Follow-Up Meeting with President Wyatt Approximately
90 individuals attended this meeting. Dr.
McFarland, Penson Associates Inc. consultant, spoke
with President Wyatt after the October 20th Stakeholders’
Conference regarding issues that were brought up while discussing driving
forces. It appeared that some of the issues raised at the October 20th
meeting needed further discussion with President Wyatt before beneficial
strategic planning could occur. Dr.
McFarland agreed to return to
1.
Sense of cooperation, communication, campus community, and internal
pride. A.
A participant said he was aware President Wyatt was meeting with
various groups of faculty; does Dr. Wyatt believe these meetings are helping?
i.
Dr. Wyatt explained that these meetings came about as a result of The
Higher Learning Commission report. He
felt that meeting with smaller groups consisting of faculty, staff, and
students would provide him the opportunity to hear their perspective on
issues affecting the university. Other
ways in which he is working at enhancing communication on campus is through
“Inside ASU”, a weekly campus email, and “First Friday”, a monthly campus
email. B.
A participant asked if Dr. Wyatt thought there might be a need to
schedule regular meetings with the executive committee of the faculty senate.
i.
Generally, because of the limited time on Dr. Wyatt’s schedule, Jennus Burton will meet with the Staff Senate, Rick
Stripling will meet with the Student Government Assn., and Susan Allen will
meet with the Faculty Senate. However,
he is trying to meet more often with the Presidents of Faculty Senate, Staff
Senate, and the Student Government Association. Because of the time constraints, it’s
easier to meet with single individuals rather than a group. C.
A participant questioned whether problems or concerns really reached
administration.
i.
Dr. Wyatt responded by saying that communication was a challenge due
to the number of individuals it flowed through (faculty to chair, chair to
dean, dean to vice president/chancellor, vice president/chancellor to president). The intent is that the problem can be
resolved before going very far up the chain.
If someone is frustrated by not being heard, Dr. Wyatt said they could
contact him. However, they need to be
aware that he may refer the problem back to the dean or the person most
appropriate.
ii.
Jennus Burton uses this method
within his unit and found that both informal and formal discussions were
necessary. D.
Dr. Wyatt thought shared governance was a good process but that individuals
outside the process may not be aware of what’s going on. Communicating that process continues to be
a challenge. E.
Regarding communication, a participant observed that many problems
could be attributed to “corridor discussions” or “trash talk”. The facts are not always accurate and yet
appear to spread. F.
A participant asked if shared governance was considered advisory or
decision-making. Some feel that once a
recommendation is made, it should be followed.
i.
Dr. Wyatt answered by saying that any type of decision-making process
requires both. All groups affected by
the decision should be allowed the opportunity to express their points of
view. Some decisions may not require
everyone to be involved in the process.
The Board of Trustees has the authority to make decisions or refer
them to the President. Dr. Wyatt
prefers knowing what the groups being affected feel. G.
The participant continued by asking if a mechanism has been
established to inform those involved in the process when a decision is different
than the recommendation.
i.
Dr. Wyatt - yes. If the
decision involves, for instance, students, the responsibility for informing
may reside with Student Affairs. If
Dr. Wyatt makes the decision, he will get back to the person who made the
recommendation. H.
David McFarland noted that it appeared that it was a collaborative
process and questioned if the goal is to go along with the recommendation.
i.
Dr. Wyatt said he preferred it that way but there are times when the
President must make the decision. When
that happens, he wants to let people know why he differs. I.
A participant wanted to know if there was something that could be done
to get a better sense of community on the campus (maybe barbecues or get togethers).
i.
There are things on campus now such as the Torchbearers had an ice
cream social last week. There are
tailgate parties before the football games.
The Staff Senate coordinates a fish fry each year. Dr. Wyatt challenged the group to identify
things to pull people together. He
would consider paying for some things if it would help.
ii.
A participant suggested that once the Student Union was completed,
there might be more opportunity for socializing there. The Library was a good place but there was
not enough parking. More summer school
classes. Maybe the 8-5 approach.
iii.
Dr. Wyatt said the campus is not the only one looking at this
issue. The chamber is working at
trying to pull the community together.
Churches are also facing this situation.
iv.
A participant commented that we live in a busy society and it’s hard
to get everyone involved.
v.
A participant suggested that we first have to realize we all have the
same goal - to educate and serve our students and the community. We need to get excited about that and we
need to have the spirit of helping.
vi.
Another participant agreed and suggested that in developing the
strategic plan, we could come up with this as a common goal - one that
everyone believes. J.
Dr. Wyatt continued the discussion after the break. Community was considered an important issue
at the October 20th meeting.
Is there a commonality of purpose?
Is this view shared by everyone?
i.
A participant stated that the institution is made up of diverse groups
but all want to be able to work together.
ii.
A participant said we must build our sense of pride - pride in what we
do and who we are.
iii.
A participant believes community comes with a sense of ownership. It cannot be dictated by
administration. It works from the
bottom up as well as the other way.
iv.
A participant suggested we have become a group of people who are not
“answering our phone”. Emails are sent
to inform, yet many don’t take the time to read them.
v.
A participant said he believed the electronic classroom was successful
at building a sense of community. Some
listservs that do not focus on announcements are
good at community building.
vi.
