AU REPORTSeptember 3, 2001
Headlines Pharmacy School named for Harrison Elders, Foster to speak at AU on health issues Tigers of different stripe take to city streets

The Auburn University Board of Trustees voted Friday, Aug. 31, to indefinitely postpone the selection process for AU's next president.

The board agreed to decide on a timetable later this year. However, presidential search consultant William A. Weary recommended that Auburn complete its upcoming 10-year accreditation review by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 2003 before renewing the search.

Walker

Interim President William F. Walker agreed to continue in that capacity until the search is resumed and a new president named. Walker, Auburn's former provost, has served as interim president since Feb. 12, when the board removed AU's 15th president William V. Muse, who had announced he was leaving on Aug. 1 to become chancellor of East Carolina University in North Carolina.

Weary on Friday agreed to remain as consultant to the Board of Trustees until the search resumes and is completed. The Boston-based consultant is a former official of the Association of Governing Boards, the national association for boards of trustees in higher education.

Earlier in the week, Gov. Don Siegelman, ex-officio president of the AU Board, sent the trustees a letter asking them to delay the search. The governor had previously asked for a delay, then asked the board to hold off on a decision until he had more information.

A SACS 10-year accreditation review team is due on campus in April 2003, following an internal self-study this academic year. Weary has said a presidential search will take several months to complete and should start in late spring or early fall.

The presence of a strong, interim president gives Auburn time to tackle some of the issues that need to be settled before a search begins, Weary said. Board President Pro Tem Jimmy Samford, meanwhile reiterated that Walker has the confidence of the board and full authority to carry out the duties of the presidency during the interim.

Weary said the university also can use the delay to gain a better understanding of how the state's Sunshine Law will affect the search for a new president. He advocates a closed search until the final stage to encourage sitting presidents of other institutions to apply.

The recommendation that AU complete the SACS reaccreditation review before starting a search was one of eight reasons cited by Weary for delaying the search. Among other goals he suggested for the university before beginning a presidential search are:

* Enhance the structures and function of the Board of Trustees. That process, he noted, was already under way.

* Restructure, refocus and build the university's administrative leadership. Weary said AU's administrative infrastructure is insufficient to meet the needs of a major university in the 21st century.

* Identify and begin implementation of a shared academic vision. Although the board approved a set of priorities in January 1999, following several years of development, he said the university needs a clearer and shared vision of what kind of institution Auburn wants to be in relation to the larger social, economic environment it faces in coming decades.

* Plan for the facilities required to advance "this emerging university."

* Create a viable and productive structure and staffing for advancement.

* Provide best quality "customer service." For example, he said, Auburn should ensure that it provides high-quality academic programs and student services to meet the changing needs and expectations of students in the 21st century.

* Determine how much money will be needed to implement Auburn's vision and put the funding in the strategic plan.

Foster, Elders to discuss health, poverty, race issues

Henry W. Foster Jr. and Joycelyn Elders, who were at the center of national debates on health policy during the Clinton presidency, will be keynote speakers for the National Conference on Race, Poverty and Health at Auburn University on Monday, Sept. 17.

Foster

Elders

Elders and Foster are among the nation's most prominent physicians and are widely recognized as leaders in the African-American medical community. However, both found themselves in the middle of battles between then-President Bill Clinton and conservatives in the U.S. Senate in the mid-1990s on issues related to AIDS, teen sexuality and abortion.

Foster, a former Tuskegee physician and dean-emeritus of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, will be keynote speaker at 1 p.m. for the afternoon session at AU's Dixon Conference Center. The former president's senior advisor on teen pregnancy and youth issues, Foster will speak on "America's Children at Risk."

Elders, former surgeon general under Clinton and keynote speaker for the conference in 1999, returns as keynote speaker at 10:15 a.m. for the morning session. Elders will speak on "Lifestyle Challenges and Choices."

At 1:45 p.m., the two physicians will join other health policy experts for a panel discussion on the theme of the conference, "Lifestyle Challenges and Choices: A Focus on Youth at Risk."

The interactive panel discussion will be available by satellite to participating universities and health agencies across the U.S.

First Elders and then Foster became central figures in political conflict over national health policy during the Clinton presidency. In December 1994, Elders was forced from office by political pressure after 16 months as surgeon general. Under constant attack from Congressional conservatives angered by her outspokenness on health issues, she left Washington and returned to the medical faculty at the University of Arkansas. A pediatric specialist, she has since retired.

