UNIVERSITY PHYSICAL PLANT HEAD IS NAMED

Southeast Missouri State University's director of business services, Gil Seres, has been named interim director of the physical plant.

The announcement was made Monday afternoon by Ken Dobbins, vice president for finance and administration at Southeast.

Seres fills a void created by the departure of William H. Moon.

Moon, 54, of rural Chaffee resigned June 18 after he was arrested five days earlier for allegedly having sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old girl in Jefferson City on June 11 and 12. He faces felony charges of deviant sexual assault in the first degree.

Moon's attorney, Ronald Prenger of Jefferson City, said Monday that his client has entered a "not guilty" plea. A preliminary hearing has been set for 1:30 p.m. July 9 in Jefferson City before Cole County Associate Circuit Judge McCormick Wilson.

Seres has been employed at the university for 25 years. As director of business services, he was in charge of printing and duplicating, the mail room and central receiving, and vending operations.

Dobbins said Seres will continue to supervise vending operations while serving as interim physical plant director. Jim Biundo, assistant vice president for university affairs, will take over supervision of printing and duplicating services, the mailroom and central receiving.

Seres' new duties are temporary. The university hopes to hire a new physical plant director by Jan. 1. "We will be advertising for the director's position in the near future," said Dobbins.

Seres said he probably will be moving into the physical plant office today. He said this week will be "a learning experience."

"It's a challenge," he added.

But Seres noted that his old job and his position have something in common: Both involve supervision of many activities. "I'm used to switching gears with a variety of different topics."

Mark Vogel, assistant director of the physical plant, will aid Seres.

"We have so many capital projects either in progress or being planned," pointed out Dobbins, estimating such projects carry a total price tag of about $15 million.

He said Seres "has a lot of established relationships with the university community and a working knowledge of the university's operations."

Dobbins said Seres is equipped to handle the job of interim director. "In the roles he has played at the university, he has had to deal with project management; he has had to deal with purchasing issues; he has had to deal with people issues.

He also due to the nature of printing and the equipment needed there has dealt with the mechanical side of a large organization," said Dobbins.

"The physical plant goes all across departmental lines," he said, adding that it's one of the largest and most diverse operations on campus.

The physical plant operates with more than 150 employees and on a budget in excess of $5 million. "So it is a very, very critical position," said Dobbins.