General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 1

Fairfield University General Faculty Meeting

September 13, 2017 Draft Minutes of Meeting

These minutes have not yet been approved by the General Faculty

1. Announcements

General Faculty Secretary Susan Rakowitz called the meeting to order at 3:32 and introduced Professor Peter Bayers, the President’s appointee for Faculty Chair for 2017-2018.

Prof. Bayers recognized Joyce Shea:

Motion [Shea/Bautista]: To allow Dr. Patrick Kelly, Distinguished Fellow of Nursing and Health Studies to participate in the General Faculty meetings for the 2017-2018 year as an observer.

Motion passed unanimously

Prof. Bayers invited Prof. Dennis Keenan to offer a remembrance of Professor Emeritus, King Dykeman.

Prof. Keenan said the following:

Professor King John Dykeman died in Fairfield, Connecticut on August 8, 2017 from complications due to diabetes.

King taught philosophy here at Fairfield University for 45 years, from 1966 to 2011.

King was born in Seattle, WA on June 1, 1934. He was raised on the West Coast, attending a variety of grammar schools in Portland, OR, San Jose, Santa Cruz and Sacramento, CA before finishing in White Center, WA. He then attended the Jesuit’s Seattle Preparatory School and, during his first year there, he was introduced to the Great Books series by a neighbor that began his life-long interest and love affair with the great philosophers of the Western Tradition. He attended Creighton University in Omaha, NE and graduated there in 1956 with an A.B. in Philosophy and a minor in Latin.

Immediately following graduation, King was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Army, serving in the Counter Intelligence Corp, stationed in the British Zone in northern Germany from 1957 to 1960. Back in the US, he enrolled in the wide-ranging interdisciplinary program, “The Committee on the Analysis of Ideas and Study of Methods” run at the University of Chicago by the philosopher Richard P. McKeon. He graduated with a Ph.D. in philosophy in 1966 and began his 45-year career teaching at Fairfield University where he chaired the department of philosophy from 1982 to 1986.

What many people here may not have known about King was his commitment to abstinence. He told me the story of the beginning of his road to recovery. One time, when he was returning to Creighton University from his home on the West Coast, he had been drinking alcohol so heavily that when he regained consciousness, he found himself not in Omaha (as he expected) but in Minneapolis. He said that at that moment he knew he had a problem. At King’s funeral liturgy, his close friend Bill Schaberg made the following remarks regarding King’s commitment to Alcoholics Anonymous:

King’s life in A.A. was a life lived in a large and caring community. He was a committed community guy. It was how he thought we all should live… deeply entrenched in each other’s lives and helping each other to become better people. He was perhaps most famous for saying that he was “constitutionally incapable of being honest about himself BY himself.” Only by being an active participant in a helpful (and directive) community could he ever hope to grow more honest—especially about himself. Another frequent King statement on community was that he believed “We get sober in bunches.” In King Dykeman’s world, getting sober was a community project; it wasn’t something you could do off in the corner all by yourself. You needed PEOPLE to help you stay sober and to live a useful, fulfilling life.

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 2

And, on an even more primal level, he often said: “I was born with pieces missing and it takes a whole roomful of drunks to supply me with those missing pieces and make me as near whole as possible.” King Dykeman was an active, sober member of Alcoholics Anonymous for 60 years. He went to thousands upon thousands of meetings and sponsored hundreds and hundreds of men on the path to sobriety. […]

NOBODY listened as intently as King Dykeman did in meetings. And he listened to EVERYONE very carefully—including the “crazies,” the people who were constantly drinking and even people who showed up drunk. He LISTENED.

And he NEVER, NEVER, EVER gave up on anyone. Not ANYONE—even when everyone else had given up hope, King was still there, reaching out his hand again and again and again.

King was a real character and a beloved member of the Department of Philosophy.

May he rest in peace.

The Faculty observed a moment of silence.

2. Approval of minutes

Motion [Castor/Eliasoph]: to approve the minutes of 5/3/17. The motion passed unanimously.

Motion [Lane/Salafia] to approve the minutes of 5/16/17. The motion passed unanimously.