Clinton nominated Foster to succeed Elders the following month, but the nomination of the Nashville obstetrician-gynecologist soon became embroiled in the national debate over abortions. Clinton withdrew Foster's nomination in June 1995, when conservatives threatened a filibuster in the Senate, and in January 1996 appointed the former Tuskegee physician as his senior advisor on teen pregnancy and youth issues.

Now retired from Meharry Medical College, where he had served as physician, professor, dean, vice president and acting president, Foster is on the medical faculty at Vanderbilt University.

More than a dozen speakers, most of whom are physicians, are scheduled for the conference. Participating with Foster and Elders in the panel discussion will be Patrick Allen, an HIV/AIDS researcher from the University of Colorado; Marian Secundy, a bioethics authority from Tuskegee University; Alfred Adams, an authority on health disparity issues from the VA Medical Center in Birmingham; and medical author Hilton M. Hudson of Washington, D.C.

Moderator for the interactive panel discussion will be Walter W. Williams, associate director for minority health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

Speakers that morning include Randall Russell, executive director of the AIDS Taskforce of Alabama; the Rev. Michael Thurman, senior pastor of the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church in Montgomery; Gwendolyn Lipscomb of the Office of Primary and Rural Health, Alabama Department of Public Health; and Kathleen Tajeau of the Central Alliance for Hispanic Health.

At 11 a.m., Evelyn F. Crayton and Erica M. Jackson will discuss "Health Care: The Great Divide." Crayton is a professor in the Department of Nutrition and Food Science and nutrition specialist with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, and Jackson is an assistant professor in the Department of Health and Human Performance.

Also speaking at the conference will be Frances Kochan, interim dean of the AU College of Education, and David Wilson, AU's associate provost and vice president for outreach. Both their units are among sponsors of the conference. Other sponsors include Agouron Pharmaceuticals and Glaxo Wellcome Smith Klein.

The conference includes a health fair from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. featuring displays on health-related topics and screenings for blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure.

This is the fourth national teleconference on race and poverty issues at AU since 1996. For registration or conference information, contact Renee Middleton of the AU College of Education at 334/844-4446 or by e-mail at middlre@auburn.edu.

Campus police
AU Police Lt. Curtis Rayborn chats with Gina Caison, a senior in English, near Haley Center recently. The university is increasing its police force in response to concerns about security on campus.

AU adding police officers to improve campus security

Eight additional police officers will be hired over the next few weeks by AU's Department of Public Safety in an effort to bolster campus security following recent reports of sexual assaults and menacing.

New officers should be on the payroll by Oct. 1, but the university is already increasing security through use of part-time, temporary personnel from other police agencies, Jim Ferguson, vice president for administrative services, told the Board of Trustees on Friday, Aug. 31.

The temporary personnel will continue assisting AU police until the new officers are hired and trained for their duties, he added.

The decision to hire the additional officers was announced earlier in the week. At that time, AU Interim President William F. Walker said additional steps would be taken. "We are going to do all that is necessary to ensure the safety of our students, faculty and staff while they are on campus," Walker said. "We consider this a high-priority issue and are acting accordingly."

Ferguson said reports of menacing of three students in recent weeks and three sexual assaults in late spring were factors in the decision to increase the number of campus police officers.

The additional officers will have a significant impact with their coverage and visibility on campus, said AUPDS Director Bill Nevin. AUDPS now has 26 sworn officers, but that includes Nevin, one major, two captains and three investigators.

"We have 19 police officers who work the road in four 12-hour shifts," Nevin said. The new officers will add to that number.

"Auburn University is as large in population as most cities in Alabama,"
Nevin said. "Many have a population of 10,000 or less, and AU faculty, staff and students comprise approximately 30,000."

In the recent cases of menacing, police artists have developed computer generated composite sketches of suspects. Nevin urged anyone with information about the cases to call AUDPS at 844-4158. Those who wish to remain anonymous may provide information to the AUDPS by going to the department's web site.

Sexual Assault Awareness Week observed at AU

AU is observing Sexual Assault Awareness Week with a variety of activities this week.

Several major activities take place during the week, which kicks off on Tuesday with the signing of a proclamation by interim President William F. Walker officially designating Sexual Assault Awareness Week.

"In light of events on our campus this spring and summer, we think it is imperative that we take any and every step to inform our students about the hazards that are out there at this, one of the most vulnerable times in their lives," Walker said.

