Board of Trustees

Administrative Divisions

Chancellor's Update

February 1996

by Dr. John W. Bardo -- jbardo@wcu.edu

Policy Address to the General Faculty --
The Plan for Excellence

Delivered by the Chancellor on February 2, 1996

Thank you all for being here on a wintry Friday afternoon. I appreciate the opportunity to talk with you and to begin the process of agenda building for this fine University.

You know, it has been said that the essence of leadership is not having the right answers, it's asking the right questions. Since I was appointed last St. Patrick's Day, I have had the opportunity to meet or correspond with hundreds of faculty, staff, students, and community leaders to talk about the future of this University. What I have been attempting to do is to learn how to ask the right questions. Through the process of group and individual meetings, faculty forum assemblies, leadership retreats, focus groups, e-mail, and question and answer sessions, there has emerged a systematic notion about what this University can be and at least the beginnings of a plan for how we can move there. It is this vision for the future of the University that I would like to talk with you about today.

It should first be noted, however, that the agenda I am going to propose to you today is not the agenda I expected to have when I came to Western in July.

To be sure, some of the elements are there. However, the most important directions for this University emerged from listening to you--to your hopes and dreams. The agenda also emerged from an increasing understanding of the quality that each of you brings to this institution. As I have come to know you better, I can only say that my first impressions have been confirmed in spades--this is the finest faculty with whom I have ever worked, and I consider myself honored to be counted among your number.

Before we get into the details of the proposed agenda, I would like to review briefly some of the most important trends that will affect us over the next few years. Some of these trends are international in scope and others are local, but all are significant.

If you look at the environment within which we will be working, there are several clear characteristics:

1. Change will continue at an ever increasing rate. There is nothing to indicate that the world in which we and our students live will stabilize in the foreseeable future or that the rate of change will diminish.
   
2. Change will become not only more rapid, it will become more pervasive. That is, almost every aspect of our world will change and do so rapidly.
   
3. Information and information technology will increasingly provide the competitive edge in the world's economy. Control, manipulation, but, most importantly, conceptualization of information will be the most critical characteristics in economic competitiveness.
   
4. Because of changing technologies, specific location will become increasingly less important. Much work can be done from any location without disadvantage. This opens the possibilities for places like Western North Carolina to develop an economic base that supports both the population and the excellent environment that we now enjoy.
   
5. As information becomes increasingly important, it also will continue to increase exponentially in volume. There are estimates that by the year 2020, the amount of information available will double every 79 days. If this is so, it has fundamental implications for how we structure higher education. Furthermore, commentators generally agree that this change will be associated with increased emphasis on independent learning, communication skills, and other intellectual capabilities associated with a strong, liberal arts and sciences-based education.
   
6. Public policy specialists are beginning to note several changes in migration patterns associated with shifts in technology. This new pattern might be termed "eco-migration". White collar and professional workers are beginning to relocate from major metropolitan areas and move to areas that offer a high quality of life. Quality of life is defined in large part in terms of environmental characteristics, low crime rates, access to airports and communications facilities, access to cultural events and activities, quality of education, cost of living, and recreational facilities. In the West, we can see the increasing population of Utah, northern Arizona, and southwestern Colorado as a direct consequence of this trend. Closer to home, the growth of Henderson County and the changing nature of Cashiers and Highlands also reflect some of these changes. Places that used to draw the summer crowd are now becoming permanent destinations (at least for retired people). We locally have not experienced large changes associated with eco-migration, but we should expect it.
   
7. Changes in the structure of the world economy will continue to be the catalyst for increasing intercultural and international contact. Cultural and international understanding will remain an important issue.

These general trends are important, but they need to be viewed within local context if we are to understand their impact.

Turning more locally, there also are some very significant trends with regard to Western North Carolina:

1. Average incomes in this region are currently $2500 below the state average; estimates are that this difference will increase to more than $2900 over the next decade. This trend is associated with the increase in the number of people on fixed incomes as well as the increase in the number of no-skill or low-skill jobs that have come to dominate the region's economy.
   
2. The major growth industry in this region is tourism. And, while it has great potential for the future, it continues one of the most traditional problems of living in these mountains: all too often the economy of this region has been dominated by a single industry so that cyclical changes in that industry create major disruptions of community and family life.
   
3. The labor force in this region is relatively under-educated and very few concerted efforts are being made to change that situation. Western has joined with Southwestern Community College and Jackson County schools in the "New Century Scholars" program as a first effort to affect that situation, but much remains to be done.
   