A participant said that community is rooted in identity. While attending some alumni tailgate
parties, alumni talked about traditions.
As a current student, he misses the traditions. Can they be improved or revived? o
Dr. Wyatt said that the places of tradition are changing. A consequence of growing is the loss of
some of those traditions.
vii.
Participant said that we should be intentional about community
building in our planning. High social capital
and sense of trust contribute to that.
What is it that we can measure? o
Dr. Wyatt asked the person what
the catalyst was at 2.
At this point, Dr. McFarland suggested that a “sense of community”
might be chosen as a strategic direction in the strategic plan. He also redirected the discussion toward
the topic of trust on campus, specifically the personnel issues that many had
questions about. He suggested that the
tough questions be asked. Can people
disagree without the fear of repercussions? A.
Dr. Wyatt addressed two relatively recent personnel issues. Both
decisions were rancorous within the university and community. Both are fine people. There was no personal animosity. i. After
explaining the circumstances in the two cases, Dr. Wyatt assured the group
that he could not identify any circumstances where retaliation was
evident. He stressed that free and
open communication was necessary and no one should fear repercussions from
voicing contrasting opinions. 3.
Dr. McFarland asked if ASU would continue as Division IA? A.
Dr. Wyatt responded by saying that 12 years ago the ASU Board of
Trustees chose to move to the next level in many areas. One area was in academics, accomplishing
that by being approved to offer the first doctoral program (EdD in Educational Leadership). Another area was in athletics, specifically
elevating the football team to Division IA.
At that time, the only requirement was that the institution would need
a stadium that would hold 32,000. Many
things have changed since that time.
Some of those changes include the change of members of the Board of
Trustees and the change in requirements for Division IA status. ASU is just now beginning to see the first
steps to success toward that goal.
Currently, because of the investment ASU has made toward reaching this
goal, the Board wishes to remain in Division IA status. 4.
A participant observed - Flow of money to auxiliary increasing at the
same time the flow of money is decreasing to academics. Is it possible to route money from
auxiliary into academics? A.
Dr. Wyatt - The money would actually flow from auxiliary into the
E&G. That money has been used to
provide funds to the debate team and travel funds for R/TV students, for
example. 5.
Athletics A.
Participant said that athletics is a bond to the community - something
the region can take an interest in and be proud of. Athletics helps promote a sense of
community. B.
Dr. Wyatt said that the largest increase in attendance has been from
students and the largest increase in Indian Club
members has been ASU employees. C.
Participant - The problem with athletics is its expense - not a lot of
money left for academics.
i.
Dr. Wyatt - It depends on your vantage point or your perspective. Several areas beside academics wanting more
money. $750,000 is a small amount in
the grand scheme to realizing goal of Division IA.
ii.
Participant - Athletic events bring alumni back to campus, maintaining
the bond between ASU and the alumni.
Because of this bond, some alumni have supported the university with
endowments. This is also one way in
which the university receives media coverage.
iii.
Participant asked if we could anticipate costs (for athletics) to
increase. o
Dr. Wyatt - Yes, cost of the increase in number of scholarships. However, there may be some savings due to
the conference changes. There will be
more regional conference games with less geographical range. There will also be some increase due to
adding a new woman’s sport. 6.
Who we are and who we serve, including the balance between teaching,
scholarship and service, i.e., clarification of our mission and the
president’s perspective of our vision. A.
Dr. Wyatt - ASU has always had the three elements (teaching, research,
service). ABI is a new addition to the
research element, funded with money from the Tobacco Settlement. However, ASU will not become a research
institution. Teaching will remain its primary
activity. 80 percent of credit hours
are undergraduate credit hours which further confirm that. B.
Participant - Will the university maintain the balance of the three
elements?
i.
Dr. Wyatt - Yes, not all disciplines have the same requirements but
all are judged by comparable standards.
Strategic Planning can help articulate the differences in the
institution.
ii.
Participant - Where does service fit in? o
Dr. Wyatt - Service is a point of pride and helps build a sense of
community. Responsibility for finding
a balance will reside with the academic affairs unit and then be accepted by
the President and Board of Trustees. 7.
Image A.
Dr. Wyatt said that much of his time is spent off campus and, because
of that, has had opportunity to talk with students, graduates, and parents
who have good things to say about ASU.
How do we change our own perception of our image? B.
Many agreed there are things about ASU for which we should be
proud. (e.g., academic programs such
as Journalism, Radio-TV, Art, Heritage Studies) C.
Participant raised the concern of the Indian as the mascot. Participant suggested it might be
appropriate to get help from Native American group. D.
Dr. McFarland suggested it would be helpful to organize focus groups
in the community to get an outside perspective of ASU’s image. We might consider marketing as one of our
strategic directions. 8.
New Resources A.
Participant asked how involved colleges can be in starting their own
capital campaigns.
i.
Dr. Wyatt said that ASU was prepared three years ago to launch a capital
campaign but with the drop in markets after the 9.
Closing remarks A.
Dr. Wyatt said that he recognized there were those who thought he
would not take the emerging plan seriously but he emphasized to the group he
was “absolutely serious”. He said he
believed that it was important, as a leader, to know where we (ASU faculty,
staff, and students) are willing to go.
This plan will help direct the future of ASU. He closed by expressing his appreciation
for those who have been involved and attended this meeting. |