"We want them to know what to expect, what to do if they are in certain situations where they are vulnerable to or the victim of a sexual assault and what resources are available on campus and in the community to help them."

Last spring, three AU students reported sexual assaults on campus and, since June, three more students have reported being chased or harassed. AU campus police have developed and distributed composite sketches of the suspects in the three most recent incidents.

The keynote events of Sexual Assault Awareness Week take place Wednesday, beginning at 7 p.m. with a panel discussion, "Shattered Trust: Rape on College Campuses," in the Student Activities Center. The discussion will be moderated by Liza Mueller, director of AU's SAfE Harbor Women's Center, and Barry Burkhart, an AU professor of psychology and a nationally recognized authority on the subject of dating violence.

On Thursday, Burkhart will discuss the impact of rape in a "brown-bag" seminar at 11:30 a.m. in Foy 217. Faculty, staff, students and others may bring a sack lunch.

That evening, AU Public Safety personnel will hold a women-only demonstration of Rape Aggression Defense techniques at 6 p.m. on the first floor of Draughon Library.

Trustees look to alumni funds for scholarships

The AU Board of Trustees is looking at a possible transfer of funds from alumni programs in the Office of Alumni and Development to pay for $2.5 million in scholarships. Funds now allocated for scholarships would then be shifted to faculty and staff salaries or bonuses under a proposal discussed Friday, Aug. 31, by the board.

Trustees are also considering a resolution to require that all funds generated since Oct. 1, 2000, involving use of licensed AU logos and trademarks be earmarked for scholarships. Trustee Bobby Lowder of Montgomery, sponsor of the resolution, said it would require the Alumni Association to turn over the $1 million in credit card revenues collected this year and another $1 million in the next budget year to the scholarship fund.

Lowder also suggested the Alumni Association could give up $1.5 million in reserves to help the university meet its budgeting needs for scholarships and salaries. The fund includes revenues received from the credit card. He cited budget problems caused by the likelihood of a second consecutive year of proration of AU's state funding.

The board agreed to delay consideration of the resolution, along with other budget considerations, until its Oct. 5 meeting. The 2001-02 budget year starts Oct. 1, but the board approved a resolution authorizing the university to continue operations at existing levels in the interim.

Betty DeMent, vice president for Alumni and Development, asked the board to look to the development side rather than the alumni side of her office's operations. The proposed reallocation would equal a 40 percent cut in funding for alumni programs, she said.

DeMent suggested that the board look to the AU Foundation rather than the Alumni Association for revenue. She said the alumni side of her office is devoted to cultivating friends for the university through the Alumni Association and the development office is the side that generates funds, which are administered by the Foundation.

DeMent said the Alumni Association is following the same procedures with the VISA and Master Cards, now issued by MBNA, as it did when Lowder's company, Colonial Bank, was the issuer.

Lowder, however, stressed that the university now faces a critical need for more revenues due to cuts in state financial support.

The Trustee Scholarship program is scheduled to grow from $1.5 million in the current budget to $2.5 million in 2001-02. That money comes out of the university's operating budget rather than endowments.
Trustees said they want to find other sources of revenue for the scholarships so those funds can be used for improvement of employee compensation, either through a 1 percent salary increase or a one-time bonus at Christmas.

Interim President William Walker said he will try to find other sources of revenue for the scholarship program before the next board meeting.

AU Pharmacy School renamed for Harrison

The AU Board of Trustees on Friday, Aug. 31, approved the naming of AU's School of Pharmacy in honor of James I. Harrison Sr., a 1925 Auburn pharmacy graduate, in recognition of his family's history of support for AU's pharmacy program. That support includes a recent major gift to the school from the Harrison Family Foundation.

The board voted unanimously in favor of the move to create the Auburn University James I. Harrison School of Pharmacy. Interim President William F. Walker said the renaming will honor Alabama's "first family" of pharmacy.

"No other Alabama family has contributed as much to the field of pharmacy in Alabama as the Harrisons," Walker said. "Without a doubt, they are Alabama's first family of pharmacy. The vision the Harrison family exhibited with the founding and growth of the Harco chain is exactly the kind of vision we hope to cultivate in our graduates from the Auburn School of Pharmacy."

