Outside of the Division of Student Affairs, the upper levels of the Ohio University administration are lacking in both availability and transparency.
In my opinion, Student Affairs does an excellent job at what they are designed to do: support students in their development and encourage involvement in the community. For example, Vice President for Student Affairs Ryan Lombardi, Dean of Students Jenny Hall-Jones, and Director of Residential Housing Peter Trentacoste are readily available for students to talk to and frequently engage students on social media.
However, their job is not to act as the liaison between students and the rest of the university administration. The existence of the Student Affairs does not exempt the administration from consulting with students directly.
Administrators on campus should be required to host more open office hours. President McDavis has two office hours a month, but considering that most faculty have two a week, that is insufficient. Attendees are only allowed 10 minutes to speak and then they must wait another month before getting another chance to talk with the president.
Setting up a meeting outside of those hours has also proved incredibly difficult. President McDavis offered to meet with me about the guaranteed tuition model, but even though I provided his office with my schedule more than a month ago, he has only recently gotten back to me.
Other top-level administrators – including Vice President for Finance and Administration Stephen Golding, Executive Vice President and Provost Pam Benoit, and Vice President for University Advancement Bryan Benchoff – have no publicly posted office hours online.
University administrators are public employees, so the least they could do is make themselves more available to the students who fund their paychecks.
Additionally, students are often shut out from major university decisions until after they happen. This year alone, a vote to implement the guaranteed tuition model was held in the summer while most students were away, a surprise raise and bonus was given to McDavis in September, and the public continues to be barred from Budget Planning Council meetings where proposals for tuition increases and employee raises occur.
The administration seems to operate under the dictum, “It is better to ask for forgiveness than permission,” though based on their actions a more accurate phrase might simply be, “It is best not to ask permission.”
In the current budget climate, it may make sense to occasionally raise tuition, take on massive amounts of debt, or give faculty and staff raises, but students will never believe that if the administration continues to resist dialogue.
Matt Farmer is a senior studying education and political science. Do you think administration is easily available to students? Email him at mf291209@ohiou.edu
