May 19, 2003
Streets to close for summer work
Academy to honor Liberal Arts teachers
President presents vision for AU
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May 19, 2003 |
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| Headlines Streets to close for summer work Academy to honor Liberal Arts teachers President presents vision for AU |
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Streets to close for utility work this summer
Portions of Samford Avenue and Mell Street will be closed for the summer as the Facilities Division installs utility lines in the southeast quadrant of campus. The work is scheduled to start by June 1.
The utility lines will carry hot water for heating systems of buildings from a new hot water plant on the Duncan Drive extension southwest of the Hill Dorms to the Sciences Laboratory Center, which is under construction east of Parker Hall. In the future, the lines will provide hot water to existing and new buildings in the area as part of the campus central heating and cooling infrastructure, said Randy Moon, director of maintenance, operations and services in Facilities.
During the infrastructure installation, traffic will be routed from Mell at Roosevelt to College Street and then to Samford. Traffic on Samford Avenue will be routed south at the Mell Street four-way stop and then along Lem Morrison Drive to Donahue and back to Samford at the Athletic Center.
The path of the line will be east on Samford Avenue from Duncan to Mell, then north on Mell to Roosevelt, where the line will extend to the Sciences Laboratory Center construction site. Roosevelt was closed to traffic in February due to the construction.
Planning consultant Marty Wells told the University Senate on May 6 that his firm is examining the possibility and implications of permanently closing Samford Avenue as a through-street between Mell Street and Duncan Drive because of the dangers posed to students in the Hill Dorms crossing the busy east-west traffic corridor. Faculty senators warned that closing Samford would lead to road surface and safety problems on Lem Morrison Drive, which would have to be addressed.
In related construction this summer, the Facilities Division is developing the site of the southeast corner of Samford Avenue and College Street, site of the old Kappa Alpha house, into an expanded and improved parking area.
The KA site, which previously provided parking for about 75 vehicles on a partly asphalt and partly gravel surface, will be paved, lighted and striped for up to 130 vehicles. The parking area's design includes a wide protected area around the large oak tree, which is a landmark on the site, and special provisions to limit storm water runoff.
The Facilities Division is also upgrading part of the B parking lot south of Haley Center to accommodate the heavier load of transit buses that now use the parking lot as the main transfer site on campus.
The utility and paving projects are scheduled for completion by mid-August.
New academy honors top teachers in Auburn College of Liberal Arts
The College of Liberal Arts at AU has established the Academy of Teaching and Outstanding Teachers to recognize the career teaching achievements of top professors.
The college recently inducted 36 present and former faculty as charter members of the Academy. Future membership will be limited to eight new members per year.
"The Academy is an exclusive and fine way to further recognize the college's superlative teachers. Further, the academy will provide an organized method for these scholars to mentor others into the craft of teaching excellence," said interim College of Liberal Arts Dean Rebekah Pindzola.
"What sets apart this academy from most awards programs is that membership is for life rather than one year, and selection is made by peers within the college on the basis of career accomplishments in teaching," said Bill Buskist, chair of the Promotion of Excellence in Teaching and Learning Committee, which selected the Academy’s charter members. Nominations came from throughout the college.
The Academy provides a core of teaching excellence to inspire and guide young faculty, Buskist said. "We have had excellent teachers all along, but new faculty in the college sometimes had to be here a while before they found the right role models and mentors," he added. "From now on, the Academy will be the first place they will look."
Each nominee must have taught at least 10 years in the college before being considered for Academy membership.
In addition to current faculty, the roll includes members who have retired, died or moved to other universities. Those who are no longer in the college were included because their teaching excellence has become legendary, said Buskist, who is the Alumni Professor of Psychology.
The charter members come from nine departments, but Buskist said their teaching skills transcend departmental and college boundaries. The charter members, by department, are: Communication and Journalism: Mickey Logue, Jack Simms and Ed Williams. History: Donna Bohanan, Gordon Bond, Wayne Flynt and Joseph Kicklighter. Music: Wilbur Hinton, Thomas Smith and John William Tamblyn. Political Science: Gerard Gryski, Rene P. McEldowney and Christa Slaton. Sociology: Murray Adams, Greg Kowalski and Thomas Petee. English: Ward Allen, Paula Backscheider, Bert Hitchcock, Margaret Kouidis, Taylor Littleton, Jim McKelly, Constance Relihan and Dwight St.John. Philosophy: Charles Brown, Kelly Jolley, Lillian Pancheri, Clif Perry, Richard Penaskovic and Ken Walters. Psychology: William Buskist, Malcolm Gynther, Peter Harzem, Philip M. Lewis and Dudley McGlynn. Theatre: Daniel Larocque.