"We are extremely proud of the School of Pharmacy's association with the Harrison family," said R. Lee Evans, AU's pharmacy dean. "We're eternally grateful for what they have done and continue to do for the school and honored to name the school for the patriarch of a family and a drug store chain that enjoys an outstanding reputation in pharmacy throughout the state, the Southeast and the nation. This latest gift will prove pivotal in allowing us to move forward with additional facilities."

Betty DeMent, AU's vice president for alumni and development, said the Harrison family has helped position the school for more growth.

"It is a privilege to recognize the legacy of an Auburn alumnus who has done so much to promote the pharmacy profession in the state of Alabama," DeMent said. "The Harrison family's generous investment in Auburn's School of Pharmacy will move it into the circle of nationally recognized professional programs."

Evans added that the association of the Harrison family and the pharmacy school goes back to 1925 and has continued in several ways since then.

Jim Harrison Jr. grew Harco into a chain of more than 150 stores before the company merged with Rite Aid in 1997. Citing his leadership, Chain Drug Review in 1995 named Harco the nations's top community drug store chain.

Nose to nose
Local businessman Trey Johnston goes nose to nose with one of the Tigers on the Prowl across from campus on College Street. The decorative statues are part of "Tigers on the Prowl," sponsored by the Auburn Chamber of Commerce.

Tigers of different stripe line downtown Auburn streets

Two dozen tigers are "prowling" the streets of Auburn -- or, at least, standing by the roadside.

These tigers, however, are neither the kind found in zoos nor the ones seen on Saturdays in Jordan-Hare Stadium. Instead, they are eight-feet long, weigh 150 pounds, and are made of fiberglass and decorated in a variety of ways.

The Auburn Chamber of Commerce, with assistance from AU's Department of Industrial Design, created "Tigers On The Prowl," as a community/university art project similar to Chicago's "Cows on Parade" and other exhibits at more than 30 cities in the U.S.

Chamber member Carol Pittard visited Chicago while that city's designer "cows" were on exhibit. She thought a similar approach would work in Auburn and proposed the idea to the chamber.

The chamber contacted AU Industrial Design faculty member Randy Bartlett and along with students, started a project a year ago to design the prototype tiger.

Some of the tigers will be auctioned by the chamber on Nov. 16. Funds from the sale of the tigers are going to chamber projects as well as to a scholarship in the Department of Industrial Design.

Classes offered to teach women self defense

AU will sponsor two 12-hour classes fall semester designed to help female students, faculty and staff prevent or defend against rape.

The Rape Aggression Defense class teaches women a combination of awareness and prevention plus defensive techniques and is designed to help women make educated decisions when they encounter aggression. The free program is the only course of its kind endorsed by the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement.

Classes will be taught in three four-hour sessions. A September class is already filled. The second class will be on Nov. 5, 8 and 12, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. To register, call Susan DiJulio of AU's SAfE Harbor Women's Center at 844-5123.

The courses will be taught by Capt. Randy Cerovsky, Detectives Brad Jordan and Marcus Walton and Lt. Chris Butler of the AU Department of Public Safety. All have completed a three-day training course and were required to pass written and practical exams at the end of the course.

AU Public Safety personnel will provide a demonstration of RAD techniques as part of AU's Sexual Assault Awareness Week on Thursday, Sept. 6, at 6 p.m. in the Computer Systems Classroom on the first floor of Draughon Library.

The class is broken down into three sections -- lecture, hands-on training and then realistic simulation. The lectures cover basic understanding of awareness, risk reduction and avoidance strategies. The hands-on part of the class educates women to use their own personal weapons -- hands, feet, elbows, knees -- to resist physical assault.

The realistic simulations take place on the last day of class. The women practice what they've been taught and refine their defensive options. Instructors wear big foam body suits and the students wear protective gear and are put through several scenarios where they are forced to defend themselves.

At the beginning of the course, each student will be provided a free manual. When the student completes the course, an instructor will sign her manual and her lifetime practice policy, which enables the student to go through the course again for free at any time anywhere the course is taught.

The course is funded jointly by the AU Department of Public Safety and AU's SAfE Harbor Women's Center, which has a grant from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs.

Team assembling for accreditation review

Auburn University will conduct a self-study this academic year as part of the process for reaffirmation of accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

A SACS visiting team is scheduled to be on campus April 7-10, 2003, to review and evaluate the university's application for reaccreditation.