3. Introduction of New Faculty with Brief Welcome from President Mark Nemec

Interim Provost and SVPAA Christine Siegel began the introductions by stating that it was her distinct honor to introduce President Mark R. Nemec to the General Faculty. Dr. Nemec, who is a Professor of Politics at Fairfield, was most recently the Dean of the Graham School of Continuing Liberal and Professional Studies at the University of Chicago. He is a graduate of Yale University (B.A.) and the University of Michigan (M.A. and Ph.D.) and his research has focused on the role of universities in American political development. She said that his go-to ‘fun fact,’ that he was an All-Ivy rugby player, was too well known, so she suggested instead that people take note of the colorful socks that often accompany his otherwise professional attire.

President Nemec thanked the Interim Provost and took the podium. He said that he didn’t want to take too much time, but he did want to share a couple of thoughts and a lot of thanks. He spoke of the ghastly fire his family experienced 11 days ago. They lost a lot, but his wife, children, and pets are all well. He did note, however, that his son Philip, who jumped from the second floor into his arms, earning 46 stitches as a result, has been undeterred from jumping and climbing. Phillip recently broke his wrist in a jump. President Nemec spoke of the outpouring of support he received. It reaffirms the answer he gives to questions about how he now feels about moving to Fairfield; he feels blessed to be here.

Now he is focused on the path forward as a steward of the institution. His thoughts are shaped by being a scholar of American political development. Most of his work examines the intellectual basis of state authority, primarily between 1862 and the Great Depression. Besides the book he authored from his dissertation, he worked with a group of historians on a book on Woodrow Wilson. In these projects, he is always asking about the role of the university.

More recently he has been considering the university in the contemporary context. The economic crisis of 2008-2009 saw an end to the neoliberal era marked by the administrations of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. The new, as yet undefined era seems to be a time of scrutiny for higher education. This scrutiny isn’t limited to the current president. The Obama administration, for example, introduced the “college scorecard.” We can no longer take the privileged role of higher education for granted, and that’s daunting. The last time that higher education was at an inflection point like this, the result was the rise of the research

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 3

institution. In the 21st century, we seem to be moving toward student-centered, outcome-focused higher education. These are characteristics that Fairfield has and can embrace more fully.

He went on to talk about three characteristics of learning in this 21st century model. Learning is lifelong. That means that we need to recognize that our undergraduates are not just being prepared for the immediate future. We also need to offer more ongoing education, and not necessarily just masters’ degrees. Second, learning is holistic. There is a growing body of research on the mind-body connection, and it aligns with the Jesuit notion of mind, body, and spirit represented by cura personalis. He contrasted this approach with the University of Chicago’s perspective, which might be described as “mind, mind, mind, mind, mind, body, spirit?” Learning is also extensive in nature. We need to extend across disciplinary boundaries, and to think about how to partner externally to make sure that we’re forming our students as persons for others. These three characteristics are things we possess, but need to elevate. There is no such thing as the status quo in higher education– we are either evolving or regressing. Some of the implications are that we need to be more national; we can’t maintain the quality of the student body by only attracting students from the Northeast. We also need to form students with global understanding. And we need to see our domain as unbounded thanks to technology. He asserted that if Ignatius Loyola had had access to the internet, he would have used it.

President Nemec concluded by saying that he saw these remarks as the beginning of a conversation. His goal is to lay out a framework that we can work together to elaborate on and implement.

Provost Siegel next introduced the new Dean of the College, Richard Greenwald. He most recently served as Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Brooklyn College, CUNY. Prior to that, he held administrative positions at St. Joseph’s College and Drew University. He has taught history, business and sociology, with an undergraduate degree from Queens College, CUNY, and graduate degrees from New York University. His research has been on labor unions and he has authored a book on the Triangle Shirtwaist fire. His ‘fun fact’ is that he supported himself through his undergraduate education in part as a stand up comic. Dean Greenwald then took the podium to introduce the chairs to introduce new faculty in the College, but he refused to make any jokes.

Prof. Qin Zhang introduced her new colleague with the following remarks:

The Department of Communication is very pleased to welcome our new colleague, Annemarie Iddins. Annemarie received her B.A. in journalism and francophone studies from the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, M.A. in mass communication research from the University of Minnesota, and PhD in communication studies from the University of Michigan. Her research and teaching are situated within the global media subfield of communication, focusing on transnational media industries and cultural politics in the Maghreb and its diaspora. Most recently her work looks at how the emergence of independent media in Morocco has shifted the relationship between culture and politics in an era defined by economic liberalization, political transition and cultural globalization.

