February 8, 2005

Though the cool, damp weather outside was anything but spring-like, the University of Houston’s Staff Council got a jumpstart on the season with its annual Spring Forum on Wednesday, Feb. 2.

Each fall and spring, the council hosts a public forum in which UH President Jay Gogue and his cabinet answer staff questions. This year’s event addressed a variety of issues ranging from street safety to shared governance.

Questions were submitted anonymously before and during the meeting to moderator Averill Buchanan, administrative assistant in the Office of Academic and Faculty Affairs, who then presented them to Gogue.

One question concerned whether UH planned to make its main entrance along Cullen Boulevard more attractive by repaving the street.

John Rudley, vice president for administration and finance, responded that such plans have been discussed, but since Cullen is a city street, the university must ensure that street renovations do not conflict with the nearby community.

“We’re going to try and meet with Mayor Bill White and talk about long-term plans for Cullen, as well as Wheeler Avenue,” Rudley said. “We’ve talked to some city planners about Wheeler already, and it is on their list of street projects. We’re hoping that when they work on Wheeler, they can work on Cullen at the same time.”

Another traffic/street-related question centered on safety at the intersection of Wheeler and Cullen. UH Police Department (UHPD) Chief Bob Wilson said that soon, “protected left” signals would be added to lights on Wheeler to allow cars to safely turn onto Cullen. “Protected left” signals have already been added to Cullen for cars to turn onto Wheeler.

In regard to crosswalk safety, particularly on Cullen near Robertson Stadium, Wilson added that UH officers have been positioned in the area to prevent jaywalking, and that the “Walk/Don’t Walk” signals have been tested repeatedly to ensure they provide a long enough window for pedestrians to cross the street.

The forum’s focus later shifted toward legal matters, in response to a question asking why UH had no mediation or ombudsperson services to resolve staff problems. Jose Rangel, UH’s deputy general counsel, said that the Office of the General Counsel has been reviewing the possibility of having an on-campus mediator and/or ombudsperson.

“Sometimes, there are problems that an employee and supervisor can work out together,” he said. “In that case, there shouldn’t be mediation. In other instances, however, problems don’t work themselves out and mediation is a solution. We’re looking at this issue to see if it’s a workable process at the university.”

In regard to shared governance, a question asked how staff would be involved in this process. Gogue said that the Faculty Senate-Commission on University Governance (FS-COUG) is currently investigating how governance works at UH. He added that he envisions shared governance as faculty, staff, student, academic and administrative leaders meeting at least once a month to discuss policies and their impact on all of UH’s constituent groups.

“This allows the ideas of the university to flow in a setting where all constituent groups are recognized,” he said. “The question of shared governance is extremely important for the university at this point in its history. I strongly believe that the voices of those involved in shared governance need to be heard, but they also need to be heard at the right time.”

John Antel, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences dean and FS-COUG member said that he would suggest to the commission that they invite a Staff Council member to share ideas regarding shared governance.

“We believe that shared governance includes staff and students, as well as the faculty and administrators,” he said. “We’re looking at shared governance models at other research universities. At any great university, it has active shared governance. They go hand in hand.”

Mike Emery
memery@central.uh.edu