A publication of Five Colleges, Incorporated Volume 23 2010–2011 Five College Ink

Inside: Five College Strategic Plan Advanced drawing course challenges and inspires News about Five College initiatives

Five College Mission Five Colleges, Incorporated, sustains and enriches the excellence of its members— Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke and Smith Colleges and the University of Amherst— through academic and administrative collaboration. The facilitates intellectual communities and broad curricular and cocurricular offerings, affording learning, research, performance and social opportunities that comple- ment the distinctive qualities of each institution. Ink

Special Insert: Five College Strategic Plan

2 Strategic plan initiatives already taking flight

3 Building on Record-high interchange registrations

4 five college drawing course challenges and inspires

7 five college sustainability studies opportunities expand

8 architectural program begins effort to link people with the river—and Europe

9 people of different backgrounds, races, roles gather for days of dialogue

10 newsbreaks Cover photos by Nancy Palmieri Strategic Plan initiatives already taking flight

The Five College Strategic Plan, 18 months in under review by campus curriculum committees. In addi- PLAN the making, was already beginning to change tion, a group of faculty members has received Five College the way the campuses collaborate before it was funding to explore possibilities for the creation of a Five approved by the Board of Directors in Decem- College food and agriculture summer institute to be based ber. Preparations for planning began in the at the Farm. spring of 2009 with the deans’ call for “concept Five Colleges is also studying how to better align bus papers” for new and enhanced forms of academic coopera- schedules with course schedules to improve transporta- tion, and resulted in 24 submissions. Several early ideas from tion for students taking courses on other campuses (see concept papers, task forces and working groups were identi- next page). In addition, the consortium is discussing with fied to be pursued while planning work proceeded. Transit Authority possibilities for expanding Among these initiatives is the creation of the Five Col- bus service between the Five College area and Holyoke and lege Residencies and Visiting Positions Programs, which Springfield, both to support students participating in ser- will bring artists and scholars to multiple campuses to assist vice and community-based learning in those communities in such efforts as curriculum development, faculty profes- and to improve access to the Five College area for prospec- sional development and scholarly or creative collaboration. tive campus employees and others wanting to participate in In addition, some part of the visitors’ work be with students. events at the campuses. To help ensure the effectiveness of In the coming year, this program will fund visiting art- existing Five College initiatives, a schedule of periodic, sys- ists and scholars in children’s studies, Latin American and tematic reviews of consortium programs has been adopted. Latino studies, opera and public policy. This issue of Ink contains as an insert the entire The Five College Sustainability Studies Program is strategic plan: Optimizing the Consortial Advantage another example of an idea emanating from the strategic by 2020: A Strategic Plan for Five Colleges. You can plan that has already taken root. The program is sponsoring download a copy through a link at the Five College web- a lecture series this semester, and a proposal for a certificate site, fivecolleges.edu, where you’ll also find an updated program developed by collaborating faculty members is progress chart on strategic initiatives.

2 Five College Building on record-high Interchange course registrations

The number of courses taken by students through the advisers, friends, class schedules, registration procedures, the Interchange cross-registration system continues to grow, availability of course information and perceptions of campus reaching a record 5,790 courses for the 2009–2010 academic cultures in assessing what encourages students to take a year. Significant increases occurred for UMass—which saw a course on other campuses or keeps them home. Central to 43 percent increase over two years in student enrollments off the survey, and in fact to Five Colleges’ inquiry, is transporta- campus—and Amherst, with a 27 percent increase over the tion and its impact on cross-registration. same period. Abraham and others have been comparing bus schedules The Five College cross-registration system makes avail- to course schedules and reexamining routes to determine the able more than 5,000 courses taught among the campuses best schedules to get the most students on the fastest route each semester, giving students opportunities to take classes to other campuses. The consortium has also gone beyond that are not offered on their home campuses or are held at studying the issue to put express shuttles on the road on times that better fit their schedules. certain routes in an effort to determine the effectiveness of Even with this success, efforts continue to make the In- such an approach. “Beyond surveys and speculation,” says terchange as accessible as possible to all Five College students. Abraham, who is a physicist, “one of the best ways to test the “Our goal is to reduce impediments by streamlining registra- reliability of a solution is to run an experiment.” tion, improving bus schedules and suggesting optimal times Available only to Five College students, the added ex- for offering courses designed to serve students from several press shuttles this semester go between Mount Holyoke and campuses,” says Neal Abraham, executive director of Five Smith. The shuttles are operated by Seemo Shuttle Trans- Colleges and leader of the effort. portation to serve a schedule constructed around the class With this in mind, Five Colleges is planning a large- times of students who have preregistered. “We began with scale survey of student cross-registration experiences. The a thirty-two-passenger bus, with room for at least ten— survey will be administered to students who have and have sometimes twenty—more students than were preregistered not taken a course on another campus. Its goal will be to in the fall, so we could encourage all students to use the get to the heart of why students do—and don’t—leave bus,” said Abraham. campus for classes. Abraham expects that changes to cross-registration pat- The survey will seek to discover the effect of faculty terns will be seen as soon as fall 2011. Ink 3 k y s e t e g o r P t e p h e n S

