search articles:     from the issue of May 3, 2007           Howe wraps up 38 years of service to UNL Right Hand Man to retire  BY TROY FEDDERSON, UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS Herb Howe never intended to give 38 years to the people of Nebraska.     KICKING BACK - Herb Howe, associate to the chancellor, rests behind Chancellor Harvey Perlman's desk. After 38 years of service to the university - including the last 18 as the chancellor's chief of staff - Howe is retiring. His last day is in July. Photo by Troy Fedderson/University Communications. With the ink still dripping from his doctorate, Howe ventured from Pennsylvania with the intention of teaching psychology for a few years, then heading back east. "My first offer was to teach at my alma mater, Allegheny College. That's where I wanted to be. It's where my wife and I met, where I had the best years of my life," Howe said. "But my adviser told me I should go to a Ph.D.-granting institution. So, we came to Nebraska. The expectation was we would live here for a few years, then go back east. "That was 1969. Obviously, we never made it back." Howe will retire at the end of July, capping 38 years of service to UNL - the first 20 in the psychology department, the last 18 as associate to the chancellor. He has no problem pinpointing the reasons for his extended stay. "Lincoln is a really good place to bring up kids," Howe said. "Plus, the university was beginning to grow in terms of quality. When I first came here, there was a certain level of pride that this was the best university in the state. Now, we are a national player." Howe started as a joint appointment, teaching both psychology and English courses. He moved to a full time psychology post in 1970, working to become a professor by 1980. He served as chairman of the psychology department, director of the Psychological Consultation Center and director of the Clinical Training Program. In September 1988, Howe was named interim associate to the chancellor. He held the post for 14 months before being named the associate to the chancellor. "When I applied for the job, there were three candidates, and two of them didn't meet the requirements of the job," Howe said. "That's how I became the associate to the chancellor." The associate to the chancellor at UNL serves as the chancellor's chief of staff, ensuring instructions from the university leader are carried out. "A lot of it is keeping stuff off the chancellor's desk," Howe said. "The stuff that comes in here is important to the people who write it. We are respectful of that. But, we need to keep stuff from detracting from the chancellor's attention." Six units report to the associate to the chancellor post - the three branches of the Reserve Officer Training Corps, the Lied Center, the Lentz Center for Asian Culture and the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery. "That was particularily strange for me," Howe said. "I was never in the military. And, my idea of high culture is Neal Diamond." While the chancellor's office is a modicum of quiet calm (at least on the surface), Howe admits that his first days were a bit choppy. The initial pressure pushed Howe back to an old vice. "My wife and I were heavy smokers, then one morning she coughed up some blood," Howe said. "We were both terrified. It turned out to be a popped capillary in her sinus. But, it was enough to get her to quit smoking. "There was no way in hell I was going to have her quit while I continued to smoke." About six weeks into the job in the chancellor's office, Howe purchased his first pack of cigarettes in three years. "It is not a great source of joy and happiness in my marriage," Howe said. "But, I don't smoke inside around my wife. I always go outside." Over the years, Howe has helped deal with a number of challenges. Two in particular - a recent round of budget cuts and the arrest of Husker football player Lawrence Phillips - stick out. "In 2003, those budget cuts were very difficult," Howe said. "When we first started doing the cuts, it involved programs that were not central to the mission of the university. But, that round in 2003 was really hard. "It was something we had to do to balance the budget. But as decisions were being made, you knew people were losing jobs." There were also lighter moments - like the time a pile of documents from an outgoing chancellor included a nondescript manila envelope. "I opened it up and there was this copy of Playboy," Howe said. "It would have been a total embarrassment to the outgoing chancellor." As it turned out, the edition featured the "Girls of the Big 8." Howe said the university received a lot of complaints about the issue and the copy was used to determine of the students involved were really from UNL. "I just threw it out," Howe said. "I have a lot of other interesting stories, but they can't be printed in any newspaper." Working in the chancellor's shadow, helping shape university responses, has been rewarding work for Howe. He takes pride in the fact that the number of complaints he deals with have dropped over the years. And, he credits the senior staff members for making his job a bit easier. As for his reasons for retirement, Howe said it's simply time. "When I came over here, I wasn't sure I would even stay," Howe said. "But, as the years went on, I decided that I would retire at 59. I'm passed that now." He also hopes to spread out a loss of institutional knowledge as Howe, Chancellor Harvey Perlman, and Beth Griffin (the chancellor's secretary) all near retirement age. "It would be very difficult for the university if we all walked out at the same time," Howe said. "So, my retirement gives someone else the chance to acquire that knowledge before it fades away." Howe's short term plans include tackling an extensive honey-do list, then travelling to visit East Coast relatives and taking a Disney cruise with his grandchildren. It's the days after the first of the year that have Howe a bit worried. "It's not August that worries me. Six months after that will be the issue," Howe said. "I love being in the center of the action here, knowing that if something will be in the paper on Thursday, I know about it Wednesday or even Tuesday. That is going to be the hardest part, not knowing what is going on." Perlman said Howe will be missed - and the chancellor may not be ready to lose a friend and trusted adviser. "Herb's office has always been a place where I think I could go, and I'm sure my predecessors could go, for candid advice - whether we wanted to hear it or not," Perlman said. "Maybe this is the time I should tell him he just thinks he's leaving." "But, you've already given away all the extra offices," Howe fired back. "I think we could find you something," Perlman said, the two sharing a laugh. A retirement reception for Herb Howe is 3:30 to 5 p.m. May 10 at the Van Brunt Visitors Center. A 4 p.m. presentation is planned. The reception is open to all faculty and staff. GO TO: ISSUE OF MAY 3 NEWS HEADLINES FOR MAY 3 Right Hand Man to retire Ballot box historians General, author to address graduates Nebraska reps prepare for international bioscience convention Poser to replace Howe as chancellor's chief of staff Cadets honor life of fallen ROTC graduate OLLI program drives toward $1 million endowment Professors selected for 'Nebraska Masterpieces' series 732799S37045X