The Commission on Colleges of SACS sends a review team to each member institution every 10 years to evaluate academic programs, student services and administrative processes. The review team determines how well these activities fit the institution's statement of vision and purpose, said Physics Professor Eugene Clothiaux, who, with Assistant Provost Linda Glaze, is co-director of AU's SACS reaffirmation process.

This evaluation, planned since AU's accreditation was reaffirmed for 10 years in 1993, is separate from the visit scheduled for October by another team from SACS. That SACS team is investigating specific complaints against the Board of Trustees from leaders of several campus constituencies.

The visit by the reaffirmation committee from SACS in 2003 will be broad-based and requires extensive preparation, but the effort will benefit the university, said Clothiaux.

"We are scheduled for a visit in April 2003, and to that end we have begun the process of self-evaluation of Auburn University," he said. "The accreditation of the university brings recognition that its students, both undergraduate and graduate, are qualified scholars in the field of their endeavors."

Clothiaux noted that SACS accreditation brings recognition from the federal government, which funds student loans and provides contracts and grants to support research.

"We must recognize that the reaffirmation of accreditation is a process which we do to and for ourselves, since Auburn University chose to apply for membership in SACS and was accepted in 1922, agreeing to abide by the rules set down by that organization," he said.

"Over time, the requirements have changed, from initial emphasis on strong liberal arts education and other specified requirements to a more institution-specific process."

"Auburn University is required to show that every department -- academic and administrative -- is in line with the university's statement of vision and mission," he said, noting that the statement is posted in the University Bulletin.

Clothiaux said the head of each department, college, school or division needs to ascertain that the unit is in full compliance with the vision and mission statement.

Clothiaux, citing SACS documents, said the accrediting agency's current emphasis is on institutional planning and evaluation, and each institution must "establish a clearly defined purpose appropriate to collegiate education; formulate educational goals consistent with the institution's purpose; and use the results of these evaluations to improve educational programs, services and operations."

The AU Self-Study group is divided into seven principal committees and a steering committee.

The committees and each chair are: Institutional Purpose, David Harrell of Liberal Arts; Institutional Effectiveness, Mary Boudreaux of Veterinary Medicine; Educational Programs, Bruce Gladden of Education; Faculty, Larry Gerber of Liberal Arts; Educational Support Services, Ralph Zee of Engineering; Intercollegiate Athletics, Yvonne Kozlowski of the AU Library; and Administrative Processes, Wayne Alderman of the College of Business.

The committees will collect data during this academic year and write the self-study report next summer. Clothiaux said the first draft of the report will be placed on the AU web page by late September 2002.

Helping pets
Mary Tefend, left, the Hill's Clinical Instructor in Veterinary Critical Care Nursing at AU, examines a cat at the College of Veterinary Medicine as Catherine McClelland of Hill's Pet Nutrition observes.

Vet Med program saves critically ill pets

AU's College of Veterinary Medicine has launched a program that college officials say could save the lives of critically ill pets across the Southeast.

The AU Critical Care Program, one of only five such university programs in the United States, recently began at the College of Veterinary Medicine as a rapid response, same-day referral center for regional veterinarians who have small animal cases that need urgent attention.

"Your local veterinarian is well equipped to handle most cases, but there are a few that require the resources and specialists of the veterinary college," said Veterinary Medicine Dean Timothy Boosinger.

An intensive care unit is operated 24 hours per day by AU clinicians and technicians, who have immediate access to the college's diagnostic and therapeutic equipment essential for critical cases. Specialists are available in the areas of internal medicine and critical care.

AU launches massive heating, cooling upgrade

AU will need up to $45 million in heating and cooling system improvements over the next five years to meet its infrastructure needs, Christine Curtis, associate provost for facilities, told the Board of Trustees on Friday.

Up to $32 million of those costs will be covered by a general bond issue. The remainder would be covered by moneys already allocated for building projects and from outside sources.

The infrastructure improvements will come as AU shifts more buildings from self-contained heating and cooling systems to central plants from which hot or chilled water is circulated. The plants are cheaper to build and upgrade and more efficient to operate than a series of boilers and chillers in individual buildings, Curtis said.

Plans call for construction of additional hot water plants for heating on the main campus and the Veterinary Medicine campus, expansion of chilled water plants for cooling on both campuses and installation of lines to service new buildings and existing buildings as their aging individual systems are replaced.

New facility to help AU gain lead in transportation technology

AU is moving forward with plans for a $37 million facility as part of an effort to increase the university's national stature in several areas of transportation technology.