Prof. Beth Boquet, on behalf of the Chair, welcomed two new faculty to the English Department:

Dr. Kim Gunter earned her Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Composition from the University of Illinois in 2001. Since that time, she has served as a writing program administrator (WPA) at three universities, most recently Appalachian State University, where for nine years she directed the Rhetoric and Composition program, working with a wide range of faculty and also students including first-year developmental writers to M.A. candidates. In addition to writing program administration, her research focuses on the affordances and obstacles that face queer and intersectional rhetors in situated contexts. Most recently, that has meant looking at the queer rhetoric of Jennifer Beals and examining fandom as a new kind of identity politics. She’s excited to join Fairfield University and to lead our efforts in Core Writing and Writing Across the Curriculum. In her spare time, Kim racks up as many Mavis Staples and Chaka Khan concerts as possible.

Rev. Kevin C. Spinale, S.J., received his BA from the College of the Holy Cross in Classics and Religious studies and his MA in English from Boston College in 2017. He also holds MA degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University with a specialty in TESOL, University of Chicago in Philosophy,

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 4

and Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, where he received his Masters in Divinity in 2016. He also holds a Diploma in Philosophical Studies from Regis College, University of Toronto. Fr. Spinale will be teaching courses in English, Philosophy, and Religious Studies while at Fairfield University this year. He has most recently lived in Kingston, Jamaica and run a parish there, and he plans on applying for doctoral programs this year in Education.

Prof. Laura Nash offered the following introduction of her new colleague:

I’m pleased to introduce Meryl O’Connor, who is a Visiting Assistant Professor in VPA. She did her undergraduate work at NYU and received her MFA in film production at UCLA where she won The Streisand Sony Fellowship Award, The Jim Morrison Thesis Award, The Hollywood Foreign Press Thesis Award, and The Mary Pickford Documentary Award. Her film, The Ballad of Finn + Yeti screened at the Cannes Film Festival. She is a professional filmmaker based in NYC. Currently she is working for the Smithsonian, editing a series of films on water issues in Louisiana. Her most recent film, The Cave Machine, will be shown in upcoming film festivals. Meryl has traveled all over the world making documentaries, including to Kenya where she filmed hip-hop street musicians, and to the Dominican Republic where she filmed exchange programs. Fun fact – Meryl was a clown as one of her jobs in college.

On behalf of the Math Department Chair, Prof. Joan Weiss introduced two new Visiting Assistant Professors:

Dr. Steve LeMay received his Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut in August 2017. He specializes in mathematics education with specific interests in argumentation and proof. The title of his thesis is, “Teachers' Navigation of Mathematical Representations in Argumentation.” Steve comes to us with 10 years experience teaching mathematics at three different institutions. His wife and lovely one-year old daughter were welcome guests at the FWC/AAUP picnic. Steve enjoys soccer, and roots for the New England Patriots and the Boston Red Sox.

Dr. Shirley Wakin is an Emeritus Professor of Mathematics from the University of New Haven, where she taught mathematics for over 25 years. Her Ph.D. is from the University of Massachusetts, and her field is Topological Transformations Groups. She has published a number of articles in the “Proof without Words” column of Math Magazine. Shirley has taught part-time for the mathematics department at Fairfield, often teaching the service courses for our engineering students, for 12 years.

Representing the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, Prof. Jiwei Xiao said,

I am pleased to introduce our new colleague, Lauren Shigeko Gaskill, our new visiting instructor in Spanish. Lauren cannot come to the meeting because she is teaching right now. She did her graduate work in Latin American literature at UC Irvine and holds a BA from Georgetown University in Spanish and Portuguese. Her dissertation studies photography in contemporary Latin American literature, specifically the pose as narrative device. She is a study abroad enthusiast, having studied in Brazil, Mexico, and Ecuador, and led high school students in France. One of her professional goals is to combine her passion for photography and film making with study abroad, by creating an undergraduate study abroad program in Latin America, designed specifically for Spanish heritage speakers who are studying film and photography. We are thrilled to have her joining the Fairfield community for this academic year.

