Randy Hyman, associate dean of student affairs, will leave Ball State University to accept the role of vice chancellor for academic support and student life at the University of Minnesota Duluth on July 1. Although Hyman said he had no specific reason wanting to leave Ball State, he also said he had educational opinions not cohesive with the way President Jo Ann Gora runs the university.
"I think it would be fair to say that my ideas about what makes an excellent university might differ somewhat with the approach that's currently being taken," Hyman said.
He expressed concerns that some people think Ball State is more focused on achievements and rankings than improving the quality of its programs, he said.
"I'm not saying we are; I'm saying that perception might exist," Hyman said. "If people perceive that our goal is to be ranked and recognized, I think it's problematic if they don't also perceive or appreciate that our primary emphasis is on improving the quality of the programs we make available."
Gora was unavailable for comment Wednesday.
Hyman has been interviewed for positions at several other universities, including Central Missouri State, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Toledo and Eastern Illinois University. Most of those instances were the result of colleagues nominating Hyman as a candidate, he said.
"When those opportunities present themselves, I consider them, and sometimes I follow through on it," Hyman said.
Dean of Student Affairs Kay Bales said she found out Hyman was leaving Ball State about a week ago.
"I do know that he has had a desire to be a chief student affairs officer, and I think this presented a great opportunity," she said.
Hyman's position at UMD is similar to Hyman's position at Ball State, he said. As UMD's vice chancellor for academic support and student life, Hyman will be in charge of the offices of admissions, financial aid, registrar, disability services, counseling center, health services, student center, multicultural learning resource center, recreation programs and more. He also will be a tenured professor of higher education, he said.
"Over the years at Ball State I've had the opportunity to supervise and work closely with a lot of these areas, excluding the recreation services and programs area," Hyman said.
UMD also has a strong emphasis on improving retention rates, which is a good fit for Hyman because he has experience in that area at Ball State, he said.
"I think the advantages are that I would have an opportunity to work with colleagues at the new university that are intent on moving their programs in terms of retention and student success in the same kind of direction we've been heading at Ball State," Hyman said.
Hyman has worked at Ball State since 1989, when he was hired as the associate vice president of Student Services. In 2001, he also became dean of students and director of the graduate program in Student Affairs Administration in Higher Education. After Gora took office, the university administration was rearranged, and Hyman applied to be the dean for the Division of Student Affairs, but Bales was hired for the job.
Hyman said Ball State was a wonderful place at which many dedicated people have worked and currently work.
"I'm very grateful for the opportunity to have served Ball State and appreciative of the challenges that I've encountered," he said.
Bales said she would examine the organizational structure of her department before filling the vacant position. She has not set a specific time by which she wants to have the position filled, but national searches usually take a couple months, she said.
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