4 Five College N y c n a

P i r e i m l a

Five College drawing course challenges and inspires

By Alexandra de Montrichard a l m i e r i

What would a student think of a course that requires her to P Facing page: Student work

travel to five campuses over the course of a semester, com- from the 2010 show. a n c y plete more than 100 assignments from a variety of profes- N sors, and survive critiques that last late into the night? Above: Students and fac- “It was one of the most transformative classes I took ulty members in the 2010 in college,” said Sarah Kulig of the Five College Advanced Five College Advanced Drawing Seminar. Kulig, a 2009 Smith graduate, took the Drawing Seminar. course in 2007. “The number of professors and students from a variety of academic and personal backgrounds inevi- Left: Hanlyn Davies, class tably leads you to doubt your work, ask difficult questions coordinator. and at times feel intense frustration. However, the challenge is also the joy.” Every fall since 1995, a few of each campus’ best studio “The real core subject of the class is each student’s art students have met twice a week: Tuesday with the faculty individual development,” said Hanlyn Davies, professor member who coordinates the seminar, Thursday with a emeritus at UMass, who helped found the course and has different visiting faculty member at his or her home campus. coordinated several, including those of the last two years. At the middle and end of the semester, students gather with The seminar’s open-ended approach—in which students faculty members for critique sessions that often far exceed the choose their own themes, formats and materials—and 7 to 9 p.m. class time. The course culminates with a group its focus on self-exploration are intended to prepare show at a campus gallery. students for their final senior projects. “The idea is that Ink 5 the student is at the center of the education process, not From the outset, it was agreed that responsibility for coor- at the periphery,” said Davies. “Students are treated as dinating and hosting the course would rotate among the five young artists and are expected to perform.” art departments. The greatest challenge the faculty members Five College art departments began collaborating in faced was the amount of time the course took. To make it the early 1990s by hosting such guest artists as the sculptor more manageable for all involved, the number of students William Tucker and the painter Frances Barth. Art depart- accepted was reduced over the years to three per campus, and ment chairs and members of the studio art faculties decided in 2010 the course had five guest instructors instead of 10. to take the collaboration further with a joint seminar. “The Now, more than 15 years after it began, the course faculty and students were really excited by the whole inter- continues to inspire student artists, engage faculty members college nature of the residencies,” recalled Carol Angus, from each campus, and earn rave reviews on course evalu- then the director of information and publications at Five ations. “The course raises the bar for all who participate, Colleges and liaison to the group. “We explored ways to and this has a positive effect throughout all of our studio take advantage of that collective strength and the variety programs,” said Michaud. “It’s a wonderful gift to all of us.” and range it offered. After all, taken together, the five studio When Davies serves as coordinator, students are asked art programs had a large number of very gifted artists. And to present 10 drawings every week, keeping in mind the the students either didn’t seem to know about or didn’t have course’s three guiding questions: What is important to a way to access that collective resource.” you now? What makes it important? How do you com- The first class was offered in fall 1995, with Davies as the municate it? Much of the Tuesday class time is reserved for coordinator and two art faculty members from each depart- critiques in which students present their work to each other. ment teaching a class session hosted on their home campus. “There’s an element of trust that builds between and among Davies, who was then chair of the UMass Art Department, students, and they’re very important to each other,” said helped to construct the initial model for the course. “The Davies. “Constructive criticism is part of the course, and first year was a resounding success, and most if not all came peer support plays an important role.” away with a reenergized sense of what we were or might In the course description, Davies explains that the two collectively be,” recalled Ron Michaud, a member of the art major critiques are central to the course: “Experiencing department at UMass. a wonderful confluence of what is being seen and what is In the early years, the course had as many as 25 stu- simultaneously being said about what is being seen can dents, and some critique sessions ran from five o’clock until turn on lightbulbs and propel the work forward. There is midnight. “Faculty members who volunteered to teach the no doubt that it is a rigorous and challenging and, for some, course gave a lot of their time, a lot!” recalled Angus, whose daunting methodology.” efforts in establishing the class are now honored with the resident artist David Gloman said that Angus Award, which is presented each year to the student “the critique reinforces the fundamental idea that a wide considered the most promising in the field. spectrum of perspectives is crucial to developing a body of

k y artwork. I’m always amazed at how different the students’ s visions are and am extremely curious as to what they’ve e t e g o r P

gleaned from their exposure to the rich philosophies, medi- ums, techniques and diverse perspectives of the participat- t e p h e n S ing studio faculty.” This all adds up to a demanding course. “It’s challeng- ing, but a great opportunity to explore how you make your art,” said Hampshire College student Ana Keck of the 2010 course. “ I felt that I was able to sort of stumble upon a new area of exploration in my work and create my own process. I feel much more comfortable carrying out independent work, which will be important once I leave school.” According to Nat Cohen, professor of art, sculpture and design at Hampshire College, “The difficulty is to develop and sustain ideas, and when you hit the wall to start again. While that sounds simple enough, it really isn’t, and it’s a great lesson for people working in the arts.” Kate Conlon, a senior at , agrees: “It requires you to make decisions and critical judgments about your work and to find your own inspiration. Doing what- ever you want is harder than it sounds.” 6 Five College Five College sustainability studies opportunities expand broad course of study in three core areas of sustainability

