Changes at the Top

This summer, Florida College is seeing a lot of changes—especially in the administration building. With the appointment of a new president, Dr. H.E. “Buddy” Payne, Jr., other faculty members are changing roles and positions in order to build a new leadership team for future.

Some changes were inevitable. Payne's former position as vice president and academic dean needed to be filled as he adopted his new role as president. Dr. Douglas Northcutt and Mr. Paul Greiving now share the vice presidency, with Northcutt acting as Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, and Greiving as Vice President of Operations. And some changes were voluntary. With Dr. Douglas Barlar returning to full-time teaching and chairmanship of the music program, Dr. Brian Crispell is now the Dean of Students.

For both Northcutt and Crispell, their new jobs are very different from their long-time teaching positions. Crispell has been teaching history full-time for nine years and helped develop the highly successful four-year Liberal Studies program. For him, teaching is “what comes most naturally.” Now, he will now be working with the students in new ways through the athletics program, the Student Body Government Association, societies, and other student groups.

“It's just a bigger classroom, in a way,” says Crispell.

The change is somewhat bittersweet for Crispell, who will miss all of his time in the classroom (though he still intends to teach a few classes each semester). Yet, it appealed to him to have the opportunity to work with more of the student population and feels like he has “the best of both worlds.”

“I knew it was a great opportunity to serve—a broader way to serve. You get the privilege to have a bigger impact,” he says.

Northcutt has been teaching biology and developing new science courses since 1996 and has chaired the four-year education program from 1998 to 2005. Now, as both Vice President and Academic Dean, he supervises all things academic—from advising to registration to faculty teaching and research. Yet, like Crispell, he feels that a large part of his role is student-centered.

“My charge is to maintain and improve the education and life experience for the students on campus,” he says. “I primarily plan to maintain what Dr. Payne has done—strong academic programs, strong academic growth in the four areas we are charged with: mental, physical, social, and spiritual.”

Even though both men have been at the College for a number of years, it still feels like starting over in many ways. Northcutt was not surprised by the learning curve—in fact, he expected it.

“[It's] a lot of little things coming very quickly—but that's what I thought it would be,” he says.

According to Crispell, even the little things feels different.

“It's just like when you move—you have boxes everywhere and your desk isn't the way you're used to having it,” he says.

But both men plan to hit the ground running with as little lag time as possible. After all, they have a school to run and lots to do before the students come back in full force this fall.

“We'll get settled in and try to get some work done as we go,” says Crispell.