University Business - June 2007 - (Page 58)

The porch and yard at the President’s House have served as the location for various special events. Harrington House, which has an attached annex used often for events, has accommodated 350 guests at a single function. CASE STUDY PRESIDENT’S HOUSE, Stetson University (Fla.) HISTORY: Built in 1910 and remodeled in 1987, the President’s House at Stetson has housed five presidential families since it was purchased in 1948. The neoclassical style home has nearly 4,500 square feet and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. LOCATION: Southern end of campus, on a U.S. highway that runs through campus. LAYOUT: 14 rooms (excluding bathrooms), plus a garage apartment and a garden pavilion. Most indoor events are held in the living and dining rooms; the upstairs rooms and main floor family room and office are private. An adjacent native plant garden will be used for entertaining while the house undergoes renovations just before President H. Douglas Lee’s spring 2009 retirement. IF WALLS COULD TALK: Lee and his wife Margaret have hosted 80 to 100 events a year at home, with up to 300 people at a single function. Besides the campus community, guests have included former First Lady Barbara Bush, former President Jimmy Carter, primatologist Jane Goodall, and author Elie Wiesel. The Lees recently bought a postretirement home, which they expect to move into just before the president’s retirement. As interior upgrades to the official residence are made, small events may occur at their new home. CASE STUDY HARRINGTON HOUSE, Clark University (Mass.) HISTORY: Clark purchased two buildings for about $250,000 in 1996. One, which had held apartments, was renovated; the other was torn down to accommodate an addition to the remaining structure—for a total of about 10,000 square feet. LOCATION: A historic area of Worcester, next to and across the street from university-owned office buildings. A change in address for the former president (who used to reside elsewhere in the city) served as a symbol of the university’s commitment to its own Main South neighborhood. As part of a revitalization plan, Clark helps faculty and staff in the purchase of homes in the neighborhood, and several have done so. LAYOUT: 14 rooms, plus a gallery hallway and a catering kitchen. Two rooms and the gallery are used as public space, three of the original house parlors are shared space, and a kitchen plus eight rooms on the second and third floors are private. SETTLING IN: John Bassett, the second Clark leader at Harrington, has lived there with his wife Kay since he assumed the presidency in 2000. Of living on campus, he says, “We realized that if we heard noises in the morning, it was probably people setting up for an alumni breakfast and not a burglar.” Realizing the need for privacy, they escape to their own residence on the shore of Massachusetts about once a month. or institutions with a house designated for the president, an incoming leader who insists on living elsewhere may wind up in political hot water. Chuck Bunting of the search firm Edward W Kelley & Partners says most presidential candidates assume an official residence is not negotiable. And executive recruiter John Kuhnle of Korn/Ferry International says he’s known of presidents who voiced a desire to live on their own—“and it cost them and their administration dearly.” That sort of request may even contribute to a shorter presidential term. Renovation requests are another frequent presidential home controversy. Despite the probable need for redecorating and refur- F CONTROVERSY OVER THE OFFICIAL RESIDENCE bishing after years of constant entertaining by a former president, new presidents who embark on a home project are perceived to be “feathering their own nest,” Kuhnle says. Enlightened boards realize that work on the home must be done prior to the new president’s arrival. “If there’s any heat, it should go to the board,” notes higher education consultant James L. Fisher. Fisher offers this example of a president taking the fall for renovations: A few years ago, a president went about half a million dollars over budget in remodeling his on-campus residence, an old mansion needing work; despite support from some campus groups, he was forced to resign by state officials. 58 | June 2007 universitybusiness.com http://universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - June 2007

Contents
College Index
Company Index
Advisory Board
Editor's Note
Virginia Tech Coverage
Sense of Place
Viewpoint
Admissions
On The Hill
Future Shock
Independent Outlook
Internet Technology
I Wanna Be Rich
Smart and Sustainable
Walking the Talk
Steering Toward Sustainability
An Organizing Principle for Colleges and Universities
News Shorts
News Shorts
It’s Not Easy Eating Green
Facilities Focus
The New Face of ERP
Document Management Across Campus
What's New
Direct Connect
Calendar of Events
End Note
Annual Directory of Higher Education Consultants

University Business - June 2007