BY JIM PATTERSON
PHOTOGRAPHY BYĀ DANIEL DUBOIS, ANNE RAYNER, JOHN RUSSELL AND SUSAN URMY
You might expect to find a game ball from 91ĢĘ²®»¢ās 41ā18 defeat of Tennessee last season in the spacious, wood-paneled office of 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Chancellor .
Sure enough, itās there. In fact, Zeppos so enjoyed that victoryāthe first against the Volunteers on Dudley Field in 30 yearsāthat two balls from the game are tucked in among the many books, photographs and souvenirs that fill the floor-to-ceiling bookcases flanking either end of his office. But some of the other dĆ©cor might surprise you.
An imposing portrait of Cornelius 91ĢĘ²®»¢ II, the eldest grandson of the universityās founder, hangs opposite the office door. Displayed to the left of the door, you find a framed quotation from Abraham Lincoln, a portrait of Chief Justice John Marshall, and a copy of Hans Holbeinās famous portrait of Sir Thomas More. Over the chancellorās computer is a poster of Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. and Dean Martināthree members of the āRat Pack,ā all laughing big and enjoying themselves.
āItās one of the early instances I can think of in show business when there was something multicultural going on,ā Zeppos says, ābut the truth is it reminds me of my parents. People said my dad looked like Dean Martin, and my parents loved the music of that era. And look at what a great time they are having together.ā
[quoteit]An enthusiastic booster for 91ĢĘ²®»¢, Chancellor Nicholas Zeppos is navigating 91ĢĘ²®»¢ through challenging economic times with optimism, although he admits, āYou must have skin like a Komodo dragon to do the job sometimes.ā[/quoteit]
It turns out there are personal reasons for each of the works hanging on these walls. Zeppos graduated magna cum laude in 1979 from the University of Wisconsin Law School, where he was editor-in-chief of the law review and selected outstanding graduate in his class. After law school he worked in Chicago, clerking for judges in the Seventh Federal Circuit, and then headed east to Washington, D.C., first to a law firm and then to a job in the U.S. Justice Department. After six years of arguing cases before federal judges all over the country, he decided he wanted to teach law and accepted a position as assistant professor at in 1987.
Zeppos will tell you he admires Sir Thomas Moreās principled and lawyerly refusal to swear a loyalty oath to a king with whom he could not agree. He shares the convictions of the lawyer Abraham Lincoln, who answered those who were ācertain that they represent the divine willā that: āI must study the plain, physical facts of the case, ascertain what is possible, and learn what appears to be wise and right.ā He is grateful to John Marshall, whose opinions served to make the judicial branch an independent and influential branch of government.
And even if Cornelius 91ĢĘ²®»¢ II, who is remembered primarily for the enormous homes he built for himself, is not a personal hero, itās clear the chancellor believes it is always important to acknowledge the family whose original investment is still producing endowment returns for the university that bears its name. And the Rat Pack is there, as he says, to remind him to enjoy life.
While his office walls remind you that Chancellor Zeppos first arrived at 91ĢĘ²®»¢ as a lawyer, and still thinks of himself that way, conversation makes it clear how important he regards his role as an educator and how deeply informed he is concerning the challenges facing higher education in America.
Donāt Call Him a Cynic
Zeppos, a native of Milwaukee, was named 91ĢĘ²®»¢ās eighth chancellor March 1, 2008. Previously, he had been named provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs in 2002 and oversaw undergraduate, graduate and professional education programs in the schools of liberal arts and sciences, engineering, music, education, business, law and divinity, as well as the universityās research, development and alumni relations offices.
During an interview to mark his fifth year as chancellorāan occasion that ignores an entire year spent as interim chancellorāZeppos labels himself an āoptimist,ā a āskepticā and āa questioning guy.ā
Just donāt call him a cynic. Zeppos is an ardent believer in the win-win scenario.
