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Exclusive content @
Thursday, aPril 19, 2012
www.southerndigest.com
vOlume 58, issue 15
SGA Spring Election Section see Pages 6 & 7
Today
SU basketball teams add more talent see Sports, page 9
Dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s see Commentary, page 11
State of Southern University and A&M College
A
dmist financial exigency, Southern University stakeholders — students, faculty, administration and the community at-large — face challenges and look to rebuild Southern University. With exigency set to end June 30, plans are being executed to prepare for reorganization to serve more effectively.
Students adjust to changes
State of administration sparks debate chArles hAwKins ii The Southern Digest
Administrators and students differ on beliefs of the current state of the Southern University administration. Although the many changes have occurred with this new administration students still see as not focusing on the right problems on campus. “The administration has a lot of problems, but at the same time they do their job,” said Baton Rouge senior music education major, Skeyron Davis. He later commented on how he felt that Southern University’s administration doesn’t focus on the correct problems. While some students hold
MArcus Green
The Southern Digest
this belief other members of the administration believe their plan that is currently in place is providing immediate help to the students. “I believe that we have spent this academic year working very hard to address inefficiencies in the Southern administrative capabilities that were a result of an outdated system,” said Southern University in Baton Rouge’s Chancellor Llorens. The chancellor also spoke on the plan currently being used has been in the planning stages for the past seven or eight years. Other administrators saw a big change occur in the University when Chancellor Llorens took over that has
departments then it’s the faculty with those departments who should really have a say as how the reorganization should take place.” There are some conflicts among the faculty regarding the merging of departments. “When reorganizing the academic unit you want faculty who are trained specifically in those areas to be making those decisions. The administration is certainly welcomed to make suggestions or maybe even urge faculty to move in certain directions but the faculty should ultimately have the say-so in weather or not these
Southern University students have faced “obstacles” in the past year. This year SUBR Chancellor James Llorens declared financial exigency, faculty eliminations and a four-day class week. Kendrick Woodard, a senior political science major from Shreveport, said, “Being a Southern University student isn’t easy especially when you don’t get financial aid not to mention other various obstacles you face at SU.” As result of the declaration of financial exigency many major and severe cuts in the upcoming reorganization process. Instructors in departments such as English, math, and mass communication have to compensate for the lack of faculty. Jasmine Tate, a junior education major from Baton Rouge said, “It’s very frustrating because the cuts that were made affected students as well because there are certain classes that we need to graduate and there’s no one to teach them.” The lack of faculty isn’t one issue students have to overcome as they face the termination of some of the universities programs. Earlier this month students and faculty faced the proposed closure of the mass communication graduate program. “This is ridiculous, closing the graduate program in mass communication is just going to make it harder for us students who wanted to continue our education at SU,” said Michael
See faCulTy COnfliCTs page 3
See sTudenTs page 3
phOtO by nOrMan j. DOtSOn jr./DigeSt
Chancellor James Llorens speaks to members of the media See adminisTraTiOn page 3 Southern during Monday’s Baton Rouge Press Club meeting.
Conflicts arise amid department mergers JessicA sArPY
The Southern Digest
The faculty senate is an elected body of faculty representing the senate. It gives representation to every college within the university. Every college should have at least one senate member. “We have meetings on a monthly basis throughout the semester. We always have an invited guest and/or a set agenda of issues that we feel we need to address based on the input that we are getting from our constituents,” said faculty senate Vice President Thomas Miller SU invited two members of the national organization
American Association of University Professors (AAUP) to speak to the faculty about reinitiating an AAUP chapter on campus. The AAUP’s purpose is to advance academic freedom and shared governance, to define fundamental professional values and standards for higher education, and to ensure higher education’s contribution to the common good. “There is a recommendation from the administration that we go from 44 departments on campus to 15 departments, we’re not talking about closing departments at all, we’re talking about putting multiple programs together under one department head,” said Miller.
The administration as of yet has not given real clarity as to what the details of a university re organization will look like. “It’s rather late in the day for them to still not have told us which colleges exactly are going to be the colleges that represent in to which the university is organized. There’s a big question as to which departments are going to integrate,” said Miller The administration plays one role on campus and the faculty a somewhat different role. The faculty is by definition largely self-governing and it should be. The faculty are the ones who should be making decisions regarding reorganizing,” said Miller “If you want to combine
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