Vela, Hoskisson and Brittain share duties
Since students, faculty and staff have sprung into the spring semester at Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK) they have been without a Provost. With the previous retirement of former interim Provost Dr. Jaya Goswami, TAMUK has been in search of a new Provost to take her place.
In the meantime, filling in for this position is Dr. Darin Hoskisson, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, and Martin Brittain, Assistant Provost, alongside Dr. Robert Vela, TAMUK President, who have begun sharing these administrative duties together.
The role of a provost, also known as Chief Academic Officer, works closely amongst all deans and all academic programs to provide support for a successful campus.
Since Goswami retired the process is different.
“Deans are meeting with the president. The deans already have a lot of academic leadership over the colleges, they do a very good job of that. Typically, they would work with the provost if they had concerns or issues to address, so when that comes up, they will talk to the president,” Hoskisson said.
Although there is no provost, Dr. Natalya Delcoure, dean of College of Business Administration, said there is more open communication to express their opinions to the president.
“It is really exciting because it gives us an opportunity to get to know Dr. Vela closer and understand his leadership style,” she said.
Delcoure believes that the bond between the president and the deans is stronger than before.
While Vela oversees the deans, Hoskisson and Brittain are responsible for other academic programs.
“In terms of overseeing the budget out of academic affairs that is largely done by Mr. Brittain. There are a few other divisions that belong to academic affairs besides the colleges, things like the library, our distance education area, which work with me, graduate studies and research that would typically report to the provost but in this interim, they are working with me,” Hoskisson said.
Hoskisson further said Vela, Brittain and he all meet regularly to discuss any concerns that may arise.
“We communicate that way when things come up, we meet and discuss if there’s issues that need to be resolved then we will discuss that then,” Hoskisson said.
While the role of a provost is being handled by Vela, Hoskisson and Brittain, TAMUK expects the role to be filled this coming summer.
The candidate must have a passion for TAMUK’s mission as a public research university and a commitment to its role as a pioneering Hispanic-Serving Institution, Vela said.
The role of provost first became vacant when Dr. Lou Reinisch’s was replaced by Goswami in early fall of last year.
Reinisch served in the positions for two years.
“The next provost should be a strategic, collaborative leader who utilizes data to make decisions and help plan the future for TAMUK,” Vela said.
