Student Assembly

Recorder: Andrew Brokman, S.A. Liaison to the Provost

Intro Remarks by Provost Kent Fuchs: The Office of the Provost works closely with the College Deans, Vice-Provosts, and the recently established Student-Advisory Council. The number of Vice-Provosts has been reduced by a third this past year, while expenses were reduced by half. I encourage you to meet with the Vice-Provosts when it is helpful to you. The Vice-Provosts are: Alice Pell (International Relations), Laura Brown (Undergraduate Education), John Siliciano (Academic Affairs, which includes tenure, libraries, and the Art museum), Ron Seeber (Landgrant Affiars), Barb Knuth (Undergraduate Admissions, and soon to take on the additional responsibilities of the director of Graduate Education).

Big Projects in the Provost’s Office: We just finished writing the Strategic Plan, with 8 Faculty members who were at the center of the project. During the next six months we will be working on “a plan for the plan.” We will be trying to implement and achieve the goals described in our strategic plan. There were twenty different Academic Task Forces set up, six of which the Office of the Provost directly manages and is responsible for: (1) Budget Model, which changes how we allocate resources and needs to be carefully examined so as not to include incentives that might lead colleges to game the system in an effort to attain greater resources (2) Social Sciences, which includes economics, sociology, psychology, and public policy (3) Management Sciences, which examines all the management programs including AEM, Hotel, and Johnson School, as well as management specialty programs in HumEc, ILR, and Engineering. (4) Size of Student Enrollment, which we have decided not to increase this year (5) Future of Life Sciences (6) Libraries.

Q&A:

Q. What is the Office of the Provost doing, perhaps in conjunction with the Faculty Senate, to lessen student stress?

A. President Skorton has asked me, as well as VP of Academic and Student Services, Susan Murphy, and Dean of Faculty, William Fry, to work on this issue in our respective Offices. My role is to make sure the colleges/schools are looking at their curriculum. I am in contact with the college Deans, and I am employing the Vice-Provost for Undergraduate Education, Laura Brown, to speak with Associate Deans. The Dean of the Faculty, Bill Fry, is looking to make changes in the Academic calendar. VP Susan Murphy is working with Gannett Health Services, the city of Ithaca, and coordinating the bridge restrictions. Fences are set to come down this summer, followed by a less ugly interim solution, then a different permanent solution. The interim solution will probably cost a lot of money because it’s doubtful that any material we use for the interim solution will be salvaged for the permanent one.

Q. Do you have any idea what the interim solution will be?

A. Not yet.

Q. Referring back to the Strategic Plan, I noticed an emphasis on “teaching excellence,” what is the University doing to motivate and reward teaching excellence?

A. You should speak to Vice-Provost of Undergraduate Education, Laura Brown, who has taken the lead in “teaching excellence.” I like that the Strategic Plan talks about a “culture” of teaching excellence, so it becomes something that reinforces itself. Currently, we provide support services with lectures for Professors through the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE). We are in the process of figuring out the motivation/rewards aspect.

Q. How are we improving academic advising across the colleges? Do you think that employing the model used at the Engineering school, whereby Faculty Advisers lead a 1 credit course with their freshman advisees would be helpful in all schools?

A. I think effective advising depends on the discipline. I am working with the Deans on this issue, while Laura Brown is working with the associate deans. I think from the top we could only dictate outcomes, but not individual college policies. This issue is certainly a part of reducing student stress.

Q. What are you currently doing to improve assessments of teaching? Would making course evaluations public in ALL schools be helpful?

A. As part of the accreditation process which occurs every ten years, we need to declare our goals and our outcomes, and there is always a feedback loop, so we are continually assessing ourselves. When I was Dean of the School of Engineering I made course evaluations public for that school, so it’s obvious where I stand on that issue. Laura Brown and David Gries, Chairman of University Assesment Committee, are currently working on assessments.

Correspondence with Prof. David Gries at the Provost’s request (6/24/2010)

Q. What are you currently doing to improve assessments of teaching? Would making course evaluations public in ALL schools be helpful?

A. I do think making course evaluations public would help, not so much the comments as the summaries. In the Engineering school you could access them all online. I suppose the faculty in most other schools have not voted to do that yet. As for improving teaching, the accreditation process, which requires a full report in the Spring of 2011, has stimulated the Administration to look closer at its Center for Teaching Excellence and to seek another staff member who could help Professors with their lecturing. Harvard has about 8 or 9 support staff dedicated to improving teaching, we currently only have 2, so we are giving it a closer look. I could find out if I am allowed to send you my Committee’s report on Assessing Student Learning.

Q. This is kind of off topic, and has more to do with your role as the head of operations and budgeting. Would you agree to a UA resolution that would mandate an annual report of Executive Compensation fully disclosing the theory behind our compensation of top Administrators, including benefits?

A. At my past two institutions, Purdue and Illinois, all salaries were public from the Janitor to the President and printed in the student newspaper. I don’t think that’s such a good idea because the less paid workers should not have to feel any embarrassment. Currently, I think the top 5 or 6 paid people at Cornell have to disclose their salaries to the IRS. I know that my salary is public in the Chronicle of Higher Ed, and as part of our public tax-forms. You should speak to the VP in charge of Human Resources, Mary Opperman about making a report.

Q. Could you elaborate on the way in which the new financial plan of streamlining undergraduate tuition and on the way in which different colleges will be taxed?

A. There was an excellent report published in December by the Budget Model Task Force which proposes certain resources be pooled and redistributed by the Office of the Provost, while other fund should go directly to the colleges with a requirement that they pay their expenses with the funds (i.e. utilities, salaries). There definitely will be a tax. If you want some more specifics on what we are planning you could contact Elmira Mangum, Vice President for Planning and Budget.

Q. What would you say to critics who think that streamlining tuition through the Provost’s Office will lead to a more authoritative structure? Some blame the authoritative, centralized command of previous administrations for the bad financial state of the University, citing specifically the millions and millions of dollars that were spent on new and unnecessary buildings. Do you think that putting ALL the money in one big pot and putting only one person in charge of the funds might cause a repeat of the poor decisions made by previous Administrations?

A. My view is that the Provost will have less latitude and a reduced budget. As of now, the Provost has no discretionary funds. This means that when I spend money, I am not held accountable for it. Under the new plan of pooling and reallocation it will be clear to everybody where the money is coming from and where it is being spent. It will require all the college deans to work together, and it will increase our accountability. The plan will make for a better process, and make our leaders less powerful.