Free Press

Issue date: 2/1/10 Section: News

Media Credit: Jeffrey Ferland Casey Webster, a staff member and post-grad student, takes notes for her group on an easel board during a group breakout session at last Friday's Convocation.

What began as a frank discussion about USM's strengths as a university ended with skits, the Brady Bunch theme song, and a limerick.

Roughly 500 people - mainly staff, faculty and administration - attended a day-long convocation at the Sullivan Fitness Complex on the Portland campus last Friday to discuss USM's strengths and assets as administrators and faculty begin drafting a restructuring plan to guide the university toward fiscal sustainability.

But free lunch and an opportunity to help shape the school's future could only convince a handful of students to attend the event. Maggie Guzman, student body president, estimated there were 15 students in attendance at around noon. Guzman blamed student attendance on the timing of the event and the lack of advertising. Ads weren't prominently featured on USM's website, she said, and it was scheduled on "Friday when a lot of students have classes or jobs."

Dolby said that many staff members attended because they were on the clock. "Are staff the most important part of USM? Because that's what this event is catering to," she said.

Some professors made attendance at the convocation mandatory. Junior Curtis Coleman said his physics professor, Julie Ziffer, required the class to attend the Convocation and write a paper on it. He also wasn't surprised that few other students attended, but appreciated that his professor required it.

"Face to face conversation is really important," said Coleman. "We're the ones paying the bills."

President Selma Botman walked around and joined in some groups' discussions, holding a multi-colored coffee mug that read, "work with me people." She downplayed the lack of students. "I think there are students here. They may be coming in and out," she said. "We hope they will come and we can work with them."

To start, everyone paired off and told their partner about a story highlighting a strength of the university. "I think the strength of this type of convocation is the stories behind the statements, " said Meg Weston, vice president of advancement and a key figure behind the idea of the convocation. She said those writing the final restructuring plan were there and heard the stories.

Continued...

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