Dear Colleagues,

Now that the semester is in full swing, and I am settling into a rhythm in the DOF office, I wanted to send an official welcome and hello to everyone. This year will be an exciting one for me as I have the opportunity to meet and get to know all the faculty and staff responsible for this wonderful Bates education. The positive energy, and deep care for a Bates education, is evident. I feel fortunate to have landed in this community because it represents a model of liberal arts education for the nation and world.

Equity, inclusivity, and student-centered values will provide an overarching guide to our office’s decision-making processes. Specific goals for the 2018-19 DOF office are emerging, and they will represent a response to conversations on campus about our shared values. My goal is to create as thorough an understanding of our community as is possible in the coming months. We will seek input from many quarters, and I will be working to meet as many colleagues as I can in the fall and winter. If I haven’t yet had a chance to meet you in person, I will be working to rectify that situation soon. I will be meeting with departments and programs throughout the fall, and will also be reaching out to faculty and staff for individual visits over the academic year and beyond. There are many of you, and it will take some time to meet everyone, but a great privilege of the DOF office is that we have the opportunity to hear so many great stories. If you are willing, I hope to visit many of you in your offices and creative spaces. Meg Gresh will be helping to coordinate these visits.

I wanted to call your attention to our twitter account (@BatesDeanofFac). We will be posting stories about work going on around campus. This is a small part of a broader strategic plan to tell a wide audience about the teaching, creative, and scholarly successes here at Bates. We will also be looking for ways to support our communities through a variety of events around campus. The planning for these is on-going, but please stay tuned for events that will help us connect with each other. We want to be advocates for the academic mission of this outstanding liberal arts institution, and we also want to celebrate the joyful aspects of this place, this career, and our colleagues.

As we move forward in the academic calendar, please feel free to suggest to our office ways that we may better serve you. I hope your semester is off to a great start! It is an exciting time at Bates with so much momentum on clear display. I look forward to getting to know you.

Best,

Malcolm