November 14, 2014
APAC Hosts Town Hall with President Easter
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President Robert Easter addresses the audience at the APAC Town Hall.
Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares is in foreground.
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Dr. Natasha Barnes, Associate Professor, African American Studies and English,
posing a question to President Easter during the open question and answer session.
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APAC HOSTED a Town Hall meeting with President Robert A. Easter on Oct. 6 in Student Center West. The event was open to all staff, faculty, and students.
APPROXIMATELY 200 people attended, with another 150
watching via live streaming online. More than 2,100 others watched the Town
Hall after the fact at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/uic-apac,
where it continues to be available.
“THE INTENT of this meeting was to provide a forum
for President Easter to address concerns among UIC’s faculty and staff,” said APAC
member Kathleen H. Stauffer, Assistant
Dean for Administration, Institute for Policy and Civic Engagement.
“QUESTIONS WERE solicited from the faculty and staff
prior to the Town Hall and consolidated by topic and given to President
Easter,” she noted. “President Easter answered the questions at the Town Hall
and then provided 10 minutes of open question and answer period for the
audience.”
PRESIDENT EASTER was introduced by APAC member Kate C. Pravera, Academic Director of
the School of Continuing Studies. “We received over 60 questions from staff and
faculty,” she said.
UIC strengths
IN HIS opening statement, President Easter noted that the UIC budget is larger than the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) budget, and that UIC enrolls
more graduate and professional students than UIUC.
HE ALSO noted that UIC is “ranked as one of the
top 50 up-and-coming universities under 50 years of age—UIC is ranked 14th
by the Times of London. This is a
defining time for UIC—the time to move from where you are today into the next
level that defines your future.”
AMONG UIC’S strengths, President Easter noted that
the Chicago campus has the largest and most diverse medical school in the
country, and that the Hispanic/Latino population of the UIC campus has grown to
the point that it “allows us to be designated as a Hispanic/Latino-serving
institution, which enables the campus to access additional federal funds,” he
said.
A WEAKNESS is that the number African-American
students is not as large as he would like, Easter noted, saying, “We need to be
more creative as to how we approach those young people from that population.”
A UNIVERSITY-WIDE strength is that last year “we had the
greatest fundraising year we ever had--$295 million from donors to the University
of Illinois,” Easter said.
Personnel moves
EASTER THEN moved on to answer pre-submitted
questions. He noted that the University is not only looking for a new President
and that UIC is looking for a new Chancellor, but that three U of I Trustees’
terms are up in January, including that of Chair Chris Kennedy. (Governor
Bruce Rauner will appoint the new Trustees.)
EASTER EXPECTS that the Chancellor’s search will be
completed soon after the new President is announced, so that the new President
“will have input into that decision,” he said.
A SEARCH for a Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs
will begin soon, Easter added, noting, “We had an awkward situation where some
of the health enterprise reported to the President and some to the [UIC]
campus, so the Board decided we would change that and the whole enterprise
would report to the campus. That would fall under the leadership of a Vice
Chancellor for Health Affairs. The next Chancellor has to participate in that
[hiring] decision.”
CONCERNING A question about the resignation of former
Provost Lon Kaufman, Easter noted
that about a year ago, he approached Chancellor
Paula Allen-Meares “with the concern that there seemed to be the lack of a
team within” her administration. So this summer, she approached Easter “with
the suggestion that we make a change at the Provost level,” Easter said.
EASTER NOTED that the Chancellors of the campuses
report to him and “have the authority to make decisions about the team that
reports to them.” Allen-Meares presented her case to Easter, he reviewed it and
discussed it with Board members, and “I supported her authority in the decision
that she made.”
HE THEN discussed the withdrawal of a job offer
to Dr. Steven Salaita at the UICC
campus. Easter said that because of Dr. Salaita’s inflammatory online posts
concerning the tensions between Israelis and Palestinians, he was concerned
that students in Dr. Salaita’s classes might be intimidated from offering a
differing view.
“WE MUST have an environment in our classrooms
where students feel they can offer an opinion,” Easter said. “On that basis the
decision was made.”
THE NEXT topic was on a proposed new medical
school at UIUC. “The question on the table is, are we best served as a
University by having an independent college in Urbana, or are we best served by
maintaining the continued relationships that we have,” Easter said. “I have not
come to any decision, and the board has not come to any decision.”
Civil Service conversions
EASTER THEN discussed a hot topic among Academic
Professionals: Civil Service reclassification.
“UNTIL THE 1990s, the Universities were part of the
Civil Service system,” Easter explained. “The change that occurred in the ‘90s
was granting the University the authority to decide whether a position should
be classified as Academic Professional or Civil Service.”
IN RECENT years, the State Universities Civil
Service System (SUCSS) and Civil Service Merit Board “began auditing more
closely the decisions that we were making,” Easter said. “And they were requiring
a significant number of positions to be reclassified.
