Dear President Parsons and Vice Presidents Nerger, Miranda, and Hanlon,

We are writing to bring the urgent matter of the Clark remodel to your attention.  Since the original plans to “transform” the Clark building have given way to some work on Clark A, demolition of Clark B (replaced with a new building), and not much work on Clark C, there is considerable uncertainty about how these plans will actually unfold.

Two aspects of this are of particular and urgent concern:

1.    The revised plans leave Clark C as a building that is grossly inadequate for fulfilling the academic mission of the university.

2.    There is no comprehensive plan to deal with the 3+ years of disruption to faculty, staff, and students who are scheduled to be displaced from Clark B in preparation for its demolition.

Specific concerns vary between faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students.  Matters that have been raised include the following:

·       CSU Liberal Arts departments have worked hard to maintain, and in some cases, even add majors, during a period of national decline. Much of this success can be attributed to building a sense of community among students, faculty and staff. Being scattered for three plus years will have a devastating impact on our efforts to increase Liberal Arts majors and further the importance of the liberal arts in mission of the university.

·       Faculty have significant responsibilities in teaching, research, and service. Having access to materials, technology, and other resources that will allow them to be successful in meeting the expectations of the university is critical to the overall mission of CSU.

·       Junior faculty, in particular, are concerned about potential negative effects on research productivity and progress towards tenure.

·       Graduate and undergraduate teaching assistants are a vital part of most departments. Without a centralized space, these important relationships will be in jeopardy.

·       Recruitment of quality graduate students will suffer if departments are scattered and lack a cohesive space. Two generations of Master’s and PhD students will lack a departmental “home” during the construction of the new building.

·       Beyond the displacement phase of the project, the new building has no room for growth which limits what departments can do going forward.

There are no plans for replacing the C-Wing of Clark which currently houses four departments and CLA advisors, all in suboptimal conditions. The financial and logistical challenges of the “revised” renovation of Clark are such that the project requires the institutional commitment of the central administration. This goes beyond the College of Liberal Arts as the ramifications of the project will be felt at the university level.  Although CLA departments are the primary inhabitants of the Clark building, the building services just about every undergraduate student at CSU at some point in their time at the university.

We are requesting the support (financial and logistical) as well as the active involvement of the central administration in the Clark renovation.  Given what little has been communicated about plans for accommodating faculty, staff, and students– in both the B and C wings – this request is urgent.