May 27, 2002
Diversity emphasized as AU core value
Faculty, trustees discuss dropping "interim"
Board to consider increasing tuition
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May 27, 2002 |
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| Headlines Diversity emphasized as AU core value Faculty, trustees discuss dropping "interim" Board to consider increasing tuition |
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Council formed, sets diversity as new core value
More than 20 AU administrators, faculty, staff, students and alumni met Thursday to begin work aimed at establishing diversity as a core institutional value at Auburn.
The Diversity Leadership Council, recently established by interim President William Walker, is charged with developing a comprehensive plan to achieve the university's diversity goals.
"I want you to serve as the conscience of this institution, taking note of where we are and where we should be with regard to diversity," Walker told the council. "You set where the bar should be and it's our job as administrators to make sure we get there.
"This is a landmark time in the history of this university," Walker added. "Certainly, we've had some serious problems in the recent past, but I choose to see every problem as a manifest opportunity. We can change the course of this institution. And, more importantly, with those changes we can positively influence the education of some very bright young people."
The group came away from the inaugural meeting with a goal of presenting Walker with a strategic plan by Oct. 1. Kevin Clayton, a diversity management strategist from Orlando, said the Oct. 1 deadline will require a major commitment of time and energy from council members.
"October 1 is an ambitious deadline," Clayton said. "But it can be done and, judging from what I saw from the council members today, it will be done." The work of the Diversity Leadership Council is the linchpin of Auburn's move to count diversity among its core values and create a university culture reflective of that value.
The council's recommendations will be put into practice in all sectors of the university, in the Auburn community and, finally, in the extended Auburn community.
"The university cannot exist as an island within the community," said interim Provost John Pritchett. "For the strategies that result from the council's work to take hold, for us to be successful in the establishment of diversity as a core value, we have to have a connection with the community. We've already communicated that need to community leaders and begun a cooperation that will be key to this process."
Pritchett said he saw a "palpable sense of commitment" in the council's first meeting. "There was excitement, commitment and an understanding of the kind of culture change we're talking about, a knowledge that it would not come easily or quickly," he said. "But this group seems truly committed to do the work required." Initial plans are for the council to meet at least once every two weeks in four-hour or full-day sessions until the initial strategic plan is developed.
The university will soon establish a web site that will help AU constituencies track the council's work.
Administrators on the Diversity Leadership Council are Walker; Pritchett; David Wilson, vice president for Outreach; Wes Williams, vice president for Student Affairs; Janet Saunders, executive director of AU's Affirmative Action Office; Lynne Hammond, interim director of human resources; and Johnny Green, a special assistant to the provost.
Faculty representatives include Dennis Weatherby, director of the Ginn College of Engineering's BellSouth Minority Engineering Program; Anna-Katrin Gramberg, chair of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures; Donald Buck, an associate professor of foreign languages; Kimberly King, an assistant professor of educational foundations, leadership and technology and chair of the Auburn Black Caucus; Emily W. Myers, director of sociology; Roy Broughton, a Philpott-West Point Stevens professor of textile engineering; Evelyn Crayton, extension specialist and professor of nutrition and food science; Willie Larkin, extension organizational development specialist; Steven Silvern, a professor of curriculum and teaching; and Daowei Zhang, an associate professor of forestry and wildlife sciences.
AU staff on the committee are John Asmuth, chair of the Administrative and Professional Assembly; Candace Bourne, chair of the Staff Council; David Granger, an associate editor in University Relations; and Associate Athletic Director Virgil Starks. Student representatives are Nathan Currie, president of FarmHouse fraternity; Kai Mumpfield, president of the Black Student Union; and Kelly Banna, a graduate student in psychology.
Jimmy Brock, director of employee relations at Russell Corp. in Alexander City, is the alumni representative.
President's title: Faculty, trustees discuss 'interim'
The University Senate will meet in special session at 3 p.m., Wednesday, May 29, at Broun Hall to formulate its position on possible action by the Board of Trustees to remove the "interim" designation from the title of interim President William Walker.
The Board of Trustees meets at 1 p.m. Monday, June 3, at the Dixon Conference Center, following a series of committee meetings that start at 8 a.m. The item is not yet listed on the agenda for that meeting, but Barbara Struempler, chair of the University Senate, said Jack Miller, chair of the board's Academic Affairs Committee, recently discussed with her and alumni representative Don Logan the possibility of adding it.
With the search for a permanent president delayed indefinitely, Struempler told the University Senate on May 21 that some board members are backing removal of "interim" from the president's title as an essential step in the university's efforts to increase private financial support. Trustee Earlon McWhorter told the faculty representatives that the suggested change in title for the president would reassure potential donors of stability in the Auburn administration.
Development consultants have suggested that Auburn could raise up to $500 million in private funding if it enters an upcoming capital campaign with a president who will be around for an extended period of time rather than an interim president leading the university for an uncertain but presumably short duration. If matters remain unresolved, she said, the consultants suggested that the university could expect to raise about $150 million less.
