses especially can bring not only positive opportunities but negative
abuses in all its programs.
A perpetual issue in any school, on line or off it, is moral integrity and simple honesty , with
cheating too often accepted as "the way things are done." My hat is off to any teacher,
administrator, or parent who thinks otherwise and demands the best for and from its students.
Compromising can occur not only in sports but in any other activity. I myself have been
plagiarized by a faculty member at the college (who should have been fired but wasn't because
that would have rattled an apple cart), and by ASC grad in journalism who was fired from her
newspaper job after she blatantly plagiarized my work (she must have been pretty stupid
besides), not to mention a host of other episodes elsewhere during my long career. In those two
long-ago incidents in Alamosa that I have mentioned, both individuals could have been sued but
were not, as I now say with regret because dishonesty should be exposed publicly wherever it
exists.
In present-day society, with corruption existing everywhere, no one should be surprised to
learn that college sports programs are prime targets, even out in the boonies where we thought no
one would notice what was going on. Well, folks, it looks like we have been noticed at last. ASU issues need exact action – Valley Courier 1/17/15
Lance Hostetter
"As he directed more of his business to Adams State, Mr. White says, he sought to build
connections on the inside."
The article from the Chronicle on Higher Education paints an ugly image for Adams State
University, really ugly.
The article outlines the work of "Mr. White" who helps student-athletes meet academic
requirements in order to remain eligible for athletic participation. The scope of Mr. White's work
allegedly reaches far beyond Adams State and could reach the National Basketball Association
and Major League Baseball.
As it's told, Division I athletes are directed to the Adams State Extended Studies program
because the "classes were so easy, Mr. White says, he hardly needed the test keys."
The report details multiple issues including duping an Adams State employee, exposing the
alleged ease of the Extended Studies program, and the ease to which Mr. White was able to
obtain student information.
These are not small allegations. Instead, these are serious allegations that could be met with
serious consequences. Adams State President David Svaldi, though, has taken swift and exact
action by freezing new enrollments to its print-based correspondence courses and ordering an
external review of the student verification process. These are necessary moves and should prove
beneficial to the future direction of the Extended Studies program at Adams State.
This is not enough, however. As the Chronicle suggested, we live in an age when cyber
security is a major concern. It's imperative that Adams State take the necessary steps to insure
that students' information is not being released to outside sources. The ease at which Mr. White
obtained access to student profiles is extremely alarming. Adams State is responsible for the
safety of its students and students' information . The university must take steps to ensure student
information is not compromised.
Secondly, if the report accurately depicts some Adams State test questions, this is an issue.
Testing is to gauge student knowledge and aptitude in the subject area. The questions highlighted
in the Chronicle article are embarrassing. Adams State needs to ensure that its academic integrity
is upheld. I graduated from Adams State in 2011, and I love the college. I remember the courses
I took to be challenging, and I never believed that my information would be compromised. But, I
was never a part of the Extended Studies program.
Distance learning, as the Chronicle calls it, is a growing reality in today's world of higher
education. It would behoove Adams State to rectify the issues outlined in the Chronicle. Adams
State has a growing presence in Colorado higher education, and rightfully so. But, if academic
integrity is not upheld and student information is easily accessed by outside "hackers" that
presence will dissipate quickly.
As an Adams State alumnus and supporter, I hope this will only be a hiccup in time and not a
precursor to more issues. Opinion Column 1/19/15
By Dr. David Svaldi, President, Adams State University
It is heartening to know that many share my revulsion over the academic fraud committed
against Adams State University that is detailed in a recent Chronicle of Higher Education article.
However, I must correct some statements made by Valley Courier columnist Lance Hostetter.
He wrongly assumes that Adams State’s student information was hacked. No one has questioned
the integrity of our student data system. In reality, the “fixer” interviewed by the Chronicle
obtained student information directly from the student-athletes themselves. The “fixer,” referred
to only as “Mr. White” in the article, went into business to cheat on behalf of student athletes
who were not academically eligible to compete, according to NCAA regulations.
The following is an excerpt from the Chronicle article:
“Among his files is a pink steno pad of names, covering the front and back of
80 pages, that includes some of the biggest stars in college sports. Next to the
names are credit-card numbers and PINs, log-ins, passwords, Social Security
numbers, and addresses.
. . . Over the past 14 years, he says, he has used test keys to cheat for hundreds
of athletes, helping them meet the eligibility requirements of the National
Collegiate Athletic Association.
For some players, he says, he did their work outright. For others, he provided
homework answers and papers that the students would submit themselves. At
exam time, he lined up proctors and conspired with them to lie on behalf of
students.
Many times, he says, the players’ coaches directed athletes his way.
Sometimes, players’ parents or handlers arranged the details.”
In recent years, Adams State revised distance education policies to prevent cheating. For
example, in accordance with industry best practices, we conduct online proctoring, in which a
webcam captures an image of the student’s government-issued ID; authentication is confirmed
through a national database. For courses that require face-to-face proctoring, we coordinate only
with testing centers, librarians, clergy, military education staff, and other trustworthy entities.
We do not permit coaches or athletic administrators to proctor exams.
In light of the Chronicle report, Adams State suspended new enrollments in print-based
correspondence courses. We will work with our accrediting agency, the Higher Learning
Commission (HLC), and engage external evaluators to review our student verification process
and other distance education policies and procedures. We will implement state-of-the-art
recommendations that preserve and guarantee academic integrity and will discontinue any
delivery method or course that is weak in that regard.
Hostetter also questions the rigor of Adams State courses. I assure our students, past, present,
and future, that all Adams State University coursework meets the standards set by our faculty,
the state, and HLC. Our online courses mirror their on-campus counterparts and are reviewed
every three years by the respective academic department. Our accreditation remains intact and is
not in jeopardy.
Adams State assures the validity of our Extended Studies program and will improve processes to
best serve students who otherwise would not be able to further their education, due to geographic
isolation or the demands of work and family responsibilities.