乐播传媒

It’s official: Elaine Tuttle Hansen is 乐播传媒’ seventh president.

A comprehensive 12-month search ended Jan. 26 with the Board of Trustees鈥� unanimous election of Elaine Tuttle Hansen, provost at Haverford College, as 乐播传媒鈥� seventh president.

Hansen鈥檚 election was 鈥渟trength attracting strength,鈥� said Trustee Karen A. Harris 鈥�74, who co-chaired the 16-member Presidential Search Committee with fellow Trustee James F. Orr III P鈥�94. 鈥淎 year ago, I said that 乐播传媒 was in a great position to begin a presidential search. Today, we have a wonderful president-elect in Elaine Hansen.鈥�

She assumes office July 1 as the College鈥檚 first woman president since its 1855 founding. She succeeds Donald W. Harward, who retires June 30 after 13 years as president.

As provost and chief academic officer at Haverford since 1995, Hansen, 54, has overseen a $20 million budget, a staff of 40, and a faculty of 125. Her responsibilities have included the college鈥檚 faculty and curriculum, the library and academic computing, the language learning center, and audio-visual services. Hansen earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree in English from Mount Holyoke College in 1969, master鈥檚 degree from the University of Minnesota in 1972, and doctorate from the University of Washington in 1975.

Search committee co-chair Orr praised Hansen for being 鈥渁 champion for the liberal arts. She has the intellectual distinction and the proven leadership skills that we sought, and she sensed the momentum of one of the nation鈥檚 best colleges of the liberal arts and sciences.鈥�

Back in December, just after the search committee recommended Hansen to the trustees as its finalist, she visited 乐播传媒 for a whirlwind day of meetings, receptions, and get-togethers with faculty, staff, and students.

The gatherings took place in the casual atmosphere of Chase Hall Lounge, where the various audiences sat in folding chairs to meet the candidate. Hansen鈥檚 brief remarks (she got a laugh at one point by saying she would 鈥渢ry very hard鈥� not to embrace the college-presidential tradition of going on at length) gave way to a lively exchange between 乐播传媒 community members and the woman who would lead 乐播传媒.

Asked why she wanted to be president, Hansen eschewed abstractions in favor of straightforward sentiments. She had been to 乐播传媒 twice before (she had helped conduct an external review of the academic affairs office several years ago) and liked the College very much. The other visit was on her daughter鈥檚 college tour, Hansen said, getting a laugh by saying that her daughter didn鈥檛 choose 乐播传媒, 鈥渂ut I wanted to come.鈥�

She said she saw great commonalities between 乐播传媒, founded in 1855 by Freewill Baptist leaders who were avowed abolitionists, and Haverford, founded by Quakers in 1833. She pointed to her affinity for 乐播传媒鈥� 鈥渃ulture, ethos, set of values, and mission.鈥� And she was attracted to a 鈥渞eally tremendous momentum鈥� she perceived at 乐播传媒.

乐播传媒 is doing everything right, she told the assembled groups, but is straining its resources to sustain that effort. 鈥溊植ゴ�媒, like Haverford, is an overachiever,鈥� she said, particularly in the last 10 years as 乐播传媒鈥� national prominence has grown sharply. Increasing the endowment, she acknowledged, would be a major 乐播传媒 goal of her presidency.

Hansen will lead a college of 800 employees (not to mention 1,700 students and an extended family of 15,000 alumni). In a reception of 乐播传媒 workers, a questioner solicited Hansen鈥檚 perspective on the 21st-century workplace. She told the story of how, when her own two daughters were in elementary school and she was a professor, she was fortunate to be able to arrange her schedule so that she could 鈥渂e home at 3 p.m. when the school bus doors opened.鈥� Others don鈥檛 have that luxury, she knows, adding that a workplace must understand the realities of family life today.

That whirlwind day was just a glimpse, to be sure, yet good questions were met with warm, witty, and articulate answers – suggesting that Elaine Tuttle Hansen already shares an outlook consistent with 乐播传媒 goals and hopes … and people.

A Conference Call

Smugness is hardly an institutional trait at 乐播传媒. But you could forgive the smidgen of self-satisfaction that crept into Director of Athletics Suzanne Coffey鈥檚 words in January, after several members of the powerhouse New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC), of which 乐播传媒 is a member, announced plans to reduce the number of recruited athletes in each admissions cycle.

After all, 乐播传媒 believes it has kept the role of sports in perspective all along. 鈥淲e鈥檙e pleased the rest of the conference is moving in our direction,鈥� Coffey told The Associated Press.

Recruiting in NESCAC pales in aggressiveness compared to what鈥檚 seen in Division I. Coaches cannot visit athletes, schools do not offer athletic scholarships, and they don鈥檛 reserve specific slots for athletes. 鈥淩ecruited athletes,鈥� then, is defined as applicants whose athletic ability, as rated by coaches, can tip the admissions scale in their favor. Being from an alumni family or having extracurricular talents are also 鈥渢ips鈥� in the admissions process.