Walker, AU's former provost, has served 15 months as Auburn's interim chief administrator and would serve for three additional years under the proposed plan. Despite the "interim" in front of the president's title, Board President Pro Tem Jimmy Samford has stated that Walker has authority from the board to exercise the full powers of the presidency in fulfilling his duties.
The board agreed in January to delay indefinitely the search for a new president on the recommendation of consultant William Weary. A former official of the nationwide Association of Governing Boards, Weary suggested a series of steps the university should undertake before beginning a search.
Struempler said the proposal would remove the "interim" from the president's title and have him serve for three more years, during the quiet phase of a capital campaign. During that time, the university would conduct a search for a new president, who would take over at the end of the three years.
The senate agreed to meet in special session before the board meeting to develop a statement for the board. Options include agreement with those proposed actions, opposition to the move or acceptance with conditions. Among possible conditions for their support, some faculty senators suggested that the university drop its lawsuit against the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the board agree to faculty representation at board meetings, the faculty have more representation in the search for a new president and board action on the proposal be delayed until this fall.
Senators objecting to the proposal criticized the board for not seeking faculty input in past decisions. Struempler responded that the discussions with board members are a positive sign for faculty leaders, who advocate shared governance in university decision-making. "Given the current budgetary situation at Auburn University, we have little to gain by being intractable," she said. "The board isn't asking for our blessing; it is asking for understanding."
Trustees to consider tuition increase, budget guidelines
The AU Board of Trustees is scheduled on Monday, June 3, to consider possible tuition increases and budget guidelines, including recommendations for pay raises, for the budget year starting Oct. 1.
The board meets at 1 p.m. in Dixon Conference Center, following committee meetings that start at 8 a.m. Committees scheduled to meet, in consecutive order, are Agriculture, Budget, Academic Affairs, AUM Committee , Property and Facilities plus Athletics (joint session) and Executive Committee.
With the state's education funding problems projected by economists to continue into 2003, the AU administration is developing a proposal for a tuition increase of 10 to 12 percent at the main campus and approximately 6 percent at AUM.
The tuition increases, if adopted, will be factored into the university's budget for 2002-03. The administration will use guidelines established by the board at the June 3 meeting in developing the budget. The board will meet in August or September to take final action on the budget. The projected AU main campus budget for 2002-03 is $257.3 million, of which $16.8 million would be new funds.
Budget priorities developed by the university's Budget Advisory Committee include a 5 percent increase in funding for faculty and staff salaries. The committee of faculty, administrators and members of student and employee representative organizations recommended that staff receive a 2 percent across-the-board pay increase and a 3 percent pool for merit increases. The committee recommended that the entire 5 percent for faculty be used for merit increases.
Other proposed guidelines would keep the university on course with the five-year goals adopted by the board in January 1999. Those include support for Peaks of Excellence programs, other academic enhancements and campus maintenance upgrades.
Wireless degree in Engineering expected to be first in U.S.
This fall, Auburn's Samuel Ginn College of Engineering will launch what university and college officials predict will be the nation's first Bachelor of Wireless Engineering degree program.
The Alabama Commission on Higher Education gave final approval on May 17 to the degree program, which officials say will provide students with the tools they need to be part of the wireless revolution.
"Auburn's implementation of the nation's first bachelor degree program in wireless engineering will establish the institution as a true leader in this rapidly expanding field," said interim Provost John Pritchett. "Samuel Ginn's gift of $25 million, which made this possible, will move Auburn engineering into a relatively small number of elite engineering programs."
Larry Benefield, dean of the Ginn College of Engineering, described the new program as part of a larger wireless initiative.
"It is a technology that will grow far beyond its current use in cell phones, to include web access, data transfer, medical monitoring, and applications that we haven't thought of yet," said Benefield. "Auburn will become a major player in all of these developments."
The new degree program is an interdisciplinary effort that involves faculty and programs in two departments -- Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science and Software Engineering.
Students can specialize in hardware, software or networks. Those interested in a career with wireless service providers and other telecommunications companies may choose the network specialization option within either department.
The program will give Alabama's young people an unparalleled opportunity to become involved in this rapidly growing technology, said Benefield.
The AU engineering dean said Ginn provided the vision as well as funding for AU to be a pioneer in education for wireless technology. He also credited members of the Wireless Engineering Technical Advisory Board, which includes top executives from the industry.
The program will be good for the wireless industry as well as for students, said Richard Jaeger, interim director of the Wireless Engineering Research and Education Center. " "We worked closely with the wireless industry to ensure that the degree program addressed the full spectrum of industry needs," said Jaeger.
"Our hope is that we've created a program that will be exciting and challenging for the students, and produce graduates ready to meet the demands of the workplace."
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