Sacramento State officials are considering impaction in criminal justice, health science and psychology departments for the fall 2012 semester due tostate budget cutsand a growing student demand.

Program-level impaction occurs when student demand for a particular program is higher than the university’s fund capacity to accommodate those students.

Programs now impacted are in graphic design, interior design, nursing and the College of Business Administration.

Psychology professor John Tamblyn said his classes typically have a student limit of 25; it has now become 38 and 44 students in his two sections.

“Students receive less individual attention and interaction,” Tamblyn said. “This is very unfortunate in that we as instructors are mentors and role models to our students.”

While class sizes get bigger due to demand, there is still a lack of support for education, Tambyn said.

“We do not place a value on education, therefore we see the demise of once was the best K-12 and higher education systems in the country,” he said.

Emily Richards, junior psychology major, said she transferred last semester and was not able to get into any psychology classes until this semester.

“Programs should not accept so many students so students could get the education they wanted in a certain time frame,” Richards said.

Joseph Sheley, provost and vice president of Academic Affairs, said impaction governs the flow of how many students will be let in to each program.

“If you are in a major budget crunch as we are, you simply don’t have the resources to expand the number of faculty necessary to teach students beyond a certain number,” he said.

New criteria would be adopted for students to enter in the criminal justice, health sciences and psychology programs when operating under impaction status such as GPA and background Sheley said.

Brandon Hall, undeclared junior, said more required lower division courses would dissuade him from declaring a major in impacted programs because it would take longer to graduate.

Cecil Canton, criminal justice professor, said the adverse effects of impaction could mean a certain part of the population will not have access to the criminal justice program.

Canton said many students do not start out doing well in criminal justice, but they are given the chance to be in the major and improve overtime.

“We may have a less diverse population that may affect the division in ways that may not be healthy. We have to be careful of unintended consequences,” Canton said.

Hugh Wilson, professor and chair of the criminal justice division, said the program will need to be restructured if demand cannot be met.

“Impaction isn’t really the problem,” Wilson said. “The problem is the overwhelming demand for our program that requires us to look at ways to remit the number of students that fill our classrooms.”

Canton says the department needs to evaluate how impaction would affect students based on recent enrollment data.

Theanalysis would look at ways students will be affected by new criteria.

Alicia Pinoli, senior psychology major, said her graduation date has been pushed back a year because the lack of classes offered.

One class in particular, psychology of homosexuality, is offered once a year for 40 students.

Isaac Ybarra, junior psychology major, said it is harder to get to know people in a class where there are so many students.

In both semesters, Ybarra could not get into a psychology course even though he has been on the top three of the wait list.

“I already had to sit on the ground in one class so far. I have to get there early to get a seat,” he said.

Ybarra said higher education is under-funded and impaction will make it harder for him to graduate on time with his target date.

“It makes people, trying to get into the same major, work harder. It breeds competition, which could make you less friendly with people because you’re competing,” he said.

Wilson said the criminal justice division will be competitive, requiring students to be serious about going into the major and make sure they meet the new requirements for impaction status.

“Some people are going to be left out and that’s too bad,” Wilson said. “The other side of it is we’ll be able to maintain the quality of the program and the promise to students that when they get here they can graduate in a timely manner.”

Mallory Fites can be reached at [email protected]