Questions were raised about MSU President Robert ‘Doc’ Foglesong’s attendance record of Faculty Senate meetings when the Robert Holland Faculty Senate held its monthly meeting Nov. 9.Foglesong, who was in attendance during the first half of the meeting, addressed the Senate about the University of Mississippi’s plans to file a resolution for a special allocation of funds by the state government for more of a share of appropriations due to increasing enrollment rates. Foglesong said he was told informally that UM is expected to ask for $12 to $13 million.
“There’s considerable traction by some board members to consider this allocation for the University of Mississippi,” Foglesong said. “There’s not additional money that will be made available; this will come out of the allocation that goes toward higher education.”
Foglesong said he tries to attend all executive meetings, but sometimes he just does not make them. He said he is paid to be out and about as much as anything else.
“Half of my job is raising money, whether it is in Washington D.C. or in Jackson, or holding a donor’s hand or working with corporate America,” he said. “For me to facilitate the kinds of things that we need to do, I’m gone a lot. I’m not happy with that but it is a fact of life.”
After Foglesong left the meeting, some Senate members expressed frustration, which had been building up in previous meetings.
“Once again, we’ve had another meeting where we really have not had an opportunity to engage in dialogue with the president,” said psychology professor Gary Bradshaw.
Wolverton acknowledges the lackluster attendance record, and said he does raise issues with Foglesong in one-on-one sessions.
“I can’t control what he does,” Wolverton said. “I can only urge that this is a very important constituency that he needs to have more contact with.”
Wolverton said Foglesong needs to understand the Senate as a group rather than a one-dimensional unit.
“He’s assured me that he is familiar with our government’s documents, but if he has read them, I don’t know how much he has digested of it as opposed to having someone else read it and digest it for him,” he said.
The Senate continued to discuss ideas of ways to improve the lines of communication with Foglesong, including drafting formal legislation to show concern, sending Foglesong a list of questions and topics they have in advance and the idea of individual Senate members e-mailing questions to him on their own time.
Associate professor of communication Mark Goodman said the point is being missed by some. Goodman, who formerly served as president of the Faculty Senate, said Foglesong’s lack of attendance is insulting to faculty.
“I met with [former MSU President] Charles Lee 75 times in two years,” he said. “He came to those meetings. That exchange was valuable. The fact that Foglesong doesn’t come to meetings, besides a cameo today, shows insult to the faculty.”
In addition, Goodman said Foglesong does not value the Senate.
“He doesn’t want to hear what we have to say, he’s not interested in our issues and he’s going to ignore us,” he said. “He’s The General and he’s turned it over to the provost to run the faculty. I don’t think we should sit back and take it.”
E-mails are not dialogue, Goodman said. They do not engage the faculty in a discussion of the most important issues of the university.
According to Wolverton, Foglesong said some Faculty Senate members are too quick to criticize without knowing all of the facts.
“I don’t like adversarial lines drawn,” Wolverton said.
Despite a lack of presence by the MSU president, Wolverton said Foglesong is making attempts to open lines of communication with faculty members.
“He has met a couple of times with the executive committee,” Wolverton said. “We went through the budget in a previous meeting then; having him was extremely valuable.”
Wolverton said Foglesong’s background in the Air Force might also play a factor in his reluctance to sit in on Senate meetings.
“Academic life also moves much slower than military life,” he said. “You didn’t have to wait two months to have jobs done when you were in his position.”
Michael Cervantes, executive director of MSU dining services, also addressed the Faculty Senate about the relationship between MSU and Aramark Food Services, saying that he wishes to develop a faculty dining advising committee in order to obtain feedback from faculty.
“I want to make sure that we are listening to your voices,” he said. “I’ll be the first to say that sometimes we don’t move as fast as people would like us to. Every group on campus has their own uniqueness; I’m making sure that we hear yours.”
The Faculty Senate questioned Cervantes on Aramark’s involvement with the renovation delays of the Colvard Student Union.
Cervantes said the problem with the Union’s exterior is the primary cause of the delay in renovation.
“Right now in the Union, our portion is completely done,” he said.
Some Faculty Senate members expressed concern with the price system at Perry Cafeteria, saying that the system takes away a venue in which faculty can meet.
Cervantes said other ideas are being developed to help alleviate faculty problems.