Plans approved in April by the Board of Trustees were revised Friday, Aug. 31, to enable project designers to fit the 194,000-square-foot facility in the university's master plan, which is under development by Sasaki Associates.

The initial site, now occupied by Drake Health Center, is prone to flooding, and planners may be able to find a better location in the vicinity, said Christine Curtis, associate provost for facilities.

The trustees authorized the university architect and the project building committee to begin a search for an architect, but a construction schedule will depend on availability of funding. The entire project, including site work, demolition, architect's fees and reserve funds, is estimated to cost $50 million. Trustees are looking for financing from a mix of university, private, state and federal sources.

The planned building -- or complex -- will be nearly twice the size of Broun Hall and larger than Ross Hall, Ramsay Hall, the Textile Building and Dunstan Hall combined.

The facility will be placed within an area bounded by the College of Business, the Textile Engineering Building and Broun Hall. Buildings in the area include Dunstan Hall, shop buildings, Drake Health Center, Noble Hall, the old Physical Plant Building and the Central Steam Plant. AU Engineering's precinct plan calls for demolition of these buildings in the early part of this century. However, the Sasaki plan could either support, revise or override the precinct plan.

The Center for Transportation Technology will be part of the Ginn College of Engineering. The building will house classrooms, offices and laboratories for the study and development of technology related to highway infrastructure, commercial vehicles, modeling and simulation and information technology.

The college's administrative offices in Ramsay Hall and programs in Dunstan Hall will also move to the new facility.

Upside down welcome
Stacie Ballard, a junior psychology major, takes a twirl on a Gryo Ride on the Haley Center concourse at Auburn. The University Program Council set up several games and rides last week as a 'welcome back' for students returning for fall semester.

Architect named for forestry building

The AU Board of Trustees on Friday, Aug. 31, selected the Montgomery architectural firm of Butner Architectural Group in association with the Atlanta firm of Cooper Gary Inc. to design a new building for the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences.

A timetable for construction of the $25.5 million building will depend on availability of funds. The 108,000-square-foot structure will occupy nearly three times the space of M. White Smith Hall, home to forestry programs at Auburn since 1948.

The new building will also house wildlife sciences programs now in Funchess Hall.

Site selection will be made following completion of the university's master plan and will be in the vicinity of Lem Morrison, P.O. Davis and Donahue drives.

Former trustee Charles 'Mister' Smith dies

Montgomery businessman Charles Milton Smith III, a member of the AU Board of Trustees from 1971-83, died Aug. 21 in Montgomery following a lengthy illness. He was 68.

Known even during childhood as "Mister Smith," the Montgomery native acquired the courtesy title as a nickname at birth, when he was the only male baby in the hospital nursery.

Smith, who graduated from Auburn in 1955 with a degree in industrial engineering, expanded his business interests in Montgomery from a dry cleaning business into construction and commercial property development, a convenience store chain, a gravel mining company and banking.

He was appointed to the Board of Trustees by Gov. George Wallace and his service overlapped the AU presidencies of Harry M. Philpott and Hanly Funderburk. "He was interested in Auburn as a whole and was always very supportive," said Philpott. "He was kind of quiet and preferred to work in the background to help in any way he could. I enjoyed working with him."

AU students to design Habitat prototype house

Auburn students will spend this academic year studying, designing and building an affordable prototype house for Alabama affiliates of Habitat for Humanity. The house will be specially designed for use in the Deep South, but the design could one day be used internationally, say the project coordinators.

Twenty students in the College of Architecture, Design and Construction will be involved in the year-long project which will culminate with the building of a house of the future.

The AU college is undertaking the project in conjunction with the Alabama Association of Habitat Affiliates and Design Alabama, a nonprofit, citizen-led organization formed by the state Council on the Arts.

"The most significant contribution of this project will be improved designs of habitat housing in the state of Alabama," said David Hinson, the Batey and Ann Gresham Professor of Architecture at AU, who is coordinating the project with John Mouton, the John Edward Wilborn Chair in the Department of Building Science.

"The houses will be improved in the sense that they will be more livable, consume less energy to heat and cool, cost less to maintain and use fewer resources to construct."

The fall semester class is a seminar course designed to "engage students in researching the issues surrounding affordable housing, energy conservation and sustainable design methods," Hinson said.

The second course will be a design/build studio to be taught spring semester in which the students will apply their research in building a prototype house.

