To say that I’m nervous about the future here at Central Michigan University is an understatement.

Going into my sophomore year here, I have already experienced an almost unnatural amount of changes at this university. From University President Michael Rao’s departure, to the ending of the CMU Promise, to the decision that there would be a new medical school, I would say last year had a ridiculous amount of change for a student just trying to get settled in.

We are a university in the middle of a transition period and looking toward the future, I’m not as optimistic as I usually am with life.

Maybe it’s the fact that I will be here for at least three more years, maybe it’s the economy, maybe it’s the state of Michigan, maybe it’s the fact many executive level employees at CMU, have left in the last year to move to other states. Former Provost Julia Wallace wasn’t here two years before she left for the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. Rao had spent many years here at CMU but he too unexpectedly left to Virginia Commonwealth University with many of his big plans left on the stove cooking.

Interim University President Kathy Wilbur was a good decision, and though many have talked about her inexperience for the position, she has the smarts and the knowledge to be in that position for a year while the university searches for a new president. Wilbur knows this university and has had much time to work with Rao to gain what “experience” she needs to push on for a year.

The search for the new president of CMU does leave some questions to be answered. Who is going to come in and instantly make things start happening with the medical school, as it’s clear the Board of Trustees plan to push on with the project.

The medical school price still has yet to be named, and the exact cost will be known later this summer. This is a big risk, almost a gamble. How many students do we think we are going to get in order for us to make money off of it?

Tuition costs are going to rise here, I can say with almost any doubt. The fact a medical school without a definitive price tag is in the early- to mid-stages is going to be weighing on the minds of board members as well as the fact Eastern Michigan University, Michigan State University and the University of Michigan have all increased their tuition, choosing to ignore Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s request to maintain all tuition levels for this year.

I’m nervous, not just about the future of CMU, but of all universities in general, it seems to me like at many the voice of the student is being drowned out by the sweet smell of cash and states don’t seem to feel the need to continue to provide funding in this time of financial insecurity.

E-mail the author: Eric Dresden