November 8, 2019 (12:45 p.m.)
The campus hosted open position interviews for the Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Friday afternoon. The candidates were giving presentations and taking questions from the students in attendance.
Candidates were given time slots and specific days to present. The five candidates were split into sections ranging from November 7 to 26. Candidate A gave their presentation on November 7th but returned on the 8th to answer questions from the audience with open student sessions.
Dr. Ron Darbeau, the first of five candidates for provost to present, said that student voices are important in the process of searching for a Provost.
A chemist by trade Darbeau was born and raised on the island of Trinidad.
Although attendance was low, students and faculty members asked questions concerning what the provost would do for the Slippery Rock campus community.
Feedback forms about the provost and their presentations were available online and handouts for students and those who attended the session.
Darbeau reminded those in attendance that it is the Provost’s job is to keep track of the changing curriculum and to recruit and retain good students.
“Education has never been a passive exercise,” Darbeau said. “If you’re watching the board in a passive way, then you’re not learning.”
Darbeau said that he has had the pleasure of alternating between student and teacher, but would do nothing else.
Beyond the curriculum, the provost is responsible for the infrastructure of the campus. From the library to making sure that equipment and technology is up to date.
“The provost never interacts as an island,” Darbeau said. “At the end, the north star is student success.”
Darbeau wants to meet students where they are. He said that if he wants to understand student success, then they need to understand students.
Darbeau hit the subject of online versus face-to-face classes and said that online classes allow students to have access to other online classes, but that it should never be that “Course A” is easier to pass online than in face-to-face classes.
“That should never happen,” Darbeau said. “It’s a concern if online classes are easier to pass than face-to-face classes.”
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Numerous other topics were discussed during the open candidate question and answer session, and Darbeau provided those in attendance with insight into his current position and what he plans to do if Provost.
“If you want to change the world and make a difference, education is where you do it” Darbeau said.