State chancellor wants to share SRU's plan with others
SLIPPERY ROCK — The new chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education not only visited Slippery Rock University on Monday, he praised the school as a model of innovation and success in trying times for public universities.
Daniel Greenstein spoke before more than 150 faculty, staff and administrators at the Robert E. Smith Student Center and held a question-and-answer session as well.
Greenstein said across PSSHE, the main challenges are culture, distrust between groups, inactive listening, positioning on critical and trivial issues and uncivil discourse.
“But that's not true at Slippery Rock,” Greenstein said. “What's the secret sauce?”
He said he hopes to learn from the university so all 14 public colleges in the system can lock arms and march forward with creativity and a singular purpose.
Slippery Rock is unique within the system, Greenstein said, in that new and risk-taking academic programs were instituted just a few years after the nationwide economic downturn in 2008.
“Most were holding on, but Slippery Rock was innovating,” Greenstein said. “How hard is it to amplify across 14 universities the kinds of experiences that you've had here?”
Regarding the PSSHE, Greenstein said charting a new course is an opportunity to change its culture.
He said an open, honest, transparent discussion about issues facing the system will eventually lead to nailing down the system's goals, which should always have lower and middle income students in mind.
He asked rhetorically whether the system is a loose entity with each institution standing financially on its own, with the more successful universities supporting the least.
Greenstein hopes he is able to unleash the power of faculty and staff, which drives student success like that shown at Slippery Rock University.
“Let's do as a system what you, clearly, have been doing here at Slippery Rock,” Greenstein said.
He said by 2019, he wants all faculty and staff in the system to find joy in their work, and he hopes for a unified system.
“We stand together shoulder-to-shoulder in Harrisburg to make a case for the power and promise of this system and its 14 universities,” Greenstein said of the PSSHE, “But it's going to be a long journey to restore the public trust in the hearts and minds of the people of Pennsylvania.”
As chancellor, Greenstein vowed to work tirelessly for all students, strive toward greater equity and social justice on campuses, demonstrate respect for academic enterprise, appreciate faculty and staff, listen actively, make decisions informed by data, move as quickly as possible in making positive changes, and to be transparent.
“I will make mistakes because I'm human and when I do, I hope you'll let me know,” Greenstein said.In the question-and-answer session, longtime biology professor Mark Shotwell asked Greenstein to what extent he plans to advocate for students in Harrisburg regarding funding.Shotwell said SRU comes in 47th in state funding, education appropriations are down, and tuition is the full responsibility of most students, who end up paying on that debt for years after graduation.Greenstein said discussing education with state legislators has been a challenge.He said one senator told him professors only work 12 hours per week while another told him there is no innovation in programming.When he goes before decision-makers in Harrisburg, Greenstein wants to have in place clear goals and a systemwide plan.“We will build that narrative together,” Greenstein said. “We need every voice in the conversation even though every voice is not going to be satisfied with the end result.”William Behre, the president at Slippery Rock University, said Greenstein has shown consistency in his short tenure at PSSHE.He appreciates Greenstein's mission to identify the goals and function of the system and to create a structure to support them.“He's been really open to university input,” Behre said.Amanda Yale, the associate provost for enrollment management, like Greenstein's comments about the culture of the Slippery Rock campus.“It takes a campuswide effort for an institution to improve,” Yale said.Samantha Kelly, the director of institutional assessment and accreditation, was encouraged by Greenstein's honesty and transparency.“Clear goals and a process that is collaborative across the system would provide a voice for the university and also a unified direction forward as a system,” Kelly said.