In the first part of the project, students will visit Habitat for Humanity International offices in Georgia to interview current Habitat home owners and executives and meet with volunteers who build Habitat houses.

"They will study and challenge every aspect of the current house designs of Habitat," Hinson said.

AU students and faculty, Design Alabama officials and Habitat for Humanity affiliate leaders recently discussed a laundry-list of ideas and questions the students will spend time researching and answering.

Some of the issues on which students will focus include the standard size of habitat houses and how can the design accommodate the changing family needs.

The students will consider cultural issues that can affect design, and they will explore passive heating and cooling designs and ways to blend habitat houses into the community. They will also look at handicapped accessibility and consider any changes that current habitat families would like to make concerning design.

Karen McCauley, executive director of the Alabama Association of Habitat Affiliates, said she thinks this project could have a huge impact on housing needs in Alabama.

Library goes paperless for interlibrary loan requests

AU Libraries will replace the current interlibrary loan request system, WebZAP, with a system designed to allow for faster, easier and paperless service.

The new system -- ILLiad, which stands for InterLibrary Loan internet accessible database -- goes into effect Tuesday, Sept. 4, said Linda Thornton, chair of the Access Services Department.

In addition, the interlibrary loan staff will move to a paperless system with ILLiad beginning Oct. 1.

"AU faculty, staff and enrolled students will find it easier to submit interlibrary loan requests," Thornton said.

With ILLiad, a user will enter his or her name, address and other personal information into the system only once, at the time of the person's first request, she said. "Personal contact information can be updated at any time, however," she added.

With the new system, registered users will be able to submit interlibrary loan requests on the web 24 hours a day, view the status of their interlibrary loan requests during any stage of the process and cancel a request on-line as well as resubmit canceled requests while keeping a record of the transaction. Users will be able to view their entire request history.

AU Library's interlibrary loan department handles more than 50,000 requests each year, which includes requests to borrow materials from other libraries and lending materials to other libraries nationwide.

Spirit of Excellence
Each month the Office of Human Resources recognizes four AU employees with Spirit of Excellence awards for exceptional performance. Recipients for August, from left, are Charmoin Tatum of Freshman Year Experience, Laura Henry of Information Technology, Mary Townsend of Facilities and Judy Mask of Memorial Coliseum.

Brinker to receive award from national association

Richard W. Brinker, dean of the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, will receive the Society of American Foresters' Technology Transfer and Extension Award at the 2001 SAF National Convention on Sept. 13-17 in Denver.

Brinker

The award is in recognition of his role in disseminating science and technology to his professional colleagues. Brinker, AU's former state Extension forestry specialist, is a leader among extension professionals in the education of the logging community.

As a faculty member, Extension specialist and dean, Brinker has pioneered comprehensive curriculum and educational models that have helped educate more than 2,500 loggers over the past 10 years. Brinker has also been recognized by the Forest Landowners Association as the Extension Forester of the Year in 1997 and three times by the Southern Regional Extension Foresters with the Award for Excellence in Mass Media. Brinker holds a B.S. in forestry from Louisiana State University, an MBA from the University of Southern Mississippi, and a Ph.D. in forestry from LSU.

The Society of American Foresters represents more than 17,000 professional foresters and natural resource professionals. It is the scientific and educational association representing the profession of forestry in the United States. The Society's primary objective is to advance the science, technology, education, and practice of professional forestry for the benefit of all.

SAF's Technology Transfer and Extension Award recognizes outstanding achievement in technology transfer, implementation, and extension by an SAF member as evidenced in the recipient's career or involvement in SAF working group and science activities.

Architects honor McPheeters

E. Keith McPheeters, dean emeritus of Auburn's architecture school, has been awarded Alabama's 2001 Distinguished Architect award by the Alabama Architectural Foundation.

The award was established and is administered by the AAF to bring recognition to individual architects whose exemplary career achievements and outstanding service to society and the profession elevated them to a posture of distinction among their peers.

McPheeters was dean of the School of Architecture and Fine Arts at AU for 19 years until his retirement in 1989.

Chang appointed director of engineering technology unit

Carl K. Chang, an internationally recognized authority in information technology, has joined the AU faculty as the director of the Institute for Reconfigurable Smart Components.

The IRSC is within the Information Technology Peak of Excellence in the Ginn College of Engineering.

Chang came to Auburn from the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he was an associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Recently he established the International Center for Software Engineering at that institution.

