Seize the Day, Then Let it Go

As I reflect on my decade as CASL Dean I am reminded of the song “Time” by Pink Floyd; “And then one day you find ten years have got behind you. No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun.” In many respects it truly feels as though the longer I served in this position, the more I felt as though I was just really getting started. But alas… I cannot tell you all how incredibly fortunate I am to have had the privilege of serving the college that helped to shape me into the person that I am today. It is almost incomprehensible to me how this transformation happened. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined such a life path. I am very much aware that I owe much of it to the faculty, staff, and my student peers here in the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters. It is my sincere hope that I am leaving the college, and its legacy of student focused and personal support in a strong position. The last ten years have been challenging, but they have also been fun and rewarding. The college: undertook efforts to enhance its operational efficiency; embarked on a strategic planning initiative; introduced new academic programs and retired others; built a vibrant study abroad program; introduced a new first year program (Foundations) for incoming students; consolidated our physical footprint in the CASL Building; opened its renovated Natural Sciences Building; introduced new high impact learning opportunities including mentored research for students; ramped up its efforts to highlight the accomplishments of its faculty, staff, and students; dramatically increased sponsored research in the college; raised many millions of dollars in donor support, and is rebranding itself as a place where applied learning (Practice-Based Learning) is prioritized; all in the face of shrinking enrollment and limited financial resources. The college has also made many spectacular faculty and staff hires, all of whom fully understand and appreciate what CASL is all about and all of whom work diligently to ensure its continued success. I have also been blessed with the most incredible team in my office. I do not use the term “team” lightly here. To a person, they have been my partners in administering and planning for this very complex and diverse entity known as CASL. I hope that they know how much I appreciate them! Of course, we would not have been able to do the many things that we have done, or navigate the challenges that we have faced, without the support of you, the CASL alumni. I know how proud you are of your alma mater and how much you value the education that you received in the college. I am grateful to you all for your ongoing support and encouragement and for the inspiration that you’ve provided me over the last ten years. I cannot state emphatically enough how important this has been. I’m reminded of the Bob Seger quip from his great “Live Bullet” album recorded at Detroit’s Cobo Hall. During a musical interlude for one of his longer songs he tells the audience that ““I was reading in ‘Rolling Stone’ magazine the other day where they said Detroit audiences are the greatest rock and roll audiences in the world. I thought to myself, shit, I’ve known that for 10 years.” I echo this sentiment because I’ve also known something for 10 years—that CASL is the most incredible place at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. It has been a wonderful, amazing 10-year ride and I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to serve you all!

We're Doing Amaizing Things in CASL!

Hello all! It is wonderful to be communicating with you all once again. Happy, very belated New Year! I am excited to be writing to you to share news of the wonderful success that we are having around our new Practice Based Learning initiative. You may recall that last year our work on high impact practices, including PBL was highlighted in the Chronicle of Higher Education as a model to be considered by other colleges and universities. Likewise, if you’ve spent any time reviewing the UM-Dearborn strategic plan, you will see that PBL has now become the centerpiece of our campus identity (https://umdearborn.edu/strategic-planning). I am very excited that the college is leading the way in this exciting new approach to teaching and learning. Last year, the college identified four themes around with to organize our PBL work (Justice; People and Technology; Health; and Storytelling) and we developed three brand new freshman level courses (all interdisciplinary in focus) to introduce students to both these areas and to this way of learning. The results are now in, and I cannot state emphatically enough just how amazing these experiences were for our students. Don’t want to just take my word, take a look at these recaps of the courses: Storytelling: Podcasting and Storytelling https://umdearborn.edu/fall-2022-exploration-storytelling Justice: Mapping Justice/Injustice in the Motor City Mapping Unequal Environments in the Motor City Google Photo Album Health: Nanomedicine https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jfJpTf9S2DbYH_d8T4EmClzUKLzzCEl9/view I’m certain that you will agree that these courses, along with the faculty and students engaged in them, exemplify the very best of CASL. The PBL initiative gives me great hope for the future of our college and affirms that the work that we are doing is as transformational as ever. Thank you for your ongoing support of the college, of our students, and of the work that we are doing!