November 18, 2002
Hotel may become part of academic program
Trustees take new look at enrollment goals
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November 18, 2002 |
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| Headlines Hotel may become part of academic program Trustees take new look at enrollment goals |
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Leader of the Band
President William Walker tried his hand as a band leader Thursday night, leading the AU Band in a rendition of the War Eagle Fight Song. The performance came during the Sounds of Auburn concert that brought together musicians and choral groups in the Department of Music for an evening of festivities.
Board approves restoration of Samford Hall
The AU Board of Trustees on Friday approved an accelerated plan for the restoration of campus icon Samford Hall in time for the university's sesquicentennial in 2006.
President William Walker advised the board that the university must act quickly to save the 114-year-old landmark from the infirmities of structural old-age.
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The project is projected to cost up to $22 million. The university will seek private financing to restore the building to its 19th century appearance but with 21st century utilities. Walker said safety rather than aesthetics is the primary reason for the timing of the restoration.
"Due to the age and condition of the building, there are important safety considerations for the building and its occupants," said Walker. "Samford Hall has been a nationally and even internationally recognized symbol of Auburn University for more than a century, and we want to make sure that it is in good condition for many more generations."
Walker said he had hoped to leave the massive undertaking to his successor in the latter part of this decade. But, he added, recent inspections point to the need for quicker action.
To expedite a normally lengthy planning process, the board authorized Walker to immediately initiate a search for an architect and a construction manager. The administration will return to the board in early 2003 with recommendations. The expedited selection process will shave months off the construction schedule.
Initial plans call for the building's occupants to move out during the summer of 2004 and the renovation to begin that fall, with completion set for summer 2006. The building would be reoccupied in time for the university's 150th anniversary that fall.
The building's problems stem from both the 19th century construction and the addition of 20th century utilities such as now-obsolete air conditioning, plumbing and electrical systems.
Although the exterior of the building is brick, much of the interior is wood that has been in place for more than a century. The internal structure of the building is supported by soft-brick masonry and wood beams dating, for the most part, from the original construction. Samford was built in 1888-89 on the foundation of the original campus building, Old Main, which burned in 1887.
Officials say quick action is needed to reduce risks posed by fire hazards and termites. Samford Hall has highly sensitive fire alarms and is regularly treated for termites but lacks many of the fire protection measures and termite resistance of more modern buildings constructed of concrete and steel.
Recent repairs on plumbing and electrical systems revealed advanced deterioration in parts of those systems and added to concerns about the overall condition of the building. On the exterior, the building's bricks are softer than those in more modern buildings and need special attention to preserve them for another century.
Samford Hall was placed on the university's list for eventual renovation after Facilities Division inspectors encountered infestations of termites in several areas from the ground floor to the clock tower in 1999. Those infestations were treated, but termites have reappeared periodically and in various parts of the building since then.
Christine Curtis, associate provost for facilities, said the interaction of aging utilities, termites and dry, century-old wood present a case for quick action. "Samford Hall is unique both in its historical significance and the extent of its problems," she said. "The occupants of Samford Hall face many of the same conditions as people in other old buildings, but that particular building has problems that are more acute and must be dealt with soon, before they get worse."
Walker said the university will seek private funding for the renovation. "There is at present no state money available for a project of this magnitude, so we will look to the friends and alumni of Auburn University to generate the financial resources to save and restore Samford Hall," he said.
Anticipating that the building's interior may need to be rebuilt below the roofline, Auburn planners have looked to Clemson University, which during the past decade gutted and reconstructed a building that was similar in history and icon status to Samford Hall.
Like Samford, Clemson's Tillman Hall was built in the late 19th century in a revival of Italian Renaissance architecture. Those two buildings, along with a similar structure at Georgia Tech, are the primary remaining examples of that once dominant style of collegiate architecture in the South.
Samford Hall was already 30 years old when it was named for the late Gov. William J. Samford of Opelika in 1929. The 49,000-square-foot building has housed the president's office since its original construction.
The building also housed faculty offices and classrooms on its four usable floors until the early 1970s, when those functions were moved to the then-new Haley Center and the space was converted into administrative offices. During that conversion, the interior was stripped of much of its original decor, air conditioning was installed and utilities were hidden behind lower, false ceilings.
During the coming year, planners will identify alternate housing for the units now in Samford Hall.
Fast start to new building
Dozens of people turned out to give a fast start to construction of a new building for the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences. Faculty, students, administrators, alumni, trustees, industry leaders and other dignitaries participated in the Nov. 8 groundbreaking for the 107,000-square-foot building, which will be the first new home for forestry and wildlife science programs at Auburn since M. White Smith Hall was dedicated in 1949. Forestry achieved school status in 1984, and Wildlife Sciences joined the school in 1998. The new building will be southwest of the Hill Dorms on a new extension of Duncan Drive, north of Lem Morrison Drive.
