Anonymous question for Dr. Simon Rhodes, Provost and VP of Academic Affairs
The university markets itself as “Uniquely UNF,” yet the flagship programs – among the most distinctive and impactful programs on campus – have had their budgets cut severely. Will someone from Academic Affairs please explain this decision? Where do the flagship programs fit into the Provost’s vision for UNF going forward?
Answer from the floor by Dr. Rhodes
So some of these decisions were made before I arrived. I know the president is still taking this under consideration. So that’s the first part of the question. Second part of the question. In terms of my point of view, I can see the flagship programs are clearly notable strengths at UNF and I see that, I celebrate that. The president also sees that, noting that it is the center point of his <inaudible> proposal. I’ve been faced with many questions about this since I got here, but I do need to tell you, I’ve had an almost equivalent number of questions asking why do we still have flagships? Why does a certain discipline have a special status, but my discipline does not? And I think that is also a fair question and I think we should look at the big picture. So as with the other topics and the principle of this meeting, this is a discussion we should have as a campus community. My personal feeling is I would like this to look for where we can take these existing strengths and integrate them into interdisciplinary cross college, cross-discipline things that build in a bigger way to cross-campus ends.