The move by several schools to decrease the number of recruited athletes was one of several reactions to a NESCAC-sponsored study by William Bowen examining the admissions practices and the performance of student-athletes at member schools. Bowen had already co-authored 2001鈥檚 The Game of Life, an analysis of the influence of sports at 30 highly selective colleges and universities, including a few NESCAC schools.

Bowen鈥檚 basic findings mirrored those of The Game of Life: NESCAC athletes have a huge advantage in the admissions process but get worse grades than their classmates. One notable exception was 乐播传媒, where athletes get less consideration in the admissions process than at other NESCAC schools and achieve grades only several hundredths of a point lower than non-athletes.

For the entire conference, the results hinted at the larger question. Has athletic success – defined in this case as winning – become a disproportionate goal in NESCAC, mirroring the generally distasteful obsession with winning seen in NCAA Division I?

Besides boasting some of the most selective small colleges in the country, NESCAC is the toughest sports conference in Division III. Williams has won the Sears Directors鈥� Cup for the best overall performance of its teams in the country five out of the last six years. Last year, Middlebury College was ranked second; Amherst College, 14th; Tufts, 24th; Hamilton, 41st; and 乐播传媒 50th out of nearly 400 institutions. The Middlebury men鈥檚 hockey team has won an NCAA record-breaking five consecutive Division III championships; the Panther women have a 128-game winning streak going.

As the 1990s came to a close, a few NESCAC presidents, especially 乐播传媒 President Don Harward, pushed the conference to discuss whether its jones for winning had replaced its stated mission of 鈥減romoting equitable competition鈥� and maintaining a harmony between athletics and academics. Were athletes at some peer schools, as Harward said (see page 28), 鈥渘ot representative or typical of the student population at large鈥�?

With the 2001 publication of The Game of Life and Bowen鈥檚 follow-up study, the stage was set for change. The NESCAC presidents met Dec. 13 and announced that 鈥渁thletic excellence should be given no more weight than other non-academic considerations鈥� in recruiting and admitting student-athletes. Shortly thereafter, individual schools announced changes in their recruiting programs. Through the winter, the conference presidents continued discussions, as did 乐播传媒 faculty, coaches, administrators, and Trustees.

Martin and Malcolm

Calling Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X the 鈥測in and yang鈥� of the civil rights movement, noted theologian James Cone urged his 乐播传媒 audience on Martin Luther King Day to see the two leaders鈥� common humanity and shared goal: 鈥渢he unqualified liberation of African Americans from the bonds of segregation and discrimination, from inferiority and nobodyness to an affirmation of themselves as human beings.鈥� Pushing for social and economic justice in the South, King connected nonviolent action with the Christian church to empower Southern blacks. Malcolm, on the other hand, worked in the North invoking 鈥渂lackness and African cultural identity,鈥� appealing to ghetto blacks disenfranchised from the church. Their tactics 鈥渃omplemented and corrected each other,鈥� Cone argued, and 鈥渨hat King did in the South, Malcolm did in the North – affirmed black humanity.鈥�

The horrific death of 乐播传媒 student Jessie Withrow 鈥�02 in her hometown of Anchorage, Alaska, reached some sort of closure in November when the drunk driver who killed her was sentenced to 15 years in prison. On the night of July 3, 2000, Russell Carlson lost control of his pickup, hit a car, and drove onto the sidewalk, striking Withrow, 20, who was riding her bicycle. Carlson had seven previous DWI convictions and a blood-alcohol content of 0.24, more than twice the legal limit. At 乐播传媒, Withrow had been involved in campus efforts to provide more alcohol-free weekend activities. Last spring, the Jessie Withrow Memorial Chem-Free Leadership Award was established through the generosity of Jessie鈥檚 friends and family to support students and student organizations that promote chem-free programs at 乐播传媒….

Washington, D.C., attorney Karen Hastie Williams 鈥�66 was quoted on the Nov. 19, 2001, edition of NPR鈥檚 All Things Considered, in a report on U.S. victims of previous terrorist attacks, some at the hand of Osama bin Laden, who haven鈥檛 had the same opportunities for compensation as Sept. 11 victims. Williams was quoted as the attorney for 12 families who lost loved ones in the 1998 embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania. 鈥淵ou have the same mastermind, bin Laden, using his network to terrify and murder these individuals, and the only difference is that it happened thousands of miles away in Africa. There is a very serious issue of fairness and equity here.鈥�…

Beth Sheppard, longtime director of special projects and summer programs, was proamoted to director of alumni relations in the fall. An indefatigable event manager who also brings a great respect for and knowledge of all things 乐播传媒, Sheppard鈥檚 appointment was hailed on and off campus. See Alumni Council president Mike Bosse 鈥�93鈥檚 column on page 64….