Hotel and conference center may join academic program
The AU Hotel and Dixon Conference Center may join Auburn's academic program in the College of Human Sciences in 2003.
The Board of Trustees agreed Friday to an administration proposal to make the facility part of the college's hotel and restaurant management academic program. Such action, however, will depend on the success of negotiations to buy out the final year and a half of the management contract held by Richfield Hospitality Services.
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President William Walker endorsed the proposal, saying such a move would be more in keeping with Auburn's academic mission than the past practice of managing the hotel as an auxiliary enterprise.
Henton said the management team headed by Ritz-Carlton founders Bill Johnson and Horst Schulze set the industry standard for high-end hotel management during the past two decades. She said their involvement at Auburn would enhance the college's academic program and provide exceptional learning opportunities for students.
Johnson and Schulze would bring new expertise to the hotel, help it to differentiate itself from a crowded market and improve profitability, she added. Executive Vice President Don Large said Richfield had provided satisfactory service but could not offer the academic dimension the university was seeking.
Trustees Earlon McWhorter and Paul Spina will join administrators in an attempt to negotiate an end to the contract. Henton is seeking to end the contract next May, with the new management team to take over immediately afterward.
The board also agreed to a mechanism to reduce the remaining debt on the building by approximately $1 million. The university will transfer capital funds for construction to an escrow account to pay off interest on the debt as it comes due and issue new bonds to offset the transfer. The bonds at 3 percent to 3.5 percent would replace $8.8 million at 8 percent interest and $800,000 at 11 percent interest. Those loans came during the 1990s, when the hotel was under private ownership.
Trustees say they want to rethink enrollment goals
AU trustees said Friday they want to take a fresh look at the university's goals for admissions and enrollment.
Trustees differed with each other on what the goals should be but informally agreed to reexamine enrollment priorities in coming months in an attempt to address issues involving balances between enrollment growth and resources, in-state and out-of-state students and undergraduate and graduate enrollment targets.
Questions arose during a presentation on enrollment by Wes Williams, vice president for student affairs. Williams noted that Enrollment Management Services will attempt to hold the freshman class for 2003 to 3,700-3,750 new students, the level of the past several years until a surge in new freshmen pushed the 2002 freshman class size to 4,184.
The sudden increase in new freshmen created strains on AU's core curriculum as the Provost's Office and the deans in the College of Liberal Arts and the College of Sciences and Mathematics sought faculty to teach the additional courses. Faculty in those colleges and at AU-Montgomery agreed to teach extra courses for additional pay, but President William Walker noted that the solution is only temporary.
Walker said the university does not have the faculty and other resources to accommodate a rapidly expanding student body. "We cannot have another freshman class the size we had this year. The system will break," he added.
Goals adopted by the board in 1989 would cap undergraduate enrollment at 20,000 and graduate enrollment at 5,000. The university is within 400 students of the goal for undergraduates, while graduate enrollment, which has been restrained by limited availability of assistantships, is about 2,000 less than its goal.
Trustee Lowell Barron of Fyffe said he opposes restrictions that limit access to Auburn by students who are Alabama residents. Barron, who is also president pro tem of the Alabama Senate, said the university may have to impose more restrictions on out-of-state residents in order to keep the doors open to students from Alabama.
Trustee Paul Spina observed that Auburn is popular with out-of-state students despite higher tuition and restrictions imposed during the past decade. Much of the increase in freshman enrollment this fall came as a result of new freshmen from out of state.
Enrollment Management Services accepts high-achieving students immediately during the first months of each year's admissions process. The office holds other applications until February, when it has more information about the admissions pool and the needs of AU's colleges and schools. Currently, 1,400 applications are on hold. Spina said the current process leaves too many prospective students in limbo.
Trustee Byron Franklin said he wants to make sure that students who are admitted are able to get a good education. Noting stresses caused by this fall's freshmen numbers, he added, "We have to do something to keep the faculty from operating at such a frantic pace."
Robinson named head of Internal Auditing
Kevin Robinson, an auditor at AU since 1989, has been named executive director of the university's Office of Internal Auditing.
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AU Executive Vice President Don Large announced the appointment, which became effective Nov. 1. Robinson had served as acting executive director since Oct. 1, 2001, following the retirement of Don Royal.
"The search committee evaluated candidates nationwide and determined that Kevin Robinson is the best person to lead Internal Auditing at Auburn University," said Large.
"He is highly respected within the accounting profession and among his colleagues at Auburn's peer institutions," Large said. "In addition, over the past year he displayed a sure hand in management and a continuity of leadership in a position that is very important to all our financial operations."
The staff of Internal Auditing regularly examine and evaluate fiscal and resource management throughout the university. The office seeks to ensure that fiscal operations of AU units meet all applicable legal requirements and professional standards and comply with the university's policies and plans.
