In his first convocation since last January, the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president, echoed his sentiment of last semester, saying he believes Loyola has reached “a level of stability.”
Following that opinion, however, Wildes said looking back on the past several months, he realizes there were “mistakes” made in regard to planning decisions for the university, and he will use this semester to learn from those mistakes.
“I know there are things, in hindsight, which could have been done differently,” he told the faculty and staff in attendance. “This is my responsibility to bear.”
Chief among the ways he says he will try to improve decision-making is better internal communication. In addition to writing a bi-weekly update for faculty and staff, Wildes said he and Walter Harris, provost, will continue meeting with the Executive Committee of the University Senate.
Wildes said he will also make it a priority this semester to meet with Loyola’s five colleges as a new way to open lines of communication.
“There may be other ways which can be used to improve the quality of communication, and I will be open to suggestions and ideas,” Wildes said.
Keeping with the theme of communication, Wildes said another priority for him this semester is to ensure that all committees are active and functioning.
“Listening to the leadership of the faculty and staff, it is clear to me that I need to be attentive to internal communication and the return of normal committee functioning in the life of the university,” Wildes said, “and so I will be sure that these are part of my modus vivendi as I lead the university.”
While communication is a big part of Wildes’ personal vision for the future, there are several other goals he said he will be working toward.
The often-discussed idea of expanding Loyola to have a regional presence is something that Wildes said he will continue to explore, despite the concerns of some faculty members that it will spread Loyola too far and too thin.
Wildes said that Loyola, as the only Jesuit university in the southern tier of the United States, is poised to build itself up as a leader in national higher education through a regionalization plan.
“I think one will find, in the history of higher education, that most universities that have gained national recognition have done so through their ties to the cities and regions in which they live,” he said.
There are six additional goals Wildes said he will begin focusing on this semester.
• Enrollment stability with a focus on retention
• Establish responsibility for implementing plans and measuring success
• Development of a facilities plan and a deferred maintenance plan
• Increasing external financial support for the university
• Continued involvement in the city’s recovery
• Continued review of how to support the development and implementation of the mission and identity
“I believe if you look at the goals in the university plan you can see that they can be understood as a plan that focuses on both quality and mission,” Wildes said. “These dreams for the university are important for the city of New Orleans, the region and the nation.”
Daniel Monteverde can be reached at [email protected].
