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from the issue of September 15, 2005
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Perlman outlines plan for campus childcare facility
BY TROY FEDDERSON, UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS
An ongoing effort to increase recruitment and retention of faculty and staff is taking aim at making UNL more family friendly as Chancellor Harvey Perlman outlined a plan to establish a privately run childcare facility on campus.
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| | | Gary Kimminau, assistant manager of Information Services, takes a slice of watermelon at the all-university picnic, which followed Chancellor Harvey Perlman's Sept. 9 State of the University speech. Photo by Troy Fedderson/University Communications.
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During the annual State of the University address Sept. 9 at the Lied Center for Performing Arts, Perlman said private funds are available to remodel a building north of the Whittier complex and, if the university receives acceptable bids, on-campus child care could be offered by fall 2007.
Perlman credited efforts of the Academic Senate, the Chancellor's Commission on the Status of Women, a special child-care task force and Vice Chancellor Christine Jackson for work that has placed UNL in a position to issue a request for bids on the proposed project.
According to Jackson, vice chancellor for business and finance, a 13,000-square-foot, one-story building at the Whittier complex (22nd and W streets) will be remodeled to accommodate up to 150 children. Estimated costs of the project are $1.7 million.
Jackson said the current university childcare facility at the downtown YWCA will close if UNL transitions to the new program. The new facility would not affect the Ruth Staples Child Development Lab on East Campus.
In praising the pride, power and passion of UNL, Perlman also said the university's most immediate challenge is to stabilize enrollment.
"Because of policy changes that I support, we are entering into a new era for this university in which this campus will directly benefit from enrollment increases and suffer from enrollment declines," Perlman said. "We have a number of initiatives in place to examine our policies and practices to assure they are calibrated for this new environment. But, in the end, our success rests largely in your hands.
"We must incorporate into our daily activities a passion for attracting students and assuring their success."
Perlman also called for reform UNL's general education program, and consider the addition of a degree in general studies.
In his address on general education reform, Perlman said the university must revisit the Comprehensive Education Program, which started ten years ago. He said the program has never been comprehensively assessed to determine if it is meeting objectives.
"A curriculum that now embraces 2,300 courses, some accepted by some colleges but not by others, can neither be said to be 'general' or to bee one with easily identifiable goals and objectives."
He added that such complexity acts as a barrier for students enrolling, particularly those who transfer from other universities and junior or community colleges.
A general planning team has been formed, with John Janovy Jr., the Paula and D.B. Varner Professor of Biological Sciences, chairing the effort. Perlman set a goal of having the new program running for the fall of 2007.
| | Rebecca Fischer smiles as the Chiara Quartet begins to play "There is No Place Like Nebraska," during the State of the University address Sept. 9 at the Lied Center for Performing Arts. Chiara has joined UNL as artists in residence for the next three years and Chancellor Harvey Perlman said the award-winning quartet represents the kind of talent UNL is attracting. Photo by Troy Fedderson/University Communications.
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Other areas of focus Perlman identified for the academic year include: the 10-year reaccredidation process; improving teaching and advising; increasing collaboration among existing programs; strategic planning; further defining UNL's core values; and rallying behind the design toolbox, which provides a uniform look for academic publications and web pages.
A transcript and a downloadable recording of the State of the University speech are available online at www.unl.edu.
GO TO: ISSUE OF SEPTEMBER 15
NEWS HEADLINES FOR SEPTEMBER 15
Perlman outlines plan for campus childcare facility
Fall enrollment numbers improve
Grant aids hemophilia treatment
UNL opens doors to hurricane-affected students
FROM THE ARCHIVES
Libraries receive 5,000-plus Sandhills images
NU offers tuition scholarships to Katrina victims
Research gauges impact of New Orleans port disruption
UNL food allergen test commercialized
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