o o k e r (environmental sustainability, sustainable economics H and politics, and sustainable society and culture) with an e t h B internship or independent-study project that culminates in a symposium presentation to students and faculty members. The Five College certificate-program model is perfect for offering students an important—and new— field of study, according to Dizard. “None of the college campuses has the sufficient breadth or depth of courses to offer this on its own,” he says, “so this strikes us as a perfect example of a Five College program in which pooled resources amount to everything.” Closer at hand, each campus has been sponsoring speakers this semester as part of the Five College Sustain- ability Studies Lecture Series. Issues explored in it have in- cluded the environmental impact of war, the BP oil disaster, global land-use patterns, the human and natural ecology of the and the economic opportunities UMass student Jeremy Fellows, on a fieldtrip to the presented by current environmental challenges. Hampshire College Farm as part of the Agroecosystems and “There’s a tremendous interest among students in Sustainable Agriculture course taught at Mount Holyoke looking at the environmental aspects of what they’re last fall. already studying,” says Beth Hooker, a visiting assistant professor of environmental studies at Mount Holyoke, A variety of Five College sustainability studies programs who is coordinating many of the Five College sustain- and services now offer additional opportunities and sup- ability efforts this year. port for students who want to study the impact of humans For more information about sustainability studies at on the environment. Current initiatives include a Five Five Colleges, go to fivecolleges.edu/sites/sustain. College lecture series, a website listing available courses and programs, a proposal for a Five College certificate in sustainability studies and an investigation into a possible Three campuses earn Five College food and agriculture summer institute. This comes at a time when interest among faculty top sustainability scores members, students and administrators alike in improv- Amherst, Mount Holyoke and Smith colleges each earned a ing the sustainability of their campuses is on the rise (see score of A- on the College Sustainability Report Card 2011. This “Sustaining the environment, sustaining our institu- score gives each the title of Overall College Sustainability Lead- tions” in the 2009–2010 issue of Ink). “The search for ers along with 49 other institutions of the 322 ranked for the sustainability is something that campuses around the report card. Among the key criteria for all colleges were: using country are really going to have to get behind,” says Jan Energy Star appliances, constructing LEED-certified buildings, Dizard, professor of sociology and American studies at buying local and organic food and encouraging alternate forms Amherst College. “We can make an impression, we can of transportation. The College Sustainability Report Card, a make a dent, as a result of the five institutions collaborat- project of the Sustainability Endowments Institute, looks at ing.” Dizard is a leader in an effort to create a Five Col- the colleges and universities in the United States and Canada lege certificate program in sustainability studies. with the largest endowments and grades each institution in a Akin to a degree minor, each Five College certificate variety of categories, including Administration, Climate Change program enables a student to investigate a field of inquiry & Energy, Green Building, Student Involvement, Transportation, that may not otherwise be available. The sustainability Endowment Transparency, Investment Priorities and Share- studies certificate program, which could be offered on at holder Engagement. least some campuses as soon as fall 2011, will combine a

Ink 7 Architectural program begins effort to link people with the river — and Europe

The Connecticut River as depicted in Thomas Cole's painting The Oxbow, which was loaned to in 2002 for the exhibition, Changing Prospects: The View from Mount Holyoke. © The Metropolitan Museum of Art / Art Resource, NY.

Five Colleges and the Five College Architectural Studies professor Karen Koehler and UMass assistant professor of Program have begun the Riverscaping project, aimed at help- architecture Frank Sleegers. “Hamburg has made huge strides ing communities along the Connecticut River from Turners in addressing social, urban and sustainability issues, driven Falls to Springfield find creative, sustainable approaches to in part by the Elbe River,” Long said. “We have invited local working with and on the river. The effort is getting help from experts and officials from Hamburg to explore and discuss a surprising source—Europe. In December, the project was their challenges and successes in hopes of shedding light on awarded a €100,000 ($135,000) grant from the European new strategies to capitalize on the opportunities provided by Union Delegation to the United States as part of a broader EU our riverscapes.” effort to improve Americans’ understanding of Europe. Criti- From January 2011 through June 2012 the project will cal to Riverscaping, therefore, is the project’s partnership with institute three primary components: learning laboratories, river experts in Hamburg, Germany—the European Green research laboratories and design laboratories. Envisioned as Capital of 2011—who will exchange ideas and expertise with an exchange of ideas and experiences, the learning laborato- Five College faculty members, students, and community ries will be scheduled for spring, 2011. In the fall of 2011, re- members from throughout the Pioneer Valley. search laboratories will open up new collaborations in social “While Riverscaping is about building stronger commu- sciences, natural sciences, history, arts, planning, building nities and cities along the Connecticut River here in the Unit- sciences and beyond. Comprising studio design courses and ed States, our project proposes a series of learning exchanges design/build competitions, design laboratories will produce with Hamburg,” says Thom Long. The Five College assistant both visions of future riverscapes and physical, artistic and professor of architecture and design heads the project, which architectural installations along the river. includes Hampshire College architectural and art history For more information, visit riverscaping.org.

