http://www.usm.edu/president/

Even better, here's the text:

A Message from the President

September 7, 2004

Dear Colleagues,

Our campuses are booming. And they should be booming because more students are attending Southern Miss. Dr. Joe Paul has reported that comparing last year with this year, we have a very healthy increase in enrollment. Our final numbers will be turned in to the IHL Board next week, and we will be able to share those numbers with everyone at that time.

Many on the Hattiesburg campus have probably noticed the large-scale banners that are being placed on some of our buildings. Two of the banners have been secured at the stadium and the Theatre and Dance Building, and banners will be placed next week at Elam Arms, Johnson Science Tower, and Wilbur Stout Hall. The images on the banners are from the commercials produced for Southern Miss and are in keeping with the branding and marketing campaign for the university. Later in the semester, banners will be placed at the Long Beach campus and J. L. Scott Marine Education Center and Aquarium. The look is really eye-catching and makes a strong visual statement for our university.

At the President's Council meeting last week, Dr. Ken Panton gave an update regarding the progress of the Honors College. The following is his report.

The Honors College opened the 2004-2005 academic year with an increase in enrollment that included a rise, from 17 to 31, in the number of freshman students with ACT scores of 31 or higher. The retention rate for first-year students rose from 57 percent in 2002-2003 to 98 percent in 2004-2005, and the number of students transferring into the college at the beginning of their junior year rose from 24 to 35. In addition, the freshman entry included six National Merit finalists and, for the first time, students on the Gulf Park campus were eligible to join the Honors College.

The enrollment increase reflects a fundamental change in the curriculum. Incoming freshmen now take general education classes in groups of no more than 15 students and are guaranteed access to some of the most outstanding scholars at Southern Miss from the beginning of their first year. Moreover, their classes place a strong emphasis on the application of knowledge rather than simply on academic theories. Students taking Political Science 101 will have their understanding of American government enhanced by visits with lawmakers in Hattiesburg, Jackson, and Washington, D.C., as well as through traditional classroom lectures. Theatre Appreciation students will enjoy performances in New Orleans and Biloxi as well as on campus, learning about the economics of the entertainment industry as well as acting. Freshmen and sophomores taking Social Work and Sociology will be involved in service learning with local community organizations such as Forrest General Hospital. And at the junior and senior levels, more emphasis will be placed on research work under the guidance of an academic adviser.

The new approach makes learning more interesting and attracts more high-ability students to Southern Miss, showing them how academic knowledge is applied to real-world problems and preparing them for places in the nation's leading graduate schools.

I would like to thank Dr. Panton for his hard work. He has made great progress with our Honors College. Although his leadership has been instrumental, he has commented many times about the great response and cooperation our faculty has provided and his inability to succeed without their assistance and support. Thank you, Honors College faculty, for supporting our Honors College and Dr. Panton.

Also at the President's Council meeting, Dr. Cynthia Moore reported on progress being made on ordering new classroom furniture. Many of our faculty, staff, and students provided their input on more than 30 samples of furniture, manufactured by six major furniture manufacturers at two showings in R.C. Cook University Union. Classroom furniture made by Chromcraft, a Mississippi-based company, was favored by a vast majority of those who reviewed and tested the furniture samples. We will be ordering 3,936 pieces of furniture, which will be placed in buildings on the Hattiesburg, Long Beach, Jackson County, and Gulf Coast Research Laboratory campuses. The furniture should be in place by the end of December. I appreciate the tireless efforts by Dr. Moore and Carla Cascio. This is an issue that surfaced as a concern during one of our President's Council meetings.

The issue of the Faculty Handbook was also a topic of discussion. As you may recall, in May 2004, the members of the President's Council discussed the progress of completing and approving the Faculty Handbook. Based on input from many and advice from legal counsel, it was decided that a committee would be formed to review the status of the Faculty Handbook. Members of the committee included Dr. David Beckett, president of the Faculty Senate; Russ Willis, director of Human Resources; Dr. Renee Falconer, faculty member; Dr. Cecil Burge, vice president for research and economic development; Lee Gore, university counsel; and Dr. Cynthia Moore, associate provost and chair of the committee.

