Practicing as President: First President for a Day sees a university of action
I’ll just say it’s not what I thought it would be like.
Being president of the university, that is.
Truthfully, I didn’t have any specific expectations going into President for a Day on Wednesday. I figured there would be meetings, phone calls, lunch and a few more meetings.
More or less, I was right.
But, just before I started my 10+ hour day with University President Kermit L. Hall, I found out about the proposed 43 percent tuition increase planned to take effect over the next three years. The proposal which practically dominated almost every meeting I attended.
For those who don’t know, President for a Day is a monthly program that allows one student to shadow President Hall as he goes about the business of running a university. I was lucky enough to be this school year’s first.
These are just a few of the things I learned during my day with our university’s three-year president:
* President Hall cares about students – especially that their degrees mean more in the eyes of others than they currently do.
* The reason parking prices have not gone up significantly during the past three years is because of President Hall.
* More and more faculty are thinking about leaving the university for more money and better opportunities elsewhere.
* The president knows the importance of mingling with students and teaching a class every year to them.
* Most of those working in university administration are required to teach a class every year. That requirement that will help them stay connected to the students, the president thinks.
* President Hall loves books. Check out his office sometime.
* Have you ever heard that a messy desk is a sign of genius? If President Hall is any indication, a clean one is, too.
* The tuition increase proposal is something President Hall believes is a last resort for keeping this university afloat.
* USU is not diverse enough and President Hall says that is going to change soon.
If the president has as much energy as he did during every meeting Wednesday, things are going to change. And though they may not happen this year, the ideas are starting to roll through people’s minds.
For instance, according to the president, the university needs more international and minority students – and possibly a black faculty member. Check sometime, We don’t have one. That is pretty pathetic, in my opinion.
Surprisingly, the night and weekend life might start getting better in Logan. Most of the administration, including the president, are concerned there’s nothing to do in Logan. From what I saw, nobody is really sure what to do about that, but at least they’re thinking about it.
Tuition will increase, no matter what people say or how they fight against it. You can’t do more with less. But I’m convinced that a combination of the president’s persistence and energy, as well as the logic behind the idea, will help create the best plan for everyone.
Maybe what hit me the hardest throughout the day was the pace. Days with no breaks between meetings and appointments happen to everyone, but I have a feeling they happen to President Hall every day. He is a busy man. I was exhausted afterward.
There’s much more I could tell you about President Hall, but if you’re really interested, just ask him. He’s open to conversation and he’s open to ideas. Time and again on Wednesday, he told people he was planning on going to every college and talking to students about the tuition increase. If they have alternative ideas, he’ll listen. Not to discourage you, but I guarantee he’s already thought them through.
The opportunity President Hall gives to students like me to do this type of activity speaks volumes for the administration of this university. For students to see what happens behind the scenes is important, and going to class every day just won’t cut it. So much goes in to planning our education and shouldn’t be taken for granted.
Being called president for a day taught me that.
Emilie Holmes is the editor-in-chief for the Utah Statesman. Comments can be sent to editor@statesman.usu.edu.