8 Five College People of different backgrounds, races, roles gather for Days of Dialogue By Kevin Kennedy In a follow-up meeting after last fall’s Days of Dialogue, Face-to-face, interactive, challenging, thought provoking: all facilitators met to share their thoughts. For one facilitator are words that characterize the Five College Days of Dia- the highlight was, as she put it, “watching my group develop logue, which have been taking place on each campus over from timid and shallow initial statements into a deeper and the past several semesters. They represent the beginning of a richer dialogue, [and] watching one woman who had not yet consortium-wide effort to promote a more open-minded and spoken finally open her mouth five minutes before the end of inclusive Five College community. the dialogue and enrich the entire experience for everyone in Intergroup dialogue—that is, bringing together people the room.” Many noted that the best conversations were the from disparate backgrounds or points of view to share most honest and challenging. “Good dialogue often unsettles perspectives—has been embraced by campuses here and na- people in order to transform them,” said another facilitator. tionwide in recent years, with a particular focus on students. Members of the Five College IGD coordinating group “Increasingly,” says Ximena Zúñiga, UMass associate profes- say they were pleased that there was increased participation sor of social justice education, “research tells us that sustained this year in the Days of Dialogue, especially among faculty dialogue across racial and other social divides, when facili- members. They noted that there continues to be an interest in tated well, can help participants develop a sense of personal issues of class, rank and race, as well as an increased interest and collective responsibility about diversity and social-justice in religion, probably because there seems to be evidence of issues impacting their communities.” more religious intolerance in society as a whole. Interest grew in expanding intergroup dialogue beyond Facilitators noted a broad consensus of interest among students to faculty and staff members, and in 2008 the Five participants in attending additional dialogues and other College Training and Development Collaborative began follow-up opportunities. “The first thing people said to me working to develop sustained opportunities for dialogue was ‘This was great,’” recalls a facilitator. “The next thing they among faculty and staff members. Led by Zúñiga, whose said was ‘What’s next?’” work has placed her as a national leader in the field, the col- Follow-up to such events is key to successful intergroup laborative recruited and trained facilitators from among the dialogues, says Zúñiga. “Intergroup dialogue programs campuses to guide sessions. The collaborative organized a are based on the premise that sustained and meaningful consortium-wide Day of Dialogue in fall 2009 and a week- intergroup contact, dialogue and education are necessary to long Days of Dialogue the following fall. address issues of conflict and to promote the creation of just, Rather than being a response to specific incidents, orga- multicultural campus communities.” nizers say the primary goal of ongoing intergroup dialogues The Five College IGD Coordinating Group is already is to proactively improve understanding across differences. planning follow-up dialogue opportunities to the Days of “We need to do a better job of creating a climate in which Dialogue. A series of sustained intergroup dialogues, focusing people of color and other underrepresented groups feel more on topics of race and ethnicity, class and rank, and gender will welcome,” says Gladys Moore, Mount Holyoke’s dean of be held during the spring semester. The dialogues will consist religious and spiritual life, director of diversity and inclusion, of a series of two-and-a-half-hour sessions over a period of and a member of the Five-College Intergroup Dialogue (IGD) six weeks and will be facilitated by faculty and staff members coordinating group. who have been through the IGD training program. Her fellow IGD members say intergroup dialogue not The committee has been setting measurements to only creates a more welcoming environment; it also creates determine their successes in this process. The goal of its first a space for dealing with issues people may find difficult to year, according to Stephen Butler, committee member and discuss, from race to gender identity to budget cuts. organizational development specialist for Amherst College, Beginning with one day and 350 participants in fall 2009, was to train people on each campus who could lead dia- Days of Dialogue grew this year to involve some 400-plus logue sessions. With that accomplished, the collaborative is participants and session facilitators. Dialogues in both years focusing on its second objective, which is to create a sustain- looked at such subjects as race, ethnicity and culture; class, able process. It’s also working with Zúñiga to carry out a rank and status; and religion and gender dynamics at work. full evaluation of the process, in which they’ll be measuring In two-hour sessions, participants explored their self-identi- the openness of staff and faculty members toward people of ties and their relationship to others to a degree that few had various backgrounds and cultures and the skills they have to likely ever done before. work with them.

Ink 9 NewsBreaks NewsBreaks Partnership pairs professors and teachers a l l o c h K e m a r y s o Five College Teaching American R History project participants at Mystic Seaport as part of a field study.

