By Mary Jo Frank
The faculty’s first attempt to evaluate a high level administrative office went smoothly, according to faculty members who conducted the review and to John H. D’Arms, whose Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs was evaluated.
Reporting to Senate Assembly Nov. 15, Peter G. Hinman, professor of mathematics and a member of the review committee, noted that the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs is atypical: it has no job description, staff, budget or physical location.
The office was created in 1990 to recognize Universitywide activities in which D’Arms is engaged that are beyond the scope of his responsibilities as the dean of the Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies, Hinman explained.
His responsibilities as vice provost for academic affairs include oversight of the Bentley and Clements Libraries, serving on the Provost’s Advisory Committee, organizing lecture series, fund-raising with foundations, and handling crises and transitions.
During interviews with Provost Gilbert R. Whitaker Jr. and others who work with D’Arms, the committee heard that D’Arms is also “a strong voice for the humanities at a high administrative level,” Hinman said.
Many of the standard evaluation questions were irrelevant for this office, said Hinman, who added, “Most students and faculty are unaware that this office exists.”
The committee concluded that in this case the office could not be separated from the person, but noted that the combination plays an important role in how the administration functions.
In its written report, the committee recommended that the central administration compensate Rackham for the costs incurred for D’Arms’ duties associated with the Office of the Vice Provost, and that the vice provost be given a small discretionary account to support unexpected needs of the units that report to him.
D’Arms said he believes that faculty review of administrators is appropriate, adding “I can learn from faculty. I always do.”
Such a review can be beneficial to the office being reviewed and to the faculty committee, D’Arms said, if both enter into the process cooperatively and in the spirit of respect and open-mindedness.
The next office scheduled for review is the Office of the Vice President for Student Services, which is headed by Maureen A. Hartford and has 1,300 staff members.