Fans' love of orange and blue adds touch of green to AU scholarships
The retro look is in this year for collectors of all things Auburn. So are ceramic pigs sporting AU logos. While the fashion and decorating tastes of Auburn fans sometimes take odd turns, Susan Smith couldn’t be happier with the results. As director of AU's Trademark Licensing Office, she has seen a surge in demand for AU merchandise over the past decade.
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"We are getting more nationwide exposure now for Auburn-themed merchandise than we have ever gotten, and demand continues to grow," said Smith, who added that distributors also have recently expressed interest in reaching markets in Canada.
She attributes the jump in demand to increased and positive nationwide exposure for AU academic and athletic programs, market demand by Auburn alumni outside the region and strong nationwide support from Collegiate Licensing Co., the dominant licensing representative for U.S. colleges and universities.
"It is important that Auburn gets revenues for scholarships by licensing its trademarks and symbols, and we are able to boost those revenues by promoting Auburn-licensed merchandise through CLC," said Smith. "But it is just as important to protect Auburn’s good name and image through our trademark licensing program.
"We have to protect the university's trademarks from unlicensed use by manufacturers and other parties. We cannot allow others to trade on Auburn's good name unless they reimburse the university for that privilege and agree to certain standards."
Smith noted that Jennifer Blackmon, who joined the office this year, brought eight years experience with CLC to the AU program.
Standards enforced by both the AU office and the CLC help the university ensure that the products are high quality and tastefully designed. Smith noted that the standards also prohibit manufacturers from using sweatshop labor.
Enforcement of restrictions against unlicensed usage of trademarks presents one of the toughest challenges, Smith said. "We have to protect use of trademarks or we will lose our rights to those trademarks."
She said administrators, faculty and staff can help protect the university's trademarks by checking the Trademarks Licensing Office's Web site before using the university's name, logos or other trademarks in promotional materials.
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Eleven students and two faculty members from the College of Human Sciences left Auburn on May 10 for a summer of studies in Italy.
With its program in the town of Ariccia, 15 miles south of Rome, Human Sciences has the only international program at AU with its own overseas campus, says June Henton, dean of the college.
"Ours just happens to be the famous 17th century Palazzo Chigi which is now a museum featuring centuries of artwork, especially from the baroque period," said Henton. "Our goal is to send a group each semester, so the campus will run year-round."
Donna Sollie, Alumni Professor of human development and family studies, and Pamela Ulrich, associate professor of consumer affairs, are accompanying the students.
The group will spend 12 weeks abroad and the class members will earn 16 semester hours of credit toward degree requirements for the international minor in Human Sciences.
The AU College of Human Sciences in Italy promotes the study of individuals and families in the context of housing, interiors, textiles, apparel, nutrition, food, hospitality and related subjects.
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Solomon book examines ways consumers act
An Auburn professor has written a new book on consumer behavior that explores the importance of branding on marketing strategies in today’s retail environment.
The book by Michael Solomon, a professor of consumer behavior in the College of Human Sciences, is titled "Conquering Consumerspace: Marketing Strategies for a Branded World."
Solomon's book was published by the American Management Association, which is featuring the work as one of its lead titles for 2003. Solomon will embark on a 25-city media campaign to publicize its release..
"The book's target audience is anyone who works in advertising, marketing or e-commerce, or anybody who is interested in how what we wear defines who we are as people," Solomon said.
"Nowadays, you are seeing much more active consumer in-volvement in marketing," he added.
"For example people are becoming merchants on eBay, and the general public has the opportunity to vote on the outcomes of national competitions like on 'American Idol.'"
Solomon's book defines strategies for business success and reveals the new world of consumer behavior, where traditional boundaries between branded commodities and everyday life are blurred.
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David Whitley has been named head of the Department of Clinical Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine.