Faculty members from the Five I had never met or worked with.” performance in history. Through Colleges lead professional develop- Vanasse’s comments underscore the program, faculty members at ment seminars, summer institutes the goal of the program: to bring the Five Colleges share the latest re- and field studies for the Springfield together teachers and professors to search in history with public school Public Schools’ history and social share resources in order to improve teachers, offering a professional de- studies teachers. This is part of a the quality of education in the area. velopment opportunity that would continuing partnership between Led by Sue Thrasher, the Five be difficult to find anywhere else. area public schools and Five Col- College Schools Partnership is a Over the past year, the program leges to use campus resources to longtime effort to share the re- held seminars on Native American improve elementary and secondary sources of the five campuses with history and on innovation in the school teachers’ skills and deepen schools in the Pioneer Valley. “More Connecticut Valley, provided a two- their knowledge. than twenty-five historians and week retreat focusing on 19th-cen- Asked about the most beneficial American studies faculty members tury history, and offered a field trip aspect of the program, advanced have contributed since the project to the Washington, D.C., area. placement US history teacher began in 2002,” she says, “and their Thrasher reports that this sum- Marisa Vanasse said, “Whether it participation isn’t limited to our mer’s partnership projects will be a was professors whose work I could summer institutes. We’re one of the summer institute on 20th-century use in the classroom—or who could few projects in the country that of- American history; field visits to serve as experts for my students— fer book clubs and have the authors Boston’s John F. Kennedy Library, or the sites visited where we could come to talk about their work.” the Black Heritage Trail, and New gain firsthand experience, I would Classroom testing has shown York’s Franklin D. Roosevelt Library; have to say it was the resources. I that US Department of Education– and participation in the Berkshire also found myself linked to history funded Teaching American History Conference of Women Historians, to teachers from the district whom programs have improved student be held this year at UMass. –Elizabeth Sweeney AC ’11

10 Five College NewsBreaks

Summer seminars support faculty and student research

Five College Faculty-Student Summer of architecture, art history, German, that might be pursued in studying this Research Seminars in the humanities architectural history, literature and new field of research. were launched in 2010 with the support music. They worked with six students, “These seminars brought together of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. from Smith, Hampshire and Mount junior and senior faculty members The seminars brought together junior Holyoke. With research ranging from with shared research interests, so they faculty memebers, senior faculty mem- reading Italian texts in the rare-book could learn from one another while ad- bers and undergraduates to collaborate room at Smith College to recording vancing exciting new scholarship in the on summer research in the humanities. soundscapes in downtown Holyoke, humanities and social sciences,” said To maximize the educational opportu- the architectural studies group paired Nate Therien, Five College academic nity for students, faculty members are off as faculty-student teams to carry programs director, who oversaw the tasked with presenting their projects to out their work. summer seminars. “At the same time, their student collaborators within the Gender and the Human Genome the seminars gave undergraduates context of a broader scholarly discus- took a team approach, bringing to- the opportunity to develop their own sion, outlining a research plan for the gether seven students—from UMass, research skills, working closely with six-week session, and meeting weekly Amherst and Hampshire—with three professors and each other. Scientists with their students. professors—from Hampshire, UMass do this a lot, but it’s less common in the Two projects were funded for the and Harvard—in the disciplines of humanities and social sciences.” summer of 2010: one examining the legal studies, feminist studies and Two Summer Research Seminars impact of gender on genetics and ge- history. The group spent the sum- have been selected for 2011: “Global netics research and the other exploring mer reviewing sex-difference research Approaches to Local Political Change the impact architecture in its broad- within the context of genomic research in the Middle East and North Africa” est sense has on contemporary and and analyzed claims and assumptions and “Lessons from the Past: Interpret- historical urban environments. within genomic research on sex and ing Water Use and Conservation at Architectural Studies: Sites and Ci- gender differences. From this work Three Significant Historic Agricultural tations of the City involved six faculty they produced a white paper framing Landscapes in Central and Western members, from Hampshire, Mount questions in ethical, historical, philo- Massachusetts.” Holyoke and Amherst, in the fields sophical, gender and science studies —Elizabeth Sweeney AC ’11

Hampshire celebrates 40 years

For three days last summer more timeline of Hampshire history that than 1,200 people gathered at ran along a wall inside the Robert Hampshire College to celebrate the Crown Center, to which alumni and 40th birthday of this child of the faculty members could add photos consortium. Alumni held perfor- and other memorabilia, showcasing mances and impromptu reunions. Hampshire artistry and creativ- Former presidents and notable ity. “One of the greatest things alumni gave presentations. One of about the weekend, I felt, was how the highlights was an interactive it reminded everyone what Hamp- Four Colleges, Incorporated, that shire was about and what we could year, the first major act of the new achieve. It brought people together consortium was to encourage the again, proud to be ‘of Hampshire,’” founding of another college. Within says Killara Burn, director of months, a charter for Hampshire alumni and family relations. College was created and the consor- The birth of the Five College tium rechristened itself Five Col- consortium and the conception of leges, Incorporated. The new college Hampshire College both occurred enrolled its first students five years in 1965. After its incorporation as later, in the fall of 1970.

