Stephen Golding began his tenure as vice president for Finance and Administration at Ohio University in September 2010, but he said the demands of his job have kept him relatively busy and unfamiliar to many Athens residents — until now, that is.
This week, Golding was interviewed on The Party Line, a talk radio show broadcast on 970 WATH, a local AM radio station. The Party Line is the oldest radio talk show in Southeast Ohio, according to the program’s website.
David Palmer, the show’s host, interviewed Golding about his personal and professional history, as well as OU's budget.
Golding said his position was a “24/7 job” that keeps him very busy, but that he has tried to attend various OU events.
“You cannot help having fun at OU,” he said. “It's a wonderful institution and it has a lot of things going on. I’m certainly enjoying my role in being able to participate with a number of wonderful people.”
The two discussed the recruitment process for new students, and Palmer asked whether or not OU had sufficient amenities, like up-to-date residence halls, to compete with other universities.
“It's the look, it's the feel, it's the sense that (prospective students) get in the first 20 minutes that tells them whether or not this is the place they want to be,” Golding said. “It is the combination of the integration of the university with the town and the environment that all has to come together in order for us to recruit a student.”
Palmer asked about deferred maintenance, and Golding discussed the OU Board of Trustees’ newly approved plan for a $977.5 million capital improvement plan.
“Just to be blunt about it, in the last few years, I don’t think our campus has looked as beautiful as it had,” Palmer said.
The conversation spurred a larger dialogue about the general state of OU’s budget and efforts Golding and his department are undertaking to improve it.
“I think the economic model for higher education is evolving and changing … so I think as institutions, we have to begin to look internally and determine what is the new economic model and how do we ensure accessibility and affordability while recognizing that we still have to pay the bill,” Golding said.
He listed fundraising and increased dependence on students and families as ways the university will help pay that bill, but noted OU would have to utilize a combination of solutions.
Golding also emphasized cost-cutting techniques OU employs and is developing, and said the university “does not have the kind of bloated staff that you see in other institutions.”
“We have a chance, because of the prudent stewardship of the people that were here before, to come out of this economic situation,” Golding said.
OU’s transition to a “Responsibility Centered Management” budget methodology is one of the ways Golding said he hopes the university will overcome its current financial struggles.
RCM will shift responsibility for funds to individual colleges, instead of a centralized distribution. The colleges will be able to use the funds they receive from tuition to pay for programs and faculty, and it will be up to them to determine how much funding programs should receive.
“The day-to-day incremental decision making ... those decisions are best made by the people that have their feet on the ground,” Golding said.
Finally, Palmer encouraged Golding to attend several events in Athens to get to know the residents. He also said he looked forward to having Golding back on the show in the future.
bv111010@ohiou.edu
