Spring Break
Business affairs candidate took winding path to higher education
Kirby will interview on campus for the position
Krystal Moya / Administration Editor
Issue date: 2/16/09 Section: News
Patrick Kirby did not follow steppingstones to find his way to Eastern's door as a candidate for the vice president for business affairs position.
Rather, he took random forks and unmarked paths to find himself standing in the top three of 39 applicants for a position that has the responsibility of overseeing almost every fiscal property of the university.
"I found myself in higher education almost by accident," Kirby explained. "And, almost by accident, I stumbled across Eastern's position."
Kirby, a high school dropout, 20-year career Army soldier turned college graduate and financial expert for defense contracts, took a turn into higher education administration after hearing Nancy Harrington, president of Salem State College in Salem, Mass., speak at a seminar.
"She inspired me to venture into the realm of higher education," he said. "At the age of 37, I retooled myself to a mind focused on financial management … and I entered the world of higher education not as an administrator, but as a financial professional."
But Kirby, who works as the associate vice president of financial affairs for St. Edwards University in Austin, Texas, does not center his interest in the position on just finances. He also puts an extreme focus on collaboration and communication throughout the university.
"My vision of this position is not one where the person comes in with a heavy agenda as to what they want to do. I don't have any intention of entering tomorrow's interviews with a premier agenda in my head," Kirby said. "I firmly believe that in a university setting, we are not here to further our own agendas, rather we need to get down to our grassroots and communicate with the most steadfast of our constituents — students, faculty and staff."
Kirby said he does not "want to pretend" he has a full grasp on the issues that face Eastern in the interviews tomorrow.
"It is kind of like looking at a family," he explained. "You can look at the family and see what they are about, but if you are inside the family it is a whole different story."
Kirby, however, does believe there has been too much emphasis on cutting facilities planning. Eastern's deferred maintenance problem, which amounts to more than $90 million in delayed costs on renewal and renovation projects, is something that needs to be remedied, he said.
"When you are in a financial crisis, like the one we are in, it is easy to look at the physical plant and buildings and cut from there, but we need to step away from that," he said.
He also believes that through consolidation, streamlining and collaborative efforts, the university can solve its fiscal predicaments.
"Now is the time, in my view, when the finances are really tough and there is a lot of pressure to cut, that we have to create capacity," Kirby said. "We have to ask the question, 'What is it that we have and how can we do more with less?'
"Some people say that this is a rose-colored view that isn't possible. Well, I say no it's not. The more a campus is forced to power down, you would be surprised at the amount of capacity that can arise from less and less."
Kirby admits there are some complications as with any employment outside the university. Just as Eastern looks to see if he is a good fit, he looks at Eastern.
He looks at the community — Charleston, Mattoon and the people through and throughout the university — looking to see if he will fit too. He asks the question of whether Eastern is the right fit for his family — his daughter is in sixth grade.
"I have to ask myself, 'Is this the place where I want to invest my family's opportunity, a community that represents my ideals and values?'" he said. "So far, I have taken that path and I like what I see."
Krystal Moya can be reached at 581-7942 or at ksmoya@eiu.edu.
Rather, he took random forks and unmarked paths to find himself standing in the top three of 39 applicants for a position that has the responsibility of overseeing almost every fiscal property of the university.
"I found myself in higher education almost by accident," Kirby explained. "And, almost by accident, I stumbled across Eastern's position."
Kirby, a high school dropout, 20-year career Army soldier turned college graduate and financial expert for defense contracts, took a turn into higher education administration after hearing Nancy Harrington, president of Salem State College in Salem, Mass., speak at a seminar.
"She inspired me to venture into the realm of higher education," he said. "At the age of 37, I retooled myself to a mind focused on financial management … and I entered the world of higher education not as an administrator, but as a financial professional."
But Kirby, who works as the associate vice president of financial affairs for St. Edwards University in Austin, Texas, does not center his interest in the position on just finances. He also puts an extreme focus on collaboration and communication throughout the university.
"My vision of this position is not one where the person comes in with a heavy agenda as to what they want to do. I don't have any intention of entering tomorrow's interviews with a premier agenda in my head," Kirby said. "I firmly believe that in a university setting, we are not here to further our own agendas, rather we need to get down to our grassroots and communicate with the most steadfast of our constituents — students, faculty and staff."
Kirby said he does not "want to pretend" he has a full grasp on the issues that face Eastern in the interviews tomorrow.
"It is kind of like looking at a family," he explained. "You can look at the family and see what they are about, but if you are inside the family it is a whole different story."
Kirby, however, does believe there has been too much emphasis on cutting facilities planning. Eastern's deferred maintenance problem, which amounts to more than $90 million in delayed costs on renewal and renovation projects, is something that needs to be remedied, he said.
"When you are in a financial crisis, like the one we are in, it is easy to look at the physical plant and buildings and cut from there, but we need to step away from that," he said.
He also believes that through consolidation, streamlining and collaborative efforts, the university can solve its fiscal predicaments.
"Now is the time, in my view, when the finances are really tough and there is a lot of pressure to cut, that we have to create capacity," Kirby said. "We have to ask the question, 'What is it that we have and how can we do more with less?'
"Some people say that this is a rose-colored view that isn't possible. Well, I say no it's not. The more a campus is forced to power down, you would be surprised at the amount of capacity that can arise from less and less."
Kirby admits there are some complications as with any employment outside the university. Just as Eastern looks to see if he is a good fit, he looks at Eastern.
He looks at the community — Charleston, Mattoon and the people through and throughout the university — looking to see if he will fit too. He asks the question of whether Eastern is the right fit for his family — his daughter is in sixth grade.
"I have to ask myself, 'Is this the place where I want to invest my family's opportunity, a community that represents my ideals and values?'" he said. "So far, I have taken that path and I like what I see."
Krystal Moya can be reached at 581-7942 or at ksmoya@eiu.edu.
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