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THURSDAY, APRIL 5
THURSDAY, APRIL 29
VOLUME 114, ISSUE 42
VOLUME 117, ISSUE 54
FAREWELL
INSTALLATIONS
SOFTBALL
NEWS PAGE 2
CAMPUS LIFE PAGE 4
SPORTS PAGE 6
Executive Editor Emma’le Maas bids farewell to the Northern Iowan.
The Interpreter’s Theatre presents installations showing startling statistics.
The UNI Panthers take down Drake Bulldogs 13-5 at home.
Panther Plot pauses, possible return SARA QUALLEY
Staff Writer
UNI has decided to discontinue the Panther Plot student-run garden located south of campus on College Street. UNI Presidential Scholars opened the Panther Plot in 2013 “to allow for local food growth while also providing students the opportunity to gain experience working in horticulture and food sciences,” according to a UNI STEM article about the garden. Panther Plot produce has been sold to UNI dining services and local restaurants such as Farm Shed and Rudy’s Tacos. It has also been donated to the Northeast Iowa Food Bank. A student organization called Green Project UNI managed the garden. Ana Davis, a first-year graduate student in the mental health counseling program, ran the Panther Plot during the summer of 2019, overseeing students and Americorps volunteers. She explained that a lot of work goes into the Panther Plot. Gardeners till, plan planting patterns and spend hours watering, composting, planting, weeding and harvesting. Vegetables, herbs and pollinator plants line the garden beds. “It is a greenspace on campus for all people to appreciate,”
Davis wrote in an email to the Northern Iowan. “There are walkways and benches all throughout the garden to encourage people to come in, relax, and enjoy an outdoor getaway.” Davis heard about the Panther Plot from her friends Lily Conrad and Gabi Ruggiero, who’ve also managed the garden. “I have a deep-seated passion for environmental welfare and was taking classes called Environmental Ethics and Introduction to Sustainability the year before I took the position,” Davis said. “In the course of those classes, I decided to put my action where my passion was and to find a way of becoming more involved in the practical side of environmental work.” Volunteers have dedicated themselves to the garden even during difficult times. When campus shut down due to the pandemic, Panther Plot volunteers didn’t have access to the campus greenhouse where the garden seeds are started each year. “With everyone working to create safe guidelines for campus involvement, the garden didn’t get its normal start,” Davis said. “Fortunately, in the early summer months of 2020, Americorps volunteers took over the garden
PANTHER PLOT/Courtesy Photos
Conversations regarding the Panther Plot’s future are ongoing as NISG president Samantha Bennett gauges interest.
and maintained the land. They did a great job keeping the spirit of the garden alive in a difficult situation.” Michael Hager, senior vice president for Finance and Operations at UNI, said the Panther Plot is closing because it hasn’t proven to be sustainable. “Despite the good intentions of people over multiple
attempts, after seven years the space has never been able to take off as a self-sufficient operation,” he wrote in an email. “The garden has needed staff oversight and university resources to remain viable. UNI has tried a number of initiatives to increase student involvement, none of which have had lasting results.”
The Panther Plot isn’t linked to an academic program, and most work for the garden occurs during the summer while there are few classes and students on campus. The garden also lacks a student leadership model since most volunteers only remain for 1-2 years.
Following the news that Provost Jim Wohlpart will leave UNI in June to become the next president of Central Washington University, the Provost Search Committee has spent the spring semester reviewing applicants. Now, they are ready to welcome the four finalists to the UNI campus, albeit virtually. Two candidates have so far been announced, with information on the other two to come next week. The first candidate, Vandana Kohli, Ph.D., participated in a virtual public forum at 2:30 p.m. on April 28. Kohli serves as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at California State University, Channel Islands. According to Kohli’s let-
ter of introduction, available on the provost search website (provost-search.uni.edu), she holds a doctoral degree in quantitative sociology and has taught courses in demography, social services, public health, the African diaspora, research methods, demographic theory, quantitative sociology and cultural geography. Since 1991, Kohli has worked at “small, medium, and large universities” throughout the California State University system. She has experience in program development and review, as well as budget administration and grant writing, and has held many administrative positions, including chair and vice-chair of the Faculty and
Academic Senate and Graduate Program Coordinator. “I like working with people to arrive at decisions because I believe that different, diverse perspectives actually improve outcomes,” she wrote. “Most colleagues characterize my style as consultative but I appreciate that leadership is expected to make decisions after listening to the input of all stakeholders.” The second candidate, Kelly Burke, Ph.D., will participate in a virtual public forum at 2:30 p.m. today, Thursday, April 29. Burke is the current vice provost and ean of the Graduate College at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro.
See PANTHER PLOT, page 5
First two provost candidates announced ELIZABETH KELSEY News Editor
As the semester is winding down, the search for the next UNI Provost is just heating up.
KOHLI, BURKE/Courtesy Photos
Kohli and Burke are the first two candidates that have been announced. The remaining two candidates are set to visit virtually in the begining of May.
See PROVOST, page 2