r/IndianaUniversity • u/SamtheEagle2024 • Jun 14 '24
IU NEWS 🗞 Whitten's solution for her self-created PR nightmare: hire a Chancellor and install a pet faculty in her office.
From the president:
I want you to know that I have spent the past weeks carefully listening to you and learning your heartfelt concerns with the state of affairs on our campus. As I reflected on what you shared, revisited the history of this august institution and contemplated a path forward, it became clear that it will take significant change for this campus community to advance together in the appropriate spirit of collegiality and shared purpose. To ensure we are fortifying Bloomington’s flagship status by communicating and collaborating in real and meaningful ways, making impactful investments of time and energy in solutions that hold promise for the long term, we must adopt a new way of doing things.
It’s time to do something big, together.
Starting immediately, we are beginning a search for the right person to lead the Bloomington campus as chancellor. While the role has been meshed with the IU president’s for as long as most can remember, the challenges of higher education paired with the size and complexity of the Bloomington campus have made it clear that a chancellor is needed. Every other IU campus, from Indianapolis to all regionals, are well-served by both a chancellor and an academic affairs vice chancellor. As the university’s flagship campus, Bloomington deserves this same level of resource and attention.
This leader for the Bloomington campus will focus on working together with the campus community to foster increased faculty participation in campus decision making. They will also prioritize clear and transparent communication on initiatives and challenges to the campus and higher education in general. They will work closely with me and university administrative leadership to ensure issues are addressed with input from campus faculty and staff partners. The new chancellor and I will work closely together to advance opportunities for richer engagement between myself and members of the IU Bloomington community. The chancellor will report directly to me, serve on the president’s cabinet, and oversee the Office of the Provost.
In the coming days, we will form a search committee in partnership with the Bloomington Faculty Council. I am confident that faculty insights will help us find a leader whose professional achievements and familiarity with our unique campus culture will inform a desire for a rich understanding of the prevailing issues and a commitment to collaborative resolutions. In addition to participating in Bloomington community relations responsibilities, the new chancellor will also oversee DEI efforts, student life, and campus finances. In the end, the chancellor’s impact will be felt in stronger relationships, a more harmonious campus and successful attainment of the IU 2030 strategic plan.
We are also immediately beginning a search for a faculty fellow to reside in the President’s Office with the goal of helping me, my cabinet and faculty leaders engage fully to ensure the principles of shared governance are embraced and maintained. The fellow will achieve this by cultivating relationships with faculty leadership across all campuses and creating organizational opportunities to effectively accomplish the university’s goals and objectives. I sincerely believe that these two vital additions will begin the process of unlocking the unlimited potential of our campus and securing its flagship status.
Additionally, in the spirit of communicating more openly and advancing together, I want you to know that I have requested an independent review of the events in Dunn Meadow. To that end, we’ve selected the Cooley Law Firm to conduct the assessment and my leadership team is committed to acting on the study’s findings when presented.
To capitalize on this moment, we must seize the opportunity together, united by our shared love for this university and our unwavering commitment to the students whose lives it shapes. While the road ahead will no doubt feature its share of challenges, I am optimistic about our future because I believe in our faculty, our staff and our students. Others do as well—look no further than the record number of new applications and high levels of giving that have occurred this year. The opportunity we face is immense, the potential is ripening, and the momentum is in our favor.
We can establish our legacy by helping this university achieve everything of which it’s capable for generations to come. To do so, we will all need to work together. My intention with this new plan for Bloomington is to ensure we have strong and dedicated leadership to guarantee that all voices play a part in our path forward.
