ON BEING OPEN AND FORTHRIGHT

Southeast Missouri State University's president, Dr. Dale Nitzschke, continues to impress observers with his forthright, open approach to even the most difficult issues facing the university. The latest example is his release of the results of two independent surveys of faculty morale. In a nutshell, it is bad.

On many issues, the surveys showed faculty morale to be worse than the national average for four-year public universities. Trust between faculty and administration has broken down in recent years. At odds over merit pay, many faculty members are deeply disillusioned. Still, says the Faculty Senate president, Dr. David Naugler, speaking of Nitzschke, "I think he has a difficult job, but one that he may well pull off."

What strikes us as remarkable is that Dr. Nitzschke would come right in and release data of this sensitivity. Many leaders in higher education would have counseled against such disclosure. Nitzschke's decision to release bespeaks an open management style that is refreshing. It is also recognizable as perhaps the first step in reversing the decline in morale revealed in the surveys.