“This institution is not going to close. This institution is not going to merge,” Dr. James Borsig told a group of civic leaders about Mississippi University for Women this morning.
Borsig, the preferred choice to be the next president of MUW, spoke those words at a breakfast meeting, the first of a gauntlet of campus gatherings he will attend today.
The presumed president spoke fluently and knowledgeably on a range of topics during the 45-minute meeting.
“I know there is a perception that somebody back there is working on this,” Borsig said in answer to the question about closure or merger posed by Ceco Building Systems President Roger Burlingame.
There is neither the political will, nor does it make sense, Borsig argued.
“It’s practically a private university experience at a public university cost,” he said.
Borsig’s remarks revealed an understanding and empathy for the university he is expected to head.
“No one is going to abandon the historic women’s mission,” Borsig said. “The women’s mission is important, but it doesn’t have to be our only mission.”
Borsig noted how the school has changed, citing the number of women between 25 and 64 who have some college but not a terminal degree and that half the student population of the state’s colleges comes from community college transfers.
“We’ve got to figure out our markets.,” he said. “The institution is much different than it was 30 years ago.”
Borsig noted that The W was created for an underserved population.
“It’s deep in the DNA of this institution to serve an underserved population,” he said.
“I don’t mean to stand up here and tell you I have a plan,” he told the group. “I have a lot of questions.”
Answering a question about campus athletics posed by City Councilman Charlie Box, Borsig allowed that reinstitution of sports could be a good thing.
“I think athletics is a way to recruit men and women. It’s expensive, but we should look at it. We’ve got to have a rich campus experience.
“I’m not afraid of a conversation that is messy.”
Borsig said he has been reading a lot of books on presidents and that the job of presidents is transformation.
“The trick is knowing when to transform and when to steward,” he said.
As will be the case throughout the day, those attending were asked to fill in questionnaires to evaluate Borsig.
Those evaluations will be passed on to the state College Board, which meets at Cochran Hall on The W campus at 1:30 this afternoon. An announcement will follow the meeting, at about 3:30 p.m., in the Cochran Ballroom. The board will either announce Borsig as the next MUW president or continue the search.
“He was very articulate,” MUW alumna Jackie DiCicco said afterward. “He seems so comfortable here; he seems to embrace the school.”
“He’s a very impressive man,” said Box. “Good man. Hire him. I think he will take us to another level.”
Birney Imes III is the immediate past publisher of The Dispatch.
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Related Photos
Phillip Cockrell, left, greets Borsig during a community leaders breakfast on the MUW campus this morning. Borsig will meet with MUW students, staff, faculty and alumni, as well as community members, throughout the day. Photo by: Chris Jenkins
Borsig speaks with Thomas Nawrocki, MUW art professor Wednesday at Chocran Hall. Photo by: Kelly Tippett