On behalf of the Philosophy Department Chair, Prof. Keenan said, Anderson Weekes is a Visiting Assistant Professor who received his Ph.D. from Stony Brook University. He has taught at Brooklyn College, John Jay College and Manhattan College. His research interests are broad with a focus on process philosophy. Anderson works in German, Classical Chinese, Latin, and Classical Greek.

Prof. Judy Primavera welcomed the Psychology Department’s newest Assistant Professor, David Hollingsworth. He has a BA from Morehouse College and an MS and PhD in Clinical Psychology from Oklahoma State University. Most recently, he completed his Clinical Internship at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. He received a variety of awards in graduate school for his work on suicide and suicide ideation in African Americans. He looks at the effects of perceived burdensomeness,

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 5

microaggressions, and the role of hope. He has played tennis for many years, but a more fun fact may be that he likes wearing bow ties and he seems to have quite a collection of them.

At this point, Provost Siegel welcomed Vice Provost Don Gibson to his new role in the Provost’s office. He in turn introduced Interim Dean Mark Ligas, Associate Prof. of Marketing, who will be picking up the pieces in the Dolan School of Business this year. Dean Ligas welcomed two new Chairs in DSB- Prof. Yasin Ozcelik in Information Systems and Prof. Camelia Micu in Marketing. He then invited Chairs to introduce their new faculty.

Prof. Dawn Massey offered the following welcome:

The Accounting Department is thrilled to welcome Kara Hunter as an Assistant Professor of Accounting. A CPA, Kara completed her Ph.D. in Accounting at Bentley University earlier this year. Her research focuses on factors that influence audit quality and audit education. Kara will be teaching Intro Financial Accounting for freshmen and Auditing for our MSA students. She is a newlywed and looks forward to moving from Windsor to Fairfield soon. For a fun fact, Kara mentioned that she baked all of the desserts for her wedding…so if anyone has a sweet tooth, you will want to meet Kara. Please join me in welcoming Kara Hunter to the community.

Prof. John McDermott introduced his new colleague:

Steven Kozlowski is joining the finance department this semester after having completed his Ph.D. in finance at the UConn School of Business. Steven also holds a B.S. from fellow Jesuit institution Le Moyne College where he graduated summa cum laude with majors in finance, business analytics, and management information systems. Steven’s research interests include financial institutions, high failure risk firms, and stock market anomalies, and his work has been presented at the Financial Management Association (FMA), Southern Finance Association (SFA), and Eastern Finance Association (EFA) conferences. He is currently working on preparing a paper for submission to the Journal of Banking & Finance, which uses stock market data to assess proposed changes in bank financial reporting (that will require the use of more forward-looking estimates of expected loan defaults.), and he is working on completing another paper that offers an explanation for why current financial models fail to explain the abnormally low returns earned by distressed company stocks. Steven is teaching the Introduction to Finance and Principles of Investment courses this semester. Additionally, he is a long-time New York Yankees and Giants fan; however, his loyalty may be tested if the Giants to continue to play like they did last weekend.

Prof. Micu welcomed her new colleague:

In the Marketing Department in DSB, we are welcoming a new tenure-track faculty member, Dr. Nazuk Sharma, who unfortunately couldn’t be here with us today because of a teaching conflict. She holds a Ph.D. degree in Marketing from the University of South Florida. Her research interests include visual aesthetics and design in advertising. I guess this interest is also fueled by her passion for painting: She is painting in her free time. I have seen some of her paintings and they are absolutely incredible. In her dissertation, she was examining things such as product shadows and how product shadow in advertising affects how we respond to an ad. She is also bringing work experience to the classroom, as she worked for IBM and for a start-up company in India as a Business Analyst. In her Ph.D. program, she also led a project for AAA Insurance in collaboration with IBM. So she is a wonderful addition to our department and we're all very pleased to have her on board.

At this point, Egan School of Nursing Associate Dean, Joyce Shea, made introductions on behalf of Dean Meredith Kazer who supposedly was at jury duty.

