Administrative structure altered

Author: Anthony Adragna

College officials created a new division of the Dean of the College's Office, named Student Life, as part of the school's ongoing effort to combine leadership between the Commons and the administration.

Announced to students in an e-mail over the summer, the changes facilitate the absorption of the Dean of Student Affairs office into the Dean of the College office and allowed for the creation of four new Associate Deans within that division.

Dean of the College Tim Spears said the changes allow students to continue their education outside of the classroom, an ongoing College goal.

"Since the late 1990s, when the Dean of Students Office was decentralized and the Commons were fully developed, the Commons and Student Affairs have existed as parallel systems, with separate administrative structures," Spears said. "When the College was reaccredited in 1999, the external review team commented on this division and encouraged the College to find ways of bringing the two structures together."

Spears thinks the changes will allow the College to achieve the goals outlined in the Strategic Plan more easily.

"We think that the new arrangement will make it easier for faculty and staff to work to advance the intellectual and personal development of student," he said. "This change is also consistent with how students experience Middlebury College."

To achieve this end, four new associate deans were named. Lisa Boudah will continue her work as Director of Public Safety but will also work in her new role as associate dean with a focus on preparing the College for potential emergency scenarios.

Current Ross Commons Faculty Head Katy Abbott has become an associate dean and will eventually head the first-year orientation program.

"I work to support the heads of Commons and be the point person on initiatives with first-years," Abbott said.

Current Director of the Scott Center for Spiritual and Religious Life Gus Jordan, as associate dean, will work to address housing concerns.

"I now work closely with the Commons Deans, with the administration of campus housing and with judicial affairs on campus," he said. "I also will remain director of the Scott Center for Spiritual and Religious Life."

Karen Guttentag will retain many of the same duties she held as associate dean of Student Affairs but will begin focusing on academic issues.

"I will co-chair the Community Judicial Board," Guttentag said. "I'll also be co-chairing the Administration Committee, which hears student petitions for exceptions to academic policy such as late course drops, readmission after academic failure, reduced course load for medical or personal reasons, or other academic issues that need to be looked at carefully."

Additionally, Guttentag will work as a liaison for the Office of Institutional Diversity and work on scholarship projects.

"Although all of the offices in the Student Life division work closely and directly with the Office for Institutional Diversity, I'll serve as a formal liaison for the Office of the Dean of the College," she said. "Finally, I'll be training with Director of Student Fellowships and Scholarships Arlinda Wickland to become the campus adviser for the Rhodes and Marshall Scholarship programs next year in addition to the other fellowships and scholarships I currently oversee."

Several staff members moved their offices to the Office for Institutional Diversity to make for more effective use of their resources. Kathy Foley-Giorgio becomes Associate Dean in that office and will work to address the needs of international students. Jodi Litchfield, who works on the Americans with Disabilities Act also moves her office to the Office of International Diversity.

The administration lost several key faculty members over the summer, which contributed to the creation of the new positions. Ann Hanson stepped down as dean of student affairs but remained at the College as Posse Mentor. Associate Dean of the College Michael Gentry left to become Dean of Student Affairs at Yale University. Dave Edleson left as Dean of Cook Commons and AndrÈa Baier left her post as Dean of Brainerd Commons. Matthew Pacholec has since taken over as Brainerd Dean and Matt Carluzzo becomes Cook Dean.

Spears said each made notable contributions to the College community.

"They all made important contributions to the College community in distinctive ways, and we shall miss their experience, wisdom, and commitment to the College," he said. "Ann Hanson, in particular, left a significant mark in student life, as she served as Dean for close to 20 years. She played an important role in developing our current judicial system and was quite involved in the early discussions of the Commons."

Guttentag believes the College will handle the changes well.

"As I consider my previous six years of work at Middlebury, I cannot remember a period when our administrative structure was not in some state of transition and change, and I've learned that our community is incredibly adaptable," she said.

Abbott thinks students will have a major influence in settling questions surrounding the changes.

"Change is always hard," she said. "My experience with residential life shows me that students will have lots of legitimate questions. Not everything has been decided yet. Students will have a large role in how things will be decided."

Spears remains excited to see the work that the new team of Deans and faculty can accomplish.

"They are talented, committed individuals, each with particular strengths," he said. "I am really excited to see what they will accomplish working as a team, with other people on campus."