A provost should stay out of the way of faculty and let them do their jobs, says Dr. Stephen Bowen, one of five finalists for the chief academic post at Southeast Missouri State University.

A provost, he said, should encourage faculty "to try a variety of things" in their teaching efforts.

Bowen is currently vice provost for instruction at Michigan Technological University, a school of about 6,600 students in Houghton, Mich.

He visited Southeast Thursday and Friday, meeting with students, faculty and staff. He concluded his visit with an open forum Friday afternoon. About 20 faculty members attended the meeting, held in Glenn Auditorium.

Bowen said he is ready to be a provost. "I've sort of gone as far as I can go," he said of his current job.

He said he wants new challenges. He also said the Southeast job is attractive geographically. "It's a lot further south," he said.

Bowen told faculty he isn't looking for the job to be a stepping stone to a university presidency.

"I'm not hell-bent on being president," he said. "I am very interested in being a good and effective provost."

The university's River Campus project appeals to Bowen. Southeast wants to develop a school for the visual and performing arts at a former Catholic seminary in Cape Girardeau.

Bowen said the River Campus ultimately could become an artists' colony. "It is very forward looking."

He said universities like Southeast need to offer "attractive salaries." But he said there is more to attracting faculty than just the pay.

"You don't want to bring faculty to this campus who don't want to be here," said Bowen. A professor who likes New York City isn't likely to come to Cape Girardeau, he said.

Bowen said more efforts need to be made to improve student retention at Southeast.

The university, he said, is largely a commuter school. That makes it more difficult to secure institutional loyalty on the part of students, which adds to retention problems, he said.

Many college students hold down jobs while going to school. Bowen said many students aren't working to pay for school as much as they are "committed to a lush lifestyle."

Bowen, who spent 3 1/2 years teaching in South Africa, said students benefit from programs that let them learn abroad.

Bowen has been a professor of biological sciences at Michigan Technological University since 1989. He has served as vice provost for instruction since 1997.

He earned his undergraduate degree from DePauw University in 1971. He received a master's degree in zoology from Indiana University in 1973 and his doctorate degree in zoology from Rhodes University in South Africa in 1976.