Promoting from within its ranks, the University has appointed two new vice presidents. Interim Vice President for Finance John Meerts became Vice President for Finance and Administration on May 1, permanently assuming the position he held since Marcia Bromberg’s departure last spring. Effective July 1, Professor of Chemistry Joseph Bruno will become the University’s Vice President for Academic Affairs, replacing Professor of History Judith Brown, who stepped down in February.
According to a campus-wide email announcing his appointment, Meerts will oversee the Offices of Finance, Human Resources, Facilities, and Legal Services. When the Board of Trustees holds its annual meeting this May, Meerts will be appointed treasurer of the University by a board resolution.
“When I first came to Wesleyan about 10 years ago I was totally focused on my new job as Director of Information Technology Services,” Meerts said in an e-mail. “There were lots of issues to deal with and it never even crossed my mind that one day I might be the chief financial officer of this great institution. While I enjoyed my time in Information Technology tremendously, I am also very excited about my new job.”
In addition to his duties as Vice-President, Meerts will continue to head the Office of Information Technology Services.
Now that his position is permanent, Meerts will continue the projects he has pursued over the past year, including his plan to reduce the University’s reliance on endowment spending.
“We will achieve the first milestone in the plan when we present the 2006-2007 budget in May,” Meerts said. “We will have already reduced the endowment draw from 7.4 to 6.4 percent in one year.”
Meerts will tighten up the University’s budget in areas other than endowment spending.
“I will be focusing on strategies that allow us to economize through administrative efficiencies,” Meerts said. “We are also putting processes in place that ensure that every vacant staff position is filled in an optimal way, looking at the needs of all offices and deciding if indeed the work that used to be done by the now vacant position, can be better performed some other way or by another staff member.”
Although these projects are ongoing, Meerts said he also hopes to implement several new ideas soon.
“One very exciting idea that we will be presenting to the board of trustees in May will be to install a CoGen facility in our power plant,” he said. “This will allow us to save hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in electric and heating costs. In addition it will generate fewer pollutants as compared to electricity generated by coal fired generating plants. And it will provide us with a reliable source of electricity during the time that Connecticut is having real problems supplying enough power.”
Bruno became Vice President of Academic Affairs after a search conducted by President Doug Bennet, which focused on nominees from among current faculty members. According to a campus-wide e-mail announcing his appointment, Bruno will now be responsible for drawing and retaining faculty and for supporting their research and teaching activities.
“Bruno has served as vice chair of and science representative to the Advisory Committee, which advises the president on matters relating to appointments and promotions of the faculty,” read the e-mail. “He also served as chair of the Department of Chemistry and president of the Wesleyan chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.”
Bruno said he did not embark on his academic career with thoughts of administrative positions.
“However, I did become interested in serving my division as dean [of Natural Sciences and Mathematics] and have enjoyed the opportunity very much,” Bruno said. “When the current Vice President for Academic Affairs position was offered, I realized that it would constitute a chance to do much of the same work on a broader scale.”
Bruno expressed excitement over the capabilities of his new job.
“I expect to devote considerable effort to implementing the new academic advising plan and to facilitating opportunities for collaborative work across academic boundaries,” Bruno said. “We also have to do all we can to attract and retain a talented and diverse faculty and staff in the increasingly competitive academic world.”
Bruno has served as Dean of the Natural Sciences and Mathematics since 2003. He joined the University faculty in 1984, and became a tenured professor in 1991.
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