"We view Dr. Chang's appointment as a very important element in moving forward with the Information Technology Peak of Excellence at Auburn University," said Engineering Dean Larry Benefield.

"We have already entered the information technology age, and have become amazed at the possibilities we have before us. Dr. Chang has a clear perception of the directions we need to take to make this program an integral part of our future of Auburn University, as well as the state and region."

Chang said he decided to join the IRSC because of its focus on research, but it was the people who drew him to Auburn. "The vice president for research (Michael Moriarty) impressed me by his vision to the university research and his realistic approach to fostering technology development and transfer with industrial partners. I felt that there is a right mix of success factors within and outside Auburn where people really play a very critical role."

Research discretionary funds shift to deans

AU's vice president for research has shifted to deans of colleges and schools responsibility for allocation within their colleges and schools of funds in the Discretionary Research Grants program.

"The program will continue to follow the guidelines established for the awards, such as eligibility and category requirements, but the administration and amounts of each grant award will be determined by the deans or their designees," said Michael Moriarty, associate provost and vice president for research.

Faculty applying for discretionary research grants now will send their applications directly to their respective deans, and not to the OVPR, as in years past, Moriarty added.

New guidelines for administering the Discretionary Research Grants program have been distributed to each dean's office. Funds will be transferred to the deans' offices after Oct. 1.

Discretionary research grants are small awards to be used for such activities as publication assistance or travel. Applicants must be tenured or tenure-track, fulltime faculty. Awards can be made at any time during the year, as long as funds are available.

Tickets on sale for 2001-02 AU Theatre season

Four plays, including Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" and the rock musical "Grease" are scheduled for the AU Theatre 2001-02 season. The season also includes Noel Coward's "Hay Fever" and "Our Country's Good," a play within a play.

"The Crucible," often cited by theatre critics as a modern classic, is based on the Salem witch trials. It will be presented Oct. 3-5 and 10-12. Cowart's satirical British comedy of manners, "Hay Fever," will be staged Nov. 27-Dec. 1.

In 2002, the stage version of "Grease" will be Feb. 19-24. "Our Country's Good," a play by Timberlake Wertenbaker about an attempt by 18th century Australian convicts to put on a play, will be April 16-20.

Faculty, staff and senior citizens may purchase season tickets through the Telfair Peet Theatre box office for $46 for each set of four tickets. Student season tickets are $38, and general public tickets are $54. Tickets to single productions vary from $10 to $16. Call 844-4154 or 844-4748 for information.

Campus Roundup
Street to be closed two months
Hemlock Drive, on the west side of campus between Samford and Thach, will be closed from Sept. 4 -Nov. 4 for adjacent construction and street repairs. The work includes construction of an electrical substation, installation of duct work and recompaction and paving of the street.

Chamber music tickets available
The AU Chamber Music Society has season tickets available at the Department of Music in Goodwin Hall. Scheduled are the Jess Trio of Vienna on Oct. 16, the Jose White String Quartet from Mexico on Jan. 18, and the Kocian String Quartet of Prague on March 12. All performances are at 8 p.m. in Goodwin Recital Hall. Tickets are $15 at the door or $40 for season tickets. Call 821-0032 or 826-2797 for information.

Reimbursements now by direct deposit
Effective Sept. 1, travel expense reimbursements will be made electronically via direct deposit for AU employees whose payroll checks are direct-deposited. Employees who do not participate in payroll direct deposit may sign up for this new service by completing a Travel Direct Deposit Authorization Form and submitting it to Accounts Payable, 21 Ingram Hall. Forms are available online at the Business Office Forms web site. For other information, contact Accounts Payable at 844-3639.

Openings in Early Learning Center
The AU Early Learning Center has openings in the 4-year-old and mixed age group classes. The 4's meet Monday through Friday from 8:30-11:30 a.m. The mixed-age class (3's and 4's) meets Monday through Friday from 12:30-3:30 p.m. The fee is $750 a semester. Contact Linda Silvern at 844-4696 for an application or further information.

AU Report Editor: Roy Summerford. Contributing editors: Bob Lowry, Janet McCoy, David Granger and Roy Roberson. The AU Report is the faculty/staff newsletter of Auburn University and is published by the Office of University Relations at Auburn University. Direct correspondence to AU Report, 23 Samford Hall, Auburn University, Ala. 36849-5109. Telephone 334/844-9999. Electronic mail: summero@auburn.edu