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Dr. Warren Buck
at reception noting
his six years at the helm of the
University of Washington-Bothell |
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Q and A with Warren Buck
UWB chancellor returns to his intellectual
love - physics - at Montlake branch campus
Warren Buck returns to classroom teaching the end of this month
after a most successful and rewarding six years at the helm of
University of Washington-Bothell. As mentioned in this column on more
than one occasion, Chancellor Buck’s contributions to our community
have been as varied and important as those he made on the Bothell
campus.
He has worked
hard to make this community take ownership in UW-Bothell and he has made
a point of instilling in faculty, staff and students the importance of
being good members of the community that supports them. Dr. Buck will
now move to the Montlake branch of the University (as he has so
described the Seattle campus with great relish). There he will return to
teaching in what he calls “my home discipline and my intellectual
love” – physics. And, he doesn’t rule out returning to UWB as a
prof some day.
The ritual of
departure from such a high profile role can be intense when so many
friendships and memories are being acknowledged and recalled, but we
were able to entice Dr. Buck to take a few moments to engage in a
Question & Answer exercise covering a range of topics we felt would
be of interest to our readers as well as to those of the campus
newspaper, The Commons. (At this point, it is important that I
disclose with pride that the editor of the student newspaper this term
is son Wally, in his first UWB year in pursuit of an education degree
and teaching certification after gaining a degree at co-located Cascadia
Community College).
The questions
are ours; the answers are from Warren Buck:
Q: What do you consider to be the most important
accomplishment or your most important personal moment the past six years
at UW Bothell?
Buck: There
are two accomplishments that I believe are the important ones. First,
there is the physical building of our new campus and the move from our
old. Establishing a permanent home for UWB is the most important issue I
know as it stabilizes what students think of us as well as it builds a
community in support of UWB. Secondly, the state of Washington required
that we co-locate with Cascadia. Six years ago when I arrived, that
co-location was resisted by many and thought to be a losing proposition
by many more. We, at UWB, worked hard with Cascadia to help birth it as
well as make the co-location something the community can be proud of.
The most
important personal moment for me was realizing just how many people
really cared about and believed in me and my leadership. This moment
occurred at a recent reception in my honor.
(JBH notes:
Seldom a man lost for words, Chancellor Buck was so moved by the
outpouring of appreciation by colleagues and community leaders at this
reception, his response was limited to “all I can say is thank you and
you’ll just have to know how big that Thank You is right now.”
Q. What do
you recall as your fondest moment while at UWB?
Buck: There
are so many fond moments I remember here at UWB and, so, it is difficult
to pull out just one. One was the moment I realized we could give
faculty a much needed raise – a sigh of relief and gratitude to our
accounting staff. Another moment was the graduation of an 80-year-old
woman who had always wanted to return to receive a degree. Her eyes were
bright and sparkly; and , for me to see straight into her eyes like that
is a moment I shall never forget.
Q. Is there
anything or a moment that you would have changed at UWB?
Buck: No.
There is really nothing I would change. Though, if I could have drummed
up even more energy to help UWB, I would have.
Q: What role
do you see “diversity” having in classes at UWB?
Buck: This
cannot be understated in any way. Diversity and inclusiveness play
critical roles in our ability to provide our students with a variety of
ways to thinking and living. To better grow a community, which is our
business in education, particularly in higher education, we need
students who have good understandings of our cultural
makeup. Diversity/inclusion also sharpens not only our students’
awareness but our faculty, staff and community.
Q. How
important is it that students have a culturally diverse faculty from
which to learn?
Buck: To
provide such learning environments as I mention above, having role
models and faculty with a plethora of experiences gives the classroom a
rich feel that no text or set of notes can ever reproduce.
Q. What do
you consider the most challenging opportunity for UWB the next six
years?
Buck: Combining
the successful upper division instruction and environment with the
newer, and younger, lower division student environment is absolutely
necessary. The challenge is big. The campus will have to mix 28- and
30-year-olds returning adult students with 17- to 20-year-old freshmen
just out of high school. While the lower division (freshmen and
sophomores) number will be less than 10 per cent of the existing student
body, the impact will not be small. When we first moved to our new
campus, there were age cultural barriers to overcome with the
co-location. It was not easy but it was done with earnest, good
planning, and careful monitoring. This present challenge of adding a
lower division (for the first time beginning in 2006) will be met
similarly.
Q. What will
your role be at the Montlake branch when you return to teaching?
Buck: I
will be a full professor with an office in the Department of Physics –
my home discipline and my intellectual love. I will teach and mentor
there. In a couple of years, after the new chancellor of UWB is in place
for a while, I would like to teach a physics course or two at UWB where
now there are no such courses.
Q. If you
had a message for the students as you leave UWB what would that be?
Buck: Believe
in yourself, ask for advice and help, learn new ways of thinking and
obtain new intellectual tools for application; but, above all, believe
in yourself.
Finally, we
asked what he would like to find in the person who next assumes the role
of UWB chancellor. His response: “A person who knows the students –
who eats with them, who speaks with them on campus, who cares about
their well being, and who works with them whenever it is needed.”
What better
legacy could there be?
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