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Jon Whitmore, the second of the three presidential candidates, listens to Dominique van hooff, Department Chair for Language, as she speaks about her thoughts and ideas of what needs to be done for SJSU.

Prez hopeful speaks to campus

Budget, diversity, sports brouht up

By: Chris Bausinger

Posted: 5/8/08

For the second day in a row, the Engineering Auditorium was filled to its back walls for the introduction of an SJSU presidential candidate, Jon Whitmore. His speech was the second of three that have occurred this week, already having Elizabeth Grobsmith on campus Tuesday.

Whitmore didn't have a formal statement prepared but began the open forum by sharing his administrative philosophy.

"My philosophy of administration is to put people first, to make sure you have quality faculty and quality students interacting in the classrooms, the laboratories, on campus and outside of the classroom in order to have a full educational experience," Whitmore said to an audience that included an "overflow" room where some watched on a television.

He spent about an hour in the open forum answering the audience's questions, ranging from the budget and faculty startup packages to diversity on campus.

Whitmore said he was not fully informed on the budget and cultural diversity of SJSU, but he answered questions on the topic with examples of actions taken during his previous university tenures.

During the forum, members of the campus community, mainly faculty and staff, asked questions to the presidential candidate. The lack of student presence was apparent in the packed auditorium.

Even though only a few students were present, some questions that were asked affected everyone on campus.

A member of the audience asked Whitmore to explain his philosophy on international studies and the diversity of students on campus.

He responded by acknowledging that in his former position at Texas Tech University, he emphasized the importance of building programs that increase diversity and also helping "not as well-off" students find the means to study abroad.

Whitmore was asked about the importance of athletics and academics, and he said it was normal for sports to be held in high importance at his previous universities, being that both the University of Iowa and Texas Tech have successful football programs.

Members of the local media asked Whitmore about being named as a candidate for the open chancellor position at Louisiana State University.

"I have never applied to the position of the LSU chancellorship," Whitmore said. "Somebody sent them my curriculum vitae … (SJSU) is the one that we are interested in, and we are focusing on it at this time."

In his statements, Whitmore used the term "we," referring to him and his wife Jennifer, whom he described as his life partner.

He said he saw the campus as a rare place.

"I think this is a unique community, a very diverse community, a very well-educated community."

While visiting SJSU, Whitmore was able to tour the campus and reminisce about his past time in California.

"I have not been on the campus (before)," he said. "I had done research at Stanford and at Berkeley, and I spent a summer in San Francisco, and I have a Ph.D. from UC Santa Barbara, so I spent a lot of time there, and I know California. I am not surprised at all that it is a great campus."

Whitmore added that the urban location was something he was looking for in a university.

"You want a good environment for teaching and learning, and that's here," he said.

He was asked if he was aware of the suspension of blood drives on campus put in place by outgoing SJSU President Don Kassing.

"I had people brief me about the president's letter, and I saw a copy of his letter, which outlined why he had done what he did," he said.

"My feeling is that a president has to represent the culture that exists on a campus and the values of that campus which are articulated in a strategic plan of some kind," he said. "And I think that decision is consistent with the values of this campus."

When asked if he would remove the ban if he became president he said, "I wouldn't have any intent of changing it."

Click here to read more about Whitmore.