Strategic plan draft needs faculty input

TO THE EDITOR:

The UNC Advisory Committee for Strategic Directions is largely made up of politicians, CEOs, administrators and only one faculty member.

As of their Jan. 9 meeting, two key sections of the plan — “Maximizing efficiencies” and “Ensuring an accessible and a financially stable university” — were unavailable.

The full draft will appear on Wednesday, just two days before the system-wide Faculty Assembly meets to provide feedback.

That is the only meeting of the assembly before the plan is brought for a vote before the Board of Governors in February. And this schedule leaves no time for the assembly to gather responses from its constituents.

Because faculty are the ones who best understand our concerns, we think it crucial to have the Faculty Assembly receive comments and respond.

In addition, there should be a public forum with President Ross and members of the working group who wrote the document.

This would give faculty, students, staff and committee members a chance to discuss plans that will affect us all.

On Jan. 9, Charles Perusse, chief operating officer of UNC, gave hints of what’s to come.

He spoke of increasing “efficiencies” with regard to education, including class size and “low enrollment and low productivity programs.”

Mr. Perusse has spoken earlier of consolidating programs.

Increasing class size, putting programs together and getting rid of programs with a low number of degrees would have far-reaching consequences for teaching and curricula, and hence are matters in which faculty should be centrally involved.

What is most efficient may not be the best for teaching and learning, or for having a university with intellectual integrity.

The Progressive Faculty Network calls on President Tom Ross and Board Chairman Peter Hans to direct the Advisory Committee to present the final draft to the Board of Governors in April.

That timetable will allow faculty to read the document and respond.
The current haste itself reflects the problem of valuing efficiency over education.

This letter was endorsed by 46 members of the Progressive Faculty Network of UNC-Chapel Hill.

Sherryl Kleinman
Professor
Sociology

John McGowan
Professor
English