Campus faculty welcomes Whitmore with open arms

By: Dina Baslan

Posted: 5/15/08

As Jon Whitmore prepares to take office as the new president on August 1, some SJSU faculty members expressed their views and hopes for the university under his presidency.

Elizabeth Cara, president of the SJSU chapter of the California Faculty Association and an occupational therapy professor, said the members of the association liked Whitmore's vision for SJSU and are looking forward to working with him.

"He seems genuine and sincerely interested in working with the faculty and all the employees of the university to create a better university for all the students," she said.

Political science professor Kenneth Peter, a member of the search advisory committee, said that the CSU Board of Trustees had developed a clear understanding of campus views that the committee had attempted to convey.

One of the "great strengths" Whitmore will bring to the campus, Peter said, is "his ability to raise funds."

With 28 endowed chairs at Texas Tech University, Peter said Whitmore's fundraising ability could transform the campus.

"If he could do something like that for San Jose State," he said, "that will be an important contribution."

Bradley Stone, chemistry department chair, expressed similar views adding, "There are a lot of us on campus, including me, that really want to see a president who will develop research and scholarships here on campus."

Stone said he did not get the chance to meet any of the candidates because he was out of town. However, he said he had expected Eduardo Ochoa to be appointed because of his familiarity with the California State University system.

Business professor Annette Nellen said coming to a CSU campus does not seem to be an obstacle.

"I think he will do a great job of getting in and quickly learning how things are here and what his campus' priorities are and get moving," she said

Dr. Tai-Ran Hsu, a mechanical aerospace engineering professor, said he hopes Whitmore will integrate SJSU with the Silicon Valley community.

"There's lots of initiative in environmental energy and sustainable development," he said, "and I hope that we, as a campus, could be part of this exciting period of time."

Even though Whitmore is not from Silicon Valley, Hsu said he hopes that his position as the president of SJSU will enable him to get involved in the local community and "learn what the local community needs from us and how we can make a difference."