President Richard Pattenaude sat as a panelist in a teleconference that was viewed nationally by some 200 universities and community colleges. Pattenaude accepted an invitation to speak as one of four panelists in a nationwide conference broadcast by satellite. The satellite teleconference, centered the panel discussion on “creative strategies for tough financial times,” and aired Thursday, Oct. 30 on PBS.
The Lecroy Center for Educational Telecommunication in Dallas hosted the event and covered all of Pattenaude’s expenses. The teleconference was a chance to “increase national visibility,” said Pattenaude: “More people will know USM’s story, and it is good for our reputation. I also learned a great deal about how my colleagues are handling things.”
Pattenaude was recommended to PBS organizers by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) who worked in cooperation with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) in producing and endorsing the broadcast.
In putting together panelists for their program, The Lecroy Center was looking for “exceptional innovators and effective leaders who have ‘walked the walk’ in dealing creatively with tight budgets and decreased public funding, ” states PBS’s web site (http://www.pbs.org/als/live).
PBS, looking for suggestions for possible candidates, approached AASCU. Because USM had been growing despite the serious budget crisis through 1991 to ’93, AASCU suggested Pattenaude as a panelist.
The teleconference was organized with the intent to offer examples of leadership strategies and procedures that aid higher education institutions with tight budgets. PBS reported some of the difficulties USM has had through the years with Pattenaude as its leader, but said that “USM was dealing with budget problems by aggressively pursuing external funding; focusing on more effective communications; evaluating internal processes to achieve savings that … can be dedicated to programs that respond to …community need; and re-engineering the institution to improve the quality of campus life for students, faculty and staff.”
Today USM, despite its shortcomings with the budget crisis from 1991 to ’93, has managed to create new programs, jobs and facilities for a growing student body. Pattenaude explained that being a panelist “reaffirmed in my mind that even through financially tough times, traditional academic values and a strong liberal arts base are essential for quality programs.”
The Lecroy Center for Educational Telecommunications is a media organization based in Dallas, Texas. Founded in March 1991, the center provides educational material by satellite and other media to universities and colleges, both nationally and internationally.
Erin Violette can be contacted at [email protected]