Chancellor Michael Martin is constantly working to preserve the quality of an LSU education. But his secondary task of communicating to the students, faculty, staff and all members of the University community is critical to his role as head of the University.Martin was out and about this semester attending events, chancellor forums, faculty roundtables and the Student Government sposored Chats with the Chancellor. Martin said communication is vital for administrators because students and faculty are the beating heart of a university. “The faculty are the primary resources of a great university,” Martin said. “The relationship between faculty and students is what the University is about. The rest of us are the magician’s helpers.”Two chancellor forums were held this semester, with topics ranging from the University’s budgetary concerns to academic programs. The forums, sponsored by the Faculty Senate, started three semesters ago.Faculty Senate President Kevin Cope puts together the forums and determines the topic for each.”[The topics] are largely evolutionary,” Cope said. “We look at what either are or are likely to be the principal topics for a given semester and calculate the number of events we are going to host. Then we attempt to subdivide the topics in such a way that we cover them in a coherent way.”Martin said the topics give the forum a backbone, but aren’t meant to hinder discussion.”It helps if you have a subject, but we don’t want to be too tied to the subject and stop spontaneity of the conversation,” he said.The forums are open to anyone and are meant to be a place for students to have open access to the chancellor for answers to the questions they feel are important to the University.”[The forums are] a place and time where people know they can have a conversation,” Martin said. “That at least gives everyone the assurance that if they have something on their mind, there’s a place they can express it.”Cope said he has found the forums to be extremely successful. “[The forums] have energized the LSU community as a whole,” Cope said. “We get regular large attendance from all subsets from the LSU community, including faculty, staff and students. We see a level of candor from upper administration … that we have never seen on this campus before.Martin also hosted Chats with the Chancellor twice this semester, where students are able to approach him with questions. Martin said interacting with students is one of his favorite things about working at the University.”Some people see the students as our customers,” Martin said. “I see the students as our colleagues.”In addition to these events, Martin also stays in touch with the University community through periodic broadcast e-mails. But he said his favorite way of communicating is simply by walking around campus.”The best way is management by walking around,” Martin said. “There is something to be said for casual conversation … bumping into someone and asking how they’re doing. The reason you can’t make that the only way of doing business is this place is too big, too complex and too sprawling.”Cope said Martin has done a great job with effective communication this semester, and the Faculty Senate-sponsored forums will continue next semester.”We have to compliment and applaud this chancellor for his effort to stay in touch with the faculty and all other wings of the LSU community,” Cope said. “We are delighted to see that he is not afraid to take on some of the more controversial issues and face the faculty.” 
—-Contact Ryan Buxton at [email protected]