Dear Faculty, Staff, and Students:
I write with an update regarding the organization and direction of student life at Middlebury, and to announce several administrative appointments.
For almost a decade, the administration of student life has been divided between the Student Affairs division and the Commons. When Middlebury was reaccredited in 1999, the external review team raised questions about this split, and encouraged the College to find ways of bringing the two areas together.
Given the recommendations laid out in the College’s Strategic Plan, in particular, our commitment to developing a seamless educational environment for students, we have moved forward this summer with plans to reorganize the office of the Dean of the College, and will begin the academic year with a new, integrated division of Student Life. We have pursued these changes not simply for the sake of administrative efficiency, but to create more opportunities for collaborative work and, most importantly, to enhance the educational growth of students. This collaboration will include student life professionals, Commons Deans, and Commons Heads, so that faculty as well as staff are critically involved in the effort to enrich the lives of students beyond the classroom.
The principal difference between this new structure and the former one is that the office of the Dean of College will now absorb the Dean of Student Affairs office and provide oversight for the Student Affairs division, which has been renamed Student Life. The office of the Dean of the College will also include several Associate Deans of the College, who will function as a team to provide general leadership for the division. I am pleased to report that this team will include the following colleagues, each with a particular set of responsibilities, which I have described below.
Katy Abbott: In her new role, Katy will be responsible for helping to develop Commons programming. Working with the Commons Heads, she will help improve the affiliate program, administer the placement of Commons-based First Year Seminars (including the programming elements), build connections with the Center for Teaching Learning and Research and the Center for Campus Activities and Leadership, and eventually oversee First-Year Orientation. Katy and her husband Steve have one more year left as Ross Heads, and so Katy’s responsibilities as Associate Dean will evolve to fit her schedule. Katy will continue to teach classes in the History of Art and Architecture while serving as dean.
Lisa Boudah: Lisa will continue as Director of Public Safety, and serve as Associate Dean of the College (which will take the place of her current title, Associate Dean of Student Affairs). As the institution thinks through the nuts and bolts of emergency preparedness, Lisa’s expertise will be vital in all aspects of student life, especially those related to residential life.
Karen Guttentag: Karen will retain most of the responsibilities she held as Associate Dean of Student Affairs, and will serve as co-chair of the Administration Committee and the Community Judicial Board. She will also collaborate with the Office of Institutional Diversity (OID) on the development of diversity-oriented programs and issues, and serve as liaison to the new Health Educator, working with her/him to bring critical educational programs into student life. Now in charge of First-Year Orientation, Karen will eventually hand over these responsibilities to Katy Abbott.
Gus Jordan: Gus will work closely with the Commons Deans, bringing his years as a faculty member and licensed psychologist to bear on the administration of student life. He will also serve as Judicial Affairs Officer, and oversee the efforts of Karin Hall-Kolts, who will assume the role of Residential Systems Coordinator and be responsible for coordinating housing. Gus will maintain his connection to the Scott Center for Religious and Spiritual Life, helping to link the Center's activities with programs coordinated by OID.
In addition to these appointments, I also want to note some important changes.
Kathy Foley-Giorgio: After 10 years of dedicated service in the Dean of Student Affairs Office, Kathy will be moving over to the Office of Institutional Diversity, where she will serve as Associate Dean/Director of International Student and Scholar Services (ISS). With exciting changes on the horizon in that area, Shirley Ramirez, Kathy and I believe that repositioning ISS in this manner will allow her—and her team—to address the needs of international students in the most creative, productive way possible. In reporting to the Dean for Institutional Diversity, Kathy will also join an office whose scope, like that of ISS, encompasses not just the undergraduate programs but the entire College. Kathy will continue to participate in discussions of student life that take place in the office of the Dean of the College.
Jodi Litchfield: Like Kathy, Jodi will bring her office into the orbit of OID. Over the years, the American with Disabilities Act office has become a critical part of the diversity discussion on this campus, and it makes sense that this office return to the administrative home that initially fostered its growth. This move will also enable Jodi to more firmly connect the mission of her office to the important innovations taking place in OID.
Finally, I am happy to announce the appointment of two new Commons Deans.
In Cook Commons, we welcome Matt Carluzzo, who worked on campus this year as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer in the Alliance for Civic Engagement. A graduate of Dartmouth and Georgetown Law School, Matt worked at a Washington DC law firm for several years before coming to Middlebury to help develop anti-poverty programs. We are pleased that Matt has decided to remain in Vermont to continue his work with Middlebury students.
In Brainerd Commons, Matthew Pacholec succeeds Andréa Baier, who recently stepped down from her position as dean. A philosopher by training—he received his doctorate from DePaul University in Chicago—Matthew has been on the faculty at Grinnell College and Deerfield Academy, where his responsibilities also included college advising. Once Matthew settles into his administrative duties, he will teach a course a year in the Philosophy Department.
Looking ahead, I have great hopes that these changes will result in more focused, collaborative work for the staff and faculty involved in student life, and a richer educational experience for our students.
Tim Spears
Dean of the College