Provost a ‘Hsu in’

The provost is critical in shaping the future of any university — they are traditionally second in command. And with so many vacancies in President Sharon Gaber’s leadership cabinet, the provost role has become even more crucial to the stability of the University of Toledo. With the stakes so high, Andrew Hsu (pronounced “shoo”) seems to be the correct candidate for our community.
As provost, Hsu will be in charge of communicating with the faculty, a crucial role that he emphasized in his open forum. It’s been a tumultuous, slow-healing relationship between the administration and the faculty after the Lloyd Jacobs administration ended in 2014. Faculty members felt discouraged to speak out about issues, had no updated contract for five years, and felt there was a lack of shared governance between the administration and faculty. While Gaber has taken steps to be open and rebuild that relationship, having a provost who is also in favor of shared governance to help foster that relationship will be helpful in days to come.
When visiting UT, Hsu emphasized his ability to work with a university community on developing and implementing strategic plans. As a key figure in shaping the academic state of the university, we believe Hsu’s experience at other institutions will allow him to communicate effectively about the university’s future. Making a strategic plan is one thing, but having the ability to work with the people at UT to carry it out is another.
During his time here, former provost Scott Scarborough had a number of items he wanted to accomplish in his five-year plan. He quickly jumped into several ambitious projects (like the Schoolcraft College partnership) and restructured some programs in a way that only made sense to a few. Many of those ideas floundered once he left, and UT’s vision and plan have been somewhat muddled and unclear ever since.
Now with Gaber at the helm hammering out a clear, concrete set of goals that address topics like diversity and spending, UT seems to be back on track. Enrollment is one of her primary topics, and Hsu said that was one of his focal points when he visited. He spoke about his work increasing the San Jose State College of Engineering enrollment. In his forums, Hsu focused on advising and first-year mentoring to increase retention as well, another problem UT has struggled with solving.
Hsu’s background set him apart from the other candidates in that he has first-hand experience in limited opportunities for education. Hsu grew up in China and for a period of his life worked as a laborer, unable to receive education for a period of about five years. Because of his upbringing, Hsu said he is deeply committed to helping underprivileged and disadvantaged students find an education. Balancing this goal while achieving excellence is no small challenge, but Hsu said he wants to avoid becoming elitist while empowering students, aiming for both “access and success.”
To us, this is one of Hsu’s most important qualifications for the job. Having a provost who understands how to be successful while addressing disadvantaged students’ needs is something the UT community is desperate for. Any university should aim to both encourage excellence and provide support, and UT is no different. With Hsu using his prior experience to further these goals, we feel he is an excellent choice for provost. Going forward, it is our job as a community to provide the feedback and input necessary to maintain shared governance and collaboration between the university’s administrators and ourselves.