4. While high percentages of students continue to drop out of school, and while relatively few young people in this region choose to go to college, those that do are better prepared. This is an important change, and I will focus on it later.
   
5. Because of our geography and location, it is not likely that there will be large scale economic development in this region (even if it were desirable). It is much more likely that the development that does occur will be in the form of small business. And, given the national and international trends discussed above, it is possible, with the appropriate incentives, that many of these small businesses can be environmentally friendly, technologically intensive, professional enterprises.

I firmly believe that the future of this University is tied directly to these dominant trends. As a result, it is critical that we build a University here in the mountains that can and does respond to these conditions. The agenda that follows, I believe, will guarantee our future and directly address the conditions that we face at the end of this century.

Now, I would like to turn and focus on Western. Let's take just a few minutes and assess where we are. From my perspective, our greatest strengths lie in you, the faculty. You are the heart and soul of this institution, and it is because of your capabilities, more than anything else, that our future is assured. We also have on this campus the hardest working support staff that I have ever had the pleasure of being associated with. We also have a reasonable budget and excellent physical environment.

While we have great strengths, we also have a few significant weaknesses. One is our location. Being rural is an asset, but it also has negative consequences. A second is our image. We are broadly, though not universally, perceived as not academically very strong. This perception is widely held in the community at large and it is shared by many faculty, students, and alumni. It also is shared by some of our trustees, some General Administration staff, and some members of the Board of Governors. A third weakness is our lack of focus and clarity of mission. We are not sure of our role. Should we be the university for under-prepared mountain people? Should we seek out brighter students? To whom should we be addressing our curriculum and for whom should we be structuring our programs? This confusion of mission has led us to some interesting positions and contradictions--and it also has led us to a very interesting campus cultural myth. I want to talk about this myth for a moment, because it has very significant implications for our future.

Most of you have probably heard this myth--it goes something like this. Children who grow up in the mountains are poor and under-prepared. If we are going to serve this mountain population, we have to make special accommodation for these under-prepared students. We have to adjust our teaching to accommodate their lack of preparation. I have heard from dozens of faculty how they wish they could do more in their classes, but that the students just can't handle the work. As one person said to me, "When the valedictorian of some of these school districts around here scores a 780 on the SAT, you have to make accommodations."

Like most myths, this one has some facts underlying it. Many, too many, of the students in this region drop out of school, and many are under-prepared. However, those that think about going to college are competitive. On the screen is a table of average SAT scores from the 18 school districts in Western North Carolina. As you can see, 16 of the 18 have average SAT scores at or above the state average. What is even more interesting is that five, including the largest two, have average SATs above the entering average for Western freshmen. One, Asheville, has an average about 50 points above our average freshman's SAT. Clearly, the better prepared students from these school districts are not choosing to come to Western. Our current students may not perform at the level we would like, but it is not because they come from the mountains.

This, then, returns us to the perception of the University--that the quality of our programs is not where it should be. This, too, is part of the myth. According to the myth, we need to retain our students, so we can't fail them out. If we fail them out, our enrollment will decline. Therefore, we continue to enroll students who have shown that they cannot do college level work. This perpetuates the myth with high school counselors that Western takes poor students and keeps them, so we must not be a very good University. As a result, as the competition for students increases statewide, we have increasing difficulties in attracting good students--counselors and friends do not recommend the good students to us.

There are many more elements to this myth that have had a negative effect. The myth says that, because of out-of-state tuition, we can't attract out-of-state students. So, we stopped trying. And, even with in-state students, we don't make the phone calls and personal contacts necessary to attract the best and brightest in today's market. We also don't think about how we can attract better students and we don't have a systematic plan to recruit them. I'm not referring here to the admissions staff, I'm talking about the University.

As the philosopher of religion Joseph Campbell noted, myths have power. People act on those myths as if they were fact. We on the campus accept those myths, and others off the campus do, too. Myths are persistent--once they are accepted they are difficult to change. Even in the face of contradictory evidence, myths retain much of their force. However, myths are not immutable--they can be changed. And I believe that you are the faculty who will change the myth about Western.

If we are going to attack this myth, we first have to ask ourselves some very serious questions. Why do the brighter, better prepared students from this region drive by Western and go to other universities? For example, why do they choose Appalachian, NC State, and Chapel Hill over Western--as the data say they do? Why, as other data indicate, is the percentage of graduates from many of our core recruitment areas choosing to go to Western declining? What is causing our retention rate to decline? What is it we really should be about?

