To Brian Ott, a college works like a radio — only with all the necessary parts and someone to advocate for the parts to function together.
This analogy was fitting for the College of Communications, Information and Media (CCIM) dean candidate’s open forum remarks Thursday.
“In other words, part of my job as dean is to get us new radio parts, but also to decide what we’re willing to pay for,” Ott said. “These are difficult things to do.”
Though Ott is at Ball State interviewing for CCIM dean right now, he currently serves as chair of the department of communication studies at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.
One point of focus for both Ott and the search committee is diversity — promoting it, retaining it and improving it.
Kecia Thompson, the chair of the CCIM dean search committee, said from the time the committee was formed, representation has been of utmost importance, down to who serves in the search.
The 16-member committee is comprised of Thompson, department heads from journalism, telecommunications, communication studies and the center for information and communication sciences, one tenure track and one contract faculty member from each department and two outside members appointed by the provost.
Thompson said members from CCIM encouraged outside members of the committee to serve.
After its formation, the committee wrote an advertisement inviting potential candidates to apply, keeping in mind to place the advertisement in different journals and publications where applicants from diverse backgrounds would be likely to see it.
“We wanted to try and get the pool as rich and as deep as we could in terms of diversity,” Thompson said.
Ott said in his open forum that diversity among faculty and students is something he would prioritize if he is appointed CCIM dean.
“We can’t just talk about doing it,” Ott said. “We actually have to develop a plan for realizing it and implementing it.”
Ott said he has experience in this implementation. Previously, he served for three years on a university’s commission on women and gender equity and made a parental leave policy for the first time in the university’s history.
“This is not an easy thing to change,” Ott said. “But just because it’s not easy doesn’t mean you shouldn’t undertake it.”
The next open forum for CCIM dean candidate Paaige Turner will take place March 27 from 1:30-2:30 p.m. in the Art and Journalism building room 175.
Contact Sara Barker with comments at slbarker3@bsu.edu or on Twitter at @sarabarker326.
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