Dr. Margaret E. Madden spoke about her commitment to being student-focused in a open forum on Wednesday, Feb. 18 at the University Center to a crowd of around 100 people.

Madden is one of the four finalists for the Southeast Missouri State University presidential position, and is the provost and and vice president for academic affairs at the State University of New York at Potsdam.

"I've been in that position now for almost 13 years," Maddon said. "Because I've been in the position for such a long time, I really had the opportunity to explore a lot of the facets of the president's job and to work with people across the campus in ways that allow a kind of holistic view of students and the needs of students."

Madden said that she has come to value regional campuses as a way for local students to gain higher education.

"The fact that this population is served so well really makes a difference in the regional economy, in the regional workforce, but mostly importantly in the lives of students," Madden said. "The education that happens here probably more uniformly changes student's lives in significant ways than happens at some other kinds of institutions."

Madden explained that Southeast has similar students to SUNY Potsdam, and she sees a lot of positive similarities between the two schools.

"This is an excellent school, you have terrific programs, you have a really nice variety of programs and you have really strong faculty and staff here," Madden said. "I can tell from the materials from my interaction with the search committee and so far today that the student welfare is really at the center of what goes on here. That's the kind of campus that I want to work on."

Madden explained that she wants to work at a university where she can learn from her faculty and staff, saying that she is "sort of a perpetual student," as well as meet with students.

"This campus is the right size," Madden said. "A president can have an interaction with students and faculty and staff and get to know them on some level that really is deeper than knowing the names and the faces."

Madden added that another reason Southeast drew her to apply for the position is that public education is highly valued in the Midwest, opposed to the East Coast.

"I grew up in Illinois, went to the University of Wisconsin, so I really do appreciate the value that is placed on public institutions in these states, and it would be attractive to me to move back to the Midwest," Madden said.

She said that the role of the president has changed in the past 20 years. As state funding has declined, presidents have had to focus on finding additional resources through fundraising.

"That's a part of the role that I find particularly appealing and attractive," Madden said. "It would be a change of pace for me because as a provost most of what I've done is managing the day-to-day operations of the campus. But I've learned that I love talking to alumni about what they got out of their education and working with them on ways they can give back to the institution, some of which may involve financial donations, but also can involve things like arranging internships and jobs for students or being on advisory boards for programs to make sure that they're current in terms of what's being looked for in the profession."

Madden added that the next president will need to learn and understand the university's culture before he or she can be an advocate for the campus.

"It's really easy for me to be passionate about the value of education, and that's part of what presidents need to do when dealing with legislatures, dealing with community members, dealing with organizations and generally dealing with the external constituents on campus."

Madden described her management style as collaborative, saying that what she does best is bring people together to identify an issue and solutions, while also giving specific tasks and deadlines.

"I do think that higher education institutions are strongest when there is a lot of collaboration, and that implementing programs without consolation with the people who will implement them is a waste of time," Madden said.

She explained that the main criteria she uses when making decisions is weighing the impact on students, while also taking into consideration support for faculty and staff.

When asked about diversity, Madden said that it was essential for academic purposes because students need to have experiences in a multicultural environment and the institution has a responsibility to serve their entire population.

"It is something that I care a lot about, and it is something that you have to pay attention to constantly because the environment changes, the population changes and you need to be flexible enough to respond to the needs of those groups," Madden said.

She added that it was important to provide programs that support the diverse people the university receives, for example offering English classes for Spanish speakers. Madden was then asked why the Board of Regents should choose her as Southeast's next president.

"I think I have a breadth of experience," Madden said. "I think I'm passionate about the education that you offer, and have a real feel for some of the issues that are important for your students in terms of their success, and I think that the fact that I'm really interested in being engaged in fundraising and trying to figure out ways to bring new resources to the campus is a real asset. And it's always good to have a fresh perspective on things."

Read more about the presidential search at southeastArrow.com/PresidentialSearch.