Digging in For 2001 Getting ready for students and their bikes, groundskeeper Tara Gilbert clears snow away from the bicycle racks east of the Canfield Administration building Jan. 5. Landscape Services personnel were aided in the snow removal last week by a warm up that helped melt the accumulated snow.

One of 16 Recognized

UNL Honored for Undergraduate Education

By Kelly Bartling, Public Relations

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is one of 16 colleges and universities recognized by the Association of American Colleges and Universities for visionary campuswide innovations in undergraduate education.

A team from the AAC&U visited UNL for two days in November as part of its judging process of 73 campuses. In an announcement in December, UNL was lauded by AAC&U for demonstrating "strong commitment to a liberal education relevant for the contemporary world," according to Andrea Leskes, vice president of AAC&U.

According to AAC&U, the schools selected were characterized by extensive innovation in curriculum, pedagogy and organizational structure. At each of the 16 institutions, the campus culture was deemed to support undergraduates within and outside the classroom, provide opportunities to "learn by doing," emphasize critical thinking about complex problems, promote effective communication and the ability to contribute to a diverse society as an outcome of powerfully lasting undergraduate education.

Harvey Perlman, UNL interim chancellor, said the designation is "an authentic assessment of UNL's stature as a premier institution of undergraduate education."

The AAC&U team in November was briefed and led on a tour of UNL innovations, supported by the UNL application. Innovations outlined for the team included university learning communities, the University Honors Program, the J.D. Edwards Honors Program in Computer Science and Management, Peer Review of Teaching, the Comprehensive Education Program, and undergraduate research opportunities such as the Undergraduate Creative Activities and Research Experiences (UCARE) program, Cedar Point Biological Station, and the McNair Project.

UNL will now be part of the Greater Expectations Consortium on Quality Education. The AAC&U report said UNL and the other 15 institutions are "role models." They will participate in meetings, panels and activities during 2001 as part of the Consortium on Quality Education, to address educational visions, innovations, best classroom practices and curricular designs. The consortium's mandate is to share successful teaching practices with higher education and high schools to advance commitment to ensuring advantages of liberal learning for all students.

UNL was one of five universities with the top Carnegie doctoral/research universities-extensive designation to be recognized by AAC&U, including Duke University, the State University of New York at Stony Brook, the University of Michigan and the University of Southern California. The other AAC&U Leadership Institutions are the U.S. Air Force Academy, Central Connecticut State University, Colgate University, Evergreen State College, Hampshire College, King's College, Prince George's Community College, Richland College, the University of Hawaii-Kapi'olani Community College, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis.

"This recognition is so much more satisfying and indicative of our excellence than any of the popular rankings, because it is based on a rigorous, peer-reviewed competitive process. Evaluators visited our campus and saw some of the many innovative things that we are doing in terms of the undergraduate experience," Perlman said.

David Brinkerhoff, associate vice chancellor for academic affairs, said the honor is significant.

"It is significant and symbolic to have others evaluate our undergraduate education and activities going on at UNL, and find that we are one of the best," Brinkerhoff said. "We have important and exciting things happening at Nebraska, and after having judges see and hear what we are doing here on our campus, they agree."

Brinkerhoff said the opportunity to learn from the other consortium institutions, and to share ideas on successes at Nebraska, is an important component of the program.

More information on the association and its Greater Expectations Leadership awards can be found at the AAC&U Web site http://www.aacu-edu.org. Work by Greater Expectations, the multi-year initiative to define outcomes of 21st century undergraduate education, is funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts and Carnegie Corp. of New York.

Martin Luther King Day Activities Set for Jan. 15

By Tom Simons, Public Relations

UNL's celebration of the 2001 Martin Luther King Jr. holiday will be Jan. 15 and will include a two-part program under the theme, "Continuing the Civil Rights Movement for All."

No classes are scheduled at the university that day and all but essential offices will be closed in observance of the holiday.

The first part of program begins at 9 a.m. in the auditorium of the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, 12th and R streets, with the second part at the Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Sheldon program will feature the signing of the renewal a partnership agreement between UNL and Grambling State University, an historically black institution in Grambling, La., and the presentation of the Chancellor's "Fulfilling the Dream" Awards.