Ink 11 NewsBreaks

Physicist, anthropologist join the ranks of 40th Anniversary Professors

With the appointment of two new e n n e d y K

Five College 40th Anniversary Profes- sors, the consortium community e v i n K may be hearing more about quantum teleportation and the anthropology of space travelers. Herbert Bernstein, professor of physics at Hampshire College, and Debbora Battaglia, professor of anthropology at Mount Holyoke, are the latest to be named 40th Anniversary Professors. Launched in 2005 to com- memorate the anniversary of the consortium’s founding, the 40th Anniversary Professorship honors outstanding teaching and scholar- ship among faculty members, and “The advantage of seeing the plinary “side.” He cites including a provides recipients with the oppor- world from outer space is not that unit on teleportation in his introduc- tunity to work with students at other field-working astronauts and cos- tory physics class, and was integrating schools. During the three years of the monauts forget that people are down other research into his courses long professorship, each receives a research there and are somehow above it all,” before ISIS was founded. stipend, teaches at least three courses she says. “Their journals and diaries, Bernstein was named a fellow of on other consortium campuses, and letters home and pictures from space the American Physical Society (APS) presents a public lecture. To date, 10 reveal them to be, if anything, more in 2003, according to the APS website, faculty members have received such conscious of the importance of hu- “for his outstanding contributions to an appointment. mans’ caretaking relationship to their quantum interferometry and quan- “For me, teaching is about open- home planet, not less.” tum theory . . . and for innovations ing paths to new futures for students Battaglia is currently at work on in teaching, outreach and service in the present world,” says Mount a book titled Seriously at Home in through the ISIS institute.” Currently, Holyoke’s Battaglia. “Anthropology “Zero Gravity”: Acting Human in he is developing experiments involv- offers students counterfactuals to Outer Space. ing what his colleagues call “Super- worlds they might think they un- Herb Bernstein is a founder and Dense quantum teleportation” and derstand, from the points of view of now president of the Institute for “SuperDense entanglement.” those who live there. Students learn to Science and Interdisciplinary Studies Bernstein’s latest interdisciplinary live on the horizons of new knowl- (ISIS) at Hampshire College. Through effort is co-founding the Anacapa So- edge—whether of the cosmos or of it, he studies the philosophy of physics ciety, a national professional organi- their neighbors in Holyoke—and to and the relationship between physics zation that supports all forms of theo- question how we make our worlds.” and society. “ISIS started as a ‘house retical and computational research With a research background in of experiment,’ a term from early sci- in four-year colleges. Bernstein notes out-of-the-way places as disparate as entific history,” he says. “We try to see that Five College faculty members are Papua New Guinea and the meeting what happens when scientists connect prominent in the organization, which grounds of new religious movements their work with the interdisciplinary is based at Amherst College. in Quebec, Battaglia now focuses problems the world faces, and see how A strong proponent of collabo- much of her attention on outer space. they put their values back into their ration among faculty members at A recipient of a Guggenheim Fel- own work.” different colleges, Bernstein says that lowship and a National Endowment Bernstein’s students, too, have Five College students get an “im- for the Humanities Fellowship, she benefited from his research. “Both mense combination of resources. For investigates how extreme environ- sides of what I do are very close to smaller places, it is like having an ad- ments and space travel shape human my courses,” he says, referring to his ditional few hundred million dollars relationships and perspectives. theoretical “side” and his interdisci- in endowment.”

12 Five College NewsBreaks

40th Anniversary Professor’s book part history, part biography, part love story Joseph Ellis, the Pulitzer Prize–win- each was entirely unimpressed with ning, best-selling author of Found- the other. But they soon began a ing Brothers, shared his latest book passionate correspondence that with an audience at Mount Holy- resulted in their marriage five oke’s Hooker Auditorium last fall years later. In Ellis’ book, John and as part of his role as a Five College Abigail’s relationship unfolds in 40th Anniversary Professor. The the context of America’s birth as a Mount Holyoke history professor’s nation. In studying the letters, Ellis book First Family: Abigail and John found it striking “how improvisa- Adams has been published by Knopf tional and seat-of-the-pants they and the lecture kicked off a tour were—whether it was the war or the promoting the book. Continental Congress,” he said. “We In First Family Ellis looks at the look back now and it seems that cer- lives of our second president and tain things were inevitable. Nothing his first lady through the hundreds seemed inevitable then.” of letters the two exchanged. He dis- In addition to the public lecture, tills this record to give an account Ellis’ three-year term as a Five both intimate and panoramic: part of his research. “I found them to College 40th Anniversary Profes- biography, part political history be unparalleled in their emotional sor includes teaching one course a and part love story. “I realized I honesty.” year on a consortium campus other was entering a correspondence that Ellis describes the first meeting than Mount Holyoke. He taught at had been going on for sixty years, between the two as inauspicious; Hampshire in 2009 and is currently in twelve hundred letters,” he said John was 24, Abigail just 15, and teaching a course at Amherst.

