Visibility is a tricky thing to quantify.
Measuring how many times an individual is seen in a day or how many meaningful interactions that person takes part in throughout the course of a semester would be nearly impossible.
But it seems almost natural for the public to form an opinion about whether or not a university president is making an attempt to interact with the university and becoming the face of the “transformative learning community.”
About two weeks ago, we ran a story about Ohio University’s Board of Trustees entertaining the idea of either renovating President Roderick McDavis’ current house at 29 Park Place or building a new residence entirely.
After we ran that story, one of the first statements to come from the president read as follows: “I especially enjoy being able to walk to work, the easy interaction with faculty, students and staff and the hosting of our community at our home.”
On today’s front page, you’ll see a follow-up to that story. It turns out McDavis is the only president at a public university in Ohio that lives on campus, a fact that could change depending on the trustees’ decision.
“I don’t think it’s a big deal for the president to be living off campus,” former OU President Robert Glidden has said.
Whether it’s a big deal or not, McDavis lives here, giving him greater opportunity to interact with students, faculty and staff.
The opportunity is there, but how “visible” is McDavis?
One could argue that Ohio State University President Gordon Gee, who has been seen at parties on campus sporting his token bow tie, is at an extreme end of the visibility spectrum.
You can go ahead and decide for yourself where along the spectrum McDavis falls.
Before you decide, though, keep in mind that Gee does not live on campus. Perhaps it is a matter of effort, rather than proximity, when it comes to university presidents interacting with students, faculty and staff.
If creating your image comes down to effort, regardless of where you live, perhaps McDavis isn’t taking advantage of his inarguably unique situation.
If a donor has expressed interest in directing money toward the president’s residence, we naturally wish those funds could be geared toward a more practical and needed project around campus.
Naturally we wish the history surrounding the current president’s residence would be upheld, at least entertaining the idea that future OU presidents would utilize the current house’s location to better define their visibility, accessibility or even willingness to interact.
It doesn't matter where the president lives. Gee’s well-documented presence around Ohio State’s campus proves that. But McDavis’ lack of presence around OU’s campus, even with the advantage of living here, shows that the president is perhaps mishandling a unique opportunity — one that might soon disappear.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of The Post’s executive editors.
