Eastern’s educational reputation made the dean for the College of Arts and Humanities a desirable position to Steven Brown, the second candidate to visit campus to interview for the position.

“Eastern Illinois has had a strong academic reputation for many years,” Brown said. “I’m particularly taken with a number of the academic centers and programs you have there.”

An open interview for campus members will be held at 4 p.m. in Room 4440 of Booth Library.

Brown currently serves as the dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Emporia State University in Emporia, Kan. He has spent most of his career as a music professor and later as department chair.

“I would bring a strong level of experience from an academic environment,” Brown said.

Moving up the higher education ranks has disadvantages, according to Brown.

“We (administrators) got in education because we love interacting with students,” he said. “When you get into being a dean, vice president or president you lose a lot of those opportunities.”

While he may not have the same daily interactions with students, Brown’s faith in a solid liberal arts education has not shaken.

“We need to emphasize the importance of general education,” he said. “A college education is valuable in and of itself. We don’t prepare students for specific vocations, so it’s a difficult time for arts and humanities.”

Higher education overall is going through a difficult financial period in general, a fact not lost on Brown.

“These are extraordinarily difficult times in higher education across the country,” he said. “We seem to be sending money to the state; it should be the other way around. It is challenging for universities to do more with less.”

One particular way Brown thinks a university can do more with less is through interdisciplinary curriculum.

“We need to look for ways not to constrain ourselves to small little pigeonholes,” he said.

Sarah Ruholl can be reached at 581-7942 or seruholl2@eiu.edu.