The finalists in the assistant vice president for academic affairs for technology search will visit campus next week, senate member James Tidwell, journalism professor and chair of the search committee, told the Faculty Senate Tuesday.

They are Michael Hoadley, director of the Center for Interactive Technologies in Education and Corporations at the University of South Dakota, David Wang, associate vice president for information technology at Emporia State University, Roy Roper, associate director of information technologies at Montclair State University in Upper Montclair, N.J., and Frank Moore, executive director of information and instructional technology at Longwood College in Farmwood, Va.

Also, Jeff Cooley, vice president for business affairs, updated the senate on the reorganization of the business affairs department.

The new plan rearranges the hierarchy so that Cooley has fewer direct reports and creates what he termed a “financial services unit.” That unit includes accounting positions and an administrative assistant.

The reorganization will also include a search for a director of Information Technology Services. The acting director, Bill Witsman, will retire at the completion of the search, whose committee, chaired by Budget Director Kim Furumo, is now forming.

Also as part of the restructuring, the print center will be combined with mail and delivery units to work toward providing desk delivery of copies, Cooley said.

A few senate members objected to creating search committees to fill business affairs positions when faculty are being forced to redistribute the same workload with fewer people after severe cuts to the university budget.

“At times we have to be vigilant, we do represent the concerns of the faculty,” said senate member Luis Clay Mendez, foreign languages professor.

Cooley explained that several positions under the director were vacant, and with recent network problems, the university could not afford to leave the director position open.

The search committee for the ITS director will begin to review applications April 1. They plan to make recommendations to Cooley. The finalists will visit Eastern between May 24 and June 3. Cooley will offer the position June 14 and the new director will take over July 1.

John Laible of the EIU Foundation spoke to the senate to explain the foundation’s duties and how they fared during a tough financial year.

The foundation, which invests donations for projects or scholarships, currently holds $36.5 million in assets, but lost 3.8 percent this year. Things have been improving, Laible said.

Blair Lord, vice president for academic affairs, is close to announcing one of two new deans, either the College of Sciences or the Lumpkin College of Business and Applied Sciences, an academic affairs officer told the senate.

In other business, the senate received an e-mail from interim President Lou Hencken with the calendars for the academic years beginning in 2003 and 2004 to gather faculty feedback.

The calendars place fall commencement on Dec. 20 in 2003 and Dec. 19 in 2004. Spring commencement falls on May 8 in 2003 and on May 7 in 2004.