November 2006 Presidential Update

The EMU Board of Trustees begins its fall meeting tomorrow morning in University Commons 211-212. Two new members will join the board for their first meeting; Lillis Troyer, of Walnut Creek OH and Sarasota FL, and Steve Brenneman from Nappanee IN.

I recently heard a report from the Association of American Colleges and Universities on a study of attitudes and expectations of students and employers about the value and meaning of a college education. Two very different responses from students were reported as somewhat representative of survey answers to one question. 'I don't think it means much of anything (a college education), it's just a piece of paper. But that piece of paper will get you the interview at whatever job you want." Another answer, "Well, I just think that it's about the journey. Like the whole process-you have to have all these general requirements to making you that well-rounded person.becoming a better thinker.it's more the process rather than the piece of paper." I prefer to think that the second quote is more representative of an EMU student! And, I have a strange feeling that the first student quoted will experience a lot of surprises in life.

Since my last update Pat and I have represented EMU at three presidential inaugurations. New leaders were installed at Virginia Intermont College, Bluffton University and Randolph-Macon College. Interestingly, the new RMC president was a former vice president for advancement at Johns Hopkins University where he supervised more development staff (over 300) than the entire faculty/staff combined at RMC.

The trip from Virginia Intermont to Bluffton gave us an opportunity to tour the campuses of Berea College and Georgetown College in Kentucky. Berea College recently completed a fundraising campaign totaling $162 million and is nationally famous for providing an education for low-income students who must work to pay for most of their tuition costs.

Last weekend we joined nine EMU business students and several faculty in Tampa for the annual meeting of the Mennonite Economic Development Association. Keynote speakers included the first lady of Paraguay, a member of a Mennonite Brethren congregation, and a former advertising executive who founded a company to educate U.S. citizens and companies toward better behavior so that those in other countries might think more positively of our society. I was reminded of a personal experience in 1978 when we visited Peru (in the company of professor Vernon Jantzi) and had the wonderful privilege of traveling by train with Vernon and Dottie from Cusco to the ancient and beautiful Manchu Picchu (The City of the Lost Incas). After traversing the incredible mountaintop ruins, learning about the incredible culture and ingenuity of the historic residents, and being awed by the natural beauty of the location, we took the train back to Cusco. A resident of a western state in the U.S. (I wouldn't want to sully the reputation of the entire state by naming it!) said to us, "It really is an incredible place. It's nice that they have that old hotel up there, but it would be a great boost to tourism if they could put a McDonalds franchise next to it." Unfortunately, he didn't seem to be making a joke. There is a reason we value cross-cultural education at EMU!

In late October the Faculty Status Committee approved sabbatical requests from 11 professors. Some will be off-campus for one semester and some for the entire 2007-08 academic year. I have also approved future sabbatical plans for Ervin Stutzman and Marie Morris, seminary dean and undergraduate dean, respectively. Each of them will take sabbatical time during the next two summers, splitting six months each over two summers. They are working with staff members in their offices to cover responsibilities in their absences.

Over the past two years much work has been done on what has become known as the Employee Incident Review (EIR), a policy and set of procedures for how we will address faculty or staff infractions of the Community Lifestyle Commitment. The President's Cabinet has approved that document to guide us in addressing future situations. The Interim Faculty Senate has offered several suggestions for involving senate members in any grievance that might be filed by a faculty member as a result of implementing the EIR. With the involvement of the human resources office and legal counsel, we are revising our current grievance policies and procedures, and the Faculty Senate's suggestions will be considered in that process. At the November 29 University Forum (for all faculty/staff) we intend to present drafts of updated grievance policies toward adoption next spring.

During the November 29 forum we also plan to update the campus community on plans for future building projects. We have received ideas for more clearly marking our campus perimeter and for entryway signs which will be shown at the meeting. In mid-October our campus architects spent two days on campus reviewing needs for renovation and construction; some of their suggestions/ideas will shared as time permits. We will do our best to allow plenty of time for interaction during the meeting.

One of the many challenges we face in planning future capital projects is in gathering feedback from faculty, staff, and students over a several-year period from the beginning of an idea through the completion of a specific project. I've known folks (in a previous life!) to say they weren't consulted, when in reality the consultations had taken place with their departmental predecessors. Please know that you have my commitment to consult as broadly and inclusively as possible. Occasionally brainstorming ideas are heard as representative of a final decision. If you have questions, please ask me and I'll do my best to provide the most comprehensive answer possible at that particular point in time.

This coming Sunday-Tuesday I will participate in the national meeting of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) in Phoenix, joining a panel discussion in a one-day president's seminar on strategic enrollment management. I received the invitation from Dr. Bob Bontrager, former EMU vice president for enrollment and marketing. The fringe benefit for participating on the panel is that I can attend the full conference with all travel and registration expenses covered by the firm for which Bob is a part-time consultant.

Books I'm currently reading: Chasing Ghosts by Paul Rieckhoff (subtitle: a soldier's fight for America from Baghdad to Washington); The Napkin Manuscripts, and Earthly by Michael McFee (recent writer's read guest at EMU); Saving the Corporate Soul by David Batstone (member of Sojourner's editorial staff, entrepreneur and recent EMU guest speaker); The Little Guide to a Well-read Life by Steve Leveen.

Blessings, Loren

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