The Committee on Effectiveness and Efficiency for the Future met June 1 in Knoxville, and members were presented details about the initial proposals to reorganize the System administration.
After speaking with members of my staff, there was a remarkable uniformity in what we believe the structure should be, and the proposed organizational chart represents those discussions.
The Vice President for Science and Technology would be folded into the Executive Vice President's position. The duties covered by the Vice President for Strategic Planning and Operations would either be redistributed among other staff or moved to the campus level. Also, five positions would have vice president dropped from their titles.
I believe there needs to be further discussion about the appropriate placement for athletics, the Institute for Public Service, and Equity and Diversity. A task force already has been assigned to study IPS, and a group will be asked to study Equity and Diversity. I plan to go before the Athletics Board to ask for a committee to look at the reporting structure for athletics.
This is a first step in looking at the System administration, and I believe this is the time to have more discussions about the functions that are necessary to the System.
A proposed Board's workshop in August would be the ideal place for this discussion.