Robinson has served in Internal Auditing since obtaining his bachelor's degree in business administration from AU. He earned a master of accountancy degree from AU in 1993 and holds professional designations as Certified Internal Auditor and Certified Fraud Examiner.
He served as assistant director of Internal Auditing from 1994-2001 and was senior auditor from 1992-94. He has also been an adjunct instructor in the AU School of Accountancy. He served as chair of AU's Administrative and Professional Assembly in 1999-2000.
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Spirit of Excellence
AU Human Resources each month presents four Spirit of Excellence awards to recognize superior performance by professional and staff employees. Recipients for October, from left to right, were Pam Gryski of Information Technology, Jeffrey Bass of Facilities, Darrell Murray of Public Safety and Linda Hamer of Human Resources.
VP presents draft of plan for new contracts and grants incentives
Some researchers would have a choice of salary supplements or increased time for contracts and grants projects under the draft of an incentive plan that Vice President for Research Michael Moriarty discussed last week with the University Senate.
Moriarty requested faculty, administration and board input on the plan, which he said is still under development. He suggested implementing a two-year pilot program but said a starting date would depend on how quickly administrators can work out the details with faculty and other participants.
The proposed Research and Scholarship Incentive Plan would apply to faculty whose projects qualify under the terms of their contracts and grants and would vary widely from department to department.
The goal, Moriarty said, is to provide additional incentives for faculty who conduct sponsored research. Such an approach would improve recruiting and retention of faculty in some disciplines.
Moriarty said the university found seven universities that have similar plans. The plans are most common in health sciences, but he said other fields also have potential for securing contracts and grants with the flexibility to accommodate the plan.
Pioneering female astronaut to speak at AU
Mae Jemison, an Alabama native who was the first African-American woman in space, will present a public lecture Wednesday, Nov. 20, on the importance of science education.
Jemison -- who is a physician, engineer, astronaut, scientist, educator, author and business entrepreneur -- will speak at 2 p.m., at Dixon Conference Center on the topic "Becoming Who You Intend To Be."
"Dr. Jemison is one of the top scientists in America," said David Wilson, vice president for University Outreach. "She is a model of academic and intellectual excellence. We are truly excited to have her on campus to talk about ways in which we as a state and society can promote more rigorous and exciting science curricula in our schools."
Wilson's office and the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs are sponsoring Jemison's lecture.
Keenan Grenell, interim assistant provost for the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs, said Jemison's trail-blazing career could have a positive effect on Alabama science education.
"Her work and ideas regarding math and science education will have a major impact on the ongoing quest in this area for transformative educational approaches," Grenell said. "Not only should we embrace and welcome her, but we should also pay tribute to her by following through on the progressive recommendations she will chart as a course for us to follow," he added.
Jemison, a native of Decatur, earned degrees in engineering and African and Afro-American studies at Stanford and a medical degree from Cornell. She became the first black woman in space in 1992 as the science mission specialist on the space shuttle Endeavour.
Deadline near for changes in health, flex-spending benefits
AU faculty have until the end of this month to add or make changes in their AU health or dental plans or individual flexible spending accounts for 2003.
The AU Business Office mailed information about the plans to faculty and staff before the start of the November open enrollment plan. The open enrollment period is limited to the month of November each year to comply with Internal Revenue requirements. To add or make changes in these benefits, contact the Office of Payroll and Employee Benefits in Ingram Hall.
Campus Roundup
HRD program to present tips on dependents' financial aid
Human Resources Development will present an informational program for AU employees, "Money for Your Children's Education," at Dixon Conference Center from 9 a.m.-11 a.m. on Dec. 4. Mike Reynolds, director of student financial aid, will explain available state and federal financial assistance for college students, with particular emphasis on AU's programs for dependents and on Alabama's Prepaid Affordable College Tuition program. For information or to register, contact Heather Crozier at 844-4145.
Correction in memo on health insurance
A recent Business Office memorandum to all AU employees outlined changes in rates for health insurance, effective Jan. 1. Due to an error in the list of premiums, the memo incorrectly lists the top salary bracket as "$35,000 or greater." The correct amount is "$31,500 or greater." For information, call 844-4183.
New phone directories available
The 2002-2003 Auburn University Telephone Directory is available for distribution to faculty and staff. Individuals and department representatives may pick up directories from a stack near the Information Desk at Foy Student Union during regular business hours.
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AU Report
Editor: Roy Summerford. Contributing editors: Bob Lowry and David Grange. University Relations Executive Director: John Hachtel. The AU Report is the faculty/staff newsletter of Auburn University and is published by the Office of University Relations at Auburn University. Direct correspondence to AU Report, 23 Samford Hall, Auburn University, Ala. 36849-5109. Telephone 334/844-9999. Electronic mail: summero@auburn.edu |