Collegian reporter Jessica Turnbull accompanied Penn State President Graham Spanier throughout his daily activities yesterday, trailing him as he attended meetings, answered e-mails and took a break to eat lunch.
Penn State President Graham Spanier told two student magicians yesterday that he never learned to juggle until someone showed him how.
As a university president, however, Spanier has taught himself to juggle a complicated schedule, limited time, hundreds of e-mails and the needs of 90,000 students.
He does it every day, but no day is the same.
"There is no typical day," he said. "My schedule is 90 percent full."
He came into his Old Main office shortly after 9 a.m., toting what he calls "the world's largest briefcase" in hand. Reading the e-mails he received during his 10-minute drive to campus is the first order of the day. He'd already been reading and responding to e-mails for several hours before he left his presidential mansion. In between e-mailing, he carefully noted in a green notebook the mileage of the morning trip.
"Everyone watches over me to make sure I don't spend a penny incorrectly," he said, so he documents whether the trip is work-related or personal every time he gets behind the wheel.
Copies of yesterday's Centre Daily Times, The Daily Collegian and The New York
Times are spread across his desk, waiting for him, along with a packet of all the news items that refer to Penn State -- usually about 100 -- that a staff member puts together.
"I usually end up reading these at night, with the way the day goes," he said.
Over a cup of coffee, Spanier looked over the materials for yesterday's meetings and appointments, constantly shifting back to e-mails.
One of his band members in the Deacons of Dixieland sent him copies of audio recordings from a practice. Spanier is particularly proud of a song that features his chosen instrument, the washboard.
Thirty minutes after arriving, he has the first of many conversations with his executive administrative assistant, Carolyn Dolbin. Throughout the day, the pair discussed dozens of events and changes to Spanier's schedule.
The full schedule is evident by his calendar, which he coordinates with Dolbin through his computer and Blackberry. Everything is placed in the system, from a trip to Nashville for the Junior Achievement conference to a haircut at Rinaldo's Barber Shop, 107 S. Allen St.
At 10 a.m., Consul General of Israel Uriel Palti arrived in the foyer for a meeting. The two compared notes on the university systems of Israel and Pennsylvania and spent time privately discussing issues facing Israel.
Spanier then had an 11 a.m. appointment with Karen Wing, the president's executive communications writer and editor. The two are planning the State of the University Address video for the next year, and Spanier spent 45 minutes carefully editing the script.
During the morning's meetings, Spanier received several additional e-mails, which he sat down to answer before walking to Waring Commons for lunch.
Spanier said he tries to eat in one of the residence halls at least once a month to "keep his finger on the pulse" of the university. Yesterday, he was invited to sit with seven students as soon as he entered the dining commons.
Though most were timid about sharing with the university president, the students warmed to Spanier's inquiry about what the one thing is they would want to change about Penn State. The complaints ranged from parking to a lack of academic advisers to limited career resources.
DJ Gibson (sophomore-architectural engineering) said four of the students there are part of the powerlifting team, which is in serious need of more equipment.
Gibson said the gym near East Halls has been sitting unused and would be a good place for the team to practice. Over a salad and two chocolate chip cookies, Spanier responded that he would look into contacting the athletics department about getting the team access.
Ryan Grady (sophomore-business) said he finds the limited dorm bandwidth troubling, adding that he does not pirate any music or movies but still exceeds the bandwidth by using Youtube.com.
Spanier gave his business card to the students, asking them to e-mail him so he could forward their concerns to the appropriate people.
Because he lost track of time while talking with the students, he was forced to rush back to Old Main because he was late for a conference call with officials from New York University (NYU). Spanier had approached NYU President John Sexton about a partnership to provide Penn State students with summer housing while in New York City for internships or jobs.
The call laid the groundwork for an arrangement expected to begin this summer that can accommodate more than 300 students.
Spanier also presided over an hour-long conference call of the executive committee of the Association of American Universities, which he chairs. The organization is composed of 60 university presidents and deals with issues facing higher education.
Following the conference calls, Spanier met with a freshman who was looking for advice on which major to choose between English and public relations. Spanier encouraged her to take some time to get to know each major, reminding her that she had time to take classes in each area before making a choice.
As one student left Spanier's office, another two were ushered in for a meeting about an upcoming magician event they had invited Spanier to take part in.
Nathan Kepner (sophomore-education) and Chris Ruggiero (senior-earth sciences) are holding a magic show on April 25 during LateNight Penn State that will also feature Blue Sapphire P.J. Maierhofer. During the meeting, Spanier agreed to open the show with a few magic tricks. The rest of Spanier's day was scheduled to include various meetings with staff and a dinner at Triangle fraternity, 226 E. Beaver Ave. "I'm usually up until about 2 a.m.," he said.