The Faculty Handbook Committee met on August 4, 2004. Dr. Joan Exline attended on behalf of the President's Council to inform the committee of its charge, which was to discuss and attempt to resolve four principal issues related to Faculty Activity Report (8.4.3), Promotion and Tenure (9.9.3), Eligibility for Tenure (9.6.3), and Termination (10.2.2).

Dr. William Taylor, who chaired the Faculty Handbook Committee last year, was invited to the meeting to aid in the transition. Dr. Taylor brought the committee up to date on the status of the Faculty Handbook. He related that the latest draft of the Faculty Handbook was approved unanimously by his committee and sent, along with a cover letter, to me in February 2004. He discussed the latest draft with the Faculty Senate's Faculty Handbook Committee and with the Faculty Senate at large, finding general approval for it. While he thought the latest draft was a workable document, he felt a need to make grammatical clarifications, and either this committee or the standing committee recommended in the draft should revisit some unresolved issues noted in his cover letter to me.

After brief discussion, Dr. Taylor agreed to review the draft of the Faculty Handbook and to make recommendations for grammatical improvement; Dr. Exline agreed to send each committee member a copy of the draft; and the committee agreed to meet as soon as all members had reviewed the draft. Dr. Exline sent copies of the draft of the Faculty Handbook to all members of the committee immediately, and Dr. Taylor submitted recommended grammatical changes on August 9, 2004.

The Faculty Handbook Committee reconvened on August 19, 2004, to discuss the issues presented by Dr. Exline. Suggested changes and recommendations made by the committee members at this meeting were added to the Faculty Handbook and distributed for another committee review. Dr. David Beckett requested additional changes and expressed some concerns, which were addressed at the final meeting on August 30, 2004. After discussion, the committee members unanimously agreed on a final draft, which I signed on September 2, 2004.

All committee members also agreed that, once approved, the Faculty Handbook should immediately be disseminated to all faculty and staff members. The deans have been notified that the handbook is now available on the Web site, which can be accessed at http://www.usm.edu/pubs/fachbook/index.htm.

I thank the committee members who worked diligently on this project. I believe it is important to begin the academic year with this document in effect.

I'm sure many of you have heard about Southern Miss' drop in the rankings of the U.S. News and World Report from a third-tier university to a fourth-tier university. This matter was discussed during the President's Council meeting. It was reported that immediately upon notification of the ranking, we began looking into what caused the drop. After officials at the magazine were contacted, it was confirmed that portions of the information requested were not sent from the Office of the Provost. We also verified that our university did not send in our graduate program report. This is a most unfortunate situation that cannot be allowed to happen again. It is inexcusable that complete and accurate information requested was not provided to the U.S. News and World Report. We must make certain that such an omission will not happen again. We will be in discussions with all components of our university to ensure accuracy and accountability of data retrieval and reporting.

Russ Willis reported to the President's Council information being reviewed to determine how the duties, responsibilities, and services of the Office of Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity would be carried out. He assured all present that regardless of the location of the office, the efficiency, services, and functions of the office would not be affected.

By midweek, Southern Miss fun was in the air, and Golden Eagle Revelry was just what the doctor ordered. It was great to have our football, baseball, and basketball coaches talk with us and award season tickets to some lucky members of our faculty and staff. I thank the cheerleaders, Southern Misses, Dixie Darlings and The Pride for their wonderful entertainment. Golden Eagle Revelry really put me in the mood for our upcoming athletic events. Without a doubt, the highlight of the afternoon had to be the Southern Miss Jeopardy game. Even though our deans thought they would bring in secret weapons to help them compete, David Beckett (who competed by himself) won the contest. He made our faculty proud, and the entire group of competitors had plenty of fun while giving everyone a laugh. I extend my thanks to Rusty Rolison, Kameron Dale, Greg Herring, John Cox, Scott Carr, Hitomi Wince, Leigh Anne Wilson, Landy Laird, Aramark, Coca-Cola, and Mike Landrum for making Golden Eagle Revelry a big success.

