Question:  On a more global level, list what you consider are the three top issues most important for our top University Administrators to work on for U of H?
Items in Ariel 12 pts font are actual responses
Format of responses: (Issue Rank [1…3]) <Response>
Edited responses are in […]
 

Research

Quality and Productivity

(1) Creating a strong brand image connecting research with sociocultural awareness

(3) Focus on what it will take to increase faculty productivity in terms of sponsored research

Infrastructure

(2) Dysfunctional University Grants & Contracts shop

(3) Improvement of the research infrastructure

(3) Research mission increase the stability in Office of grants and contracts and make sure their mission is one of support rather than policing

Support

(3) Stronger support for faculty research

Faculty

Faculty Recruitment and Retention

(1) Faculty Recruitment

(1) Faculty retention

(2) Addressing issues related to the retention and recruitment of strong faculty members

(2) Attraction and retention of minority faculty

(2) Facutly Retention

(2) Retain and develop our best faculty. Increase the size of our faculty to be commensurate with other top tier institutions

(2) Retention and recruitment efforts of high-productivity, high-potential faculty

(3) Attracting and retaining top faculty members

Salary Compression

(1) Salary compression

(1) Develop a plan to address salary compression, Short term and long term plan, similar to Univ of California

Improving Relationships among Faculty

(2) Accessibility to faculty - more social mixers -- most faculty never even see, let alone talk to one-on-one, the top of the hierarchy. Unity comes from knowing one another

Benefits

(1) Greater tangible signs of appreciation for faculty - perhaps free benefits -- to wellness center, sports events, etc.

Increasing Tenure-Track Faculty

(2) Commit to finding resources for tenure track positions to stay competitive with other state and national universities

Students

Recruitment and Retention

(3) Student recruitment and retention

Increasing Number

(2) Doubling or tripling the number of on-campus students to begin to create a sense of a college community

Graduate students

(2) Ph.D. programs

(2) Improve graduate student quality and quantity

Improving Quality

(3) Work closer with area public school systems see if there is any way their students who enroll at UH could be better prepared

(2) Improve the quality of students

(2) Increase quality of students

Serving Students

Improving Education Experience

(1) Improve the quality of the educational experience for students

(1) …for the teaching urban university mission expansion to other geographical areas around Houston, should we or not, and how if we do, increase distance ed?

(3) Increase focus on attracting the best students but also focusing on unique characteristics/situation for our urban/commuter students

Improving Financial Aid and Scholarships

(2) Streamline administrative issues for students financial aide problems have gotten MUCH worse these past 2 years. This and other problems with graduation (degree plans) etc seem to get tangled up and many students have dropped out

(3) Increasing student scholarships in order to reduce the number of hours our students have to work to put themselves through college. Fighting the formula funding that rewards universities which have more privileged students who can and do get through college more quickly

Campus Life Quality

(1) Quality of community life on campus: the need for more coherent communities of students and also of faculty and staff who can participate in the intellectual life of the university

Facilities

Project Completion

(1) Put the empty new research building into operation

(2) SERC building completion

Improvements

(2) Improve the neighborhood surrounding UH campus. The students and faculty should feel safe in and around campus at any time of the day

(2) Improving/beautifying the campus

(3) Building and classroom maintenance, upgrading, and upkeep. Many buildings are in dire need of upgrading and even of basic repair

Improving Space Allocation

(2) Improve space allocation for all colleges

Other

(1) Health Science Center

(3) […] Law Center […] is a huge asset that should be cultivated and used

Governance

Changing Values and Atmosphere

Instilling Honesty and Openness

(1) Honesty and openness

(2) Honesty and openness

(3) Honesty and openness

Atmosphere

(2) Atmosphere: a more efficient, more “user friendly" less bureaucratic environment at all levels that would make studying and working at UH more supportive

Improving Shared Governance

(1) To embrace the concept of partnership between faculty and administration to create a stronger climate of collegiality - to involve faculty in creating a more competitive university for the future

(2) Real involvement of the faculty, staff and students in areas that impact them

Instilling Unity

(1) Having a clear mission for the main campus that brings people to together rather than divides the campus

(1) Strategic initiatives on behalf of the goals for UH as a total institution and the ways in which its component parts may relate to one another. In other words, for the university to be a more integrated system, not a constellation of domains