He went looking for it in 2008 when he declared just after the start of one of the worst American financial setbacks since the Great Depression that 91ĢĘ²®»¢ās enhanced financial aid policy going forward would guarantee that students would graduate without crippling loans to repay. He goes looking for it every time he tells potential donors why 91ĢĘ²®»¢ is the best way to establish their legacy. And heās done it with the future of 91ĢĘ²®»¢ās , declaring it will continue its leadership in the personalized medicine movement while it negotiates the challenging future of the health care industry.
āI see the chancellor as 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University Medical Centerās biggest fan and supporter,ā says , MDā90, PhDā90, vice chancellor for health affairs and dean of the . āI constantly hear from people in the community how proud he is of what we do, and how often he points to VUMC as āthe model for where health care needs to go in this country.āā
91ĢĘ²®»¢ is one of a handful of American research universities that owns and maintains its own medical center. Responsibility for VUMC falls to the Office of the Chancellor.
91ĢĘ²®»¢ officially endorsed the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a decision Zeppos acknowledges was controversial, but believes was necessary and forward-thinking. He hopes the ACA is just the beginning of several imperative major rethinkings of health care to come. āIf people say the ACA will solve every problem, they donāt know how public policy works and they donāt know health care.
āWe were looking at the consequences of not making changes in health care and what would happen at 91ĢĘ²®»¢,ā he says. āEvery year we provide approximately $400 million in charity care, community benefits and other unrecovered costs. We are a Level 1 trauma center. Providing that much uncompensated care each year cannot be accomplished without a significant reimbursement from the government. These are existential threats to the economy and to 91ĢĘ²®»¢. Weāve got to start moving in a new direction.ā
While health care issues easily could take up all his time, the chancellorās job is by necessity more global. He wants to know what is happening all over campus, with students and faculty, in Nashville and Tennessee as well as in Washington, and in circles of alumni all over the world.
[quoteit]āTheyāre coming to 91ĢĘ²®»¢ because of our culture of friendship, community, living and learning on campus, the liberal arts education we provide, and the reputation we hold as a research powerhouse,ā he adds. āThese are the things Iāve tried to focus on as a chancellor and a teacher.ā[/quoteit]
One recent week, just a partial list of activities from his schedule included two days in Washington to meet with members of Congress, a day trip to Atlanta for a Southeastern Conference symposium, individual meetings with each vice chancellor, speaking to the Faculty Senate, budget meetings, strategic planning meetings, a management team meeting with all the vice chancellors, hosting a dinner for a prospective faculty member, meeting with a former student, hosting a dinner for current students, four media interviews, an accreditation meeting, a meeting with new faculty, a meeting with a university donor, and hosting a Development and Alumni Relations event.
On Monday of that same week, he taught his undergraduate class on the Federalist Papers.
A good argument could be made that the chancellor of a major research university could better use that weekly two and a half hours of teaching time elsewhere. But the chancellor, who leads a group of freshmen every fall and this history class every spring, shakes his head of unruly black hair vigorously at the notion.
āTo sit with those kids and really see the lights go on,ā Zeppos says, āis a very profound experience, and it gets to the heart of why we are all here.
āTheyāre coming to 91ĢĘ²®»¢ because of our culture of friendship, community, living and learning on campus, the liberal arts education we provide, and the reputation we hold as a research powerhouse,ā he adds. āThese are the things Iāve tried to focus on as a chancellor and a teacher.ā
[featurefullquote]”To sit with those kids and really see the lights go on is a very profound experience, and it gets to the heart of why we are all here.”[/featurefullquote]
Man on a Mission
Teaching and research are the two tent-pole missions for 91ĢĘ²®»¢ that Zeppos emphasizes repeatedly. Ask the chancellor about his job, and chances are the sentence he offers in return will have the word āmissionā in it.
āI think youāre always building a university brick by brick,ā he says. āWe have a mission. We educate. We serve. We cure.