“THE AUDIT is now expected of all public
universities in the state,” Easter continued. “When the Presidents and
Chancellors of the universities meet in six weeks, we will again talk about the
difficulties we are having with the rather rigorous standards that are being
applied now by the Civil Service Merit Board in reclassification. We are in
serious disagreement at some level with some of the decisions that are being
made.
“WE DON’T dispute the authority of the Civil
Service Merit Board to check what we’re doing and propose changes,” he added.
“What frustrates us is the lack of clarity and the lack of understanding of why
some of these changes are being made.”
HE ALSO noted that in retaining and attracting
employees, “the classifications can be a problem.”
“SO I would say it’s a work in progress,” Easter said.
Budget
THE PRESIDENT then addressed the budget situation,
noting that while the State ostensibly provides 14.8% of the University’s budget,
with what the State contributes for employee and retiree pension and healthcare
costs, “the State provides about one-third of the cost of operating the
University of Illinois,” he said. “When people say the state is stingy, I like
to point out that the state provides almost $2 billion per year.”
THERE IS a bill in the legislature, however, that
if passed, will “begin to transfer the cost of pensions to the universities,”
Easter said.
CONCERNING CASH on hand, “we could write checks for
about 150 days,” Easter said. “We would like to be a bit higher than that. In
2008-09, we were in very extreme circumstances. That number almost went to
zero. We need a reserve to be able to pay employees in case something
catastrophic happens.”
WITH STATE appropriations per student declining
since the early 1990s, tuition has been going up. “We believe we are preventing
qualified students from enrolling because of the cost of tuition,” Easter said.
“Of those students who are admitted, fewer and fewer are deciding to come here.
It’s a disturbing trend and we believe to a significant extent that’s a result
of financial challenges to the students.”
TO COMBAT that problem, the University is putting
more money into financial aid for students, and has undergone a process to increase
efficiency and reduce costs.
AMONG OTHER challenges Easter mentioned are
declining enrollments at Illinois public universities, the likelihood that some
community colleges will petition to become four-year universities, competitors
from around the globe, the possible transfer of benefit costs to the
University, and a non-competitive pension program for Tier 2 employees (those
hired since 2011).
“WE ARE at a defining point in the history of
UIC,” Easter asserted. “The world’s economy is increasingly based in 20 to 30
global cities. Chicago must be one of them. To succeed, it needs a large,
world-class public university. UIC is poised to fill that role. The competition
isn’t Urbana—it’s in Delhi, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the University of
Sao Paolo, and Seoul National University.
“LEADERSHIP IS important, but great universities are
ultimately the product of an absolute commitment to nothing short of excellence
by faculty and staff,” Easter concluded.
HE THEN took questions from the audience on a
variety of issues.
“I BELIEVE the President applied good wisdom to
answer all the questions asked, based on is knowledge of the subject matter, at
the Town Hall meeting,” said APAC member Nester
Komolafe, Contract Coordinator, Office of Business and Financial Services.
UIC Senate Ratifies Council of Senates Statement of Concern Regarding Civil Service Reclassifications
FOR SEVERAL years now, at the request of the State
Universities Civil Service System (SUCSS), the University of Illinois has
undergone an assessment process in which many Academic Professional positions
and personnel are being converted to Civil Service positions and personnel.
THE COUNCIL of Illinois University Senates features
representatives from each of the Senates of the 12 public universities in
Illinois: Chicago State University, Eastern Illinois University, Governors
State University, Illinois State University, Northeastern Illinois University,
Northern Illinois University, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Southern
Illinois University Edwardsville, the University of Illinois at Chicago, the
University of Illinois at Springfield, the University of Illinois at Urbana
Champaign, and Western Illinois University.
THAT COUNCIL recently passed a Statement of Concern,
which was ratified by the UIC Senate on Oct. 29.
THE STATEMENT reads: “The Council of Illinois
University Senates is gravely concerned about the actions of the Executive
Director and staff of the State Universities Civil Service System (SUCSS)
toward reclassifying principal Administrative/Academic Professional positions within
universities, as well as their adversarial audit activities and threat thereof,
without adequate and widespread consultation, including with the Presidents,
Chancellors, Faculty leadership, and Human Resource Directors of the respective
campuses.
“THESE ACTIONS strike us as both arbitrary and
capricious, and lacking in the transparency we expect from our public bodies.”
IN THE audits of UIC jobs conducted in September 2008 and in the
spring of 2009, SUCSS determined that some jobs selected for review were
inappropriately classified as Academic Professional (AP) positions and
therefore had to be converted to an appropriate Civil Service (CS)
classification.
UIC AGREED to comply with the recommendations put
forth in the audit report by SUCSS, develop processes to ensure tighter
position management protocols for APs, transition jobs incorrectly classified
as Academic Professional to Civil Service, and evaluate and document each AP
job with appropriate job descriptions.
FOR MORE about the Council of Illinois
University Senates, see http://cius.illinoisstate.edu/,
call (309) 438-8735, or email acsenate@ilstu.edu.
