Provost candidate Jay Noren discussed what he can bring to NIU during a staff forum Tuesday in Altgeld Hall.

Noren is the last of three candidates in the running for the position of executive vice president and provost. NIU President John Peters plans to make the decision in the next few days.

Noren holds the same position at the University of Nebraska and doubles as dean of the graduate college there.

Noren discussed the importance of staff members within a university.

“An institution cannot operate without the full array of what makes up an institution,” Noren said. “This includes both professional and operational staff.”

Ellen Anderson, assistant director of Career Services, asked Noren to share his views of student affairs.

“A big part of the student experience is student life,” Noren said. “Student affairs is very important. Student and academic affairs need to be integrated.”

Noren discussed why he was interested in the position at NIU.

“I found NIU intriguing,” Noren said. “In a time of budget cuts, NIU maintains progress. NIU has a positive attitude in the worst of times.”

Noren also addressed the issue of financial aid.

“One of the greatest failings in this country is insufficient financial aid,” Noren said.

Noren was also asked about his views on strategic planning.

“Strategic planning needs to be alive and open to change and evolution,” Noren said. “It’s hard to do that. Make [strategic planning] dynamic. Build from departments, make it accessible, evaluate and revise constantly.”

Noren also spoke about what excites him about NIU.

“NIU seems to be on an upward, positive trend,” Noren said. “Helping NIU to achieve its potential would be an exciting challenge.”

Finally, Noren was asked what he would do in his first 60 to 90 days at NIU if he received the position.

“Not say much, and listen a lot,” Noren said. “If you walk into situations and think you know something, you are probably wrong. So you need to listen. If you speak, ask questions.”

Peters will choose the new provost.

“We had three outstanding candidates,” Peters said. “The search committee did a great job. I will be collecting evaluations of the candidates over the next several days. I then will do a systematic evaluation to choose the proper candidate.”

BOX:

A quick review of the three candidates.

Kathleen Long, dean of the College of Nursing at the Health Science Center of the University of Florida.

Raymond Alden, executive vice president and provost at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Jay Noren, executive vice president, provost, and dean of the Graduate College at the University of Nebraska.

Source: NIU’s provost search Web site