A $1-million gift from the Orr Family Foundation, founded by 乐播传媒 Trustee James F. Orr III, creates the Benjamin E. Mays 鈥�20 Distinguished Visiting Professorship. The professorship, said President Harward, celebrates 乐播传媒 values 鈥渕ade manifest in the work and legacy of Dr. Mays – intellectual inquiry and a commitment to individual worth and equality of access.鈥� The late Benjamin Mays influenced a generation of civil rights leaders, including the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who described him as 鈥渕y spiritual mentor and my intellectual father.鈥� Said Orr, who co-chaired the recent Presidential Search Committee, 鈥淲e are pleased to support the establishment of an ongoing commitment to the very best of what 乐播传媒 and a liberal education provides.鈥�…

Among U.S. colleges that grant only bachelor鈥檚 degrees, 乐播传媒 ranks seventh out of 500 colleges in the number of physics majors it graduates annually, according to a survey conducted by the American Institute of Physics. John Pribram, professor of physics, sees a simple explanation for 乐播传媒鈥� strong showing in the AIP ranking: 鈥淲e get good people, and we don鈥檛 push them away,鈥� he says. 乐播传媒鈥� physics program is user-friendly without sacrificing intellectual rigor….

David Aschauer, Elmer W. Campbell Professor of Economics, is among the most-cited scholars in the country, according to a 2001 report authored by Howard Bodenhorn of Lafayette College. His study sought to measure the influence of 439 economists at 50 U.S. liberal arts colleges by counting the times their work has been cited by other researchers. Ranking individuals and departments, the study rated Aschauer number one among full professors and put the 乐播传媒 economics department first in the per-capita analysis. Bodenhorn concluded, 鈥淎lthough prominent economists at elite research universities produce the most influential scholarship, economists at the nation鈥檚 leading liberal arts colleges make significant contributions to the literature.鈥�

The last time 乐播传媒 track and field athletes held a home meet, it was 1976 and the Blue Goose was a popular hangout near campus. (OK, so not everything has changed in 26 years.) On April 6, 2002, 乐播传媒 hosts its first outdoor track meet since the Sylvers were singing 鈥淏oogie Fever,鈥� welcoming the Springfield men, Mount Holyoke women, and Tufts men and women to the College鈥檚 new track and soccer field along Russell Street. (The eight-lane Mondo track, the same surface used at the Atlanta and Sydney Olympic venues, was actually christened informally during an alumni meet at Celebrate 乐播传媒 weekend; see photos at abacus.bates.edu/sports/mtrack/01/track-alumni-meet.html). The old track at Garcelon Field, more mud than cinder by the early 1970s, fell out of favor when 乐播传媒鈥� peer schools began installing all-weather surfaces. Later paved, the track has been used mainly for recreational jogging and walking since then….

The new Center for Community Partnerships puts a nice exclamation point on a decade of increased cooperation between 乐播传媒 and Lewiston-Auburn. The center will oversee 乐播传媒鈥� highly regarded service-learning programs (involving nearly 150 community agencies and institutions), providing resources for institutional collaborations with the community, including LA Excels, the community-based strategic alliance; and supporting community research projects by 乐播传媒 students and faculty. 鈥淭he center is the sustainable link of the College鈥檚 academic mission to its commitment to service,鈥� President Harward said….

A semester in the nation鈥檚 capital helped Brian O鈥橠oherty of Kennebunk, Maine, see how good ideas can touch real people. A 乐播传媒 debater, O鈥橠oherty won a Phillips Student Fellowship for his proposal to help Washington public and private schools create an urban debate league. 鈥淟ike a sport, debate is competitive,鈥� O鈥橠oherty observed. 鈥淚t gives you confidence and self-esteem when you鈥檙e good at it.鈥� Last fall, in collaboration with the District of Columbia schools, O鈥橠oherty saw those ideas come to life when the newly christened Brooks Quimby Debate League (named for the legendary 1927-1967 乐播传媒 debate coach) hosted its first tournament. After the tournament involving 50 debaters from seven schools, a parent talked to O鈥橠oherty about her daughter. The girl鈥檚 father had died of cancer when the girl was in seventh grade, and since then, she鈥檇 struggled in school. 鈥淭he mother started crying, telling me how debate had given her daughter the energy to study, learn, and enjoy life,鈥� O鈥橠oherty recalls. 鈥淗er grades have skyrocketed, her writing has improved, and she now is excited to go to school.鈥� For his part, O鈥橠oherty said the semester had another highlight: staying with 乐播传媒 alumni debaters Grant 鈥�57 and Jo Trogler Reynolds 鈥�58, who welcomed O鈥橠oherty into their Potomac, Md., home after his D.C. housing plans fell through….