"He is highly respected by our faculty and he will provide great leadership in both academics and research," said College of Veterinary Medicine Dean Timothy Boosinger.
Whitley earned his veterinary medicine degree in 1977 and his master's degree in 1981 from Auburn. He was on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin from 1982-84 and at the University of Florida from 1984-89.
He returned to Auburn as a professor of ophthalmology in 1989, and from 1994-97
was the J. E. Greene Memorial Professor. He was acting associate dean for admissions
and standards from 1995-97.
Taylor honored by ag econ group
C. Robert Taylor, the Alfa eminent scholar on agricultural and public policy at Auburn, is one of 35 top agricultural economists from around the world to serve as charter research fellows of a new global research organization that is focusing on the economic plight of rural communities.
The Rural Development Research Consortium, based at the University of California, Berkeley, is a network of researchers, policy-makers and public and private institutions dedicated to improving the economy and quality of life in rural areas.
Organizers selected Taylor for the fellowship because of his national standing
as an economist in the fields of agriculture, resources and rural development.
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Is the Southeast fated to become the next New Jersey? How can rustic rural areas across the region survive the onslaught of the most rapid population growth in the United States?
Questions about the future of rural areas are at the heart of a major initiative of Auburn's Center for Forest Sustainability. In the search for better ways to manage urbanization, the research center draws together up to 16 researchers and an equal number of graduate students from five diverse colleges and schools at Auburn.
"We are dealing with quality of life and economic issues on a scale that would overwhelm any single discipline," said Forestry Professor Graeme Lock-aby, the center's director.
"This is not just about land use," Lockaby added. "We are studying factors in combination with one another to produce a more comprehensive picture of the urban-rural interface." With that knowledge, he said, cities and states will be better able to manage the growth for maximum economic impact and the best quality of life.
"It is not a question of whether urbanization occurs but how it occurs," said Lockaby. "We are optimistic that we can introduce more compatibility into the equation."
Started two years ago as one of seven Peaks of Excellence research initiatives at AU, the Center for Forest Sustainability is examining urban expansion issues between two of Georgia's largest cities -- Atlanta and Columbus -- and in Alabama's high-growth area between Birmingham and Huntsville, as well as other areas near those cities.
Growth in those areas is outpacing the ability of urban and county governments to maintain services. Rapid, uncontrolled growth is also creating unwanted risks as well as opportunities for developers, taking crop and timberland out of production and diminishing the quality of life and the environment for rural dwellers and landowners.
"Land-use issues in the urban-rural interface can get very complicated," Lockaby said. "Most of these issues are not matters of right and wrong but of well-meaning people trying to protect their investment, either in the land or business or in their quality of life."
The AU center brought together on-campus experts in agricultural economics, agronomy, anthropology, architecture, biosciences, geography, forestry and wildlife sciences. These scientists are developing a computer model to help guide urban expansion into rural areas.
The comprehensive model can be used to predict land use patterns, water quality, distribution of forests and bird populations, and other results of future development scenarios.
While many land-use studies focus on one or two aspects of growth in a single city or county, the comprehensive model and its subsets will eventually enable planners to examine these questions at regional scales. The model will assess the relationships among variables such as development alternatives, economic impacts, water quality, loss of forest land and wildlife habitat and changes to the area’s culture and historical features.
Timber companies and owners of forest land are especially threatened by urbanization, which drives up the cost of forest land and pushes out forest-related industries along with farmers and rural dwellers. Lockaby said the model and its subsets will help those industries and landowners maintain forest land in an economically viable manner as urban expansion continues.
Initial results in the Atlanta-Columbus corridor of west-central Georgia are encouraging and hold forth promise for the north Alabama studies, as well, Lockaby said.
"We have had a lot of support from citizens’ groups and local planning agencies, and we have had widespread acceptance by landowners," he said. "This has enabled us to gather data that otherwise would be very difficult to obtain.
"We have had the most enthusiastic reception of any research project I have ever worked on,” said Lockaby, who holds a Ph.D. from Mississippi State and has been a member of the Auburn faculty since 1986.
"Models are not an end in themselves," he noted. "The purpose
is to help anticipate and plan for change."