Hampshire student and Mount Holyoke professor co-write screen treatment Daliah Leslie was not someone nor- Struck by the drama of the events mally drawn to American history— and Ellis’ retelling of them, Leslie she was a junior studying screenwrit- decided to write a screen treatment ing at Hampshire—but something about them as part of her Division II about the Reading the American portfolio. “It was very good,” recalls Revolution class caught her attention. Ellis, “so I worked with her on it.” c l i p a r t

Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Joe / Last summer the two completed the e d u

Ellis would not normally be teach- . treatment, which is a scene-by-scene f s u ing at Hampshire—he’s a longtime . summary, preparing the work for an Mount Holyoke professor—but he e t c actual script. Ellis sent it to his agent, was on campus in his role as a Five president under Thomas Jefferson, who is pitching it as a potential mini- College 40th Anniversary Professor. and Hamilton, secretary of the trea- series to HBO, the History Channel It was this unlikely meeting that led sury under John Adams. That rela- and others. to the two collaborating on what may tionship culminated with the duel, “Only in this environment would become a television miniseries about described in detail in the book, I be able to accomplish this,” says the Aaron Burr–Alexander Hamilton that ended with Hamilton dead Leslie. “I was able to get in touch duel of 1804. and the vice president of the United with Joe Ellis only because of it. I see In reading Ellis’s Founding States on the lam for murder. “They all these people not taking advantage Brothers as part of the class, Leslie always had a contentious relation- of these resources, and I’m like, are became fascinated by the long, dra- ship,” says Leslie, “and it was kind they serious?” matic and often bitter relationship of inevitable that their fates would between Burr, who served as vice lead to a tragic end.” —Elizabeth Sweeney AC ’11

Ink 13 NewsBreaks

Ethnomusicology becomes newest Five College certificate program a l m i e r i P a n c y N

The 18-member Smith College Gamelan Ensemble, performing in the 2006 Five College John Baily and Veronica Doubleday, World Music Festival, which was sponsored by the Five College ethnomusicologists. scholars visiting in 2010.

The newest Five College certificate “It will create a structured path “There are a couple of comparable program has long been the center of for people wanting to pursue the programs nationally, but that we can faculty collaboration among the cam- subject,” according to Jeffers Engel- draw on faculty from across the Five puses, so much so in fact that despite hardt, assistant professor of music at Colleges gives this program a unique beginning to enroll students just last Amherst College and an organizer of breadth and depth.” fall, it will already see its first graduates the program. The certificate program Five College ethnomusicology this spring. grew out of conversations among faculty members have been collabo- Ethnomusicology joins a dozen faculty members over the last three rating for some 15 years, and have other certificate programs ranging years, in which “we realized the truly added breadth to their own expertise from African studies to cognitive tremendous diversity and experience by hosting visiting artists and schol- neuroscience as a field that students of ethnomusicology faculty in the val- ars, such as John Baily and Veronica may explore in addition to their work ley,” said Engelhardt. Doubleday last spring. The experts within their majors. Akin to academic Five College ethnomusicology on music, culture and censorship minors, certificate programs offer faculty members focus on subjects in Afghanistan performed a public students the opportunity for focused as diverse as post-Soviet religious concert, screened and discussed two study in areas most campuses couldn’t orthodox Christian renewal music documentaries and lectured on music offer alone. In the 2009–2010 academic in Estonia, Appalachian string band and censorship in Afghanistan across year, 64 students earned certificates. music, Nikkei Brazilian communi- the five campuses. As described on the ethnomusicol- ties in Japan, improvised music and By working within a Five College ogy website, “While music is the cen- experimentalism in African American certificate program, ethnomusicol- terpiece of the certificate program, the communities, popular music of the ogy faculty will be able to expand on topics that appear under the rubric of Islamic world, and the history of musi- such offerings and build a stronger ‘ethnomusicology’ extend far beyond cal instruments. program, according to Engelhardt. ‘music in a cultural context’ to include Such a wide range of faculty “Having a certificate program will history, political science, economics, expertise not only makes the program raise the awareness of ethnomusicol- evolution, science and technology, possible, but makes it of national note, ogy in the valley.” physiology, media studies, and popular “It’s rare to have this many specialists culture studies, among others.” in such a small place,” says Engelhardt. —Elisabeth Sweeney AC ’11

