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Also Appoints Dr. Rosa Jones
New VP for Academic Affairs & Undergraduate Studies, Redistributes
Duties Among Other FIU Vice Presidents
MIAMI, Fla. (Jan. 18, 2002) -
President Modesto A. Maidique today restored the original complement
of Florida International University summer courses by releasing
$1.8 million in reserve funds to cover losses created by a recent
state budget shortfall.
The FIU Board of Trustees was forced to cut $12 million last December
from the university's Education & General fund - 8 percent
of the total - when state coffers bottomed out in the wake of
a major sales-tax shortfall. State revenue dried up when the tourism
industry ran on hard times in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks and the ensuing national drop in air travel.
With the state economy gradually rebounding, though, Maidique
felt confident enough in a pending transfer of funds from the
state to compensate the university for exceeding enrollment targets
that he acted to restore the summer course schedule, which had
been hard hit in the budget cut. Students eager to continue progress
toward their degrees applauded the action, announced Tuesday at
a standing-room-only university "town hall" meeting.
"I have been very concerned for some time about the impact
that reduction of our summer sessions would have upon the lives
and careers of our faculty who rely on teaching in the summer
as an important source of family income, as well as the importance
that summer instruction has for the lives and careers of our students
who need courses in the summer to complete their degrees on time,"
Maidique said. "We currently have $1.8 million in reserve
funds, and in anticipation of receiving additional funds from
our increased enrollment, I have made the decision to immediately
release our full reserve to the Provost so that he can fully restore
the 2002 summer session."
Maidique also discussed increased responsibilities for himself
and Provost Mark Rosenberg in working with the Board of Trustees
and in beginning to plan a $300 million - $400 million fund-raising
campaign -- duties that require strengthening the Office of Academic
Affairs. In light of that, the president appointed Dr. Rosa Jones,
a 30-year employee of FIU, to the newly created position of Vice
President for Academic Affairs and Undergraduate Studies. The
appointment is effective immediately for Jones, who previously
was vice provost for Academic Affairs and the dean of Undergraduate
Studies.
"I have the highest regard for Dr. Jones and the many contributions
she's made to the university in her three decades at FIU,"
said Maidique. "I look forward to working even more closely
with her in the future, and welcome her to the university Executive
Council."
In other news, Maidique:
- announced that he and University Advancement
Vice President Dale C. Webb, who led the university's recently
completed $200-million Campaign for FIU, are working together
to bring in new fund-raising leadership so that Webb may focus
more energies on Marketing and University Relations. Webb's
broad responsibilities currently include oversight for Development,
Alumni Affairs, Marketing, Media Relations, Communications,
Interactive Design and Special Events, including the Miami Film
Festival.
- assigned oversight for Personnel Management
to Student Affairs Vice President & Vice Provost for Academic
Affairs Patricia Telles-Irvin, who will retain her current responsibilities.
Dr. Telles-Irvin will be charged with creating a "system
of personnel management that is consistent with other state-of-the-art
human resources systems at leading universities around the country,"
Maidique said.
- announced that he will recommend to the
Board of Trustees next month the creation of a Legislative Affairs
Committee to focus on FIU's top legislative priority: equitable
funding. The university has long known that, according to Board
of Regents data, FIU is underfunded by some $22 million, compared
to its counterparts statewide. The Board of Trustees, under
the leadership of Chairman Armando Codina, has repeatedly expressed
its commitment to achieving funding equity for the university,
as well as salary scales for faculty and staff that are competitive
with FIU's peer universities nationwide.
"This has been a difficult year for FIU,
as it has been for every public university throughout the nation.
I want to thank each and every member of the University community
- the faculty, both A&P and USPS staff, and students as well
- for the sacrifices that you have all made and endured,"
said Maidique. "I am confident that FIU will overcome the
many short-term challenges that we face, many of which have resulted
from forces over which we have limited control," said Maidique.
"I am even more confident that with our resolve, with the
sacrifices we have made, and with the commitment from our Board
of Trustees, that we will continue on our course to make FIU a
major public research university."
FIU Integrated Media Group
Office of Media Relations
PC 519
Miami, FL 33199
(305) 348-2232
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