December 10, 2003 News Releases
Released 12/05/03 and 12/08/03
UTAH STATE NEWS RELEASES FOR 12-08-03
UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY
FINDS UDOT HAS MANY CHALLENGES AHEAD
LOGAN — Research from Utah State University will help
Utah's Department of Transportation gain a better understanding
of what Utahns see as current and future transportation needs,
and how well UDOT is equipped to handle them.
"One of the main challenges for UDOT will be its ability
to keep up with the changing landscape of transportation in
the 21st century," said Joanna Endter-Wada, director of
the Natural Resource and Environmental Policy Program at Utah
State.
"As urban populations continue to grow, people in those
areas are becoming more concerned with the ability of UDOT to
expand their efforts beyond highways and offer citizens a diversity
of transportation options, including access to TRAX, buses and
bike and pedestrian paths," said Endter-Wada, one of the
study's authors.
In general, Utahns are satisfied with the work UDOT has done
on constructing and maintaining our highways, she said. "However,
UDOT is still perceived by many to be a 'roads department.'
It may be difficult for them to evolve organizationally to incorporate
a multi-modal perspective. This transition will need to be made
if they are going to meet Utah's future transportation needs,
which will include more than just building new highways."
The study, conducted by the Natural Resource and Environmental
Policy Program and the Institute for Outdoor Recreation and
Tourism at Utah State, found that UDOT also faces other challenges.
These include suburban sprawl, as well as the challenge of balancing
transportation needs of the state as a whole with the needs
of individual growing communities.
Participants in the study were critical of developers who build
new subdivisions in areas without transportation infrastructure
and then expect UDOT to build new roads to the development site,
often superceding community projects that may have been on the
Statewide Transportation Improvement Program list for years.
"Government should spend their money where it would do
the most number of people the most good," one participant
said. "Money should be spent in areas that are already
developed for road improvements, rather than in new developments
for a few new homes."
Involving the public in its transportation planning process
also appears to be a continuing challenge for UDOT, according
to some study participants.
UDOT employees who participated in the research said that their
biggest public involvement challenge is getting people to participate
in public meetings. But Dale Blahna, associate professor in
the College of Natural Resources, said that research participants
outside of UDOT often question the sincerity of UDOT's public
involvement process.
"One of the recurring concerns that emerged during our
interviews and focus groups was that although UDOT was fairly
effective at informing the public about what they intend to
do, they don't appear to be as effective at soliciting ideas
from the public about what the public feels they need and want
from their department of transportation," said Blahna,
one of the study's authors.
The project, which was part of UDOT's "Utah Transportation
2030" long-range transportation plan, recommended that
UDOT use the findings to coordinate efforts with state, city
and local transportation groups, as well as the general public,
to provide more transportation options and build a more inter-modal
transportation system for Utah residents.
The research focused on Utah's transportation system, transportation
costs, accessibility for people with disabilities, safety for
bicyclists and pedestrians, congestion and maintaining Utah's
environmental quality. Researchers conducted telephone surveys,
personal interviews and focus groups with members of the general
public and transportation specialists.
Date: Dec. 8, 2003
Writer and contact: Judith Kurtzman, 435-797-0922, judy.kurtzman@usu.edu
UTAH STATE NEWS RELEASES FOR 12-05-03
NEW DIRECTOR
OF INTERNAL AUDITS NAMED AT UTAH STATE
LOGAN – Utah State University President Kermit L. Hall
announced the appointment of a new director of Internal Audits.
Jodi Bailey, who has worked as internal auditor at Utah State
since 1994, was named to the new position beginning Jan. 1,
2004. She replaces Keith Sedgwick, who is retiring.
“Jodi Bailey brings with her a combination of experience
and an innovative approach to issues of auditing,” Hall
said. “She replaces in Keith Sedgwick a person who had
achieved enormous respect. We have every reason to believe that
in this critical position, Jodi Bailey will exceed the standard
set by her predecessor.”
“It is an exciting time to have the opportunity to lead
the Internal Audit department into a new era of internal auditing,”
Bailey said. “The practice of internal auditing is undergoing
a significant transition. Now, more than ever before, there
are higher expectations for internal auditing to focus on future
operations and control.”
Bailey said that knowing what areas to audit and where to commit
limited auditing resources is an integral part of managing the
internal audit function.
“We plan to develop a proactive approach to identify where
the current risks are and how we can manage those risks,”
she said. “The Internal Audit staff will work with university
administration to manage these risks and suggest areas for improvement.”
A good assessment of risks begins with control awareness. Everyone
associated with the university needs to understand their roles
and responsibilities to manage risk and how to apply sound internal
controls. To promote this understanding, Bailey said, they are
presenting a university-wide control awareness training program.
She said that to identify, understand, and manage university
risks better, her office will develop a continuous, dynamic
risk-based audit plan. Her department will then compile and
assess the identified risks into an active database.
Since 2001, Bailey has worked as a volunteer instructor at the
Institute of Internal Auditors in Altamonte Springs, Fla. Since
1998, she has been audit manager with Peterson, Allred, Jackson
CPA’s in Logan. Prior to that, she was congressional auditor
in the General Accounting Office in Washington, D.C. and an
instructor at Northern Virginia Community College, Woodbridge,
Va.
Bailey received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees
from Weber State University. She is a Certified Public Accountant
and Certified Internal Auditor.
She is married to Brent Bailey. They are the parents of two
children.
December 5, 2003
Contact: Jodi Bailey, 435-797-1086
Writer: John DeVilbiss, 435-797-1358; john.devilbiss@usu.edu
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