The University Record, June 21, 1999 Editor’s Note: The following actions were taken by the Regents at their June meeting.
By Wono Lee
News and Information Services
Fen to be protected
The Regents approved the proposed transfer of ownership of four acres of its land to the City of Ann Arbor.
The property, located at the southeast corner of Huron Parkway and Glazier Way, is “of particular environmental significance because it contains a fen,” said Robert Kasdin, executive vice president and chief financial officer. “The City of Ann Arbor has expressed an interest in assuming direct responsibility for the environmental stewardship of this sensitive fen.
“We propose placing a conservation easement or similar type of restriction on the property prior to its transfer to the city to restrict future development of the property. If it is a conservation easement, we anticipate donating the easement to an appropriate land conservancy. The City of Ann Arbor needs to concur with the terms and conditions for the transfer of ownership.”
4 named to professorships
Four faculty members at the School of Business Administration were appointed to endowed and titled professorships, all effective Sept. 1.
Rajeev Batra, professor of marketing, will hold the Sebastian S. Kresge Professorship of Marketing.
Russell J. Lundholm, professor of accounting, will hold the Arthur Andersen Professorship of Accounting.
Joanne Oxley, assistant professor of business administration, will hold the First Chicago NBD Corporation Assistant Professorship of Business Administration.
B. Joseph White, dean and professor of business administration, will hold the Wilbur K. Pierpont Collegiate Professorship of Leadership in Management Education.
Batra is “an accomplished researcher and teacher,” White said. “He is highly regarded by colleagues both within the University community and in his profession. He plays an important role in doctoral education in the School, and received the 1991 Faculty Fellow award from the American Marketing Association Doctoral Consortium. He is a dedicated scholar working in the area of global branding and advertising, consumer attitudes toward brands, brand personality and emotional advertising.”
Lundholm’s “professional achievements, research interests and academic standing in the professional accounting community make him the ideal holder of the Andersen chair,” White said. “His professional contributions to the field of accounting education and research have been excellent. He has maintained a strong record of publishing and presenting his work. Prof. Lundholm is also a strong teacher, receiving consistently high ratings from degree program students and also teaching in our Executive Education programs.”
Oxley is “a very promising scholar working in the area of business-government relations in the global economy. She has a solid list of publications in her profession’s top tier journals. She also serves as a reviewer for several of the most prestigious journals in her field. She is an excellent teacher in both our undergraduate and graduate degree programs, and has also taught in our Executive Education program, normally the province of our more senior faculty.”
White was named dean in 1991. “Under his visionary and seasoned leadership, the School has become one of the top-rated educational institutions of its kind across all dimensions—undergraduate and graduate degree programs, and Executive Education,” said Susan J. Ashford, associate dean. “The faculty of the School is now one of the strongest in its history, and nationally recognized on multiple fronts. The student body as well has benefited from his leadership. There is no business school in the country that can claim this School’s record on minority admissions and graduation rates.”
Fletcher Structure to regain 82 parking spaces
“In 1990 as a part of a deck repair project, vehicular traffic was excluded from access to the top deck of the structure, but in response to the need for additional parking in the area, the proposed project will recapture 82 parking spaces on the plaza deck,” said Executive Vice President Robert Kasdin.
“This project also will address infrastructure repairs to the plaza deck level and ramp that were scheduled to occur in conjunction with the parking structure project approved by the Regents in 1996.”
Construction will begin this summer, after the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, and is expected to be complete within six months. The top of the structure will remain available for future Summer Festivals.
The project is estimated to cost $760,000, $400,000 for conversion of the spaces and $360,000 for other infrastructure repairs.
$15.6 million in gifts accepted
The Regents accepted $15,609,190 in gifts received during May. The total included $7,991,501 from individuals, $3,633,842 from corporations, $3,536,065 from foundations, and $447,782 from associations and others.
Safety improvements to Solid State Electronics Laboratory approved
“Replacement of the gas delivery piping system is necessary and expected for the types of corrosive gas systems located in the Solid State Electronics Laboratory,” explained Robert Kasdin, executive vice president. The piping system replacement will be phased to allow the laboratory to remain in operation, and the gas detection system also will be replaced. The project is estimated to cost $2.5 million, with the first phase estimated at $1.2 million.
“The laboratory, constructed in 1986, is critical to the educational and research programs at the College of Engineering and the leadership position the College holds in semiconductors and micro electromechanical systems,” Kasdin added.
Wong to head CASL at Dearborn
Paul Wong, currently dean of social sciences at Hong Kong Baptist University, was named dean of the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters (CASL) at U-M-Dearborn.
Wong also will be professor of sociology. He will assume his new post in August.
“Over the last several years, the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters has focused on developing the facilities and infrastructure necessary to support the high-quality education we provide our students,” said Robert L. Simpson, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. “With the new building under way and new leadership in the College, we can focus on the central role the liberal arts can play in serving our students and meeting the emerging needs of the region.”
Wong holds bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in sociology from the University of California, Berkeley, and has held faculty and administrative appointments at Arizona State and Washington State universities. He also was associate provost at Colorado State University.
Wong’s research focuses on race, ethnicity and nationality in the United States. His work examines gender, race and class; the development of multi-racial relationships; and the impact of new immigration since 1960. He is the author of five books and more than 30 refereed papers, as well as numerous proceedings and conference papers.
