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Like the physician and scientist he is, Jones determined to spend his first several weeks as the University of Mississippi’s new chancellor looking, listening and learning before recommending any significant changes in regimen.
After 100 days in his new role, Jones’ most time-consuming job has been guiding the university through the economic downturn without losing any of the momentum built in recent years, when his predecessor, Robert Khayat, worked his Rolodex and the flush times to raise dizzying amounts of money.
Even state funding – already lower per capita than at other Mississippi universities – has been lowered.
“One of my priorities is to try to assure that the university will move through this economic recession as a strong university and that our Ole Miss family, those who are part of our faculty and staff and administration, are dealt with in a fair and transparent way,” said Jones, who came to the chancellorship after several years of leading the university’s health sciences campus in Jackson.
“It’s important that we will look to the needs of our students first and foremost, then to the interests of our state, but that we’re also fair in looking at the interests of our very talented team here,” he said.
The university’s “money guy” has been gratified at his interactions with Jones.
“He’s proving to be the right person at the right time,” said Larry Sparks, vice chancellor for administration and finance. “I’ve been very pleased that in conversations of a financial nature, he’s asked the right questions.”
This isn’t Jones’ first rodeo, of course: As head of the university’s most complex branch campus, he said, “I was given the opportunity in my early days of leadership there to deal with some tough financial situations, and that’s given me some valuable experience before taking on this role.”
Jones said fundraising work now is much more about the future than about present donations.
“I’m very encouraged by the conversations I’m having. It reflects back to that depth of affection that people have for the university,” Jones said. “For those who are able to provide private support for us, I’m still seeing the clear intent for that affection to be expressed this way.”
Much of Jones’ own medical research centered on Mississippians’ high blood pressure, the worst in the nation, and he envisions such tailored research and programs throughout the university.
“This is a great public university in a state with lots of wonderful attributes,” he said. “But we have great needs economically, educationally, in health care. I believe if this university is doing all that it can and should do, not only will the university move forward, but the state of Mississippi as well.”
That message is getting through to other leaders on campus.
“He emphasizes that we should be giving back to our community and our state – really being an agent of change for Mississippi,” said Associated Student Body President Artair Rogers of Guntown. “And he’s really harped on making sure that we make Ole Miss a place for everyone.”
Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Sparky Reardon added, “I’m particularly impressed with the questions he asks; they’re … questions intended to find out what was good for students.”
Jones said that despite economic constraints, Ole Miss must continue moving forward.
“There’s a lot of pride in the momentum that the university’s achieved in the last number of years – the progress in the academic programs, the presidential debate and the external perceptions of the university improving in people’s eyes,” Jones said. “There’s not any sense of satisfaction that we have achieved or arrived, but there is a great sense of pride in the progress.”
A new Law School is scheduled to open in August 2010, with its remaining fundraising “an important priority” over the next several months. A second Residential College is also on a fast-track schedule to open next fall.
“That will be a really important asset, not only in terms of the number of beds available, but in changing the residential living experience in a very positive way,” Jones said.
The proposed Research Park is slated to be funded mostly by federal dollars.
When built, it is designed to enable private-sector enterprises to bring university-generated research to market, providing new, high-tech jobs for the region and royalties and rents that can be plowed back into the university.
“We have concrete plans to begin our first building in the not-too-distant future,” Jones said. “How fast it will be developed will depend somewhat on the economy and how fast those federal dollars can flow this way.”
Yet another brick-and-mortar possibility is a new hospital adjacent to the research park. Officials of the city of Oxford, Lafayette County and Baptist Memorial Health Care Corp. agreed in August to the construction of a new, $200 million hospital on a proposed site on Highway 7 South, but now planners are also considering locations on the 550-acre research park property across Highway 6 from the main campus.
“A fair amount of our focus and effort in the research park would be around health sciences, including our Natural Products Center and our School of Pharmacy,” Jones said. “There could be some natural alliances with a health partner in contiguous property.”
Jones graduated from medical school at the University of Mississippi and had worked on the Medical Center campus since 1992 – the last six as vice chancellor for health affairs.
It was only after he became chancellor, however, that he had ever been resident on the Oxford campus.
“The reception from the Ole Miss family, the Oxford community and the broader community in North Mississippi has been so warm toward Lydia and me, and we’re so grateful to be here,” he said.
He speaks of Ole Miss’ faculty, staff and students with a deepened respect born of first-hand knowledge.
“I think everybody recognizes we have a lot of talent here,” Jones said, adding that his visits with campus leaders, students and alumni have shown “how deep and broad the talent pool is at the university.”
The almost universal affection for Ole Miss may be less tangible, but it is no less intelligible.
“There is a loyalty and a love for this place and for this university that is difficult to explain.” Jones said. “I know every university president or chancellor would say, ‘People are loyal to this university,’ but when you cut this one deep, it’s amazing the depth of affection and loyalty for Ole Miss.”
Contact Errol Castens at (662) 281-1069 or errol.castens@djournal.com.
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