|
|
Opening
Convocation
August 30, 1999
A most historic event for Meredith College during the 1998-99
year was the announcement of Meredith's seventh president,
Maureen A. Hartford, Ed.D. President Hartford's tenure with
the College began on July 1, 1999. We are pleased to bring
to you excerpts from President Hartford's convocation address
at the Opening Convocation held on August 30, 1999 titled
"Moving to We."
"Moving
to We"
by Maureen A. Hartford, Ed.D.
"…Community
is the topic I want to address this morning…I am interested,
as I believe many of my colleagues in college presidencies
are, in the need for us to address the issue of building
a sense of community on our campus. To do this, campus members
(students, trustees, faculty, staff, and alumnae) must move
from thinking from the individual perspective (the "I")
to the community perspective (the "We"). Moving
to "We" is important for our individuals, our
campuses, our churches, our corporations, and our country…
"As I prepared for this talk, I spent some time reading
a report by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement
of Teaching, edited by Ernest Boyer, titled Campus Life:
In Search of Community. Boyer researches the current state
of life on our campuses and identifies some principles to
help us better develop a sense of academic community…
"At Meredith, we have an opportunity to take the tradition
of support this college is known for and purposefully enhance
it to become a model 21st century academic community. We
have all of the building blocks we need:
· A faculty known for their commitment to teaching
· An involved board of trustees
· A history of self governance among students and
faculty
· A loyal and successful alumnae
· A tradition of caring about members of the campus
· A faith community on campus, and
· A long history of students, faculty, and staff
who practice giving back to their greater
communities.
top
"I believe we could take the six principles of academic
community, identified by Ernest Boyer in the Carnegie Council
report, and use them as a guide for the transformation of
Meredith into a model campus community.
Boyer believed that an academic community must be:
· Purposeful-a place where faculty and students
share academic goals and work together to strengthen teaching
and learning.
· Open-a place where freedom of expression is uncompromisingly
protected and where civility is powerfully affirmed.
· Just-a place where the sacredness of the person
is honored and where diversity is aggressively pursued.
· Disciplined-a place where individuals accept
their obligations to the group and where well defined
governance procedures guide behavior for the common good.
· Caring-a place where the well being of each member
is sensitively supported and where service to others is
encouraged.
· Celebrative-a place in which the heritage of
the institution is remembered and where rituals affirming
both tradition and change are widely shared.
top
"Let's spend a few minutes exploring each of these
principles and how we might apply them here at Meredith.
"A Purposeful Community. This means an academically
purposeful community-and the classroom must be the place
where community begins…This is a very strong statement
about the importance of our faculty creating a learning
environment. There is a corollary to this for students,
however, that is equally powerful. Learning is not a passive
occupation. Students cannot walk into a classroom with the
expectation that they will be taught-but rather that they
will be partners with their faculty in learning…
"An Open Community…We must all seek a balance
between the historic and almost absolute right of freedom
of speech on campus with the need for civility and respect
for different views. As Meredith College becomes more diverse…it
is imperative for each member of our community to operate
under the principle that we may disagree with an idea, but
respect the person…Another important aspect of an open
academic community is good communication about issues important
to the campus. That means two-way communication...On this
campus, the impetus for this type of openness probably comes
from Johnson Hall-and must start with me. This is a commitment
I make to enhance our community…
top
"A Just Community. The academic community must be fair,
equitable, and inclusive. We, at Meredith, must seek to
create a diverse community of students, faculty, and staff;
to find common ground among this diverse
group while celebrating our differences…To make our
campus more diverse, we cannot say to new members of our
community, 'Come in, but don't change anything or expect
us to do anything differently to support you.' We must be
willing to reach out and to adapt…
"A Disciplined Community. In a disciplined community
there are rules of conduct for everyone. These expectations
of ethical behavior are based in the concepts of honor and
integrity that are rooted in the Judeo-Christian religious
tradition. We must continue to talk about these issues more
on campus and make honorable behavior an expectation…
"A Caring Community…When I think of a caring community
I think of how we relate to one another; and how students
connect what they learn with how they live. I am convinced
that we need to spend more time teaching students about
caring engagement in their communities…We want our
students who leave Meredith to feel the need to reach out
to society through public service in government, leadership
roles, and service through volunteer activities…
top
"A Celebrative Community. I am convinced that colleges
for women are more celebrative and full of tradition than
any other type of college or university…Meredith students
and alumnae do have a keen sense of the
College's heritage. We have rites, ceremonies, and celebrations
that unite the campus and give all of us a sense of belonging
to something enduring…Our challenge will be to make
sure the traditions endure and change enough to accommodate
new members in our community.
"How do we build community at Meredith? Reflect on
each of these principles…We build it one action at
a time; one interaction at a time with an assumption that
each individual matters…"
The Office of Marketing and Communications
3800 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27607-5298
Tel: (919) 760-8455, E-mail: marketing@meredith.edu
MEREDITH
COLLEGE
3800 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27607-5298
Tel: 919.760.8600 Fax: 919.760.2828
Send comments and questions to webmaster.
|
|
|
|
|
President Maureen Hartford
phone
(919)760-8511
fax (919)760-2838
|
| |
|