These are the types of questions I have been asking myself over this semester. And, through listening to you, to our students, and to the community, I have reached some conclusions. These conclusions define where we should go as a University. There are three academic prongs to this vision for development, and the rest of this talk will focus on them.

The first and most important prong of this vision involves academic quality. We must increase the actual quality of what we do. To me, quality means that our programs are designed to meet the changing challenges of world and regional conditions and that they reflect the best professional practice within each of our disciplines. There is no reason for us not to increase quality. In addition, faculty, students, and alumni tell me that they want the rigor of our programs to increase-- there is no disagreement here. We need to set realistic but high academic standards and hold both ourselves and our students accountable for achieving them. I am convinced that you are the faculty who can do this. We don't need an early retirement program or a massive infusion of new people to increase quality.

You are as good as any faculty in the United States, though, sometimes, I'm not sure that you know how good you really are. Perhaps that's part of the myth too. Again, there is no reason for us not to increase the quality of our academic program--our future, in this regard, is in our own hands.

The first task for all of us must be for our classes to be taught at the level we know is appropriate. Instead of aiming our class at what we suppose to be the capability of the students, we must set the standard where we in our best professional judgments believe the standard should be. And, we need to stay the course even when students complain. And they will complain. But, because we care about them and their futures, we cannot give in to this complaining. Be fair, be compassionate, but expect them to accomplish what you know to be appropriate collegiate level work.

At the most recent Faculty Senate meeting, there was a lengthy discussion of concerns by several of our faculty colleagues that some of us may not be meeting our classes through the semester and during the final exam period. Likewise, a number of our colleagues expressed concern that some of us may not be requiring a comprehensive final or other integrative experience. If this is so, it violates institutional policy that was initiated and approved through governance. But even more important than its policy implications, it contributes to the myth that Western is not a very good university. If it is true, it also reflects on each of us as faculty. The myth does not distinguish between us--it is Western's reputation that is affected. If any of our colleagues are contributing to the myth by not meeting classes and providing integrative experiences, we as colleagues need to help them understand that their actions hurt each of us--we can directly attack this dimension of the myth.

Western has a long and deep tradition of compassion and caring for students. There is nothing in this agenda that in any way says that we should change this key element of our culture. If anything, as we raise the academic bar, we will need to demonstrate even greater support and caring for those students who try to meet the Western standard of academic quality. In this vision of Western's future, we emphasize students' learning within a context of caring and concern for them and their achievements.

Second, increasing academic quality also requires us to be sure that our academic programs are actually doing what we designed them to do. It is time for us to look systematically at all aspects of our academic program, starting with orientation and continuing right through to graduation, to assure that we are accomplishing what we intend. Dean DePaolo is taking the lead in beginning a review of our general education program. It has been more than a decade since it was reviewed, and there has been a great deal of research on general education in the interim. I also would encourage each of us to go back to our departments and take an additional look at our major programs. Are they well structured? Are we requiring students to demonstrate their competencies with our subject matter and our methods of knowing? Are we requiring all of our majors to use their general education skills within our major program? Are we requiring them to write, read at a collegiate level, and to think critically? By these questions I am not suggesting that this is not occurring in any particular department--but the myth says it is not.

Because of the persistence of the myth about Western, I suggest that we take several fairly bold moves--ones that will have lasting effects and that have the potential to vaporize the myth. First, I would encourage each major to develop a portfolio of senior work. This portfolio could include, in addition to course syllabi, copies of exams, papers, internship reports, art, tapes of performances, whatever is appropriate to the major. The contents of this portfolio should then be reviewed by the faculty members in the program to determine if the students are performing at expected levels. If not, then the program could be re-examined to determine what needs to change to bring the average student to a competitive standard. Once we faculty agree that the standard is appropriate, then let's bring in outside reviewers to examine the materials to confirm our judgments. This is an excellent university--let's systematically eliminate the myth regarding the quality of the academic program.

I would also propose that we create the same types of portfolios for general education. We need to assure ourselves that our students can compete and that by the time they complete their sophomore year they are ready for upper level work in general education and the major. Let's directly address the myth.