乐播传媒 is one of six partner institutions that will benefit from a $5.5-million grant to Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory (MDIBL) to support biomedical research opportunities for students, as well as an expanded statewide network of biomedical researchers. 乐播传媒, Colby, College of the Atlantic, the University of Maine, and the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor will join with MDIBL to form a student-faculty network for research training in comparative genomics.

A sampling of 乐播传媒-related news from state, regional, and national media

A casual reader could assume that by denying a grant to support an exhibition by 乐播传媒 faculty member William Pope.L, the National Endowment for the Arts made up in publicity what it withheld in financial support. In December and January, substantial Pope.L coverage turned up in The Washington Post, the New York Times, the Village Voice, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and major Maine publications.

Pope.L has known controversy, as you might expect from a multi-media artist whose projects have included eating (and regurgitating) the Wall Street Journal, chaining himself to the door of a New York bank and handing out money as a reverse panhandler, wearing an Armani suit while crawling on his stomach through New York鈥檚 Bowery, and other quite bawdy performance projects. Offering a 鈥渃arnivalesque element of street theater,鈥� according to the Post, it鈥檚 at times shocking social commentary – not dissimilar from what Michael Moore has been doing in the last decade. Often missed in 300-word descriptions of Pope.L鈥檚 work, however, is the principled thought – about issues of social, racial, and economic justice -underlying his art. That quality of thought was well represented in the news this time around. The ideas that drive Pope.L鈥檚 work 鈥渞epresent a curiously traditional and idealistic view of art, and artistic work,鈥� opined Washington Post staff writer Philip Kennecott. 鈥淭he idealism inherent in his approach to art – the insistence on taking it to the people, the distrust of mixing commerce and creativity – sounds almost quaint today.鈥�

Aside from Pope.L, the Maine press was attentive to the arts at 乐播传媒. In January, Portland Press Herald critic Christopher Hyde led his glowing review of an Olin Concert Hall concert by the Guarneri String Quartet by stating that 鈥淸s]ometimes it seems that 乐播传媒 College is competing with PCA Great Performances鈥� – a major presenter in Portland – 鈥渢o bring the world鈥檚 best musicians to Maine.鈥�

An essay about 乐播传媒鈥� testing-optional admissions policy in the Oct. 26 Chronicle of Higher Education was timely in light of the Bush education plan emphasizing standardized testing. Bill Hiss 鈥�66, erstwhile vice president for admissions at 乐播传媒 and now VP for external and alumni affairs, wrote that in 17 years, that policy has done 乐播传媒 only good. Hiss explained that testing-optional admissions has expanded the applicant pool, enriched campus diversity, and brought many students whose distinctive abilities would have made no blip on the SAT radar.

A month before the Chronicle piece, the Boston Herald offered living proof of the kind of creativity that 乐播传媒 attracts. The Herald profiled Robert Merritt, of Worcester, a first-year student whose pre-乐播传媒 achievements included a highly successful dot.com venture. Merritt launched TheRightBean.com, an online coffee boutique, when he was just 17.

The Maine press paid particular attention to the work of an anthropologist at 乐播传媒 this year. Bruce Bourque, chief archeologist and curator of ethnology at the Maine State Museum and a lecturer at 乐播传媒, had a hand in two publications addressing topics near and dear to Mainers. Bourque was one of 19 contributors to a much-publicized analysis, in a July issue of Science magazine, of the decline of coastal fisheries. Bourque also made news as principal author of Twelve Thousand Years: American Indians in Maine (University of Nebraska Press), the first authoritative history of Maine鈥檚 native people, published in September.

And faculty even turned up in the international daily press. Doug Hodgkin, soon-to-be emeritus political science professor, was quoted in La Liberation, a leading Parisian newspaper, on the reawakening of partisan politics in the United States after the truce inspired by Sept. 11. The popularity of President George W. Bush, Hodgkin said, could give a particular boost to GOP politicians hoping to make the leap from the state scene to the national.

The Baltimore Sun, interviewing fans at retiring Oriole Cal Ripken鈥檚 last game, interviewed Jen Bowman, head coach of volleyball and assistant in softball. She told the Sun that Ripken was her hero. 鈥淲e use Cal as our example鈥� at 乐播传媒, she said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 about doing things right.鈥�

Finally, going from home plates to winning dishes, a 乐播传媒 chef made the AP newswires in August by taking third place in a culinary contest. Not everyone would associate higher education and haute cuisine, but people who know 乐播传媒 won鈥檛 be surprised by James Byron鈥檚 creation for the seventh annual Governor鈥檚 Great Taste of Maine Lobster Tasting – grilled lobster-stuffed crepes with baby shrimp hollandaise and fresh blueberry-blackberry compote.