Matthew Resenhoeft

Wednesday’s Chancellor’s Roundtable took on a slightly different format than those held in the past, as the issue-focused meeting concentrated on the Physical Facilities Development Plan at UW-Eau Claire.

Chancellor Donald Mash started the informal gathering of about 30 students, faculty and administrators in the Alumni Room of Davies Center, by giving those in attendance the chance to raise any topic of discussion.

But since nobody spoke up during that time, the majority of the 45-minute gathering was led by Andy Soll, the vice chancellor of business and student services.

Soll delivered a brief Powerpoint presentation about the process he considers to be at the end of the beginning stage.

“We are looking for student input,” Soll told the audience, pointing out the Roundtable discussion was advertised and is one of the ways used to gauge what students want out of the facilities on campus.

Soll said the university needs to submit a six-year plan by February 2002 for 2003 to 2009. He said the process of doing so currently is between the steps of identifying and defining issues and establishing issue priorities.

A few students voiced concerns or questions during the discussion. The topics discussed by these students almost exclusively dealt with space issues for performing and visual arts at Eau Claire.

“Last year I presented a similar issue to Chancellor Mash,” said junior Matt Rightmire, a theater major.

Rightmire said he and others involved in various arts programs on campus attended the Roundtable to “express the concern for the first money that gets cut from public schools K through 12.

“It’s kind of a pain to see that get thrown by the wayside at the university level,” he said.

Many of the specific questions raised at the discussion could not be answered with certainty by Soll, as there is so much more time to be spent on the process.

But he did repeat several times that student input into the issue is very important.

The one project on campus that already has been approved is the Davies Center expansion.

Planning for the expansion will not take place during the summer, as most students wouldn’t be able to be involved during that time, Soll said.

“Student involvement is absolutely an assumed part of the process.”