I know that there are many of you out there who have concerns about the book rental system. You feel that it contributes to a perceived lack of rigor and that it causes students to have low academic expectations. While, at this time, I do not fully share your concerns, I respect your professional judgment. As part of our quest to raise the quality of Western to the next level of excellence, I am willing to look at the book rental system. You need to be aware, however, that at least one of our major competitors, Appalachian, has a book rental system and there is evidence that they are perceived as reasonably strong academically. This review also will need to take into account the very strong opposition that students have to dropping book rental, and I would appreciate the reviewers' taking into consideration issues of academic consistency. That is, where we have multiple sections of required courses, especially in general education, how will we assure that students are exposed to the information and skills that we are expecting them to have?

To begin the review, I will work with Dr. Wright to form a committee composed primarily of faculty, but also including several student representatives, to systematically examine the current book rental system and to make recommendations regarding any modifications. I would expect this review to be completed by the end of the next academic year.

At the same time we are examining our programs we should examine our structure. One option that we should consider is the possibility of forming a residential honors college. Students would still major in the traditional departments, but all academic requirements--from general education to the major-- would be increased and the non-class learning experience for the students would be significantly expanded. An honors college is not just an expansion of an honors program--it represents a fundamental commitment of the University to educational excellence. If we decide as a University to move in this direction, it will take several years of development. I am asking that the Strategic Planning Committee look closely at this possibility to determine if it is appropriate for Western.

Third, we need to work together to attract students who are better prepared academically. To be sure, we need to retain our tradition of access for the children of the mountains, but there is no inherent contradiction between recruiting for excellence and maintaining access. There are no real secrets in how to recruit good students--we just aren't doing what we need to do. It's time we change that. One of the most important means for recruiting excellent students is personal contact with faculty. I have asked Dr. Malone to provide the department heads with lists of the names and telephone numbers of every accepted student who is in the upper 25 percent of his or her class, who has an SAT of at least l 000 (on the new scale), and who has expressed an interest in possibly majoring in a particular department. I would encourage a member of the faculty to call that student and invite her or him to come to Western. I also have met with Dr. Malone and Ms. Cody. We are beginning to identify alumni who might be willing to invite prospective students to receptions in their homes. Again, we need to personally contact every prospective student who we believe will contribute to the academic quality of this University.

Fourth, I am working to identify funds to provide four-year scholarships for academic excellence and to provide two-year scholarships to excellent community college transfers. We will make small moves in this area next year and, as funds allow, we will increase the number of scholarships that promote recruiting and retaining excellent students. This year, we are reallocating $10,000 in institutional funds to attract well-prepared community college transfer students who have not yet applied to Western. If these students keep a 3.4, their scholarships will be continued for their senior year.

Fifth, we need to take those actions necessary for us to be designated a National Merit University by the year 2001. This will take a concerted effort by all of us, but such a designation is considered in many circles as one hallmark of an excellent university. As a first step in this process, I will find the funds to send a faculty member anywhere in the Southeast to recruit personally a National Merit Scholar who has expressed interest in Western. Additionally, I have authorized the admissions staff to offer all North Carolina National Merit Scholars a package including tuition, mandatory fees, room, board and a computer (either a Pentium or a Mac).

Sixth, good students need opportunities for learning that support their native inquisitiveness and skill. Therefore, I am establishing a fund of $ l 0,000 for undergraduate research. Undergraduate students and their faculty mentors can apply for small grants to cover the basic cost of joint research projects. The student will be required to present the results of the project on campus and to submit the results for presentation or publication in an appropriate professional forum off-campus. Similarly, I am increasing the base funding for the Honors Program by $10,000 to support speakers and field trips for honors students.

Seventh, we all know that the mechanisms involved in teaching are changing. Applications of technology will continue to increase in importance in contributing to the teaching-learning process. Several actions are being taken to support the development of technology. As many of you may be aware, we have requested that the Board of Governors approve a significant increase in the education and technology fee. These funds will be used directly to support student access to technology. And, I am working to identify funds to create electronic teaching spaces across the campus. This summer, we will install two classrooms-- one in Forsyth and one in Stillwell-- and we will continue until there are sufficient facilities to support faculty needs. At the same time, I am working with all vice chancellors to identify non-academic positions that can be moved into support for technology, and we are examining other options for contracting for support. We also are beginning to look nationally for effective models of universities that have developed strong programs of applying technology to the teaching and learning process.

Eighth, as I have stated on several previous occasions, excellent universities have faculty who are committed to scholarship. To support expanded opportunities for scholarship by faculty, starting with proposals submitted after today, 10 percent of the indirect cost generated by grants and contracts awarded to faculty will be returned to the faculty member's department. These funds can be used at the department's discretion, within very broad guidelines, to purchase equipment, enhance travel opportunities, or buy a faculty member's time for research. Again, students at an excellent university are taught by faculty committed to scholarship.

