In almost every facet of his presidency at IU so far, Adam Herbert has met our lofty expectations.\nHis agenda for the changes he hopes to bring to the University is expansive, although to date his tenure has been remarkably brief.\nIn that time, though, he has:\n
- Advocated to the General Assembly to allocate more money for the University;
\n- Testified in front of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee to help ease the problems international students may encounter when being granted visas;
\n- Invited beloved former IUB Chancellor Ken Gros Louis to fill an interim position while a new chancellor search is underway;
\n- Taken to outlining the need for the Bloomington campus to differentiate itself from other IU campuses with a specific mission statement;
\n- Spoken out against plans to scale back undergraduate enrollment;
\n- Proposed doubling IU's externally-funded research grants and contracts by the end of the decade;
\n- Brought to life a reorganization vision of the University's internal administrative structure;
\n- Envisioned how IU's branch campuses can contribute to the economic development of their respective regions;\n
- Campaigned to make IU one of the top five cancer research centers in America within the next five years.
\nMany of these goals are long-term, and some of them might not even be seen until after the graduation of this year's freshman class. But each is admirable and rewarding in its own way, and each has necessary seeds to be planted if we hope to accomplish them in the future.\nYet we still remain largely disappointed with Herbert's elusive nature on campus. Aside from greeting students on move-in days at the dorms, he is mostly unseen. Of course, as we listed the numerous things he has done since arriving, we understand he is an in-demand guy.\nBut as one administrator has said, Herbert may be a prisoner to his own calendar.\nHerbert remains one of the most congenial people on this campus. He is gifted with a giant frame that feeds on all the energy around him, and his hand drowns yours when you go to shake it. He is articulate and funny, and it's a shame if you haven't had the chance to make his acquaintance.\nSometimes it's hard to understand someone if you haven't met him in person. We want students to internalize Herbert's progress, not consider him a shadowy figure floating between administration buildings. His actions are effective, but are they effective if we don't see him in action? We understand the IU presidency can be a thankless job, but the easiest way to rectify that is to experience face-to-face student feedback.\n"I'm delighted to finally be here on the IU campus," Herbert told the IDS Aug. 1, 2003, as he strolled through campus on his first day upon taking office. "It's one of the most beautiful campuses in America."\nAs winter winds on, no one particularly enjoys walking across campus right now. But this spring, when the trees re-bud, the flowers resurface and the grass is green with liveliness again, we'd love for President Herbert to take more frequent walks and meet-and-greet with students.\nEven if it has to be planned and penciled into his schedule.