Dr. Susan Bartos has been a visiting faculty member at the Egan School for the past three years, but now joins us on the tenure track. Susan earned a baccalaureate in nursing from Moravian College and completed her PhD from the University of Connecticut in December, 2016. Her dissertation focused on measuring self-care in women with heart failure. During her time at Fairfield she has led a number of successful wellness initiatives, including leading the University toward a smoke-free campus. She enjoys

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 6

competitive fitness and is an avid crossfitter and weight lifter. She lives in Milford with her 2 cats: Poppy and Alton.

Dr. Katie Love is a PhD graduate of the University of Connecticut School of Nursing program with clinical practice expertise in oncology and hospice care. Prior to joining academia, she did travel nursing in Connecticut during her graduate school years and has had the pleasure of working at 32 hospitals and facilities in the state. She also specializes in community nursing, holistic practice, and diversity nursing. Her research focuses on theory development for a social justice pedagogy for nursing, and she just completed instrument development for her theory, Empowered Holistic Nursing Education. She is the mother of five-year-old twins and a seven-year-old and joins us from her recent academic appointment at Saint Joseph’s University in West Hartford.

Finally, Dean Bob Hannafin introduced the new faculty in the Graduate School of Education and Allied Professions:

Dr. Pierre Wilbert Orelus was born into a working class family in Haiti, where he also grew up. Although the youngest child in his family, he was the first one who completed high school and the first one who attended and finished college. Pierre is a poet and former high school teacher. He joined us from New Mexico State University where he taught for 9 years in the Curriculum and Instruction department. During his tenure there, he coordinated the Bilingual Education and TESOL programs of which he was a senior faculty. He is currently the chief editor of the Post-colonial Issues in Education Book Series. Professor Orelus has received several awards, including New Mexico State University Exceptional Achievements in Creative Scholarly Activity Award in 2013. Originally, Dr. Orelus’ research focused on the identities and learning of immigrant and transnational students, particularly bilingual and multilingual students. His research has evolved into looking at ways in which students’ accent, social class, and race intersect to influence their academic achievement and social identities. Dr. Orelus has published numerous peer review articles in respected journals, such as Journal of Black Studies; Race, Gender, and Class; and Diaspora, Indigenous, and Minority Education. In addition, Dr. Orelus has authored dozens of scholarly book chapters and 18 books. His most recent books include Social Justice for the Oppressed: Educators and Intellectuals Speak out; and, Race, Language, and Power in Schools: A critical discourse analysis. Fun facts about Pierre: He loves to play soccer and dance

Dr. Emily Shamash is a new Visiting Assistant Professor of Special Education and co-director of Special Education. Emily received her doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University in 2011 and was a full-time lecturer at Teachers College in the programs of Intellectual Disability and Autism for the past 6 years. She is a certified special educator who specializes in working with children with autism spectrum disorders and their families. Her research interests include natural environment teaching for students with autism and related disabilities, families of children with disabilities and special education teacher education. Emily and her husband, Brian, moved to Fairfield in September of 2016 with their three children, Ella, Maya and Ethan. Fun facts about Emily: She is a performer and has recorded Jewish music with her husband who is a religious singer and clergy right here at Beth El Congregation in Fairfield.

Chair Bayers welcomed all of the new faculty, thanking them for choosing Fairfield.

4. Remarks by the Interim Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

Interim Provost and SVPAA Christine Siegel offered the following remarks. She had some problems with the technology, but the slides she intended to show are attached to these minutes.

In January of last year when I assumed the role of Interim Provost, Fairfield University was an institution in transition. The foundation was literally moving beneath and around us as ground was being broken and steel structures were being erected for a new parking garage, an expanded school of Nursing and Health Studies, a renovated campus center and dining hall, and a new residence hall; the leadership was in flux, as for the first time in Fairfield’s history, the University had an Interim President, Interim Provost & Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, and Interim Dean for our largest academic unit, the College of Arts and Sciences; we had ten tenure faculty searches underway; we were facing two major professional school accreditations and preparing for the University’s 10-year regional re-accreditation; we

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 7

were hotly debating revisions to the core curriculum, the role of non-tenure track faculty at Fairfield, and a salary and benefits package for faculty compensation.