All of these actions are designed to support this faculty's efforts to take the University to the next level of excellence. This is the first prong of the vision for Western's future.

The second prong of this vision involves institutional uniqueness. If you look at our location, unlike any other university in the state, we are truly rural. We are not located in a town. While this location may be seen as detriment, it also is an asset and it provides us an opportunity to develop a unique presence in the Southern Appalachians. We have strong programs in drama, music, and art, and we have the faculty to develop a strong program in media. Given our location, we can become a true center for the performing and visual arts. To this end, I have requested that the Board of Governors approve funding for a new performing and visual arts center. With this facility and continued attention to these areas, we can take Western to national prominence in performance and visual arts. We can become the arts center for the mountains and, thereby, attract fiscal and community support and exceptional students. We also can provide an important element in support of our region's tourist industry and development as a destination for eco-migration.

The third prong of this vision involves continued attention to those aspects of our academic program that directly support regional development. Our attention to quality across the curriculum is critical to this part of the vision as well. The best thing we can do for this region is to assure that all of our graduates are internationally competitive. But, we also know that this region needs small business development, health care professionals, social service workers, trained public administrators, teachers, field-based scientists-and a technologically competent labor force. People of this region also need to be able to work with people who are ethnically diverse or who may even be from other countries. We need to increase our ability to support the economy of this region and to develop those elements of that economy that contribute to increased income and economic diversity. Western needs to continue to expand its ability to provide direct service and educational programs for support of this region.

Again, several actions have been taken in these areas. As of the first of January, CIML has been reorganized. In its place there are two organizations. To address directly the needs of this region, we now have the WCU Mountain Resource Center. This center is to focus on outreach to the mountain counties. Second, under Academic Affairs, there is now an Office for International Programs and Services. Development of this office is consistent with the recommendations of the Task Force on Diversity report that was circulated last semester. It should be noted that both entities are specifically charged with developing methods for including faculty and students in their work. Unless we bring faculty and students to this agenda, our efforts must, per force, be marginal. Third, because of the needs in this region for a well educated, technologically sophisticated labor force, the University has requested that General Administration add a workforce development center to our capital construction plan. This center will house computer-based laboratories, electronic classrooms, a television studio, and other facilities to support preparation of our students and other people of this region for work in a technologically intensive environment. Again, these are only first steps and funding for the building is a long way off, but they begin to focus us on this third prong for our future.

None of what I have said today takes the place of strategic planning. These are only the first steps in positioning Western for an exciting and dynamic future. Planning at both the University and departmental levels will further refine our understanding of our direction. Our plans need to become crisp and nonbureaucratic. Our interest, as those of you who attended last week's leadership retreat have said in so many ways, needs to be focused on our future, not in the elaboration of extensive plans.

Well, these are the three prongs that I believe define the basis of the development scheme for the academic side of this wonderful university:

We must increase the quality of all our programs and demonstrate that we have increased that quality.

We can, and should, become a center for performing and visual arts -- strong arts programs are critical to our future.

We need to continue to develop perspectives and programs that support the development of this region -- our institutional health is directly tied to the health of these mountains.

As you have listened to this talk today, I hope that you are taking it in the same vein that it is intended. Western is a great university with an excellent faculty, and strong staff. Because of the quality of the people here, we have a chance to be a university with broad national, even international, stature. We have a great deal to celebrate and of which to be proud. It is also in this regard, that I am declaring this semester to be a Celebration of Western. Not a celebration of what Western can or may become -- but of what it is. Throughout this semester, there will be events that celebrate various programs -- the first was the announcement of the Adelaide Worth Daniels Distinguished Professorship in Special Education. Jim Rowell, Associate Director of Public Information, is chairing a committee which is identifying events which will give attention to Western's finest qualities -- its spirited students, excellent faculty, and staff; its vigorous program, exceptional environment; and its commitment to scholarship for the twenty-first century. If you have events that you would like to have included in the celebration, please let Jim know.

Western's future is in your hands. I hope that I have fairly stated the problem as well as a possible solution, and I hope that I have begun to give voice to some of your dreams for this campus. You are the faculty who will take this University to its next level of excellence and prominence. You will destroy the myth and replace it with both the image and the fact of quality. I look forward to working with you -- let academic excellence become our motto and our creed.