The
Smith strives
By JULIE ENGEBRECIIT
Allan Smith has occupied the
president's office for seven months. His
experiences in that office prompted
him to say the new University president
will have "the best educational job in
the United States."
And Smith, a law professor, repeated
that claim yesterday during the Regen-
ts' meeting where current Vice-
President for Academic Affairs Harold
Shapiro was named the next University
president.
SMITH CITEDIthe "excellence of the
faculty, quality of the students, and ex-
cellent facilities" as reasons for his
pride in the job.
"You may not believe this," Smith
said relaxing in his second floor office
in the Administration Building earlier
this month, "but the job hasn't changed
me too much.
"It's just that the president is con-
sidered a spokesman for the Univer-
sity," he said.
SMITH H1AS SAIl) he feels comfor-
table as either an administrator or
professor, adding "it'll be nice to get
back" in January, 19110 to his teaching
duties in the Law School. But the 67-
year-old interim president says his
current job has "kept me busy in the
meantime."
Smith is a veteran administrator,
boasting positions such as Dean of the
Law School and Vice-President for
Academic Affairs since he came to the INTERIM UNIVERSITY
See SMITH, Page 15 Shapiro, will succeed him.
The Michigan Daily-Saturday, July 28, 1979--Page 13
Smiths
for 'U' excellence
Daily Photo by JIM KRUZ
President Allan Smith's term of office ends January 1, 1980, when the new president, Harold
Grace, charm: Alene
Smith's trademarks
By ADRIENNE LYONS
Whoever invented the word "lady"
had Alene Smith in mind.
The wife of interim University
President Allan Smith is a woman with
the grace and dignity usually attributed
to wives of United States presidents.
YET SMITH is more than "First
Lady" of a major university. In her
lifetime, she has been a schoolteacher,
secretary, and mother. But in contrast
with many women of the 1970s, Smith
has no qualms about being "just a
mother."
"Imcan understand not wanting to feel
useless," she says, "but I've never had
that feeling."
For many people, the change from
dean's wife to president's wife could en-
tail a major upheaval. But typically,
Smith handled the new role with ease.
"I WAS proud they would appoint
Allan as president. It didn't frighten me
as much as it might have," she says. "I
was used to duties as a dean's wife and
a vice-president's wife."
As the wife of the outgoing president,
Smith explained her impressions of the
role of the president's wife.
The biggest change in her life, she
says, was in the style of entertaining.
she was expected to provide.
Previously, the entertaining was
"semi-official"; later, it became "of-
ficial."
EVEN THAT change did not dissuade
her, though. She says she considers her
part as the president's wife to be a
"unique opportunity to set a role of
warmth in the community" for the
University. Accordingmto Smithi,just'by
following her own interests, the
president's wife can be a "liaison" bet-
ween the community and the Univer-
sity.
Smith accomplished this self-
imposed requisite through involvement
in such community work as the Red
Cross and the League of Women Voters.
Yet after listing her impressions of
the ideal University president's wife,
Smith offers the advice that the
newcomer should "be herself" and not
"conform to anyone's preconceived
ideas of what a University president's
wife should be."
"IF SHE IS sincerely interested in
the students, she will have more fun,"
Smith adds.
Smith is one of those people who
seems to know what to do and say to
make her guests feel welcome. Her
opening comments on the warm
weather are accompanied by a glass of
iced tea. A plate of cookies already is
placed on a table.
She did what she could to enliven the
atmosphere of the president's house
with its lack of furnishings. Her silver
tea set rests on the buffet. Plants
abound throughout the house. The
lawns are well-kept, with flowers
blooming quite properly in beds. Her
biggest complaint, in fact, about her
"job" is how hard it is to run two
houses, since she and her husband do
not live in the president's house on
South University.
SMITH ALSO describes the changes
in the University she has encountered
in 47 years, inAnn Arbor. She recalls
'eeALENE, Page I5
'oily Fhoto by iS 'd.PAU I'4C
ALENE SMITH, wife of Interim University Presjdent Allan Smith, is, a
progressive thinker with traditional values. ' ' ' '
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