Investiture Address
Dr. Dorothy Leland
Nov. 12, 2004
Thank you Chancellor Meredith. It is my great honor to accept the symbol and responsibilities associated with the office of the President of Georgia College & State University. My pledge to you, to Chairman Wooten, and to members of the university community is that I will lead Georgia's Public Liberal Arts University with steady vision, great care and deep respect for its distinctive mission within the University System of Georgia.
Members of the platform party, distinguished guests, colleagues, students and friends, I thank you for celebrating this ceremonial moment with me. I am particularly delighted that my son, Eric, came from that far-away land known as California to be with me today. Without doubt, he is my greatest accomplishment-and I can't even take the credit.
This inaugural week has focused on the theme of "traditions and transformations." Georgia College has a long and fascinating history. Established in 1889 as Georgia Normal & Industrial College, it originated as the female counterpart of Georgia Tech. In those days, both institutions were part of the University of Georgia. The founding school colors were red and black, and the educational focus reflected prevailing conceptions regarding the proper role of women.
A few days ago, as I was looking through the 1914 yearbook, I found a page of jokes. My favorite featured an unknown senior and Dr. Beeson, who was the university's vice-president at the time, although he later became its 3rd president:
Senior: "A woman can do everything a man can do these days."
Dr. Beeson: "I have always heard this was the Age of Brass."
Of course, "brassy" means "unrestrained by propriety and convention." The fact that I can stand before you today as the second consecutive woman president of this fine university shows the progress we have made as a society. I would like to think that all of those brassy women who attended the school variously known as Georgia Normal & Industrial College, Georgia State College for Women, and The Woman's College of Georgia helped to pave the way!
I selected the theme "traditions and transformations" because I believe that we are enriched by our history even as we undergo inevitable transformation and change.
Since joining Georgia College, I have come to know your deep passion for academic excellence and your commitment to building a vibrant community of learning. This passion and commitment has endured through name changes and historical shifts in emphasis: it exhibits the enduring soul of this wonderful university.
The theme "traditions and transformations" also illuminates the history of liberal arts education-the values that have lasted through millennia and the transformations that have buffeted this model of learning and ensured its lasting vibrancy. Could the thinkers of ancient Greece have possibly imagined that their educational vision would survive to take root in a nation born on a "new" continent during a period called the Enlightenment?
Today, just a few years into a new century, we gather in this beautiful building, a splendid example of Greek Revival Architecture, which was first introduced into the United States by Thomas Jefferson as a symbol of the new republic and its democratic principles. This classical lineage makes Russell Auditorium a particularly appropriate place for reflecting on the ideals of liberal arts education, which originated in ancient Greece during the time of Athenian Democracy.
Jefferson and his contemporaries transplanted the traditions of classical education in a new place and breathed into those traditions the fresh wave of European Enlightenment and a determination to avoid the mistakes of their forbears. Through their political philosophy and the institutions they founded, they bequeathed to our society and to American higher education some Enlightenment ideals that persist in our value system today: the belief in each person's dignity, in free speech and expression, in the equality of all persons, in the rights of the individual, in democracy as the best form of government.
Famously, Thomas Jefferson linked a classical education in the liberal arts to the survival of the new American republic. "No nation is permitted to live in ignorance with impunity," wrote Jefferson. "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free . . . it expects what never was and never will be."
Surely this remains a powerful conviction and a basic rationale for public higher education that goes beyond preparing students for a career or profession.
As Ernest Boyer, the late president of the Carnegie Foundation, put it, "The aim of education is not only to prepare students for productive careers but also to enable them to live lives of dignity and purpose; not only to generate new knowledge but to channel that knowledge to humane ends; not merely to study government but to help shape a citizenry that can promote the public good."
What an awesome challenge!
Today, the connection between liberal arts education and the public good is not always understood or appreciated. To secure their shrinking share of state appropriations, colleges and universities have cast their appeals for public support in the language of economic benefit. We position public higher education as a supplier of intellectual capital, which in turn fuels the industry and business needed to bring revenue to our state and nation.
