UH President and UH System Chancellor Renu Khator visited the Daily Cougar newsroom for an interview about her goals for the University. The following is a partial transcript.
Editor in Chief Kelsie Hahn: What are your top priorities coming into this new position?
President Renu Khator: I do understand that I am still an outsider and I do not know a lot of things that are here already, so what I intend to do is (that) for the first 100 days, I’m inviting students, faculty, staff, community and everybody to give their ideas. What is it they would want to see in the University in the next five year. … After 100 days, we are going to sit down, process the information and then come up with something that will be a lot more directional.
News Editor Mayra Cruz: Do you think that the goal of (UH) achieving flagship status comes into conflict with affordability for students?
Khator: I certainly hope not, and I don’t see the two as being mutually exclusive at all. Students want to get skills and education, which will make them nationally and globally competitive…. We also have to go and raise a lot of endowed funding, but we have to make sure that the University of Houston remains accessible because that is the mission of the University…. We just have to find a way to accomplish both goals and I’ll be looking for ideas on how to do it.
Hahn: You touched on endowed funding, and the capital campaign is planned to begin again this year. Do you have any specific strategies or ideas you’re bringing to that campaign?
Khator: Capital campaign is one of the tools for us to achieve…the vision (for UH). Then it will be my responsibility and that of deans, chairs and staff and anybody to sell that vision to the community and to the state. We need to fund that vision for the University of Houston and be the first to say, ‘Do not shortchange yourself in what the potential is, what the dream is.’… There is just too much potential. You know how people say, ‘A mind is a terrible thing to waste?’ I say, ‘Potential is a terrible thing to waste.’
Cruz: What ideas do you have to raise enrollment for both the undergraduate and graduate levels?
Khator: It’s a growing city, it’s a growing region. There is no reason for us to have flat enrollment….We need to grow our enrollment and we need to grow in a synergistic, complimentary way because we do have four universities (in our System). We have to set goals and (have) targets in mind for each of the campuses: how we’re going to make ourselves accessible in the region. How is it that we provide in the county and region that we have here. How is it that we’re going to serve the state of Texas?
Hahn: One thing that has been of interest to students is their proximity to Houston – to both downtown and the Third Ward area. What role do you think the University should take in the immediate community?
Khator: One of the things that really attracted me to come to the University of Houston is that it is in a community, it is in a metropolitan area because that’s where the excitement is. Today’s economy, today’s issues – they are all in those growing, global cities….What attracted me also was the kind of engagement the University’s faculty, students and staff already have with the community….I think the University is out there embracing the community and everything I’ve heard from the community, it seems that they are embracing the University. They want the University to succeed. We’re going to strengthen that bridge.
Assistant News Editor Bayan Raji: With the report on the status of women in the University, (the report’s author) Beverly McPhail said that the childcare facilities need improvement. What do you think should be done about improving childcare on campus?
Khator: The University has to be very responsive to the students, to provide support because what we want you to do here is to spend your time in learning and not in dealing with other environmental things.
Hahn: Financial aid, PeopleSoft and parking – the nuts and bolts of trying to get to school – there are some issues, and do you have any ideas on addressing those?
Khator: Parking and PeopleSoft – these are national issues. There has never, ever been a forum where I as a provost (at the University of South Florida) stood up and said, ‘Parking is not an issue.’… PeopleSoft was implemented as well, and it was rocky there, and as I understand it, it’s rocky here there as well…. I don’t know what the solutions are, but with your help in seeing what kinds of issues are there, I’m sure we can do better.
Communication senior Nicolas Tymniak: I was wondering if you have any consideration to offering more night classes for students outside of a normal business workday that (working) students would be able to attend?
Khator: I think in a metropolitan university, we have to serve both kinds of needs. We have to serve those needs of traditional students…but at the same time we have to be sensitive and equally serving to the needs of other students who do want to continue working and want a top quality education.
Communication junior Elizabeth Luna: Has the University started thinking about hiring more professors to teach courses?
Khator: We have to increase our faculty because…the faculty-student ratio is high, so we have to adjust that, see how we hire, how we increase the amount of faculty that we have here. It’s not as easy as taking applications when there are positions available, and for that we have to go and make sure that the state is supporting our vision.