Outreach sponsors conference on governmental
excellence
Former Virginia Gov. Douglas Wilder is the keynote speaker at the Auburn-sponsored Governmental Excellence and Best Practices Conference Monday and Tuesday, May 19-20, in Montgomery.
Other speakers include Richard Green, editor of Governing Magazine; and Steve Steckler, president of Infrastructure Management Group.
"This conference represents the premier event addressing issues of governmental excellence and best practices," said conference chair Don-Terry Veal, who is associate director of AU's Center for Governmental Services."Participating in this conference are dynamic and talented speakers who are the leading experts in their fields," Veal added.
The conference at Montgomery's Embassy Suites Hotel concludes at noon Tuesday.
Students getting new e-mail system
The Office of Information Technology is providing a major upgrade to AU’s student e-mail system this summer.
By Aug. 11, all students will be on the new multifeatured TigerMail system, which includes advancements in scheduling, address books and related features as well as electronic mail messaging. The new system will also include better SPAM control, larger inbox and attachment limits, access, spell check, instant messaging and compatibility with cell phones and Palm Pilots.
Many faculty and staff previously used older student e-mail systems to communicate
with their students. Information Technology administrators encourage faculty
and staff who use WebMail as their primary e-mail package to move to GroupWise.
For more information, see the Web site http://tigermail.auburn.edu/
College offers program for area children
The AU College of Education will offer its Early Childhood Summer Enrichment Pro-gram for children, ages 4-8, during June and July. In the summer program, upper-level Early Childhood Education practicum students will lead children through individual study exploring aquatic themes.
The program will offer two sessions, four days per week over three weeks in Haley Center. The first session will start June 2, and the second session will start June 23. Sessions will be limited to approximately 30 students each, with one or two students per teacher.
For information on fees and registration, contact Liesa Viruleg at 844-6877
or Assistant Professor Candra D. Thornton at 844-6791.
Family Fun Day to be rescheduled
Family Fun Day, scheduled for May 15 was postponed due to rain last week.
The event will be rescheduled for a later date and announced in AUDaily, Auburn’s
employee e-mail daily news digest. Event organizers have asked AU Employees
to retain the yellow Family Fun Day cards they received through campus mail
earlier this month. The cards will still be used in the drawing for door prizes.
University Bulletins distributed at Foy
The 2003-04 Auburn University Bulletin is available for distribution. Department representatives may pick up the university catalogs at the Foy Student Union information desk during regular AU business hours. When the Union's supply of catalogs is exhausted, departments can pick up copies of the AU Bulletin at the Admissions Office in 202 Martin Hall. The AU Bulletin is online at www.auburn.edu/stu.
Family Fun Day to be rescheduled
Family Fun Day, scheduled for May 15 was postponed due to rain last week.
The event will be rescheduled for a later date and announced in AUDaily, Auburn’s
employee e-mail daily news digest. Event organizers have asked AU Employees
to retain the yellow Family Fun Day cards they received through campus mail
earlier this month. The cards will still be used in the drawing for door prizes.
Campus Forum:
Panel responds to diversity questions
The co-chairs of the AU Provost Search Committee have issued an open letter in response to questions raised in a University Senate forum on May 6.
Several senators questioned the timing of the search and the lack of minority candidates among the four finalists who were brought to campus between April 24 and May 6. All the finalists were white and one was female. The senators recommended that the search be reopened and efforts renewed to solicit African American candidates.
In their written response, search committee co-chairs Michael Moriarty, vice president for research, and Chris Rodger, a professor of discrete and statistical sciences, outline steps taken to recruit minority candidates. They argue that both the panel and the search firm acted as fairly and judiciously as possible at every stage.
The questions raised at the Senate forum and the response of the committee
chairs are presented below.
Questions about search process for provost
What is the name of the search firm utilized, and what role did the search firm play in producing this slate of candidates?
Was there racial/ethnic diversity in the pool, including African Americans?
Were there "serious" candidates on the short-list for consideration who represent racial/ethnic diversity, African Americans in particular?
Why does there not appear to be any significant outreach to "serious" candidates who represent racial/ethnic diversity, to include African American candidates on the short-list coming in for campus interviews? I define "serious" as those candidates in readiness to fill the position of Provost, who are by the judgment of most committee members, competitively qualified to make the short-list for interview.
