Editorial: The year in review

This has been a year of transitioning at the University of Toledo. Many things have changed and are going to be different in the future.

Hired a new president

We started off the year with an interim president, but we will end it with a full-time president. Interim President Nagi Naganathan did a lot for UT in his short time in charge. He helped bridge the gap between the faculty and administration that had been nearly destroyed during Lloyd Jacobs’ time as president.

Sharon Gaber is going to be acting president next semester. We have high hopes for her as president to continue in Nagi’s footsteps to unite administrators and faculty. She seems to be involved positively at her current campus, and we think she will transfer that attitude here.

The Title IX program is being revised

Title IX is a federal law forbidding discrimination based on sex in educational institutions. The program is improving because they are adding a new, full-time Title IX Coordinator. His or her only job will be to ensure UT is compliant with Title IX, and to manage any Title IX complaints and paperwork the university needs. We are excited because there will finally be a figurehead for all people with Title IX issues at the university to go to.

Other improvements with the program are also being made. The Title IX program will be streamlined to clear up policies and make it known what rules apply in which situations. Procedures for handling Title IX complaints will become more strict with time frames, and the website will be updated in the process. Sexual assault prevention will be brought to the forefront with awareness campaigns.

Things seemed to always be broken on campus

The facility problems continued from the spring 2014 semester. In October, a pipe burst in Croutonz’ (previously known as Croutons) ceiling, closing the business for the following few days. We are sure everyone remembers when the water main broke and the eateries in the Student Union were closed. And just recently a pipe in the second floor bathroom of Carlson library broke, causing water to seep through the ceiling into the first floor computer lab. Some of these issues are still being worked on.

Student involvement has changed

Students seemed to be more interested in social issues this year as opposed to other semesters. The campaign for UT to divest from companies sponsoring Israel started in October when Students for Justice in Palestine collected signatures at their apartheid wall. From there, more and more students showed their support for both sides of the debate.

All around, students have been actively participating in volunteer activities. Around 2,500 students participated in the Big Event where individual students and student groups went into the Toledo community to volunteer. Students also participated in RockeTHON, which raised funds for the kids at the Children’s Miracle Network.

Administrators were lost this year

This year saw the loss of Larry Burns and Godfrey Ovwigho to the University of Akron. They are leaving to join former UT Provost Scott Scarborough in Akron. Former UT Medical Center Chancellor Jeffery Gold and former UT President Lloyd Jacobs left in 2014. Besides Sharon Gaber replacing Nagi Naganathan, we don’t know who will fill the position of main campus provost. The chancellor position was eliminated after Gold left.

While some events in the last year have been excellent, others have been mediocre. This has been a year of transition at UT, and we hope next year will bring new changes, growth and good surprises. As always, we want UT to continue to strive for improvement.