1987 February
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File Copy Feb. 2, 1987 -, lVISU. Clip·.,, Sheet /''.~few directQ~~ -~f _educaii9n·~- / ·d,. -1-'?''j He contlnu~d !~_.deal .wit~ the leg• lslature as the blgher-,;_ducatton i\ ;~~~uncili:face~~-,. f ~~\.some hot worli council's coordinator of government alfalrs from 1976 to 1978. From 1978 through 1980, be was dean of -. wtm a c1ean slaI e. " .. ~ .. He doesn't come_ m f Hardinsburg, the. the School of Public Affairs at Ken• By AL° CROSS tucky State University. Staff Wrlf•r . .said Bums Mercm 'H~'s going to have to Most observers consider that sttnt ·.FR~NKFORT, Ky.~ The new admlnis council chairman. erspecUve and devetor, In campus admlnlstratton, b s legis lraf ,, of lhe·state Council on Higher Educa . develop a broade1 ¾I think he can do it. lative experience and his service at tion Is m·ore· navigator than captain more this public role; an t ds the reservations Cox said he und_e.rs an a chance to prove the council as bis major qt aliflca conclliator than confronter.· . • tlons for his new Job, alon,: , Tith his . : Gary Cox, who had been deputy. execu about him but has•:t,;:i~~cate. He 11dded, "l . doctorate and his years as a faculty tive director, was named Jan. 24 to succeed himself as a .publltc thnt challenge. .• MY member. His Kentucky roots "prob Harry Snyder, whose 10 years In the top job think 1 can mee . one has been to gro": ably tipped the balance ·or him," were often turbulent · . · · · strength, ff· 1 h•~\ thl~k I'll do that here.' said Al Smith of London, v,c,: chair• The council .bad gained control of plan into posltl~ns, an C x l\ad a .modest up man of the council. ning, budgets and degree programs at the ~Gary Sherman °. mli!IIOOS, . Cox returned to the· council In eight iilale u~lverslties only four years be bringing an~ modes~ a orchard in Lrncoln 1981 as deputy director for policy fore S 1yder-took o_ver. As the council flexed . A native of cr3io Louisville. when b_e C9unty, b~ moved B average in a and governmen~ affairs, Lnd be Its muscles, there were batues between Its came sole deputy In l'io1•ember director-and the presidents: of the schools. was 2. He said ne •ha:ma at southwest Jel totigh academic ~rogr High SchOol, but. he 1984. Snyder said one of Cox's major Ccx some_Umes worked behind the scenes accomplishments was negoUating a t~· :p· 11 out fires that Snyder started, some rerson County's ~~~ilayer like his stepla· wanted to be a ·, • · desegregation plan with the federal cou_ncll members said. Last week,-Cox said government more qulcltly and his Joh now Is to keep the lnternal'sparks tber, t sn.'t ~J~1orlable with It.'' hC - _:•1 jus wa •· cheaply than any other st::t,,. fr~m.fylng while fanning an· external flame As acting executive dire, ·, · since - p· 1t llc support for higher education. said so he ,,, nl to Morehead Stale July, Cox showed his co. c llatory . ,,- Y~oi ,•r~· a person· tor a tim~," he said.·· . Unl~crslty, wbere he parlayed cafe powers by mediating a dlspnte be · ~"~ Ha_rry took this position, ·there were teria and bo!l--monltor jobs Into the tween UK and U of L over ~1? tfneer a nm n ier of dlfficUlt, very ·controversial is• student govt .. ,ment presidency. lng education, Mercer said arreld su~ to be resolv~d" ~ tcir exarhple, the He planned to become a teacher also cited that as an examp e that roles c f the University, cit, Kentucky, .the and did bis student teaching at the Cox "Is a pretty good peacen.aker.'' Unlver,:lty of Louisville and. the council it- self,· · · · · . · ··; old Olive Hill High School In carter The executive director oversees a County but be never taught again In staff of about 40 and an annual ·.. }'This -ls sort o! another generation in a sec~ndary school. The turning budget of $5 mllllon, not Including hlgher·_.educatlon,"- Cox, 42, said. "The po point was a yearlong fellowship In a money distributed to the unlversttles lltlC11I;P!"1jld~l\ll::,'!°.r)1ll l_ntents and pur- rogram that trained people for gov for special programs and salary ln POS<!S,. a~e .. gpn~. ·,-:c; ,_ · ,·· · · •. ~rnment service In Kentuck_y, Ten centtves. The entire university sys /' .. U'~(.;L'P.r~!Miil,P'oriald 'swain, whose r~ nessee and Alabama. tem will spend more than n bllllon . · lallpPJ,1"l#t.S,iiY,det,• were often cool, said Dee Akers, now a professor at the this year. ·:: Col',~1!den,ta11~s· thqt lh¢•councll, not !Is ex University o! Loutsvllte, was. the Some observers of the council, ·.·. e~uUfe:;dlrector; ~•Is' policy, and· thus Cox Morehead professor who recom who asked to remain nameless to ,· w~nT ·:~el'· out In front of the council In mended cox !or the fellowshlp, One preserve good relations "!ti, Cox, ·;. ways lttal Harry often did." · reason he recalled, was that the wonder I! be bruJ a clear s-!