What filtering model was used in the screening process to ensure that unconscious patterns of privilege and discrimination were avoided within the process? Using a "Valuative Filter" is often vague, value-laden and class-, culture- or ideologically- based. If a candidate is "Familiar" to the chair and committee members gathering the information about candidates from people they know, there is a tendency to rely on colleagues they could trust without validity checks or without recognizing that these opinions may or may not be valid. This tendency may be a liability for African American women and men and white women, who are more likely to have different networks than those of white men.
It is well known that an internal candidate compromises the integrity of the whole search process in that other more qualified candidates are not even likely to apply. That said, do we need to look to another search firm capable of developing more effective and efficient recruiting procedures where women, African Americans and other minorities are concerned?
When in the process did the Search Committee receive training by the AA/EEO
Officer and what was the nature and content of the training? Is it possible
that the training came too late into the process to be effective?
Committee co-chairs respond to questions
By C. Michael Moriarty and Chris Rodger, Co-chairs, Provost Search Committee
The search for Provost at Auburn University should be conducted with the highest integrity. As co-chairs of the committee charged with this responsibility, we believe that its actions and the process followed in conducting this search meet that lofty goal. This letter serves as a report to the Auburn community regarding this process.
Upon receiving its charge from President Walker in October, 2002, the committee unanimously decided to enlist the assistance of a search firm that specializes in conducting diversity conscious national searches of this nature. Information from faculty and from other committees that previously had used search firms was considered. After an on-campus interview, the committee unanimously agreed to select the firm, Korn-Ferry, to assist us in the Auburn Provost search. Korn-Ferry has a positive reputation and level of performance, and it also has an established record in overseeing searches that have resulted in the placement of minority candidates.
Of all questions raised by any groups regarding this search process, the most serious issue is related to diversity. As co-chairs, we frequently communicated with Korn-Ferry and consistently emphasized the importance of diversity in this search. Korn-Ferry was explicitly instructed to actively and vigorously endeavor to provide the search committee with a diverse pool of candidates, which it did. It is our opinion that Korn-Ferry followed proper procedures and was diligent in its efforts to provide diversity in the pool of candidates.
Korn-Ferry says that it contacted 85 senior administrators -- dean's level or higher -- of historically black universities. These contacts included personalized e-mails and follow-up telephone calls, urging them to apply or to suggest appropriate nominations. Moreover, Korn-Ferry recently had completed the presidential search for a historically black university and in the course of this search, had extensive communications with a number of highly qualified minority candidates at universities across the country. Many of these individuals were contacted regarding the Auburn University Provost search. According to Korn-Ferry, only one faculty member and one administrator from Auburn University nominated any external candidates for this position.
The search committee met with Janet Saunders and Kelly Taylor of the university's AA/EEO office, before considering any candidates for this position and before reviewing any curriculum vitae of any applicants.
Following receipt of its charge in October, the process proceeded as expeditiously as possible. The objective of the search committee was to have all finalists arrive on campus before faculty departed for summer. This was achieved through the search committee’s diligence, having been preceded by both an initial screening of the applicants and preliminary candidate interviews in Atlanta.
The committee in Atlanta was unanimous in its selection of the four candidates brought for on-campus interviews. The committee also is convinced that the timing of the search was appropriate. The university Senate leaders approved the schedule and had opportunity to meet with each candidate. Faculty also had reasonable opportunity to question the candidates at open forums and to provide their input through the faculty-constructed questionnaire.
While the committee has recommendations as to how searches of this nature could be improved, we believe that this search has been appropriate in its actions and successful in the quality of the candidates brought to campus. We are proud of the integrity in which the search has been conducted, and we stand behind our actions.
We hope that this information answers the questions posed
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AU Report
Editor: Roy Summerford. Contributing editors: Bob Lowry and David Grange in Office of Communications, and editors and writers in Research, Outreach, Colleges and Schools. Photography: Jeff Etheridge and Trice Megginson, AU Photo Services. Assistant Vice President for Communications and Marketing: John Hachtel. The AU Report is the faculty/staff newsletter of Auburn University and is published by the Office of Communications and Marketing at Auburn University. Direct correspondence to AU Report, 23 Samford Hall, Auburn, Ala. 36849-5109. Telephone 334/844-9999. Electronic mail: summero@auburn.edu |