* (UC Irvine) Chancellor Laurel Wilkening's plan to position UCI among the top 50 research universities in the United States is certainly ambitious and may indeed lead to significant economic benefits for Orange County. At the same time, it is a plan that likely will lower the quality of undergraduate education at UCI. Larger classes and less emphasis on the quality of undergraduate teaching are the sure consequences of such a plan.
Fortunately, there is an attractive alternative for students who are seeking a quality undergraduate education at reasonable cost. Undergraduate education is the primary mission at Orange County's other public university--Cal State Fullerton. Here teaching and learning are valued as highly as scholarly and creative pursuits. In most cases our classes are smaller than at the UC campuses, and they are more likely to be taught by a full-time faculty member than a graduate student.
