When he's not writing books on federal income taxes, Dan Simmons can be found barreling down ski slopes and racing sailboats.
"Those are my major addictions outside of my teaching and writing," said Simmons, a law professor and incoming chair of the Academic Senate.
Simmons officially takes his new position, which will last two years, on Sept 1. On June 3, the senate confirmed his appointment at its regular Representative Assembly meeting.
The Fresno native says he's been hooked on skiing since age 5. Last year, he placed second among men older than 50 in the Far West Master's season awards.
Getting up to speed as senate chair is no problem for Simmons, who also served in that role from 1991 to 1993.
Why the second tour of duty?
"I was asked at a time when ego overcame common sense," jokes Simmons, admitting that his senate duties will take time away from his extracurricular pursuits.
The parallels to the 1990s are not lost upon Simmons, who says that 10 years ago was a difficult time on campus. Then, the campus also faced large budget cuts and program reductions.
But the real reason he believes the senate sought him out was his recent experience leading the senate's Special Committee on Shared Governance and Senate Operations. In fact, this experience over the past year dovetails with the budget challenges now at UC Davis and throughout the UC system.
"It's more imperative than ever in times of budget constraints for the senate and the campus administration to work closely together," he said.
Simmons would like to see the senate get more involved in setting campus budget priorities. He said the body needs more information on budget issues to make meaningful contributions on budget priorities. This may involve a restructuring of the Committee on Academic Planning and Budget Review, with greater information flowing upward from schools and colleges, he said.
"We the faculty need to provide more advice on campus budget issues," he said. "This type of system works well in the UC Office of the President, and could be better at the campus level."
Simmons points to recent changes in the UC Davis faculty merit and promotion process as an example of how well the institution and senate can collaborate on a particular issue. Among the modifications was the creation of an appellate process, he added.
"UC is a unique institution with respect to the emphasis it places on the role of the faculty in the process of shared governance of the university. The faculty has a specially delegated authority in our system," he said.
In terms of shared governance, does the ideal match the reality at UC?
"It's variable," said Simmons. "But UC truly is the faculty, and the faculty are given a leading role in the teaching, research and operation of the institution."
More than anything, Simmons says, faculty involvement is critical.
"The biggest challenge in the senate is to motivate talented faculty, particularly young faculty, to become active in the senate and in campus issues," said Simmons, noting that he says less involvement these days.
"People are under more and more pressure to produce with fewer and fewer resources," he said. "We need to find ways to adequately recognize and compensate faculty for their senate duties."
He's concerned about the budget compact signed between the UC and Governor's Office, especially the proposed student fee increases and student enrollment decreases.
"It's a crying shame that the state of California and its taxpayers are no longer willing to provide low-cost, quality higher education," he said. "Turning away students is a very sad development in our history."
Graduate student education and declining international student enrollments are other issues of concern, Simmons said. "We're very dependent on our graduate students from overseas. Losing students to other countries because of visa issues will weaken U.S. education and our society."
Simmons expressed gratitude for outgoing chair Bruce Madewell. "We're going to miss Bruce. He's done a terrific job. It's a large pair of shoes to fill."
Simmons was a professor in residence with the IRS' Office of Chief Counsel in 1986-87. He is also the co-author of several books on federal income taxation for individuals and business organizations, including a forthcoming book.
Still, he takes no accolades.
"I'm the dumb one in my family," he said. "My wife has a doctorate and my two daughters are close to finishing theirs. I only have a juris doctorate."