Editor is President for a Day
I have to say I like being called Mr. President. Every now and then people call me “Chief,” but even that doesn’t have the same ring to it as “Mr. President.”
As good as it sounds though, I don’t think I’d want the responsibility that goes along with the title.
President Kermit L. Hall handles it well though, and being at his side as President for a Day for the month of September certainly gave me a taste of the goings on during an average day in Champ Hall.
Luckily, the day I spent with President Hall wasn’t full of meetings and beaurocratic mumbo-jumbo. Maybe they scheduled the various activities to make a good impression on my inquisitive mind, but I think I got a good sample of a normal day with him.
To start the day, I sat in on the executive council meeting with the university’s vice presidents and other presidential assistants. Having been to Associated Students of Utah State University meetings before, I thought I would be bored out of my mind as they made decisions. This wasn’t the case by any means, as the meeting moved very smoothly and decisions were made without any hitches. Some of the topics were regarding future upgrades of services available on the university’s Web site and each of the VP’s was able to speak their piece and all sides of the issue were well served.
The rest of the day was spent with the new president of Utah Valley State College. He was in town to take a short tour of the campus and see what Logan and USU have to offer.
This part of the day was very similar to what I am used to as a journalist; meeting new and interesting people is why I love my job in the first place. There are far too many places on campus most students don’t even know exist. We visited a couple of those places, including the Space Dynamics Lab and the Center for Persons with Disabilities.
Did you know the SDL has a picture on display from one of its telescopes of the center of the galaxy. Pretty impressive to say the least.
One thing I didn’t expect for my day as the prez was to be touched emotionally. The CPD is doing amazing things in its new locale. We attended the open house for the updated facility and found amazing things going on there.
I was blown away with the technology this university has available for people with disablilites. I never expected to see toddlers and grade school-age children using the facilities; I thought it was to help university students.
The most touching scene took place in a room dedicated to helping disabled people with technology. A blind boy from a local middle school was using a new device to navigate his way around a computer screen, including the Internet. The device would read out loud the words on the screen and even printed them in brail with mechanical pins that looked like dots on dice poking up for his fingers to feel.
Because of the help USU is giving this boy, he is a the top of his class, competing with other kids his age who don’t have any disabilities.
The last thing I learned that day is that it doesn’t hurt to be a little sarcastic. President Hall was never rude in the way he treated the students he talked with as he walked around campus, but he certainly kept them on their toes. He had even almost convinced a few people they needed to get off the Quad because they were blocking the sun from the grass.
Next time I’m tall and wearing a tie, I’ll have to use that line too.
If nothing else, the day helped me realize I don’t ever want to be a university president – too much pressure. But it was interesting to see that side of the story.
Jacob Moon is the editor in chief for The Utah Statesman. Comments can be sent to editor@statesman.usu.edu.