At the March 20 DSD Senate meeting, University President David Dockery discussed highlights of the past academic year, including the fact that StateUniversity.com ranked Union University No. 1 among the nation’s Baptist universities in 2012.
More than 150 students attended Dockery’s annual Senate address.
Dockery also mentioned that Union placed fourth this year in Tennessee’s top 40 schools and third in Council for Christian Colleges and Universities institutions of 500 to more than 10,000 students, which includes 150 schools.
Dockery said some fiscal changes on campus include a 4 percent increase in tuition this year, equivalent to $610, the smallest tuition increase on record.
Also room and board will be free again in the upcoming winter term.
Dockery also explained his transition from president to chancellor, saying that in fall 2013, a pool of candidates will be chosen. In December the committee plans to elect Union’s 16th president.
He said in an interview that the presidential search committee plans to release a position profile in April.
“I think that document will state well the characteristics that will be most highly valued as the committee members do their work,” he said. “I will not be involved in trying to name my successor, though I will pray for and help the search committee in any way that I can.”
Norm Hill, chairman of the search committee and chairman of the Board of Trustees, invited the student body to pray and fast for Dockery and the search for a new university president.
The presidential search committee attended the meeting.
Regarding the 2013 school year, Dockery also mentioned the following:
- Almost all faculty and staff will receive “modest” raises, replacement positions will be filled and insurance and utility increases will go into effect.
- The class of 2013 will be the largest graduating class in Union’s history.
- Union has recently undertaken a series of accreditation processes, some of which involve the Department of Business and the NCAA Division II transition process. A recent NCAA visit took place on campus, he said, marking the halfway point of Union’s two-year accreditation process as it moves up from NCCAA-level sports to the NCAA.
After the meeting, Kylie McDonald, senior political science major and former executive SGA president, praised Dockery for his sensitivity to allowing the next president to begin executing his agenda.
“[Dockery] is a phenomenal president, and yet he is choosing to step back to humbly allow the next president to be successful in this position,” McDonald said. “I think that says a lot about him.”
