April 23, 1998

Rate the Chancellor: Student input wanted

Leslie Hitchock, News Editor

After having been at Appalachian State University for five years, Chancellor Francis T. Borkowski decided it was time to find out if students, faculty and staff approved of his performance.

Borkowski initiated the idea of rating his work and formed the Chancellor Performance Review Committee to develop a performance appraisal.

While Borkowski was implementing a rating system, President of the University of North Carolina School System Molly Broad made it mandatory for all chancellors to be evaluated by their universities.

Since Borkowski took the initiative to begin a similar program, Broad allowed him to continue his idea.

“Before the Chancellor initiated this, there was no formal procedure in place to evaluate the performance of a chancellor of a university,” said Student Government Association President and student representative to the committee Fernando Little.

According to committee chairperson Len Johnson, the committee was charged with deciding which dimensions of the chancellor’s performance to critique, developing a survey format and finding a way to encourage participation.

“The Chancellor wanted a sort of 360 degree evaluation incorporating all students, faculty and staff,” said Johnson.

After the committee receives the data and analyzes it, it will be sent to Broad for evaluation.  The results will also be accessible to the university at the end of the semester.

Students are encouraged to complete the survey to let their chancellor know how satisfied they are with his performance, Little said.

 “The student portion of this evaluation is very crucial, and the Chancellor will be looking for that part of the feedback just as much as that of other sections,” Little said.

Students can fill out a questionnaire at a table outside Cascades Cafe in the Plemmons Student Union Monday, April 27 to Friday, May 1.

To incorporate staff input into the Chancellor’s performance, a mass mailing of the survey will be sent to all staff members through campus mail, said staff representative on the committee Jo Anderson.

The staff opinions are unique in that if a staff member does not feel comfortable filling out the questionnaire by themselves, they can request the assistance of a staff council member, Anderson said.

Staff members will also be notified of the survey through e-mail.

“I feel that the staff will participate, because it is a good opportunity to express their opinions,” said Anderson. “That is something they’ve been wanting for a long time,” she said.

Also aiding in the Chancellor’s progress is the graduate program.

Notices will be sent over e-mail about the survey, and it will be given through individual graduate advisors, said  graduate student respresentative to the committee John Jackson.

“I expect that this survey will be successful throughout the graduate program,” Jackson said.
 

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