NEWS
February 28,2014
Chairpersons interviewed on presidential search, salaries
BY VICTOR LOPEZ
Staff Wwtbr
Students protested outside of
the Community Center on the
afternoon of Satiuday, Feb. 22,
while the board of trustees met
inside to vote on various business
matters of Guilford College.
The protestors' message:
our faculty pay issues must be
addressed. There is no way,
the signs said, that Guilford's
professors should be ranked dead
last among peer colleges.
During a break, some trustees
trickled out and engaged students
in conversation before they were
called back in to vote on matters
that affect students.
Regardless of unhappy
students or imderpaid faculty, the
band played on.
The trustees gave the green
light for administrators to figure
out what would need to be cut
should enrollment meet a bare
minimum requirement. Dining
the last round of reductions,
several adjunct and staff positions
were cut.
The Board also confirmed
the tenure of two professors and
raised tuition and room and board
by three percent. Additionally,
at the request of the CCE SGA,
student activity fee for the adult
population was raised by $15.
According to the Vice President
for Finance Greg Bursavich, the
amoimt and percentage of any
salary adjustments wUl depend
on the actual enrollment in
FaU 2014 and the enrollment
anticipated for Spring 2015.
So for now, where finances and
layoffs are concerned, much is
still up in the air.
Following the meeting.
Chairperson of the Board of
Trustees Joseph M. Bryan Jr. and
Chairperson of the Presidential
Search Committee Carole Bruce
sat down with The Guilfordian
for a brief Q&A.
Q: What can you tell me about
pay inequality? You have read
The Guilfordian and can agree,
I'm sure, that faculty are an
important part of this institution
— why is it that we are dead last
among our peers?
Bryan Jr.: I have no intention
of going out and talking to (the
protestors). The board has been
made aware that salaries are the
first priority in the worse case.
This is really not a board issue.
This is something we entrust to the
administration of the College. The
budget committee recommends
to the president, and he in turn
makes his recommendations to
us.
Bruce: Faculty is our biggest
cost. If we budget deficits in
order to raise salaries, we will
eventually run out of money. You
have to remember that we have
been contending with the $2.5
million in funding cuts. That is a
lot of money to lose.
Bryan Jr.: There have been
many sm^ hberal arts colleges
that have gone belly up. That
is what we are trying to avoid
here. Higher education all over is
facing financial issues.
Q: What can you tell me about
the presidential search?
Bruce: I think the entire board is
very satisfied with the applicants.
We have over 92 very qualified
professionals to choose from.
Q: Can you clarify what
"qualified" means?
Bruce: The applicants have read
what the community is looking
for, and not only understand,
but also are enthusiastic about
the ethos of the College. Our
next president will value the
Quaker values of the College,
its testimony, programs such as
Principled Problem Solving; and
the person accepting the position
will have a full understanding of
Guilford. I should also add that,
the board approved a hybrid
interviewing process should it be
requested. I speak for the entire
board when I say it is only if
needed.
We would essentially create
a small proxy group for the
various college coi^tituenHps ^
(students, faoilty, staif, dumrii^'
On Feb. 20„ chairman of the Board of Trustees Joseph M. Bryan Jr. spoke
to the community along with other board members at the town hall meeting.
board of visitors) sworn to open interviews. The hybrid
confidentiality to interview the interviewing would only be done
finalist candidates along with the if it were impossible to interview
tpistees. ^ otherwise. We want the process to
Bryan Jf.: We are .pqsKing for be" as open as possible.
$5.3 million dedicated to campus IT plan will create new learning spaces
BY JAKE DELAHANTY
What would you do with $5.3 million?
Guilford College's answer: pour the
money into a new information technology
plan, which was finalized this month.
Assistant Academic Dean for Academic
Support Barb Boyette, a member of both the
Technology Advisory Committee and the
IT Plan Subcommittee, gave an overview of
the IT plan.
"It is a plan deigned to direct how
things will grow with our IT infrastructure
and with our use of it over the years," said
Boyette in an email interview.
Proposed Expenditure
$5.2 Million
Goals:
I Transform
learning spaces
Ensure^dequate
Support teaching
and learning
increase effective
use of systems
Maintain integrity
of data
Align IT in
support of plan
Associate Professor of Music Kami
Rowan, a member of the same committees,
explained what this new IT plan means for
the College.
"The biggest thing I think (the plan)
will bring (to Guilford) is a greater focus
on technology," said Rowan in an email
interview. "We can't be in a time where
technology drives our culture and thrive as
an institution without it."
Chief Information Officer of Information
Technology & Services Craig Gray has been
in charge of driving and designing this IT
plan for two years.
"The largest expenditure of money
and effort center on two significant
goals: shoring up the technological
infrastructure at the institution so that
we can build a platform strong enough to
support innovation in the classroom and
empowering the evolution of teaching and
learning through technology," said Gray in
an email interview.
Gray elaborated on what all this means
for students.
"I think what the students will see is the
same sort of incremental improvements
that have been ongoing over the last two
years in terms of wireless Internet and the
College's infrastructure," said Gray. "More
importantly, I think it means students
will see more technological focus in the
classroom, more consistency and more
learning opportunities."
But where is the money going?
The IT plan itself answered this in detail.
According to the new plan, the "majority
of the investment, 51 percent, is for
infrastructure and capacity upgrades, 32
percent is focused on teaching and learning,
and 17 percent is for administrative systems
and human support."
The IT plan also outlined that $675,000 of
the $5.3 million will be spent on a 10 Gig
Fiber Optic Project. $400,000 will be spent
on a Wireless Build-out and $195,000 will
be spent on a Storage Area Network.
The goal is that, although a lot of these
major changes might not appear flashy,
they will seriously enhance the school.
Early College senior Akosua Bekoe
expressed her reaction to the plan.
"I believe this a good idea because
traditional classroom settings limit the kind
of learning that can take place," Bekoe said.
"With more technology, the possibilities
can be endless."
Senior Gretta Eller hopes the plan will
not hinder the College's traditional learning
environment.
"As long as this (plan) doesn't take away
from the professor-to-student interaction,
I think it could be a great addition to
the school," Eller said. "This old-school
approach to learning is one of the main
reasons I came to Guilford."
Guilford is moving forward with this
new plan in hopes that it will help keep the
College modem and competitive in a world
dominated by technology.