My Walk Abouts....

It has been a month since I assumed the official duties here at EOU. It has been a whirl-wind tour! Among my many duties, I have: attended State Board meetings; chaired meetings; hosted receptions; dealt with student issues; worked in developing budget models; made a few personnel appointments; met with students; recruited students; talked with faculty; met community leaders; lobbied legislators; talked to donors; and the list goes on.

Beyond these meetings, I have to say that the most powerful tool I have in getting to know the campus, and the campus to get to know me, is my "Walk Abouts." My Walk Abouts occur every three days and last for two hours. The concept is simple: I leave the office and walk about campus. I start each walk about with no direction in mind and see where I end up (sometimes Kristin Bingaman yells a building name as a suggestion as I leave the office...but that is about all the guidance I get). It is during these times that I have met, interacted with, and engaged faculty, students and community members walking through campus. I learned, first hand, what our outstanding professors are doing and the research and service projects they are engaged in--from planting and studying vegetation throughout Eastern Oregon, to the Oregon Writing Project, to a traffic study to increase the commercialization of La Grande and many many more interesting projects. I met with students from Hermiston, Portland, Reno, Boise, Walla Walla and Singapore, Belize, Madrid and Beijing. I learned their own personal stories have how they are sacrificing and putting themselves through EOU. We have some truly amazing stories to tell and I learning about them as I walk around campus.

EOU is not just a campus and so my Walk Abouts also include community interaction. I participated in my first Crop Tour where I learned about the science of agriculture and the many challenges our farmers face--from weeds, to weather to transportation to politics. I climbed up a Wind Turbine. I rode a horse in Union County Fair Parade--like I said I would back in February during my campus interviews. I even bought a hog (named Fez) at the 4H Auction at the Fair! All the while, I am meeting with and learning from members of our community how EOU is helping them, has helped them, and we discuss how we can work together in the future.

All of these discussions re-enforce EOU's mission of providing: access to quality education; keeping it affordable; and serving the rural and frontier regions. These three pillars are the foundational building blocks of EOU. During my presidency, these will be the heart and soul of what we stand for and how we frame our decisions.

This is the first of many times that I will write about my thoughts and ideas. I hope you will share your ideas as well so I can learn from you. I will continue my Walk Abouts as I am eager to learn more about EOU and discover ways in which we are delivering on our mission as well as find new ways to advance our great university. Also, I know that I will gain an even greater appreciation of our community and seek out partnerships that will be mutually beneficially.