On Tuesday, Jan. 28, IU Southeast chancellor candidate Aldemaro Romero Jr. visited IU Southeast to meet with faculty, staff and students to answer questions and address concerns.
Currently, Romero holds the position of dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and professor of biological sciences at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.
Romero held several sessions to meet with the IUS community, including a student lunch. At the community forum, open to all faculty, staff, students and community. Romero said he is beginning to get a bigger picture of what IU Southeast needs and how he can help the university reach its potential.
“There is great potential for doing great things in this university,” Romero said.
Part of this potential is selling and promoting IU Southeast’s role in Southern Indiana, he said. Romero also said that if he is given the chancellor position, he will look for new opportunities for community outreach in order to discover new partnerships.
Romero said that throughout his meetings on campus, he has heard some common concerns. He said he wants to ensure that the programs being offered by the university raise IU Southeast’s profile in the area. This will improve the university’s recruitment, support and funding, he said.
Romero also said that he believes open communication and accessibility are a important parts of the position.
“I’m a people’s person,” he said. “There are many ways the CEO of a campus has to have a presence.”
Romero said he has a very open communication style and that he encourages discussion, even if people do not agree with his own ideas.
“I don’t believe I have ownership on the truth,” he said.
As part of his goals for community outreach, Romero said he has held a radio show interviewing faculty members at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. So far, Romero said he has hosted 156 of the shows. A summary of the broadcast is also summarized and published as a column in the local newspaper, he said.
Romero also said that if he is named as the chancellor, he will form a transition committee to help prioritize the most important and urgent campus concerns.
During the open session, Barbara Thompson-Book, associate professor of elementary education, expressed concern about getting a new School of Education and Purdue College of Technology building on campus.
“They’ve been talking about a new School of Education building for 17 years,” Thompson-Book said.
Romero said the key to getting a new building is patience, sharing a story about a university building process that lasted 15 years.
Mason Newkirk, business junior, said he attended the open session because he thinks it is important for people to know about the different chancellor candidates.
“It’s important to know as much about them as possible — to know about their background,” he said.
Before closing the open session, Romero said that throughout his visit to IU Southeast, he has gotten several thoughtful questions that show how much the IUS community is thinking about the transition.
“There is great potential for doing great things in this university,” Romero said. “There is a very healthy concern about the future of this institution.” Romero said he understands that the period of transition is important for the university.
“There is a need for change, new directions, fresh air and a sincere, transparent person,” Romero said.
Susan Sciame-Giesecke, interim chancellor and professor of communication arts at IU Kokomo, will visit IU Southeast Wednesday Jan. 29. She will hold the same forums as Romero including a free lunch open to all students (noon-12:45 p.m. in Hoosier Room West) and an open community forum/reception (5-6:15 p.m. in Hoosier Room West).
