James C. Garland
Encyclopedia
Dr. James C. Garland is a physicist
, author and professor, and the former 20th President of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio.
Garland was educated at Princeton University
(BA) and Cornell Univ.
(PhD), in the field of condensed matter physics
, and was an N.S.F Postdoctoral Fellow at the :University of Cambridge. He has written more than 100 research papers, and is the author of Saving Alma Mater: A Rescue Plan for America's Public Universities, in which he advances changes in public university funding. He is now a Miami University President Emeritus.
In 1991, Garland wrote a booklet on the art of teaching physics.
benchmarking
and best practice
, and led Miami in a significant capital improvement
and construction program. Endowments doubled, and student applications increased by sixty percent.
He equalized in-state and out-of-state tuition fees and provided scholarships for Ohio students based on need. In 2004, Miami became the first Ohio public university
to offer students domestic partner benefits, while Garland publicly criticized the Ohio Issue 1
amendment to the State Constitution that defined the status of non-marriage relationships.
In 1999, Garland recommended to the Miami's board of trustees that four men's sports should cease to be supported to fulfil the university's legal obligation under Title IX
; due to financial constraint he thought it difficult to meet gender equity without such cuts. A court action
in the United States Court of Appeals
was brought against Miami University in 2002 by Miami's sports clubs, claiming the cuts constituted gender discrimination; the action failed.
Garland completed his tenure as Miami President in 2006.
Garland's views were acknowledged in the New York Times. He spoke on topics raised in Saving Alma Mater at the University of Cincinnati
, In the light of the book, he spoke to Pittsburgh Tribune Review about financial concerns at Penn State University, He told of his criticism of what he saw as the mismanagement of campuses to The Washington Post
, and in 2005, before the book was published, he expressed some of the same ideas to the same newspaper.
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
, author and professor, and the former 20th President of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio.
Garland was educated at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
(BA) and Cornell Univ.
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
(PhD), in the field of condensed matter physics
Condensed matter physics
Condensed matter physics deals with the physical properties of condensed phases of matter. These properties appear when a number of atoms at the supramolecular and macromolecular scale interact strongly and adhere to each other or are otherwise highly concentrated in a system. The most familiar...
, and was an N.S.F Postdoctoral Fellow at the :University of Cambridge. He has written more than 100 research papers, and is the author of Saving Alma Mater: A Rescue Plan for America's Public Universities, in which he advances changes in public university funding. He is now a Miami University President Emeritus.
Ohio State University
From 1970 to 1996 Garland taught at The Ohio State University as a physics professor. He became Ohio State’s Graduate and Research Studies acting Vice President, Materials Research Laboratory director, Department of Physics chairperson, dean of the College of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, and its dean of Arts and Sciences.In 1991, Garland wrote a booklet on the art of teaching physics.
Miami University, Oxford, OH
Garland became the President of Miami University in 1996. In 2002, his stated aim was to make Miami the "First in 2009", the University’s bicentennial year. To achieve this status, he developed a strategy to raise intellectual quality and apply quantitativeQuantitative property
A quantitative property is one that exists in a range of magnitudes, and can therefore be measured with a number. Measurements of any particular quantitative property are expressed as a specific quantity, referred to as a unit, multiplied by a number. Examples of physical quantities are distance,...
benchmarking
Benchmarking
Benchmarking is the process of comparing one's business processes and performance metrics to industry bests and/or best practices from other industries. Dimensions typically measured are quality, time and cost...
and best practice
Best practice
A best practice is a method or technique that has consistently shown results superior to those achieved with other means, and that is used as a benchmark...
, and led Miami in a significant capital improvement
Capital Improvement Plan
A Capital Improvement Plan , or CIP, is a short-range plan, usually four to ten years, which identifies capital projects and equipment purchases, provides a planning schedule and identifies options for financing the plan...
and construction program. Endowments doubled, and student applications increased by sixty percent.
He equalized in-state and out-of-state tuition fees and provided scholarships for Ohio students based on need. In 2004, Miami became the first Ohio public university
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...
to offer students domestic partner benefits, while Garland publicly criticized the Ohio Issue 1
Ohio State Issue 1 (2004)
Ohio State Issue 1 of 2004, is a ballot measure that amended the Ohio Constitution to make it unconstitutional for the state to recognize or perform same-sex marriages or civil unions...
amendment to the State Constitution that defined the status of non-marriage relationships.
In 1999, Garland recommended to the Miami's board of trustees that four men's sports should cease to be supported to fulfil the university's legal obligation under Title IX
Title IX
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is a United States law, enacted on June 23, 1972, that amended Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 2002 it was renamed the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act, in honor of its principal author Congresswoman Mink, but is most...
; due to financial constraint he thought it difficult to meet gender equity without such cuts. A court action
Class action
In law, a class action, a class suit, or a representative action is a form of lawsuit in which a large group of people collectively bring a claim to court and/or in which a class of defendants is being sued...
in the United States Court of Appeals
United States court of appeals
The United States courts of appeals are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal court system...
was brought against Miami University in 2002 by Miami's sports clubs, claiming the cuts constituted gender discrimination; the action failed.
Garland completed his tenure as Miami President in 2006.
Saving Alma Mater
In 2009, Garland expounded his views on the state of higher education in public universities in his book Saving Alma Mater: A Rescue Plan for America's Public Universities. In an interview with Inside Higher Education in October 2009, where he presents public university education as vital but in need of change to survive successfully, he talks of four main areas of change that need to be addressed:- He sees public universities becoming autonomous through deregulation, run by independent trustees who decide educational and financial policies.
- He argues that taxpayers' money should support less-well-off students through scholarships, not subsidize campuses; higher income students would pay more, lower income less. Best value schools would prosper and overall student numbers would rise. Research, low-enrollment, and vital programs would be protected.
- He sees university personnel cost as being the largest area of budget. Efficiency should be increased through voluntary financial incentives, and reducing committee sizes and numbers.
- He believes that candidate selection of senior administrators, presidents and chancellors by search committees and vested interests is inefficient and ineffective, and should operate more like private-sector universities. He also argues that state governors who typically appoint trustees should be educated about how to select qualified and effective candidates.
Garland's views were acknowledged in the New York Times. He spoke on topics raised in Saving Alma Mater at the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
, In the light of the book, he spoke to Pittsburgh Tribune Review about financial concerns at Penn State University, He told of his criticism of what he saw as the mismanagement of campuses to The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, and in 2005, before the book was published, he expressed some of the same ideas to the same newspaper.
External links
- Excepts from Saving Alma Mater University of Chicago Press., retrieved 16 March 2011;
- Miami University, Oxford OH. web site, retrieved 15 March 2011;
- Ohio State Uviversity web site, retrieved 15 March 2011.