&lon of '_ . -~µt ·some cou_ncil members wanted an ex.: young' man showed potenttal but where the state's higher-education .. "!=)!!Ive director cast In the tmage of a uni- dldn't wear nmbltlon on his sleeve. system should go, veriilty ·: presldenl - with "a little more "He was quiet, but he seemed to Cox wasn't specific whea asked SJj~knCS!"; 8~d Presenct:!;,·. th3n Cox. Swain be competent and was likable, so I what his biggest challenges will be. said - ,,ne who would. be the chief public guess be almost became a friend : He said he wants to maintain good apvocatr• for the university· system. Inst ns be . ecame a student w1 will on the council so "we Cl'n dis : The· rioUoo to hire Cox 'passed with a me, ,, Akers said.. "I was ,, Impressed agree without being dlsagi a<able," bare n.~.orlty of.nine votes: seven members with bis Innate qualll1 es. and "continue the momentum that were ab!>elit. Cox said be was favored by "a After teaching at Morehead for higher education has." . clear ms,jorlty" of. the 17 ·voting members, five years Cox earned bis doctorate . One observer said Co:;:'s non lncludl<1,: some who couldn't·attend from UK ;.Ith a thesis on the Gener specific agenda could be a blessing, Micha.el. Harreld . of Louisville, the only al Assembly's Interim committees, because It Indicates that he w\11 de member who voted against Cox, said being then spent two years as assistant to fer to the council. a point man for the·unlverstty system "wilt the execufl, e director of the Legls Cox said be will take , ir iction be a n~v•er ~_ole for _G•~::• lattve Res-,, rch Commission. = ·t -A service of the Office of Public Information- I')'\ 0 ~/. l::° V· from tbe councu;· and will be es ~uct ot a spokesman as Jt wants him ·lo be but added "The out•.- k • • more .~ ·universi1~ ·'isn't like a"corpe>faffo~•z:-_i--~, ~1 - 1 en you are, the more Ukely you Lre to be controversiaJ." . S~yder thinks that the 17-member I The last sentence of a jan. !Oarticle on the responsibility of faculty. Facillty issues (s,tc:~ counc.U Js too large to develop many possible candidacy of David P. Rosell~ for the lion, evaluation and tenure), academic organ!; firm policies and that Cox wm have presidency of the University of Kentucky zation structure and academic programs are to lake the lead ln "balancing the prompts my letter. It read, "As provost, joint faculty and administrative decisions wit!\ Interests of the parts against the in Roselle is in charge of 2,000 faculty members." collegial authority playing ·an oversight role: terests of the whole," The statement clearly indicates a serious Decisions about the institutional missions, . Mercer said he expects Jess cona misunderstanding of the "' ministrative com- goals, long-range planning and budget develoj)- met because most of the big battles ~ave , been fought and schools plexity of a major university. ment and allocations.are clearly the responsi- aren t looking to guard their turf as Universities are not hierarchically arrayed bility of the top administrators. much.'" structures of authority. The corporate CEO Universities are loosely coupled and com- Snyder and his predecessor as ex- mode! is not an accurate description of the · plex social systems. Respect for knowledge, collegial authority relationships found in research achievement and individual autoro- ecuttve director, acting Morehead American universities. This system of relation- my are the highest values of both faculty and President A. D. Albright, said that ship~, somewhat like the "cbecks and balance" administrators. Such values prevent respcnsi- relations among the schools are bet.. notions in democratic go·, ernments, makes ble administrators (as well as faculty for tl'at ter now, but Indicated that the coun universities by design administratively com- matter) from "being in charge." Because of cil still may have to be more refer- . plex and difficult to control from top adminis- the unique nature of the university, fonmil ee tbart cheerleader - perhaps by trative positions. The purs,~;• and acquisition of academic training and substantial acaderric . changl,ig the IO-year-old mission knowledge cannot be specified by a chain of experience are without doubt essential pn,n.q- statements and 5-year-old funding formulns for each university. command. uisites for presidential candidates at UK. Sn:,d ?r said some supposedly re Faculty knowledge and expertise are the The mission of the university is social solve l Issues could be revived, In bases for collegial authori:y.