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David J. Skorton
UI President |
This is a critical time in the life of public higher education in the United States and in the State of Iowa. The problems are myriad: budget austerity, widespread skepticism about the value of higher education, some misinterpretation of the basic missions of a research university.
Solutions? There are no glib or easy answers to this challenging time in American public higher education. For more than one hundred years, the enormous success of The University of Iowa and similar public research universities has been founded on adherence to our critical missions of undergraduate, graduate, and professional education; scholarly and creative activity; and service in selected areas of the campus.
In early October, Bruce Cole, Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities, delivered a lecture on our campus. His subject was “The Scholar and the Citizen: The Necessity of the Humanities to Democracy.” Chairman Cole’s lecture was not only an important touchstone for our Year of the Arts and Humanities, but for our larger lives as teachers, scholars, and public servants in the mission of higher education.
I think Bruce Cole’s ideas apply not only to the study and teaching of the humanities, but to all we do as a public institution of higher education. Dr. Cole has helped us frame how the life of discovery, and the life of the university, are central to our collective selves, our community, state, regional, and national identities.
The academy is often charged with being aloof and remote from the concerns of the rest of our community and society in general. We continue to do an excellent job of maintaining our prominence in the knowledge work that our larger society demands. As a public and publicly supported institution, we have a special obligation not only to seek knowledge and teach in the realms of pure intellect, but also to dedicate ourselves to improving the lives of our fellow citizens directly.
This obligation grows, in part, out of our privileged position in society. In my opinion, the life of a university professor, particularly, is a privileged one. As faculty members we are allowed to apply our talents and pursue our individual scholarly interests virtually unrestricted. The faculty also live lives of economic privilege in our societal context. As a national professoriate we are paid relatively well. At the same time, within the context of academia, the UI continues to struggle to remain competitive. Faculty compensation has steadily eroded in comparison to our peers. This erosion is alarming. We must do much more to enhance salaries and to ensure continuing vitality of the faculty at this University. |
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Our Board of Regents realizes the critical importance of a high-quality
faculty and staff. They have just approved a systematic
plan entitled "A Partnership for Transformation and Excellence." This plan will lead to a request to the state for an annual
additional investment in the Regents institutions of $40 million
in operating funds above current state funding levels for each
of the next four fiscal years. The universities, including all
of us here at the UI, will be asked to participate in the process
of transformation. Of critical importance, we will reallocate
and redirect one dollar of institutional funds toward educational
excellence for every two dollars of increase in state funding.
Based on this plan, we will hold tuition increases initially
to the rate of projected inflation of the Higher Education Price
Index for resident undergraduate students. Through this plan,
the Regents are asking us all to be partners in improving the
financial underpinnings of our institution in a forward-looking,
innovative fashion. Yet, if we are to progress as a public institution, even at current levels of funding and compensation, The University of Iowa must also enhance its contributions and service to Iowa, the nation, and the world. We must all repay the privileges we enjoy with intentional, dedicated efforts to improve the lives of our fellow citizens as well as our University itself. In other words, we must become an “engaged” university, more so than we are now. Service is a covenant, a solemn compact with the state that created us and the citizens who support us. Engagement is a partnership with our public constituencies—federal and state taxpayers—who support us. As a public university, we must be sensitive to the needs of our citizenry. But engagement goes beyond this mindful awareness. We must also consult and collaborate with our public to assess and address their needs. In doing so, we will bring all members of our university community—faculty, staff, and students—into a common endeavor in which all play crucial roles.
The discourse of “engagement” reframes and re-energizes our public institutions’ commitments to the world outside of academia’s walls. I am proud that today The University of Iowa continues its strong tradition of engagement with the people of Iowa, the nation, and the world as we conduct our trifold mission. In his 2002 Convocation Address to the University of Iowa community, Interim President Sandy Boyd said, “A vibrant University depends on a vibrant Iowa. A vibrant Iowa depends on a vibrant University.” In that speech, he declared that outreach and advocacy were to be the themes of his interim administration. I intend to continue Sandy Boyd’s commitment to public engagement as a central tenet of our University mission.
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