Grade inflation — the trend of colleges rewarding students with higher grades than in the past — is a phenomenon affecting many of the nation’s institutes of higher education. However, as for IU Southeast, it is hard to tell whether or not this event is occurring on campus. “I don’t know if there is any evidence that [grade inflation] exists here at IUS,” said Joe Wert, dean of the School of Social Sciences. “It may, but I haven’t seen anything that makes me think that yes, there definitely is.”

The Applied Research and Education Center is working to provide research for local organizations. AREC was formed 12 years ago as an organization for the IUS campus to provide assistance in analyzing trends with companies in the community. Currently, the AREC is involved with multiple projects in the Southern Indiana and Kentucky area. “A lot of our services are things that can be provided through private consulting firms but at a much higher cost,” Melissa Fry, assistant professor of sociology and director of AREC, said. “We are a good opportunity for people to get research that they need done but at a much lower cost, and, for non-profit organizations, that is a really important factor. We make it possible for them to do things they otherwise couldn’t do.”