āWeāre never done.ā
In pursuit of that mission, Chancellor Zeppos has earned a reputation during the past five years as a charming, sincere and enthusiastic booster for 91ĢĘ²®»¢. He spends time cheering on the Commodores with generous donors and alumni, faculty and students in his box at 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Stadium. He hosts events on campus and in the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ University Residence to acknowledge and honor all the peopleāfrom loyal department secretaries to board membersāwho support the universityās mission. He travels to meet with people who are considering many options where to spend their money, to share his pride in 91ĢĘ²®»¢ās outstanding faculty and students and its commitments to education, research and health care.
Giving to the university has remained remarkably strong throughout the past half-decade, as hard an economic stretch as any chancellor has seen since the 1930s. According to the Division of Development and Alumni Relations, 91ĢĘ²®»¢ has received more than $100 million annually for the past five years. The number of alumni who give has increased each of those years, and the percentage of graduating seniors who give has doubled.
āItās been very gratifying,ā Zeppos says. āI always say you canāt live forever, but if you give to a great university, you probably will. Your legacy will live forever.ā
Students have approached him, Zeppos confides, to let him know 91ĢĘ²®»¢ has changed not only their lives, but also the trajectories of their families. He surmises that those lives have been changed, in some part, by gifts made in the 1870s when the university was founded.
When things are going well, a university can appear to some to be an islandāstable, calm and separate from the rest of the world. But this perspective is mistaken, not only because a complex ecosystem is constantly in motion within the university itself, but also because the university is in constant traffic with the world around it. The university sees its mission in terms of serving the world beyond its gates through education, research and healing. But a university is sometimes required to re-explain itself, its values and purposes to others. In fact, Zeppos says, āYou must have skin like a Komodo dragon to do the job sometimes.ā
In a particularly unfortunate irony, Zeppos recently has heard 91ĢĘ²®»¢ described by some as a community that discriminates, based on its nondiscrimination policy that requires all campus organizations to be open to all students and to allow any of its members the opportunity to run for leadership positions. Organization members elect their own leaders.
āWhen you receive an acceptance letter from 91ĢĘ²®»¢,ā Zeppos says, āit means youāve been accepted into our community, and that 91ĢĘ²®»¢ organizations are open to you for membership. You are welcomed into the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ family.ā
Discussions on and off campus with people who disagree with this viewpoint are welcome, as they should be in a free and civil environment, the chancellor adds, but his job is to represent and defend the tradition of nondiscrimination that has been a guiding spirit of the university. āI am not the first chancellor of 91ĢĘ²®»¢ to defend these principles,ā Zeppos says, āand they are not at odds with the benefits most colleges and universities bring to their surrounding communities.ā
[quoteit]āWe are a purposefully diverse community and see the power this philosophy generates. In the field of health care, for example, universities are the engine of global and local health solutions in diabetes, cancer, sickle-cell anemia and obesity. American universities are on the brink of so much potential for good, in so many fields, that clearly an important part of my job is to be the head cheerleader.ā[/quoteit]
Universities, Zeppos says, look for partnership with society and can offer nearly unlimited potential for solving todayās problems and helping make a better world.
āWe are a purposefully diverse community and see the power this philosophy generates. In the field of health care, for example, universities are the engine of global and local health solutions in diabetes, cancer, sickle-cell anemia and obesity. American universities are on the brink of so much potential for good, in so many fields, that clearly an important part of my job is to be the head cheerleader.ā
Itās a role he embraces genuinely. āI believe Americaās great universities are more and more seen as the sources of American innovation and discovery, as economic triggers and the realization of the American dream.ā
Thinking of 91ĢĘ²®»¢ specifically, he begins to pick up steam. āI think that increasinglyāand itās very heartening to meāour local leadership, our state legislature, our governor and our citizens are beginning to see 91ĢĘ²®»¢ as an engine of economic opportunity.ā
[featurefullquote]”We have a mission. We educate.
