<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div><span></span></div><div><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><div>Courtesy of the UI Argonaut at:</div><div><br></div><div><a href="http://www.uiargonaut.com/2015/08/31/26171/">http://www.uiargonaut.com/2015/08/31/26171/</a></div><div><br></div><div>--------------------------------------</div><div><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><b>Building a Team</b></span></p><h3 style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="3">UI sees personnel transitions in upper administration roles</font></em></h3><div><em style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font size="3"><br></font></em></div><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">After a year and a half full of position searches and appointment announcements, there is a new cohort of upper administrators running the University of Idaho.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Since UI President <a href="http://www.uidaho.edu/president/Biography" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; text-decoration: none;">Chuck Staben</a> took office March 2014, about half a dozen upper administrators have left their positions at the university.<span id="more-26171" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">There are also a number of new faces on the President’s Cabinet, which makes strategic decisions for the university and is mostly comprised of administrators who report directly to the president.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">According to Staben, changes in upper administration are expected when a new president arrives on campus.</span></p><blockquote style="margin: 10px 0px; padding-top: 10px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; border-width: 1px 0px; border-top-style: solid; border-bottom-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); vertical-align: baseline; quotes: none;"><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“(It is) extremely normal,” Staben said of the change in upper administrators. “In fact, I would say probably we’ve gone slower than is typical in a presidential transition.”</span></p></blockquote><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Administrators have left their positions for a number of reasons.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Some retire, others step down to take teaching positions and many have left for positions elsewhere.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Staben said much of the change has been evolutionary, with some administrators retiring after long careers at UI.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">After four decades at UI, Bruce Pitman retired as dean of students and vice provost for Student Affairs at the end of fall semester 2014.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“He retired, I mean, people only work so long,” Staben said of Pitman’s retirement.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Other administrators have made a personal decision to leave UI, such as Carmen Suarez, the former Chief Diversity Officer and associate vice provost for Student Affairs, who left the university in August, Staben said.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Suarez left UI to become Chief Diversity Officer at Portland State University.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Since Staben has taken office, UI has also made a number of changes to the structure of administration departments.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Earlier this year, Staben announced the university would restructure the division of Finance and Administration and the Budget and Planning office.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The change came after Ron Smith, the former vice president of Finance and Administration, announced he would be stepping down from his position to teach accounting in the College of Business and Economics.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The university restructured the division and the Planning and Budget office into two new divisions — the Division of Finance and the Division of Infrastructure.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">After Smith’s announcement, two of his direct reports announced they would be leaving the university.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Tyrone Brooks, the former assistant vice president for Auxiliary Services who reported to Smith, left UI in April to become the vice president for Administrative Services at Columbia Basin College in Pasco, Washington.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Former University Controller Dan Stephens, another direct report to Smith, stepped down in May to become the associate vice chancellor for finance and controller for the University of North Texas System.</span></p><h3 style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><font size="3"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">New plans</span></font></h3><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Staben said he is excited to work with his new team and said the new administrators will be able to give a fresh look at how UI does things.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“I think it’s pretty exciting to have assembled a new team,” Staben said.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Staben said these new administrators will help with creating a new strategic plan for the university. He said UI would announce the strategic planning process soon.</span></p><blockquote style="margin: 10px 0px; padding-top: 10px; padding-right: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; border-width: 1px 0px; border-top-style: solid; border-bottom-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); vertical-align: baseline; quotes: none;"><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">“At the moment we have essentially finished our current strategic plan, and we need that new strategic plan,” Staben said, mentioning the plan will include the university’s future strategies, goals and tactics.</span></p></blockquote><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">At the state and university level, Staben said UI will work on increasing the rate at which <a href="http://www.uiargonaut.com/2015/08/18/sboe-passes-direct-admissions-plan/" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; text-decoration: none;">high school seniors go on</a> to college.</span></p></div><div>--------------------------------------<br><br><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Seeya 'round town, Moscow, because . . .</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br></span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"Moscow Cares" (the most fun you can have with your pants on)</span></div><div><a href="http://www.moscowcares.com/" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><font color="#000000">http://www.MoscowCares.com</font></a></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"> </span></div><div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Tom Hansen</span></div><div><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Moscow, Idaho</span></div></div><div> </div></div></div></body></html>