Members of the community joined our faculty, staff, and students this year for the second annual Southern Miss Community Blitz. Dr. Joe Paul, Dr. Cecil Burge, Lisa Mader, and I delivered Southern Miss paraphernalia and yard signs to 15 businesses in the Hattiesburg area. It was great to have an opportunity to personally thank the many business owners and their employees for their support of Southern Miss. I appreciate the Athletic Department's efforts in arranging the Community Blitz this year.

I hope that you enjoyed the Labor Day weekend.

Very sincerely yours,

Shelby F. Thames

To someone in the know:

What part did the demise of the Graduate School play in the Teardrop mess?  Was no one keeping track of the statistics?  Was there no one to ask?

quote:

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Originally posted by: truth4usm/AH
"http://www.usm.edu/president/ Even better, here's the text: A Message from the President September 7, 2004 Dear Colleagues....

I'm sure many of you have heard about Southern Miss' drop in the rankings of the U.S. News and World Report from a third-tier university to a fourth-tier university. Although I am not familiar with this little known publication, immediately upon notification of the ranking we began looking into what caused the drop. After officials at the magazine were contacted, it was confirmed that portions of the information requested were not sent from the Office of the Provost. Let me assure you that this oversight was certainly not my fault.  We also verified that our university did not send in our graduate program report, again,  not due to any error on my part. I am a busy man, and I have always relied on my staff to see that all paperwork is properly submitted.  Sadly, they have failed me.  This is a most unfortunate situation that cannot be allowed to happen again. It is inexcusable that complete and accurate information requested was not provided to the U.S. News and World Report. We must make certain that such an omission will not happen again. In order to minimize the damage to our image,  I have directed  that all copies of this shoddily conceived  publication be removed from our bookstore and library;  I have also requested the support of Hattiesburg retailers in  removing these magazines from their shelves.  We will be in discussions with all components of our university to ensure accuracy and accountability of data retrieval and reporting in the future.... 

Very sincerely yours, Shelby F. Thames"

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Dear Colleagues,

Please see  above the revised text concerning the recent USM rankings.  This paragraph should have been incorporated into the President's letter of September 7, 2004, rather than the version which was prematurely distributed.  I apologize for this error,  and request that you destroy all copies of the first letter.

Very truly yours,

Joseph Goebbels

USM Minister of Public Relations

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Originally posted by: Swan Song

Also at the President's Council meeting . . . reported on progress being made on ordering new classroom furniture . . . We will be ordering 3,936 pieces of furniture . . .

Swan Song: tell me you are kidding. Tell me that President's Council meeting was not called for 7:00 in the morning with an agenda that included announcing that we will be ordering 3,930 pieces of furniture. I would have required more than cream and sugar in my coffee had I heard that. What next? Will we learn how many rolls of toilet paper will be ordered?

Russ Willis reported to the President's Council information being reviewed to determine how the duties, responsibilities, and services of the Office of Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity would be carried out. He assured all present that regardless of the location of the office, the efficiency, services, and functions of the office would not be affected.

Russ, obviously someone made you say that because that assurance is a bunch of b.s. You know good and well that it will be affected. What a facade!

quote:

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Originally posted by: I'm wide awake
"Joker, I said 3,960 instead of 3,966 just to see if you were awake. I see that you are. "

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quote:

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Originally posted by: Wide awake
"I'm so sorry, Joker. I've been at USM for only a short time and already I have forgot how to count!"

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Originally posted by: Tiers of a Clown
"psst . . . that's called Mader Math."

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"It's 3936, not 3960 or 3966..."

3936 ... 3+9+3+6 = 21...2+1 = 3

3960 ... 3+9+6+0 = 18/6 = 3

3966 ... 3+9+6 (-6 duplication cancellation) = 12/4 = 3

What's the difference? 

Please stay focused on what's important...economic development of course!

Re: Honors College report, I'm glad that it got a mention, but I'm sad to see what looks to me to be a dismantling of the General Honors curriculum.  From what I can gather, the very distinctive Honors Colloquium series has been phased out, Honors Forum has been reduced by 1/5 of its former self, and they won't even allow the end-of-year skit where Honors students parody the Honors college administrators, faculty, and such anymore!  What a world, what a world...