We serve. We cure. Weāre never done.”[/featurefullquote]
Innovation, Discovery and Invention
91ĢĘ²®»¢, founded 140 years ago, āis young and just getting started,ā Zeppos muses. āYou are never the new kid in town again, but I do think people are waking up to the fact that a university is of great value not only for the football games it wins and famous speakers it brings to town, but also for the research and discovery it champions and the social and economic improvements that flow from it.ā
On the anniversary of his fifth year as chancellor, Zeppos seems fully focused on the future. āWe are a hub of innovation,ā he asserts. āWe are seeing a lot of innovation out of 91ĢĘ²®»¢ānew companies, new medicines, new mechanical devices. And we are all ears and looking for partners to bring these discoveries and inventions to light. We can do even more.ā
This kind of optimism seems characteristic of the chancellor, but itās a long way from where he started in 2008. He had barely moved into this impressive office with its reminders of university fathers and legal giants on its walls when the housing crisis hit, causing a financial panic.
āTiming for chancellors is everything,ā Zeppos says. āI wish I could have foreseen the financial crisis, but of course so does everyone else. It set a tone of desperation that was difficult to manage, and we had to work very hard to comprehend the plain, physical facts of the case and ascertain what was possible in an effort to make the right decisions.ā
Zeppos and his team were systematic and deliberate in addressing the financial crisis. There were cutbacks, but nothing draconian, and an effort to communicate often with faculty, students, staff and alumni. Zeppos credits colleagues across campus who asked for freezes in their own salaries and department funding in order to prevent other employees from being fired. āIt was a true community effort in 2008,ā he insists, āand I am proud to say it is happening again at 91ĢĘ²®»¢ in response to sequestration and our stateās rejection of federal funding for the expansion of Medicare, but this is not a long-term solution to the problems we face in Tennessee and America in caring for the uninsured.ā
The chancellor took solace and advice, he says, from past chancellors during the Great Recession of 2008. Sitting in Kirkland Hall, he read financial reports by Chancellor James Kirkland written during the Great Depression and by Chancellor Heard, who had faced 20 percent interest rates during his tenure in the 1960s and 1970s.
āObviously, the ongoing and current political standoff in Washington, and the resulting financial instability, have created significant challenges for the university,ā Zeppos says. āBut I am not the first chancellor [to deal with such issues], and I can look to my predecessors for guidance.ā
Another reliable source of support and counsel, stresses the chancellor, has been the financial expertise of the 91ĢĘ²®»¢ Board of Trust. They deserve special credit, he says, for agreeing to begin the universityās much-lauded enhanced financial aid policy in the face of the financial crisis. And he praises them for maintaining āwhich aims to help students who need financial aid to graduate debt-freeāas a prime goal of the future.
[quoteit]āWe have a faculty that is one of the most distinguished teaching and research faculties in the world,ā he declares. āWeāve continued to provide the best health care in the world to everyone, and to open the doors to our hospitals and clinics to everyone in need.ā[/quoteit]
āOne thing I have learned from working with Nick Zeppos is that he is always looking for opportunities to advance the university, even during the most challenging of times,ā says , who succeeded Zeppos as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. āA more cautious leader would have held back on our financial aid plan during the 2008ā2009 academic year, but we pushed forward under his leadership and the university is much stronger for it.
āOur residential college system is one of his next big challenges, and I am confident he will guide us to a much more dynamic and engaged livingālearning campus environment while managing through the uncertain times that lie ahead.ā
Despite hardships like the financial crisis and the continuing uncertainty stemming from political conflict in Washington, Chancellor Zeppos remains grateful to be where he is and enormously proud of 91ĢĘ²®»¢.
āWe have a faculty that is one of the most distinguished teaching and research faculties in the world,ā he declares. āWeāve continued to provide the best health care in the world to everyone, and to open the doors to our hospitals and clinics to everyone in need.ā
He smiles broadly, clearly enjoying himself. āI learn something new every day,ā he says. āItās a joy to be surrounded by people with passion, intelligence, and the shared belief that the world can be better and that what they are doing every day is a meaningful contribution toward that end. I walk across this beautiful campus and am keenly aware of all the ways 91ĢĘ²®»¢ has bent the curve of someoneās life for the better, including my own.ā