Islands Business - Business: TARR'S ACTIONS DOING THE TALKING

Now a new art & music school for USP

Samisoni Pareti
Professor Anthony Tarr was still in the United States when his appointment as Vice Chancellor of the University of the South Pacific was announced early last year.

Tarr (left) signing the deal

No doubt the international university administrator was well aware of the controversy his appointment created around the region. His selection got majority votes from islands countries which are members of the ruling university council, but at least two dissenting members expressed their opposition publicly.

Fiji got the brunt of the criticism since it ignored its own candidate, Professor Rajesh Chandra, who was acting vice chancellor then. Instead, it opted for Tarr.

Chandra, after 30 years with USP, handed his resignation and is now vice chancellor of the just established University of Fiji.

Eight months in office, Tarr appears to be getting his performance do much of the talking.

Almost every month, his office at the university's main campus in Suva has been making announcements, each reflective of his deeply held philosophy that most of the much needed developments at the university could be funded through partnerships with the private sector and should not be borne out of higher student fees.

For the 2006 academic year, fees are indeed going up but the university has explained this away as minor but necessary inflationary adjustments.

Asked to re-state some major developments at the university since Tarr's arrival, USP's public relations and marketing manager Bernadette Hussain provided the following:

Accommodation for 440 students at Laucala campus by Yatu Lau Construction to begin January 2006
Joint venture with Fiji National Provident Fund which will see the enhancement of infrastructure at the three campuses in Fiji-Laucala, Lautoka and Labasa
Restructure of USP which will see the setting up of four faculties from January 1, 2007. These are Faculty of Business and Economics; Faculty of Islands and Oceans; Faculty of Science and Technology and the Faculty of Arts and Law. Deans have been appointed to head the faculties
Pre-degree studies that constitute an important bridge between school and university for many students in the region and will now be separated out at the College of Foundation Studies
Launch of the all-rounder scholarships-a total of 50 scholarships will be awarded to “all-rounders” who will commence full-time studies at USP in 2006. This is an opportunity for students to study full-time while furthering their sporting careers.
Development of sporting facilities-a new gymnasium and sporting fields
The university in partnership with a United States-based company will branch out in the area of software consultancy and training enterprise with a view to containing the brain drain of computer experts. The company is called Stepstone Pacific and their business plan projects the employment of over 70 locally-trained computer scientists by the end of 2007.
USP has been successful in having one of its smaller Suva campuses-Statham Street Campus-declared a Temporary Studio City Zone. The effect of this is that businesses locating within this site will enjoy tax-free status for a period of 10 years.
Infrastructure has been approved in all countries and hoping to finalise major construction projects in the Marshall Islands, the Solomon Islands, Kiribati and the Cook Islands
The most recent development came on December 13 when Tarr signed an agreement to build a new university campus at Fiji's much acclaimed and still to be developed studio city in western Viti Levu, the country's main island.

The campus, the university announced, will be home to its new audio visual school. It is to be called the Pacific Institute of Creative and Dramatic Art, offering degree courses in all aspects of arts focusing on drama, music and audio visual production. We at USP want to capture the huge amount of talent available in Fiji and around the region on creative arts and music,” said Tarr.

“Unfortunately, not enough effort we believe has been made to harness these skills and talents. With the formation of our new school, we believe we will be creating a whole new industry for the Pacific.”

Developers of the studio city, Yaqara Group Limited, said USP would lease about five hectares (11.6 acres) of land for 95 years for a capital payment amount of $1, and rentals after the 10th year based on percentage of UCV (unimproved capital value).

“There are options held by USP to lease further land for future growth. Whilst there is one immediate significant effect on Yaqara's financial position, the company believes USP represents a key anchor tenant and a strategically important partner in the development of Yaqara studio city,” says Yaqara Studio managing director, Lyndon Driscoll.

The plan, according to Tarr, is to start construction in 2007. He envisages the campus will initially attract 100 students, some eight to 10 teaching staff at the initial start-up cost of F$10 million.

USP is also considering moving its undergraduate bridging foundation programme, now known as the College of Foundation Studies, to the Yaqara campus, an exercise which may affect up to 800 students.

Tarr said the new campus will complement their temporary and small studio city at their Statham Street Campus, which is not far from the main Laucala Bay campus.

Already one IT company from Ireland is to start business there early this year. The new art & music campus will also expand on the university's very successful Oceania Centre for Arts & Culture.