The partnership agreement between UNL and Grambling calls for faculty and student exchanges, faculty development opportunities, cooperative research efforts, opportunities for graduate students, technology interchanges and consulting activities. The two institutions signed their original partnership agreement in 1996. UNL has a similar agreement with Alcorn State University, an historically black institution in Lorman, Miss.

Paulette Jones of Lincoln and Michael Combs, professor of political science at UNL, will receive the "Fulfilling the Dream" Awards from interim chancellor Harvey Perlman. The award has been presented annually since 1998 to individuals who have contributed to the university or the wider Lincoln community by their exemplary actions in promoting the goals and vision of King.

The Sheldon program will end by 10 a.m. to allow individuals to participate in the NAACP Youth Rally, which begins at 10:30 with a march from the Culture Center, 333 N. 14th St., to the Capitol and a rally in the East Legislative Chambers. For those not marching, the Sheldon, which is normally closed on Mondays, will be kept open until noon for a special presentation of an ongoing exhibit, "African-American Quilts from the Robert and Helen Cargo Collection." The Cargo Collection is part of the International Quilt Study Center at UNL.

Activities at the Nebraska Union begin with presentations in line with King's teachings. At 11 a.m., Suzy Prenger, an instruction consultant in UNL's Teaching and Learning Center, will give a presentation on "Inclusive Teaching" in the Regency A room. At 11:30, Steve Burdine, a motivational speaker and president of Affirmations in Action of Indianapolis, will speak in the Regency B room.

A lunch, complements of the chancellor's office, will be available beginning at noon from Nebraska Union vendors.

At 1:30 p.m., the Lincoln Northeast High School group, Voices "N" Harmony, directed by Charles H. Bowling II, will perform on the first floor of the Union, concluding the day's activities.

Perlman: An Extraordinary Opportunity to Excel

Editor's Note: Chancellor Harvey Perlman delivered these remarks to the Academic Senate on Jan. 9, 2001.

I am sure you are reading with keen interest, as I am, the front page series on this university in the Omaha World-Herald. I must say that this is like being undressed in public and its uncomfortable no matter how much weight you've lost or muscle you've added. I am disappointed that the newspaper felt the need to sensationalize this story with its headlines and graphics. That negative tone does not reflect the articles themselves, which I think are a fair and professional job of reporting on the current status of the university. I may not agree with all of the reporters' conclusions, and I may have some modest quibbles with some of the statistics, but on the whole they describe a university that had the internal strength to acknowledge its own shortcomings and the ambition to generate considerable momentum for improvement.

We should not, I think, overreact to this series. Indeed, the focus on UNL arises out of our own internal self-evaluation contained in the 2020 Vision Report - a report that through conversations last semester has achieved wide consensus on this campus. Indeed, I hope you will agree with me that this series creates an extraordinary opportunity for this university and will create a context that will assist, rather than detract, from our efforts to excel.

First, the article and the attention being paid to it underline the fact that UNL is a statewide resource of critical importance to the future of the State of Nebraska. Implicit in this attention is that the state ought to have high expectations for its flagship university, and I believe it does.

Second, the series may help a broader audience understand the nature and importance of a research university. Our vision is to create a first-tier research university. That has implications for the type of faculty and students we recruit, for the nature of the education we provide, for the measures applied to assess our success. The series should make it easier to explain and defend this vision.

The articles, I believe, were balanced - showing not only the challenges we face but also the successes we have achieved. We should not let the headlines obscure the facts that were reported here:

o Our national recognition as one of only five research universities in the nation to be in the first tier of innovative undergraduate programs.

o The recent enhanced emphasis and success in competitive research. Indeed more recent figures than the World-Herald had available show research awards increasing at a 20 percent rate.

o The critical role we play in serving the needs of both urban and rural Nebraska - from our partnership in the Peter Kiewit Institute in Omaha to our Research and Extension Center in Scottsbluff.

o The enhancement funds provided by private generosity that have, in many instances, made up for the shortfall in funding for our instructional programs.

