Dean's update

January 25 , 2010

Our students are back and we are beginning our always-busy spring semester as we move toward graduation.

As noted in my last update, we have had the opportunity to make our case for a few critical faculty and staff hires in 2010. Over the next several months, we will be filling up to eight staff positions and seven faculty positions vacated by retirement. While this does not meet every critical need, these hires should allow us to continue to meet our teaching, research and outreach responsibilities. It is our hope that we will continue to have the opportunity to make additional hires over the next few years. We must continue to carefully prioritize our hiring needs during these challenging budget times.

In early January, our College advisory board met for the first time.  These 31 individuals represent the broad range of our stakeholder community. This group had the opportunity to gain a better appreciation of the depth and range of our programs along with some of our challenges and opportunities. The group had a very open discussion about the needs and opportunities they see from their perspective. This group will add valuable perspective as we do our best to position the College for the future. The board will meet again this spring to review our strategic plan and provide valuable input on implementation and prioritization.

The Faculty Advisory Council has completed its work on the development of proposed College Bylaws for consideration by the College faculty. The draft will be shared with all faculty and the members of the Executive Council for discussion. If approved as drafted at our spring faculty meeting, the Faculty Advisory Council will become the Faculty Council and serve as the representative body for the College faculty. The Chair of the Council will become the Chair of the College Faculty for that year. The Faculty Council will have responsibility to oversee the work of the standing committees, bring important issues before the faculty for resolution and run the College-wide faculty meeting. Each standing committee will need to review the operational guidelines previously established for that committee and make appropriate changes. These bylaws are an important step towards formalizing how we will govern ourselves as a college.

Gregory J. Weidemann

Dean and Director