James Smith believes in connecting with people, so expect to see him interacting with students, faculty and staff at the Student Center and every place he travels on campus.
Given all that I have learned about Eastern Michigan University, I believe that bridging opportunities, so as to make broader societal connections, must be undertaken by the next president; I stand ready and able to do precisely that type of connective leadership.” He outlined several other important
I
priorities and lessons: the power of philanthropy; the importance of strategic planning and broad-based consensus; economic development and collaborative relationship-building; the importance of internships, joint research and co-op arrangements, and the work a university must do to transform itself into a place with a genuinely distinctive identity. Collaboration, Smith says, “is probably
one of my better skills. I really believe that universities don’t exist in the old ivory tower
n his description of his experience for the search committee, Smith wrote, “I strongly believe in connecting the university to the broader society.
anymore. Te separations between campus and community, campus and state politics, campus and regional politics are diminishing quickly.” Smith believes in being a highly visible
leader. To that end, he says, “No one appreciates a president who sits in her or his office and doesn’t have face time with the various constituent groups. I like to walk campus from building A to B and talk to students and faculty along the way. I like to be visible to the community.” Since Smith and Ruhl-Smith are both
Midwesterners, they had been to EMU a few times for educational conferences and both are impressed with the campus. But Smith also heavily researched EMU and continues to talk weekly to Interim President Don Loppnow. So far, he can say that “Eastern has a nice history of working with international students. I think there is more that can be done. I think within the College of Technology there is a lot of opportunity to do things more robustly in
the international market.” When asked if the jump from a very small
rural institution to a large metropolitan one is intimidating, Smith replies, “People are people,” no matter where you are. But, he adds, “I wouldn’t have taken the presidency of Eastern if I didn’t think it was a good fit with where I’ve been and what I’ve done and what I’ve been able to learn. “As my wife says, I’m intense, I’m type A.
I love to succeed. It’s not for my personal ego. For me, it’s really seeing the University become better and strong, and to see EMU on the national stage. You can’t let fear paralyze you. You just have to keep pushing the agenda forward.”
Sheryl James is a 1973 graduate of EMU and won a Pulitzer Prize for feature writing while writing for the St. Petersburg Times. Now a freelance writer, she lives in Michigan.
EASTERN MAGAZINE | SUMMER 2016 | 21
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48