Shake it up

As part of IU President Adam Herbert's approved overhaul of the University, the IU-Bloomington leadership structure will be shaken and stirred. These changes are necessary experiments for a campus that has wavered back and forth between alliances with its chancellor and its president. With a stronger, more centralized leadership, we believe reforming academics can also take a step closer to reality.\nIUB will lose its chancellor and acquire a provost, otherwise known as the campus's chief academic officer. In lieu of a chancellor to run most of the campus's day-to-day activities, Herbert said he expects the University president to become the "clear leader of the campus" and satisfy expectations of trustees and faculty. \nIU Vice President Michael McRobbie, who was chosen as the interim provost, will have a rare opportunity to begin to influence the academic atmosphere of the Bloomington campus. One of the major reforms that he should begin working on is creating a general education slate for all students on campus. IU must establish a general education course load because the effects of creating such a curriculum would help students change majors more easily in the future and put all students on the same academic page.\nWhile the ball is already rolling on changes, we have minor concerns that should be addressed now. When the new positions take effect on Feb. 1, there is little evidence that Herbert, who has had a largely invisible presence on the campus during his tenure, will magically become a man-about-town. Following Saturday's trustee meeting, Herbert said he sees his new-found oversight as a potential to connect more with students. We hope so, but we'll believe it when we literally see it. \nAlso, more presidential oversight and an increased presence could begin to chip away at controversies on the IUB campus, yet it is foolish to think it will flatly end them. Herbert suggested the catalyst for controversies under the last four IU presidents was the double-executive position of the Bloomington campus. To be sure, it didn't make things any easier, but it alone was not the root of the problem. At the heart of many campus controversies are simply a lack of communication and an exclusion of faculty in general governance. Instead of making a martyr out of a molehill, the president should focus on communication and inclusion to solve many of the campus's unruly dilemmas.\nAdditionally, McRobbie's selection as interim provost sends a clear message about IU's research goals for the future. While McRobbie has much credibility on the campus and has been recognized as an informational technology and research leader by national publications, it will remain important for him to balance IUB's academics between the campus's graduate and undergraduate population.\nThese changes can be positive steps for IU as a whole, and the Bloomington campus could thrive in the future under these reforms. It is imperative now that the current administrators cultivate the right university environment to ensure reform successes, and they become the kinds of leaders who walk the walk instead of talk the talk.