Changing of the Guard
comments of Academic Senate Chair Duncan Lindsey

I’m honored to have the torch of leadership here at the Academic Senate pass into my hands, and I know that it comes with tremendous responsibility—not the least of which is building on the Legacy of Steve and John.

It will be my goal to carry on the traditions established by Steve and John and the others who have preceded them by putting first things first—namely, the interests of the faculty who depend on the Senate to work in partnership with the Administration to make UCLA the outstanding research and teaching university that it has become. We are a collection of teachers, artists, and researchers who work hand-in-hand in the spirit of shared governance to build a true community dedicated to the highest ideals of the academy.

While serving as Chair of the Graduate Council and Vice Chair of the Senate I have had the great fortune of working with Steve Yeazell. Steve is a person of sharp and penetrating intelligence, great wit and abundant good humor. I know of few people who have done more for the Senate. I inherit the torch of leadership but it comes with a strong foundation for which Steve is largely responsible. We have the finest Senate staff in the UC system by far. Steve put in the time and care to insure this.

Steve also leads by example. I have watched him as he was Chair of the Senate. Steve went well beyond the expectations of normal humans to achieve understanding and reach consensus on Dual Admissions. His work on this issue protected the university, and especially UCLA from what could have been a costly and counterproductive initiative. Instead, we have a Dual Admissions program which will likely add to UCLA.

We have gone out of our way to hold on to Steve and keep him involved in the Senate. I can’t recall a position we didn’t ask him to consider. Somehow we beat him down and he relinquished and agreed to serve as Chair of the Law School ’s FEC. Steve, we were not part of a conspiracy to make that happen—honest.

It will be an honor to carry on with the dedication to the Senate which I have learned from John Edmond. As may be obvious from his speech, John is a Scotsman and he has brought to the Senate many of the characteristics of his ancestors. He has fought long and hard to improve the quality of the Faculty Grants Program. He has done much to bring the concerns with this program to the forefront, to issue the call for better funding, all the while demanding that the standards and quality of the program be enhanced.

Last year John had two major goals for the Senate: 1) insure responsible faculty involvement in the budget review process and 2) establish a Senate newsletter.

John spent an enormous amount of time last year developing what he called budget workshops for the Faculty Executive Committees of the Schools and Divisions. With the help of former EVC Rory Hume and the tremendous effort of Dick Goodman, we held about a half dozen workshops with the various schools including Nursing, Education and Information Studies, Public Policy, Law, Engineering and Public Health. I think we made substantial progress in promoting faculty understanding of the budget process—particularly in their home units.

John also set about to publish a Senate newsletter. We had a newsletter in the past entitled, Voice of the Faculty which was authored and edited by the Senate leadership. The previous editor was Vicki Fromkin whom I’m sure most of you will remember for her tireless support of the Senate. In any event, when we met with staff and consultants to plan the rebirth of the Voice of the Faculty we were greeted with cost estimates that were prohibitive in the light of the Senate’s small budget.

But there was a solution. John had asked most of the Council and Committee chairs to contribute to the newsletter so we needed to do something with the manuscripts for publication which were piling up and already included on resumes. The answer was an electronic version—which John commissioned and I agreed to pull together.

I believe the Voice of the Faculty is essential for allowing us to stay in touch with the several thousand faculty who are part of the Senate but who are not linked to an effective communication source on what the Senate is up to.

In short, John achieved his two major goals for the Senate and for that he should be congratulated. I salute you John Edmond for a job well done.

I know I am going on too long, but let me say just a few words about Cliff Brunk. I served on the Graduate Council when Cliff was chair of this august group. Cliff is an outstanding and dedicated leader who brings a wealth of experience and heart felt commitment to the Senate.

As I mentioned, the Faculty Grants Program is of major concern for the Senate. It is our largest budget item and it is fully within the control of the Senate. When it doesn’t work correctly we have only the Senate to blame—usually we can point fingers elsewhere—but not with this program.

Taking the baton from John Edmond, Cliff will be working this year to make sure that the efforts which John initiated will be carried forward.

Cliff, I am so glad to be working with you in our shared governance rolls. Welcome aboard.

see remarks of John Edmond

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