Please don't misunderstand: these arguments are not incorrect. There are significant economic benefits to be gained from an educated workforce.
Indeed, there is a growing awareness of the importance of a broad liberal arts education in meeting future workforce needs. Some of you may have read a recent "Business Week" cover story entitled "The 21st Century Corporation." This article envisions a rapidly changing information based economy and the need for leaders who can think imaginatively, move with ease across disciplinary boundaries, assimilate new information rapidly, and collaborate with others in order to effectively harness the energies of change.
So, the problem is not with the economic justification per se. Rather, it lies in the temptation to think that workforce development is our only compelling argument for public support.
In this historic place, I ask you to consider the following proposition: that the ancient civic purpose of liberal arts education remains a compelling contemporary rationale. If our democracy thrives in a climate of free-inquiry and civil debate, we must teach and reinforce its essential elements. If our democracy demands informed and compassionate leaders, we must equip our students for this challenge. If our democracy is enriched by a sense of civic responsibility, we must model and nurture it.
Bell hooks, a social critic and writer, has described education as a practice of freedom that demands "an openness of mind and heart that allows us to face reality even as we collectively imagine ways to move beyond it." Hooks expands our concept of civic responsibility to include the intellectual, moral and political work needed to create significant social change.
I am proud to say that our goal at Georgia College is not only to prepare students for rewarding careers but also for lives enriched by self-reflection, life-long learning, and responsible leadership. If you have looked at our website, you will see that it features the phrase "life, liberty and the liberal arts" which is followed by a promise: to educate every student as if one of them will someday be the leader of the free world.
Again I say, what an awesome responsibility!
Over the past six months or so, we've discussed our aspiration to become one of our nation's very best public liberal arts universities. This aspiration is not about achieving an even higher ranking in U.S. News and World Report, although we would certainly accept that acknowledgement. Rather, the aspiration has to do with those exemplary ways in which we will achieve our desired results through our curriculum and teaching.
This will require focus, commitment and intentional transformation. Soon, we will embark on a process of crystallizing our vision for excellence as a public liberal arts university. Without prejudging the outcome, I want to indicate some areas that deserve our attention.
First, we must look for coherence across the curriculum.
Think of this coherence as what unites our students as a community of learners across discipline and major and crystallizes their educational experience as a whole.
If we want our graduates to think critically, write effectively, and speak eloquently and convincingly, our challenge is to foster these skills in most everything we do. If we want to prepare our students for global citizenship, we must find ways of embedding this deeply into the curriculum. If we want our students to live lives guided by a respect for truth and a passion for justice, we must encourage this continually. The guiding assumption here is that learning is cumulative and developmental.
Second, we must attend to the quality of our learning environment.
I like to describe Georgia College as a university with a big heart. It's true! Our students tell us that they choose Georgia College because of its friendly, student-centered atmosphere. They know that we care about them as individuals and want to help them succeed. This is a precious asset: hold it gently and give it the respect it deserves.
But to be an exemplary liberal arts university, we must also work daily to sustain an intellectual environment that is open, engaged, imaginative, inclusive, compassionate and bold. Most importantly, we must enrich this environment with the diversity of people that reflects the tapestry of our multicultural, multiethnic, and multiracial world.
The great English poet W.H. Auden once suggested that civilizations should be measured by "the degree of diversity attained and the degree of unity retained." I say that great liberal arts universities should be measured by the ways in which a diversity of peoples and perspectives expands knowledge, promotes learning and cultivates respect and tolerance. I am heartened that many of you have supported our new taskforce on campus diversity. As W.E.B. Dubois said, "now is the seedtime, now is the work, and tomorrow comes the harvest."
Third, we must identify and develop signature academic programs and capitalize on the advantages we have by virtue of history, talent and location.
