Education: Doctorate in higher education administration from USC; master’s degree from The Citadel in educational administration

Experience: Interim chancellor, July1–Dec. 21, 2000; chancellor for administration, 1998–2000; associate chancellor for enrollment services and institutional planning, 1995–1998; associate chancellor for planning and administration, 1994–1995; associate chancellor for external programs and administration, 1990–1994; associate chancellor for administration, 1988–1990; associate chancellor for business affairs, 1986–1988; assistant to the chancellor for business affairs, 1984–1986; assistant to the chancellor for administration and external relations, 1983–1984

When Tom Hallman became USC Aiken’s interim chancellor last summer, he began talking to faculty and staff about their expectations for the campus.

Those initial conversations became a broader series of "grapevine meetings" in the fall where faculty and staff members met to talk about the campus’ needs and priorities. Named chancellor in December, Hallman is now addressing topics such as changing demographics and student expectations that came up in the meetings.

"It was a great opportunity to hear what people had on their minds and what their concerns were," said Hallman, who started at USC Aiken in 1983 as assistant to the chancellor for administration and external relations. "It has been a very, very valuable process for me. Without a doubt, it’s been worthwhile for me to know where people are coming from.

"Changing demographics surfaced as a major topic during the grapevine conversations. USC Aiken’s minority population has grown, making up about 24 percent of the student body, Hallman said.

"While we have grown in our percentage of minority faculty, we still have a ways to go there," he said, "and we want to recognize that having a faculty and staff that mirror the makeup of our student body is a desirable thing."

While the minority population has increased, the number of nontraditional students–25 years old or older–on campus has decreased from a high of about 40 percent 10 or 12 years ago to about 25 percent today. That percentage probably will go a little lower, Hallman added.

"We now have more 18—24 years olds on campus. We also now own the student housing complex, and it puts some unique demands on us," he said. "As long as we thought we were a commuter campus with people with families and jobs, our programming went one direction, but now that we see ourselves with more of a traditional college population, we have to be aware of that.

"As the makeup of our student body changes–and it has changed significantly–we need to be constantly testing to be sure that policies and practices are still appropriate for the students we’re now serving."

Helping students make a successful transition to college life and meeting their expectations are other topics faculty and staff brought up during the grapevine sessions.

"We have the most qualified student body in the history of the institution," Hallman said, "but there are still some shortcomings in terms of how well we communicate what college life is all about.

"If we admit people whom we believe have the potential to be successful, we need to figure out ways to make sure that more and more of them are successful without depending solely upon the historic measures of poor grades and poor performance. We need to be more closely engaged with our students in the pursuit of success."

Hallman doesn’t anticipate any significant changes in USC Aiken’s academic programs. Some additions may include new degree programs leading to certification in middle school education and special education in the School of Education and a collaborative master of educational technology degree with the College of Education on the Columbia campus.

"We believe that our mission is to prepare people for a rapidly changing global society in a liberal arts and sciences context," Hallman said. "We’re constantly checking to see that our general education program is meeting the expectations we have for it.

"Our degree programs have very fine assessment activities underway, and our professional schools are all nationally accredited."

USC Aiken’s physical campus grew significantly during the past 20 years, and Hallman said he expects that growth to continue with the construction of a proposed $17 million convocation center. The center, which will seat 4,000—5,000, will be the first development on new campus property across the Robert Bell Parkway.

A combination of state and private money will fund the center. Construction could begin as early as next fall.

"We don’t have a place where we can gather the entire campus easily. Our commencements are ticketed events because we can’t seat everyone who wants to come," Hallman said. "Our athletic teams are playing in a facility that was designed for a student body of about 1,000. We’re three times that now. Also, the community has need for a large assembly facility.

"We believe the convocation center will serve a multitude of purposes–instruction, academic, and community service–and will be a large contributor to the success of our area."

Hallman said the key to USC Aiken’s continued success is its size, allowing faculty, staff, and students to relate to one another individually.

"The grapevine sessions that I talked about earlier—the participatory planning process—would be considerably harder to do on a larger campus," Hallman said.

"I think our campus has staked out some territory in terms of its size. To the degree that we can build on that asset, we will be successful."