By Melissa Prentice
Arizona Daily Wildcat
The university will soon have one less vice president if the Arizona Board of Regents approves the president's appointment for the new four-year college in Pima County.
Celestino Fern ndez, who is the vice president for academic outreach and international affairs, was appointed as executive vice president and provost by Manuel Pacheco last week and is still awaiting approval by the regents on Oct. 28.
If Fern ndez is approved for the position at the new school, his position will not be refilled, Provost Paul Sypherd said.
Sypherd said the 14 departments Fern ndez oversees, which include the campus museums, Extended University, University Press and Cultural Affairs, will be redistributed between other vice presidents and vice provosts. Specific details have not been finalized, he said.
Affected departments have been asked to name which administrative areas they think should take over their duties, Fern ndez said. He will then make recommendations to Pacheco and Sypherd, who will make the final decisions.
He said he thinks that if the departments are distributed evenly, the additional duties will not be too much for the existing administrators to handle.
"If all the departments were put under one existing vice president, it would be very difficult to devote the necessary attention," he said. "However, if they are distributed evenly it can be manageable."
It is still unclear which vice presidents and vice provosts will be affected by the changes. Vice President of Student Affairs Saundra Taylor, Vice President of Business Affairs Joel Valdez, and Dean of Students Melissa Vito said they do not think they will be taking on additional duties.
Fern ndez also said, however, that he hopes eliminating his department will not lessen the focus he has tried to place on international affairs and outreach.
"The area of academic outreach and international affairs is essential to the university," he said. "I think the provost and president understand the importance and are committed to make sure some of the projects and activities we started will continue."
Peter Bermingham, the director of the Museum of Art, said although he has submitted requests to Fern ndez about where his department should be transferred, he hopes the decision not to fill the position is not final.
"I hope we can explore the possibility of reestablishing the same position," he said. "I am disappointed that a unit that worked very well together may be liquidated."
Bermingham said although he knew Fern ndez was a "prime candidate" for the position at the college, he said he was unaware until recently that the academic outreach and international affairs office would be disassembled when
Fern ndez left.
Don Burgess, the general manager at KUAT Communications who also reports to Fern ndez, said he is unsure how his department will be affected by these changes.
"We won't know what the effect with be until we know who we will report to and how many of the other departments (under Fern ndez) will report to the same person," he said.
Burgess said his is unsure if other vice presidents would have the necessary time to take on the responsibility of additional departments since they "already have a lot of people that report to them."