These transitions were understandably cause for uncertainty and doubt. Could we really come to terms with the administration on an MOU? Given the number of times we tried it before, could we really alter our 35-year old core curriculum? Were we ever going to get a permanent Dean for the College? What would it mean to our Jesuit identity if a layperson were named President? Were we really a parking-garage kind of campus?

In early March, when I addressed the division of Academic Affairs at a Town Hall meeting, I called on you to face these transitions and uncertainties through work and trust. In the words of Edward C Philips, SJ, I asked you to “work as if success (your personal and professional success, the success of our students, and the success of the institution) depended on your own efforts – but to trust as if it all depended on God.” And to your credit, you did.

As I stand here today, a mere nine months after being appointed your Interim Provost, I am amazed by your accomplishments. While our colleagues in facilities were busy attending to the physical infrastructure in which we will teach, house, feed and even park our students – through hard work and trust, you nurtured the infrastructure of community through which we can achieve academic excellence.

• Faculty on search committees across campus brought us the 16 new colleagues we welcome today, and as a result the General Faculty now stands at 294 total members, the largest in Fairfield’s history.

• The Academic Council moved swiftly to elect faculty for an Administrative search committee –Jocelyn Borcyzka, David Crawford, Nels Pearson, Kris Sealey, and Rona Preli– who, with Bob Hannafin and Mary Frances Malone, brought us a new Dean for the College of Arts and Sciences – Richard Greenwald; and for the first time in three years, the College begins the academic year with a permanent rather than interim Dean.

• Over the past year, many faculty gave input into the search for a new Vice Provost to head our Continuing and Professional Studies initiatives and we are pleased to be welcoming Walter Rankin from Georgetown University into this role.

• Faculty members on the Presidential Search Committee– Dennis Keenan, Joan Lee, and Olivia Harriott – worked with Senior Administrators and Board of Trustee members to bring us President Nemec, the institution’s first lay but 9th Ignatian President, an executive leader who is also a fellow scholar and shares our commitment to raising the profile of academics at Fairfield University.

• Members of the General Faculty on both sides of the Salary Committee discussions – Vin Rosivach, Bob Esptein, Mark Demers, Bryan Crandall, Paul Baginski, as well as Don Gibson, and Nancy Dallavalle – brought us Fairfield’s first ever three-year agreement for faculty salary and benefits.

• Approximately 60 faculty members on the NEASC Steering Committee, Standard Committees and associated groups, under the direction of Mary Frances Malone, completed a re-accreditation self-study which positions us well for the site visit at the end of this month, and will ensure our regional accreditation through the year 2027.

You did all of this while continuing to attend to your work as teachers and scholars. In the past year, we awarded 1387 degrees (including 930 bachelor’s, 393 masters, 28 certificates of advanced study, and 36 DNPs); these graduates leave Fairfield ready to enter the world of work, advanced graduate study or volunteer service because of your commitment to teaching them in the classroom, in the laboratory, in the local community, and around the world. Since this time last year, you have collectively published 20 books, advanced knowledge in your fields through 298 peer-reviewed scholarly and creative contributions, represented Fairfield University through over 400 domestic and international conference presentations, and were awarded $4,750,998 in competitive grants. We have just begun to aggregate data on faculty scholarly work, so we don’t have year over year comparisons for these numbers. They do however, provide a strong baseline, from which I know we will continue to grow years to come.

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 8

Through your efforts last year at recruiting events, admitted student days, and first-year orientation programs, you helped to bring 1002 first year students to campus. Our colleagues in Admissions and Financial Aid worked to monitor the discount rate for these students, which currently stands at 43% - lower than it has been for several years. As a result, the University has met its budget projections for the year, even though the first-year class is slightly smaller than anticipated. Contributing to the financial sustainability of the University, our retention of second year undergraduate students currently stands at 91.4% - the highest it has been in the past ten years; our total undergraduate headcount is 4143, and our graduate student headcount is 1071 with graduate credit hours up approximately 2.5% since last year. Through work and trust you have accomplished much and you should be proud.

Those of you who attended last year’s town hall, will recall that in addition to quoting Fr. Philips on work and trust, I also quoted Freeman Hrabowski, long-standing President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, who is famous for saying “Success is never final.” For as much as we have accomplished, there remains work to be done.