We recognized, long before the World-Herald, that we were a good university running in fast company. "Mediocre" is a term that relates to one's expectations. I know there are some who would use the term "mediocre" to describe our recent football season where we were eighth in the country, won 10 of 12 games, and were outclassed only by the eventual No. 1 team. My guess is there are many universities that would kill to have such a "mediocre" football program. Similarly, I believe there are many other universities that would like our faculty, our success in innovative undergraduate teaching, the energy that is now embedded in our research program, and the strong relationship we enjoy with the citizens of our state.

We run in fast company. As I understand the World-Herald, the people of Nebraska want us to do that as well. And we have recognized, as the World-Herald does, that we are not where we want to be or where Nebraska needs us to be.

Finally, I think it is important that we not spend our energy trying to assess blame for our current circumstances. Any institution is a product of its people, its context, and its time. We know there have been internal forces that have resisted change. We know there have been external forces that have prevented us from changing. We know there have been times when hard decisions, that could have enhanced the university, were not made. We know there were times when we made such hard decisions and saw them meet with public resistance. We need to recognize, and the state needs to understand, that we are in a very competitive market, and we will need to respond to what the market requires in order to succeed.

What I've sensed over the past six months is that we have the talent and the knowledge to move this university forward. Increasingly, I see the commitment within the university community to do so. This series of articles will increase the urgency of our task, but I am hopeful it will also generate a higher degree of public understanding and support.

Four Candidates to Interview for Law Dean Post

By Tom Simons, Public Relations

Four candidates are scheduled to have on-campus interviews in late January and early February for the position of dean of the University of Nebraska College of Law.

They are David G. Epstein, professor of law at the University of Alabama School of Law; Eugene R. Gaetke, professor of law at the University of Kentucky College of Law; Paul A. LeBel, professor of law at the Florida State University College of Law; and Steven L. Willborn, professor of law and interim dean of the NU College of Law.

Epstein, who has held the Charles E. Tweedy Jr. chair at Alabama since 1998, has had two previous deanships, at the University of Arkansas from 1978 to 1982 and at Emery University in Atlanta from 1984 to 1988. He earned his bachelor's (1964) and law (1966) degrees at the University of Texas and a graduate degree in law at Harvard University (1969). He was a clerk for the Texas Supreme Court from 1965 to 1967. Epstein has also served two tours on the Texas law faculty, from 1974 to 1979 and 1981 to 1985, and has taught as a visiting professor at seven institutions. He has written and co-written casebooks on bankruptcy and commercial law.

Gaetke has been a member of the Kentucky law faculty since 1978 and has been H. Wendell Cherry professor of law since 1990. In his tenure at UK, he served as associate dean for academic affairs from 1994 to 1997 and was acting dean in 1999-2000. The college honored him with an outstanding teaching award in 1992. Gaetke earned a bachelor's degree summa cum laude in political science (1971) and a juris doctorate magna cum laude (1974) at the University of Minnesota. Widely published and an expert on equine law, he has taught contracts, professional responsibility, administrative and environmental law, land use planning and environmental problems.

LeBel has taught at Florida State since 1997 and served as the FSU law dean in 1997-98. Prior to that, served five years on the Alabama law faculty (1978-83), rising from assistant to associate professor, and served 14 years on the faculty at the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va. At William and Mary, he was promoted to professor in 1985 and was named Cutler professor of law in 1990. LeBel has also served as a visiting law professor at Illinois, William and Mary and the T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond (Va.). He earned a bachelor's degree in American literature at George Washington University (1971) and his juris doctorate at the University Florida College of Law (1977), graduating at the top of his class.

Willborn has been a member of the Nebraska law faculty since 1979 and has served as interim dean since last summer. The Richard C. and Catherine Stuart Schmoker professor of law at NU, he is the author of four books and has taught in several areas of workplace-related law, in addition to land use planning law. He has been honored several times for his teaching, including three Distinguished Teaching Awards from the College of Law. Willborn earned a bachelor's degree magna cum laude in philosophy (1974) from Northland (Wis.) College, a master's degree in counseling from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (1976) and his juris doctorate cum laude from the University of Wisconsin Law School (1976).