Out on a Limb

Abstract

While many homeowners associate horticulture with lawns and shrubs, Auburn student Summer Thaxton is getting a different perspective on the profession, which also includes promoting the health of trees. The sophomore from Madison was one of several students recently scaling the large oaks along College Street beside Draughon Library as part of a class taught by Department of Horticulture member Matt Wilson with assistance from Steve Nagy of Davey Tree Experts. For another view, see page 4. Auburn faculty will vote electronically from March 5-9 for a chair-elect and a secretary-elect of the University Faculty and its representative body, the University Senate. Candidates for chair-elect are Claire Crutchley of Finance and Larry Molt of Communication Disorders, and candidates for secretary-elect are Russell Muntifering of Animal Sciences and David Shannon of Educational Foundations, Leadership and Technology. Three of the four — Crutchley, Muntifering and Shannon — submitted statements presenting their thoughts on the university and faculty governance, and those statements are on pages 4 and 5 of this edition of the Auburn Report. The statements will also be posted, along with information about voting, at the University Senate Web site (and Allied Aquacultures will succeed Sue Barry of Curriculum and Teaching as secretary for 2009-10. The new chair-elect and secretary-elect will assist Flynn and DeVries, respectively , for one year and will succeed them in March 2010. After leaving office as chair of the University Senate on March 10, Locy will serve for a year as faculty adviser to the Board of Trustees, succeeding 2007-08 Faculty Chair David Cicci of Aerospace Engineering in that position. The candidates for chair-elect and secretary-elect were nominated by a committee of three former Senate chairs, two former Senate secretaries and a faculty senator whose term expires this year. Chair-elect candidate Crutchley has been a faculty member in the College of Business since 1989 and an associate professor in the college since 1996. She holds a Ph.D. in finance from Virginia Tech and is an authority in corporate finance, corporate governance and in sustainability and finance. Crutchley has served on the University Senate since 2005 and is a former member of the University Graduate Council. She serves on the Senate's Steering Committee, the University Sustainability Initiative and the College of Business Undergraduate Programs Committee. Past service includes committees on faculty salaries, rules and budget advisory. Chair-elect candidate Molt is a professor and former chair of the …