Since he arrived on campus in July, President Nemec has begun a dialogue about his vision of Fairfield University as THE modern Jesuit Catholic University; one that is engaged in the formation of men and women for others in ways that are life-long, holistic, and out-ward facing; an institution that is more national, more global, and unbounded.

In doing so, he has raised the bar for us to achieve Modern Excellence in Academics. While full attainment of this goal may be years in the making, there are objectives we can accomplish this academic year toward that purpose.

The quote on work and trust that I gave you last year came from a book entitled Heroic Leadership by Christopher Lowney, former Jesuit turned banker, who now writes on leadership in the Jesuit tradition. According to Lowney, leaders formed in the Jesuit tradition are courageous, innovative, self-aware and loving. I contend the Modern Jesuit Catholic University demands heroic leadership at all levels in academics.

• This year we will undertake searches for the University’s next Provost and Dean for the Dolan School of Business. I thank the faculty members who have been elected to serve on the Search Committee for the Provost – Bob Epstein, Shannon Gerry, John McDermott, Patricia Poli, Linda Roney, Amalia Rusu and Emily Smith –and encourage others to consider nominating themselves to serve on the DSB Dean’s Search which we anticipate beginning this fall. Faculty service on these committees is essential to the shared decision making process that brings to Fairfield courageous academic administrators, unafraid to challenge the status quo in ways that will advance the institution’s mission and purpose.

• As we welcome a new Dean to the College of Arts and Sciences, and begin to craft a position description for next Dean of the Dolan School of Business, it is important to establish criteria for their success in ways that will also contribute to Modern Excellence in Academics. This year, I will be undertaking a process with the Board of Trustees, the President, the Deans themselves to better define role expectations for our Deans. Your feedback and input to me on this process will also be essential. Be assured that as I work on these criteria, I will be listening to the faculty about what heroic leadership at the Deans level means to you.

• Modern Excellence in Academics cannot be achieved by administrators alone. The integrity and quality of academics Fairfield University has been and will continue to be enhanced through shared governance. However, as events at UCC and AC meetings already this year have shown us, there are aspects of our current shared governance system that need our attention. Together we need to re-consider our handbook committee structures; to continue to discuss faculty representation on those committees; and to examine our process for new program approval and sun-setting of existing programs. In addition to this examination of policy, we need to attend to those practices in our system that actively discourage faculty from pursuing administrative appointments and leadership roles. To be most effective, our practices of shared governance should also promote innovative, courageous and loving action on the part of all members of the general faculty.

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 9

Modern Excellence in Academics demands continual renewal of academic offerings so that we can bring new programs taught through novel strategies to a wider audience.

• The modern Jesuit Catholic University does not have a core curriculum that was developed in 1979. After three full years of discussion, we need to approve and implement a revised core this academic year. We need a core that brings the best of our Jesuit educational tradition forward while preparing students to be productive members of a global society, which will require them to communicate effectively, interact cross-culturally, and engage in complex decision-making. We need a core that remains true to our traditions while providing competitive advantage for our College and each of our professional schools. I thank Shannon Harding for her courage to take on the leadership role of Director of the Core this year, and members of the Core Advisory Council – Johanna Garvey, Dennis Keenan, Beth Boquet, Audrey Beauvais, Adrian Rusu, Valeria Martinez and Stephanie Storms for their tireless work.

• The Modern Jesuit (comprehensive) University is not overly dependent on undergraduate revenue for its annual operating budget, but rather offers a wide array of Graduate Programs that contribute to on-going professional development and life-long learning while diversifying the institution’s revenue streams. Graduate credit hours are up approximately 2.5% over last year, and we need to continue this upward trajectory.

• Likewise we need to grow continuing and professional studies enrollments. As we welcome a new Vice Provost to oversee these efforts, I challenge all members of the General Faculty to engage their entrepreneurial spirit and creativity to imagine innovative programs and pedagogies to bring a Fairfield education to new and different populations.

Lastly, as we work with our new President to define Modern Excellence in Academics, we need to consider the Public Purpose of a Jesuit Catholic University.

