A change to the Pavilion Assignment policy at last month's Board of Visitor's meeting would enable Bob Sweeney, senior vice president for development and public affairs, to reside in one of pavilions soon eligible for reassignment. Various members of the University community have reported that Sweeney recently emerged as a potential candidate for pavilion residency. The potential selection of Sweeney to fill the vacancy has been received with some criticism because his position does not require direct interaction with students.
The policy change removed the position of vice president of health affairs from the list of those eligible to be considered for a pavilion, replacing it with any vice president nominated by President John T. Casteen, III and approved by the Board, according to Alexander Gilliam, secretary of the Board and chair of the Pavilion Selection Committee.
Gilliam said he "had heard some indication that Bob Sweeney was interested in living on the Lawn and that there was interest on the Board," prior to the policy change.
He also indicated that Casteen seemed to express interest in seeing Sweeney on the Lawn.
"At any given time, I have several names of persons who have expressed interest [in living on the Lawn], and I pass them along to the Board's Secretary, who prepares materials for the Board," Casteen said in an e-mail. "When asked, I explain whatever arguments pro and con make best sense to me."
Board of Visitors Rector Thomas Farrell, III said the policy change was made to increase the Board's flexibility when choosing a person to fill a pavilion vacancy.
"We didn't consider [the change] in terms of any particular individual," Farrell said.
Pavilion assignment process
Casteen said Sweeney would be a good candidate to live on the Lawn because of his role in fundraising events.
"We make regular use of central Grounds locations for functions related to fundraising, and we expect [Sweeney] to host or attend most of them," he said. "Carr's Hill is seriously overworked, and has been unavailable during peak periods for the last three years, a problem that will continue for at least another three years."
In addition to Sweeney, theselection committee will look at other possible candidates to fill Pavilion VI, currently occupied by Robert Carey, former dean of the Medical School.
According to Gilliam, the selection committee consists of himself, Ross Baird, as the current Gray-Carrington scholarship recipient, Kenneth Schwartz, chair of the Faculty Senate, and Lucy Russell, who is filling in for Laura Hawthorne, assistant to the provost.
Gilliam explained the hierarchy used by the Board to determine pavilion assignments. The provost is the position first considered for a pavilion when a vacancy arises, followed by the vice president for student affairs. Then, the deans of the different schools are to be considered in order of when each school was established, oldest to newest. The recent change gives other vice presidents nominated by Casteen priority over deans.
Upon hearing the recommendation of the selection committee, the Board's executive committee will make the assignment in executive session, Gilliam said.
Pavilions are granted for five years with one possible five-year extension, he said.
Carey said he is building a house in the area and will no longer be living in Pavilion VI after this summer. One of Cary's neighbors will also soon be leaving the Lawn -- Provost Gene Block's term ends this summer.
A teaching tradition
Being a good faculty Lawn resident "should include counseling, mentoring and engaging in academic discussion with students and having them in the home," Carey said. "Most of us who are on the Lawn now participate in Lawn events where residents come. We have several classes that go on in our pavilions, and that type of thing should foster a sense of collegiality."
While both Casteen and Gilliam discuss the variety of purposes for which pavilions have been used in the past, several current pavilion residents stress the interaction of students and faculty as the Lawn's main function.
Nursing School Dean Jeanette Lancaster, having lived on the Lawn since 1991 in Pavilion II, offers a unique perspective on the matter.
"Historically, the pavilions have been allocated to people with considerable involvement in the academic mission of the University -- the vice president of student affairs, provost or a dean," Lancaster said.
Wayne Cozart, director of alumni affairs and current Pavilion III resident, echoed these sentiments.
"Since I came to the University [in 1979], I've always believed it was extremely valuable for faculty to be present on the Lawn to interact with students," he said.
Though Sweeney is not a member of the University's academic faculty, he said he has "been as active as anyone."
Sweeney said his role in the Capital Campaign is to articulate the University's vision of the future, which he said enables him to be an active part of the University community.
He added that he has worked closely with the provost to carry out the goals of the Capital Campaign.
Sweeney said he hopes to be viewed "not just as a fundraiser, but as an institutional leader who has partnered with the academic area more than any development officer in the country."
Casteen said Sweeney and his wife, if asked by the Board to reside on the Lawn, would be an asset to the University community.
"They would have daily interaction with students and faculty members, and their guests, here to see how the University functions, would have the benefit of knowing and interacting with students," Casteen said.
Schwartz, as a professor in the Architecture school, emphasized the importance of the faculty-student dynamic of life on the Lawn.
"Faculty members throughout the University have a great deal of respect for the concept of academics occupying the pavilions," he said, adding that the pavilions become "a mixing bowl of two groups -- students and faculty -- to encounter one another inside and outside the classroom."
Jefferson's vision?
Schwartz added that "faculty members have used the pavilions for any number of activities, ranging from traditional classes to discussions relating to the future of the University."
A noted current exception to having academic faculty on the Lawn is Pat Lampkin, vice president for student affairs and current Pavilion III resident. Schwartz said the inclusion of Lampkin makes sense to him because her role is "central in the lives of students."
Ross Baird, fourth-year College student and the sole student member of the Pavilion Selection Committee, also discussed the unique place of teaching faculty on the Lawn.
"While there's no doubt that Mr. Sweeney's service to the University has been outstanding, and he will be a good neighbor, Jefferson meant the Lawn to be for teaching faculty," Baird said. "Throughout the process, we have discussed how the best pavilion residents are involved with students and the academic mission of the University daily."
Politics Prof. Larry Sabato also noted the role that faculty play in Jefferson's initial vision for the Lawn community.
"We don't get to pick our neighbors over here, nor should we," Sabato said, a resident of Pavilion IV. "That's the prerogative of the president and the Board of Visitors. But the students have a point, and Jefferson wanted teaching faculty, which today includes deans, to be the primary pavilion residents in his Academical Village. I hope the BOV will consider this when making future pavilion assignments."
In response to critics who claim that having Sweeney on the Lawn defies Jefferson's vision of an academical village fostering student-faculty interaction, Casteen stated in an e-mail "I would invite them to learn Jefferson and to learn some logic," and urged critics to "look at intervening history and usage, and write whatever letter or op-ed piece they might want to write. I don't debate anyone's notions about what TJ might think about anything."
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