(1) Create university wide thrust areas from a bottom up perspective rather than a top-down approach

(2) Providing a clear and unambiguous message that the professional/programmatic success of each of the administrative units across campus is linked to central administration support of those units

Addressing Inefficiencies of Specific Bodies

(1) The office of the Provost is not efficient. It is a burden

(2) The University General Counsel doesn’t seem to think that she represents the faculty

Finances

Raising Funds

(1) Improving the university’s finances

(1) Increasing State and Federal resources to University

(1) The long term financial health of UH should be improved

(1) To raise funds

(1) Work on capital campaign

(2) Fundraising

(2) Raising research funds at a time when government funding is diminishing

(2) To continue to achieve research excellence, we need to decouple some state funding from credit hour generation. The so-called Excellence Funds do address this to a degree, but have become a political football with every other public institution in the state wanting a piece of the pie

(3) External funding efforts - private and legislative -- which provide the support for many of the other items listed in this survey

(3) Fund raising campaign

(3) Having several models for acquiring external funding

(3) To get more state monies for the university

Allocating Funds

To Research

(1) Increase funding for humanities and social sciences related research

(3) Increase research funding

To Other Causes

(2) Working with the Coordinating Board to rationalize the formula funding scheme

(2) Raise funding to support on campus faculty activities identify areas where visible programs can be created

(3) Provide fund for administrative support for the aforementioned Centers and Cores

Increasing Endowment through Campaigns and Better Returns

(1) Build endowments. Great universities have great endowments. We have lacked continuing attention to growing endowments

(1) Capital campaign to increase endowment

(1) Increase the size of the endowment and improve its financial returns

(2) To increase our endowment

(3) Endowment development

(3) Increasing the University Endowment

Keeping UH Affordable to Students

(1) Keeping UH affordable for all of its students, including those in graduate and professional programs

Improving UH Competitiveness

Improving Image: City, State, Nation, World

(1) To get UH recognized as a top tier university

(2) Improve the image among students and community

(2) Increasing stature of UH in the State, Nation and World

(2) Raising the profile of the university in the community, state, and nation (2)

(3) Increase image of University in the city

Working with State Government

(1) Engage the community/city of Houston to push State legislature to establish U of H as next flagship university (5)

(1) Improve the perception of UH in Austin

Improving Ranking

(1) UH ranking in US World News is very low, lower than what the faculty deserves. Figure out a strategy to improve it. Higher ranking will get better students and better new faculty. We need them

(2) To lead us to a higher level of local and national academic ranking

(3) Improve overall ranking of UH

Nurturing Excellence

(1) Increase in Excellence and strengthening of the world/state/community perception of Excellence for UH

(2) Generation of resources to support the move to excellence

(3) Set an example of work ethics and true commitment to UH

Exploiting Existing Strengths

(3) Focus on our unique urban environment and our status as the most diverse public research institution around

(3) Position the University as a global player a university that not only attracts international students, but global resources

(3) Focus of the Excellence Thrust to capitalize on Houston as the Energy Capital of the World by making UH the Energy University of the World...(at least striving toward such a goal)

Attaining Tier I Status

(1) Defining university’s identity in light of push for Tier 1 status

(1) Developing UHs profile as a Research I university

PR Campaigns

(1) Promoting the public and academic visibility of the University as a quality institution

(2) PR and associated development fundraising/endowments promote what we have to the city so we are as well known local as we are nationally for our areas of expertise

Cooperation

(2) Building up of centers and institutional arrangements to as to enhance exchanges across departments, colleges and throughout the university

(3) Developing a coherent Health Center Initiative that places UH both physically and metaphorically as the “University of Choice" in any situation where entities within the TMC require an academic partner

(3) Legislative relations (and understanding of what REALLY occurs at a university)

(3) Establish closer relation with medical center; consider merging UH with UT Health Science Center

(3) Move towards a health sciences center or University

Community Outreach

(1) Better relationship with the Houston community. With a closer relationship the university would gain an incredible amount of support and financial backing. Houston is a wealthy city and most of its professionals are UH alumni

(1) Community outreach

(2) Good relations with the legislature

(3) Becoming more integrated into the city of Houston

Increasing Staff Count and Quality

(2) Increase funding to hire more staff in order to promote more efficient work place