• In early December, about a month after the Presidential election last year, I attended a NEASC Higher Education conference. Scott Jaschik, editor of Inside Higher Ed, gave the opening address, during which he outlined 10 predictions for higher education under a Trump administration. His speech did not address potential changes to public policy – such as immigration laws, DACA or Title IX. Rather, he talked about the ways in which the new administration might over time lead to changes in the nature of higher education, and regardless of whom you voted for, I think his comments said more about his beliefs in the public purpose of higher education than they did about his beliefs about Trump. Jaschik expressed concern that over time Colleges and Universities would no longer be places for what he called dissent, but what I would call open discourse. He talked about the need in a democratic society for places where dissenting or differing viewpoints could be presented, debated, and worked through. At the time, it reminded me of Sara Brill’s convocation address to our first year students at the beginning of last academic year, the message of which was “only in places that are open to all, can we truly be safe.”

I believe that the Modern University can and should serve the public purpose of free expression, critical inquiry and open discourse for all. We at Fairfield University need to reconcile that purpose with our Jesuit Catholic identity in ways that promote critical conversations in the classroom, enhance and support a variety of faculty scholarship and student organizations, and invite a wide range of guest speakers to campus. To this end, the President and I are forming a faculty Task Force to establish principles for free expression and critical conversation in our academic community. I invite members of the general faculty to serve on this Task Force, and those interested to reach out to me or their Deans by this Friday.

• Our University Centers and Institutes have a special role to play in serving this public purpose. As I mentioned in my message to faculty last Friday, the Center for Faith and Public Life has been engaged in research and community outreach concerning undocumented students for the past seven years; and as a result faculty across campus were prepared to engage in this public conversation and we have been able to connect students with concerns to resources in the community. Likewise as our Center for Palliative Care continues to develop, it will prepare faculty and students to engage in

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 10

the public conversation about meeting the needs of a population that while living longer evidences greater rates of chronic illness.

While we have several centers and institutes at Fairfield University, our NEASC self-study revealed that they are not fully integrated into the strategic work of the University in ways that enhance the excellence of our academic division. This year, Don Gibson, in his role as Vice Provost, will undertake an initiative to develop a structural and business model for Fairfield University’s Centers.

Last year, I called on members of the Academic Division to face uncertain times with WORK and TRUST. To your credit you did and in doing so, accomplished much. This year, our new President has raised the bar for us and presented the challenge of defining ourselves as the Modern Jesuit Catholic University. At the Senior Leadership Retreat two weeks ago, he laid out his expectations for the Senior Leaders as we work to meet that challenge. He expects that we will (1) push ourselves and push each other – WORK, (2) work together assuming good intent in the other – TRUST. WORK and TRUST, that sounded familiar to me and so far we were two for two. And then he said that he expected that we would (3) enjoy each other and have fun in our work together.

Those who know me well will not be surprised that while I had the work and trust, I had left off the fun. In talking about fun, Mark wasn’t necessarily suggesting that we party with each other, although he does enjoy that as well. He was asking us to enjoy each other in ways that were kind and forgiving. While I asked you to trust in the process and in God, he asked us to trust each other. It occurs to me that what he was asking, much like was Chris Lowney asks of leaders in the Jesuit tradition, was to be loving.

So, this year, I ask that you WORK, TRUST and LOVE so that together we can achieve Modern Excellence in Academics. So that we can actualize Heroic Leadership at all levels in the Academic division, so that we can grow innovative academic programs, and so we can achieve our public purpose.

At this point, the floor was opened for questions. Prof. Paul Lakeland, following up on Provost Siegel’s mention of DACA, asked whether she could say anything about how the administration might be thinking proactively about how to address what could happen if Congress doesn’t get its act together. Provost Siegel said they are now mostly gathering information, especially with help from the Center for Faith and Public Life, Melissa Quan, Terry-Ann Jones, Kurt Schlichting, and immigration attorneys in the community.

There were no further questions, so Provost Siegel invited everyone to stay and enjoy the reception.

5. Adjournment

A motion to adjourn [Boquet/Davis] was uncontested at 4:40 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Prof. Susan Rakowitz Secretary of the General Faculty

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 11

General Faculty Meeting September 13, 2017 DraftMinutesofMeeting Page 12