STROUP GIVEN PASSING GRADE BY FACULTY

Faculty members at Southeast Missouri State University have given university President Kala Stroup passing grades in a recent survey.

One hundred and twenty faculty members responded to the survey, or less than one-third of Southeast's approximately 400 faculty members. Not all of the respondents replied to every question.

Faculty Senate leaders said the survey marks the first such faculty assessment of Stroup since she took office in July 1990.

Stroup received an overall approval rating of 64.4 percent, said Ron Clayton, the vice chairman of Faculty Senate who headed up the Faculty Forum committee, which conducted the survey.

Faculty members were asked 36 questions and asked to choose from among five responses: (A) definitely true, (B) more true than false, (C) in between, (D) more false than true and (E) definitely false.

In a preface accompanying the survey results, Clayton said the overall approval rating was arrived at by averaging the responses of C or better.

Even if only the A and B responses are considered, Stroup receives a "respectable" 48.3 percent, said Clayton.

A majority of faculty members who responded to the survey said salary is the number one funding issue on the campus.

Of those responding, 67 said salary is the top funding issue, while 23 disagreed. Another 25 were in the middle on the issue.

"And clearly, salary causes the greatest frustration," Clayton wrote in summing up the survey results.

"One assumes that, all other things being equal, rational people would admit that, while salary is important, there are more critical funding priorities on university campuses.

"All other things are, however, not equal and it is truly regrettable to have reached such an impasse just now, when the state and national economies offer no help with redress."

Clayton said the survey may be of limited value as an indicator of Stroup's performance as president. "It does indicate that social malaise and low morale continue to dog this faculty and limit the potential of this institution," he said.

Stroup said of the survey Friday, "I think it says that there are some things that we need to talk about in the university community."

While it is a subjective opinion, she said, it is also a measure of how people are perceiving the university.

"Everything that happens on the campus eventually gets laid at the doorstep of the university president," said Stroup.

She said she has tried to promote "collegial decision-making" on campus and open discussion of issues.

Stroup said it's not surprising that salary tops the list of faculty concerns. "Ever since I have been here, we have done nothing but reduce the budget, cut programs, cut positions. They have had no salary increases. They have dealt with a shrinking budget in every one of their departments and areas."

The survey, she said, demonstrates the need to improve communication on campus.

Of those who responded to the survey, 37 said the level of trust and confidence in the university administration has risen since Stroup took office. Fifty-seven disagreed and 25 were in the middle on the issue.

Forty-six faculty members said they didn't feel Stroup is aware of and sensitive to faculty feelings on most campus issues, while 41 felt just the opposite. Another 31 said they were "in between" on the issue.

Sixty-five faculty members said financial affairs were not properly managed prior to Stroup taking office. Twenty-five said they felt finances were properly handled, and 26 took a middle-of-the-road position.

Forty-one said they believe finances will be properly managed under the current administration, while 34 disagreed. Another 43 said they were "in between" on the issue.

Forty-seven faculty members said Stroup does a good job of representing the university's needs to the Board of Regents. Twenty-five disagreed and 44 were in the middle on the issue.

Fifty-two said Stroup inspires their confidence, while 42 said she doesn't. Another 24 were in between on that issue.

Forty-five said Stroup is a "friend" of the faculty, while 43 disagreed. Another 31 were in the middle on that issue.

Forty-eight of the faculty members who responded to the survey chose to add written comments, with negative comments outnumbering positive ones by more than two to one.

The published survey results included some of those comments. The authors of those comments were not identified by name, only by rank, college and years of service.

One tenured faculty member with the College of Science and Technology said: "Overall, there is a welcome contrast between the current situation and the secretive, autocratic style of previous administrations."

Another tenured faculty member in the same college said the university "is top heavy with administrative people that are overpaid. As a result, the faculty has been neglected in both pay and influence."

A tenured professor with the College of Education said the university has "too many middle-level administrators, which leads to duplication of services or provide services that are really unnecessary."