All of our academic programs must be very good; but some of these can be legitimate candidates for national distinction. We've already built on the connection that we have with our illustrious alumna, Flannery O'Connor. Although still young, our MFA program in creative writing is attracting talented students from across the nation. You heard from one of these students today, our inaugural poet. With rhyme and meter and compelling lines, she captured the transformative power of teaching and the joys of learning.
We have other competitive advantages as well by virtue of place, history and good fortune. Think of the way in which our geography, with its lakes and rivers, forests and wilderness provides an exemplary learning laboratory for environmental and outdoor education. Think of our remarkable collection of fossils, arguably the most extensive in the southeast. Think of the monuments to southern history that live in our backyard. Think also of our strong tradition in teacher education and of the unique opportunities that our business students have to assist local communities while learning through practical experience. These and other assets are building blocks of distinction.
Fourth, we must explore exemplary models for fostering an ethic of civic responsibility and community engagement.
Already, many of our students volunteer for community service projects. Moreover, Georgia College participates in national efforts to promote civic responsibility such as Campus Compact and the American Democracy project.
But I'm not convinced that this is sufficient. What if our undergraduate students-every single one of them--became immersed in an organized effort to respond to a social problem? What if we used history and story, science and song, participant observation and relevant scholarship to deepen their understanding, expand their emotional intelligence and illuminate possible solutions? Whatever strategy we come up with, it should effectively encourage our students to achieve a responsible balance between working to promote private interests and working to promote the public good.
This I know for sure, that it is vital to model this ethos as an institution. Georgia College is not just an institution within a community; rather, I see this community as our neighborhood in a strong, ethical sense of this concept. Among other things, this neighborhood includes state and national historic treasures, which attract tourists and revenue to our area.
Barry Munitz, the president and chief executive officer of the Getty Trust and former Chancellor of the California State University System, recently argued that colleges should teach students that place and history matter, and that architectural conservation is a civic responsibility. I agree. This is why I've appointed a group to recommend a neighborhood initiative that will transform how we relate to our community. This will involve cultivating in our students a sense of responsibility for place and expanding our involvement in the preservation of historic structures.
We know that the past and future of Georgia College and Milledgeville are deeply intertwined, and as a university we are committed to sustaining partnerships that will enhance the educational, cultural, recreational and economic development of our region. Established as the capital of Georgia in 1804, Milledgeville was the center for Georgia's political leadership until 1886. The Old Governor's Mansion, which was home to nine of Georgia's governors, later became this university's first dormitory. Following a two-year restoration project, it will be open again as a house museum in February. I've been told there are ghosts-faint whispers from history. I can't wait to hear their stories!
In addition to our Milledgeville campus, we also have a presence in Macon and Warner Robins, where we hope to refocus and redirect graduate and professional education for non-traditional students. This is one of Georgia's largest population areas outside of metropolitan Atlanta; and as a state university, a core part of our mission is to provide graduate programs responsive to the workforce needs of our region. We must strive for focus and excellence here as well, although our challenges will be different.
Forgive me if I seem passionate, but I have come to love this university and community. Throughout this inaugural week, we have paid homage to history and place, tradition and transformation. We created an annual scholarship fundraiser for Baldwin County students. We organized a day of community service. We hosted our first distinguished alumni lecture, opened a retrospective exhibit, and recreated the games and fellowship formerly known as "field day." We also opened and dedicated a wonderful educational resource for area schools-our new Natural History Museum-and we featured the work of some of our talented faculty and students.
Perhaps what moved me the most was the revival of a campus tradition known as Founders' Day. Under the guidance of the History Club, we celebrated the one hundred and fifteenth birthday of Georgia College by laying wreaths on the graves of former presidents buried in Memory Hill Cemetery. I learned of their vision and accomplishments and left thinking about an even larger group of retired faculty and staff, alumni and friends who have given us a rich and lasting legacy. For those of you who are here today, I offer my gratitude.
To our current faculty, staff, students and friends, I also owe gratitude. It is because of you that I am optimistic about the future of this wonderful university. You have heart and imagination, talent and commitment. No president could ask for more.
Thank you.