CAPE Awards Presented at Employee Recognition Awards Ceremony
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| Courtesy UIC News. |
SIX CAPE Award recipients were honored at the
Employee Recognition Awards Ceremony on Nov. 4. They are Gillian J. Coombs, Director, Faculty Affairs, College of Medicine; Elizabeth Herrera, Assistant Director,
Office of Career Services, School of Public Health; Steven Kragon, Executive Assistant Dean, Graduate College,
Administration; Karen Sholeen, Assistant
Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Hugo Teruel, Director, Latino American Recruitment and Educational
Services (LARES), Office of Diversity; and Charu
Thakral, Associate Director, Office of Diversity.
ESTABLISHED IN 1988, the CAPE Award recognizes the
demonstrated excellence of Academic Professional staff and encourages their
professional development. It indicates the institution’s high regard for the
contributions of this key segment of the UIC community.
APAC to Present Speed Networking Session
APAC WILL host a Speed
Networking Event on
Thursday, Dec. 4, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. It is aimed at bringing together
Academic Professionals interested in meeting their colleagues on campus, having
a few minutes of one-on-one discussion to learn about what other APs are doing,
and making new connections.
THE EVENT will be held in the School of Public
Health (SPHPI), Room 932, 1603 W. Taylor St.
TO REGISTER,
click https://uofi.uic.edu/fb/sec/7845736
or contact Julie Kong at (312)
413-8508 (jckong@uic.edu), Kate Pravera at (312) 413-3632
(kpravera@uic.edu), or Uma Sriram at
(312)355-4935 (usriram@uic.edu).
APAC Meetings Scheduled
ALL APs are invited to the monthly APAC meeting
at 12:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month. Meetings are held either in
Room 4175 of the College of Medicine Research Building (CMRB), 909 S. Wolcott,
or Room 2750 of University Hall on the East Campus.
AP RESOURCE SPOTLIGHT
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| The HALP Clinic’s Dr. Janine Rosenberg. |
THE UNIVERSITY offers the services
of its Hyperactivity,
Attention, and Learning Problems Clinic (HALP), part of Institute of
Juvenile Research on the West Campus (1747 W. Roosevelt Road).
THE HALP Clinic, under the direction of clinical psychologist Janine Rosenberg, PhD, provides psychological testing, evaluation, parent management training, and consultation services for pre-school and school-age children, adolescents, and adults. HALP clinic addresses concerns with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), learning problems, and other present psychiatric disorders (such as anxiety, depression, and oppositional defiant disorder). The HALP Clinic serves Chicago and surrounding Illinois and Indiana suburbs.
HALP CLINIC services:
Diagnostic evaluation
Psychological testing (including intelligence, academic, attention, mood, behavioral, and social functioning)
Medication referrals
Follow-up psychological services (including individual and family therapy)
Parent management training
School consultation, including support for IEP and 504 plans
THE HALP Clinic accepts variety of insurances for both PPO and HMO.
CONSIDER THE HALP clinic to refer patients, family, and/or friends within the community. For more information, contact the HALP Clinic Coordinator at (312) 996-4331, or log on to http://www.psych.uic.edu/clinical-programs/95-patient-care/clinical-programs/482-hyperactivity-attention-and-learning-problems-program.
THE HALP Clinic, under the direction of clinical psychologist Janine Rosenberg, PhD, provides psychological testing, evaluation, parent management training, and consultation services for pre-school and school-age children, adolescents, and adults. HALP clinic addresses concerns with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), learning problems, and other present psychiatric disorders (such as anxiety, depression, and oppositional defiant disorder). The HALP Clinic serves Chicago and surrounding Illinois and Indiana suburbs.
HALP CLINIC services:
Diagnostic evaluation
Psychological testing (including intelligence, academic, attention, mood, behavioral, and social functioning)
Medication referrals
Follow-up psychological services (including individual and family therapy)
Parent management training
School consultation, including support for IEP and 504 plans
THE HALP Clinic accepts variety of insurances for both PPO and HMO.
CONSIDER THE HALP clinic to refer patients, family, and/or friends within the community. For more information, contact the HALP Clinic Coordinator at (312) 996-4331, or log on to http://www.psych.uic.edu/clinical-programs/95-patient-care/clinical-programs/482-hyperactivity-attention-and-learning-problems-program.
THE CONTINUING CRISIS
MEET THE “Hedge Fund Wiz Kid” Who’s
Shrinking America’s Pensions, Think
Progress, Oct. 28, 2014: http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2014/10/28/3585128/arnold-pensions-retirement-manufactured-crisis/
ILLINOIS WORSE Off
Than We Think, News-Gazette, Nov. 3,
2014: http://www.news-gazette.com/opinion/guest-commentary/2014-11-02/illinois-worse-we-think.html
Vol. 7, No. 9, November 2014
ISSN 1946-1860
Editor: William S. Bike
Staff: Neal Lorenzi, Gail Mansfield, Susan S. Stevens, Katherine Vega, Monica M. Walk
Chair: Michael Moss
Vice Chair: Ahlam Al-Kodmany
Secretary: Mary Berta
Treasurer: Colleen Piersen
Web Chair: Jeff Alcantar
Web Chair: Jeff Alcantar
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