Transition plan for Division of Student Affairs announced

Chancellor Ringeisen announced today a transition plan for the Division of Student Affairs, to be effective when Vice Chancellor Chris Miller leaves UIS to become the Vice President for Student Affairs at Marquette University in Milwaukee. Dr. Miller begins his new job there July 15.

First of all, a search for Dr. Miller's replacement will begin immediately. In fact, it has already begun, because the chancellor is in the process of consulting with the Campus Senate leadership to determine the makeup of the search committee. We hope to have a new vice chancellor in place by January 1, 2009.

There will not be an interim vice chancellor. Instead, two senior administrators in Student Affairs will assume responsibility for day-to-day operations. They are Steve Chrans, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, and Dr. Marya Leatherwood, Associate Vice Chancellor and Director of Enrollment Management/Associate Professor, Management. Both will be "interim assistant chancellors" and report to Ed Wojcicki, Associate Chancellor for Constituent Relations and Chief of Staff to the Chancellor. These interim titles and reporting lines are temporary and will end when the new vice chancellor is hired.

All units in Student Affairs will report either to Chrans or Dr. Leatherwood during the interim period. Chrans and Leatherwood met with division leaders today to inform them of these new plans.

Joining Chrans, Leatherwood and Wojcicki on an "interim senior management team" will be Tisha Palmer, the Student Affairs Office Administrator, and Chris Ryan, Assistant to the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. Palmer and Ryan will continue to provide leadership to the entire division.

Another important change taking place this summer will be the re-establishment of an Administration Division. UIS used to have an Administrative Services division and vice chancellor, but that position was cut and the division split up a few years ago during times of severe budget cuts. Pending Board of Trustees approval, Dave Barrows will become Associate Chancellor for Administration. Dave will continue to serve in his role as executive director of Facilities and Services. Among the units moving into this division will be Facilities and Services from Student Affairs; and Conference Services from the Chancellor's Division. Also in this division will be the new Office of Sustainability and a new Parking Services unit. Other units may be added, but these are the first ones to be a part of the new division. The administrative aspect of parking services -- the selling of parking decals maintenance of parking records -- will move to this division from the Police Department. The changes to the administration of parking services are expected to take a few months or up to year, with Barrows and Police Chief Don Mitchell working together to provide a smooth transition

Finally, the reporting line for the Department of Athletics will move from Student Affairs to the Chancellor's Division, a strong preference of the NCAA as UIS makes the transition from the NAIA to NCAA Division II.

"I am grateful to everyone who is stepping up at this time," Chancellor Ringeisen said. "We have a lot of great leadership who I am confident will continue to move UIS in pursuit of becoming one of the top five small public liberal arts universities in the nation. Everything we do, we do for students; that is how we have been operating, and that will continue."

Comments about these changes are welcome on Wojcicki's blog; go to

http://www.uis.edu/newsbureau/community/. Just click on the "comments" link under the most recent entry.

Vice Chancellor Miller to leave UIS

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From UIS Chancellor Richard D. Ringeisen:

It is with regret but also with sincere best wishes that I announce that Dr. Chris Miller, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Administrative Services, will leave UIS this summer to become Vice President for Student Affairs at Marquette University in Milwaukee. He is expected to leave in early July.

I consider Chris' departure a great professional loss for UIS, but I also have a strong sense of personal loss because he has been a wonderful colleague to me and, indeed, to all of us.

Chris leaves an important legacy that will benefit this university well into the future. He came to UIS in 2002 as Associate Vice Chancellor/Dean of Students during a critical juncture in our history and was ultimately promoted twice to his current position. In just six years, he met unprecedented needs for new student services and rapidly expanded student life even as UIS suffered budgetary downturns. Under his leadership, the residential campus grew significantly, enrollment reached record-breaking levels, the Recreation and Athletic Center opened, the university began the move to NCAA Division II status, and new traditions such as Homecoming and Springfest were established.

Chris was appointed Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs in spring 2003 and took on additional responsibilities in fall 2006 for administrative services. In that capacity, he supervised nearly half of all UIS employees in 18 units, including Enrollment Management, Housing and Residential Life, Athletics and Recreational Sports, Business and Financial Management, and Facilities and Services.

In his new position at Marquette, he will oversee almost all aspects of student life outside the classroom. Marquette is a premier Catholic, Jesuit doctoral university enrolling approximately 11,500 undergraduate and graduate students and offering more than 100 degree programs.

It is no surprise and certainly a compliment to UIS that a university of Marquette's stature would want Dr. Miller in its top ranks.

Please join me in wishing Chris all the best in his new venture.

A campus announcement will follow later about interim leadership while a search is conducted for Chris' successor.

Reception honors faculty achievements

Achievements by faculty in a variety of areas were recognized at the annual spring reception, held April 28 on campus. Chancellor Richard Ringeisen and Provost/Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Harry Berman presided over the ceremony honoring faculty members who have received tenure and/or promotion, been awarded sabbaticals, or granted emeritus status. The Pearson Faculty Award for Teaching, the Spencer Award for Service, the Oakley Award for Excellence in Online Teaching, and the Faculty Excellence Award were also presented. Read more>>