Headrick, PSS members discuss academic planning document

Headrick fielded questions and comments from senators on a variety of topics, ranging from Headrick's plans for the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and the need to consider outside perspectives when making changes in the university's organization to the movement of staff within the university and the need for a professional-development officer for staff.

Vita Milisauskas of the Department of Pathology asked about Headrick's plans for the medical school and the possible merger of some of its small departments.

Headrick said that what's most important to the medical school-"what's critical at this juncture in the history of health care in this country"-is sustaining a viable faculty practice plan that brings resources into the school and guaranteeing continued support for the faculty from the hospitals.

Both the hospitals and faculty practice plan contribute more money to the medical school than SUNY, he said.

On the merger of some departments within the school, he noted that former Dean John Naughton had proposed the same realignments long before the planning document was completed. The mergers made sense to him, Headrick said, adding that the document simply reaffirms that those efforts are in progress.

Barbara Mierzwa of the Office of Continuing Medical Education suggested that UB consider the problems and issues it is facing "from the perspective of our constituents in the larger environment.

"Sometimes, we fail to move forward because we cannot break out of the mold of our own professional and sometimes parochial concerns," Mierzwa said. "Maybe we need to raise the question, 'What are our constituents-our graduates and our students-telling us? What's going on in the larger environment?" she asked.

"My proposal is that maybe we should commit ourselves more to what's going on and dialogue more with our constituents than with ourselves."

Headrick agreed with Mierzwa's observations.

"Those are critical issues that we have to face," he said. The university must move now, he said, "because we're finding those forces on the outside, if we listen to them, saying 'We don't think you're serving us as well as you might.'"

One of the things to come out of the current planning process, he said, is the need to listen to those people on the outside who expect certain things from the university "and focus on trying to find ways to deliver them."

Kim Pachetti of the Department of History asked Headrick whether he would consider hiring a professional-development officer for the professional staff.

He admitted that the administration has not given much attention to the movement of staff within the organization and needs to do a better job of providing opportunities for professional growth for staff. He called a professional-development officer an "interesting idea."

Karen Noonan of the Office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education said that since higher education seems to be borrowing "so many corporate models," most companies do have specialized training programs for staff. "I certainly would encourage and support" such an effort, she said.

Headrick agreed that was something the university should pursue. "Whether we can appoint somebody specifically to do that kind of job in the current budgetary climate, I'm not sure, but I think the idea, and certainly getting the existing system to work better in that respect, is important," he said.