14 Five College NewsBreaks

Women’s Studies Research Center alumnae collaborate on book

For the first time, two former associ- hosts 10 to 12 local, national and inter- second-wave feminism while she was ates of the Five College Women’s Stud- national scholars each year who engage an associate at the center in 2000–01 ies Research Center have collaborated in critical feminist scholarship from and Castledine was a graduate student on a book. The history of feminist diverse perspectives. These scholars at UMass. Four years later, Castle- activism is often considered as taking often take part in a public lecture series dine started to consider seriously the place in waves—the first wave was the center hosts from its offices on the debates about the wave theory in wom- the push for women’s suffrage at the Mount Holyoke campus. en’s history while she was at the center. start of the 20th century, the second Castledine says, “To me, our expe- They met at events while Laughlin was wave comprised activism of the 1960s rience [at the center] illustrates the im- at the center and eventually she invited and ’70s, and the third wave the more portance of institutions like the center Castledine to collaborate on her book recent efforts to consider the role age, in fostering collaboration among femi- project. They offered a presentation on sexual preference, race and class play in nist scholars. Perhaps more important, their book at the center in March. women’s organizing. But in essays ex- it illustrates the significant role that the “All sorts of unexpected connec- amining the progress of feminist activ- center plays in helping senior scholars tions happen among our associates ism across these periods, Breaking the to mentor those who are just entering . . . and continue after they leave,” Wave: Women, Their Organizations, their field.” says Elizabeth “E.B.” Lehman, the and Feminism, 1945–1985 challenges Though they were not at the center center’s associate director. “In some the wave theory of feminist activism at the same time, the women’s col- cases they’re personal, in some cases and explores an alternative narrative of laboration grew out of their research they’re intellectual, in some cases women’s history. The editors, Kathleen and experiences there. Laughlin began they’re both.” Laughlin and Jacqueline Castledine, her research on women’s clubs and –Elizabeth Sweeney AC ’11 each began work on the wave theory during different residencies at the “Big Berks”—the Berkshire Conference of Women Historians— will be held June 9–12 at Women’s Studies Research Center. UMass Amherst. For more information, visit berksconference.org. Founded in 1991, the Five College Women’s Studies Research Center now

Knowledge Corridor celebrates 10 years In September 2000, business, Valley—from Greenfield, Massachu- cation institutions. The partnership tourism and educational institu- setts, to Long Island Sound—has the had more to celebrate last fall: it was tions came together to create the greatest concentration of people and awarded a $4.2 million grant from Hartford-Springfield Economic colleges in New England outside the the federal departments of Housing Partnership, which promotes Greater Boston area. and Urban Development, Transpor- economic development in the Con- Last fall, the Hartford-Spring- tation and Environmental Protec- necticut River Valley. Dubbed the field Economic Partnership cel- tion “to create new opportunities “Knowledge Corridor” because of its ebrated 10 years of cooperation for sustainability in housing, land large number of colleges (26, with within the Knowledge Corridor, use, environment, water infrastruc- some 120,000 students) and a highly during which time it promoted the ture, transportation, employment, educated population (more than 13 region as a location for businesses climate action, leadership develop- percent of whom have an advanced to settle and expand, with a major ment and food security,” according degree), the Connecticut River selling point the many higher-edu- to the partnership.

Ink 15 NewsBreaks

editor kevin kennedy

designer robyn Rodman

writer Elisabeth sweeney, AC ’11

16 Five College

Five College Ink is published by Five Colleges, Incorporated and distributed free of charge to members of the campus communities. Additional copies are available from the Five College Center: 97 Spring Street Amherst, MA 01002-2324 413/256-8316, www.fivecolleges.edu Optimizing the Consortial Advantage by 2020

A Strategic Plan for Five Colleges, Incorporated 2010–2020

fivecolleges.edu/planning Mission

Five Colleges, Incorporated sustains and enriches the excellence of its members — Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke and Smith colleges and the University of Massachusetts Amherst —through academic and administrative collaboration . The consortium facili- tates intellectual communities and broad curricular and co-curricular offerings, affording learning, research, performance, and social opportunities that complement the distinctive qualities of each institution .

Contents

Introduction...... 1

Principal Categories for Strategic Initiatives

I . Enhance Academic Excellence...... 2

II . Strengthen Five College Effectiveness, Community and Identity...... 4

III . Align Administrative Investments; Share Services ...... 5

IV . Make Optimal Use of Information Technologies...... 6

V . Extend Local and Regional Engagement and Partnerships ...... 7

Five College Member Institutions...... 8

Five College Board of Directors, 2010–2011...... 8

Foundational Commitments...... 9

2 | Five College Strategic Plan Introduction

our Colleges, Incorporated, was founded in 1965 to formalize with the five colleges today, so that we might envision a library collaboration and student course cross-registration consortium for those yet to come—students and faculty Famong Amherst, Mount Holyoke, and Smith colleges and members for whom agile movement—real and virtual— the University of Massachusetts Amherst . Earlier, in 1958, among disciplines, social contexts and institutions will be four faculty members of the four colleges were commis- not merely an attraction but a reality . sioned to write The , which ultimately led The opportunities presented by new and emerging to the founding of the continually experimenting Hampshire technologies suggest that the geographic proximity that College, which admitted its first students in 1970 . With the originally defined the consortium need not delimit its creation of Hampshire College, the consortium became Five scope today . Individually and collectively, our institutions Colleges, Incorporated, in 1966 . are engaging worldwide audiences, pursuing national and From its inception, the consortium has posed the fol- international collaborations, and educating students for lowing provocative questions about collaboration in higher multicultural understanding and global leadership . At the education, both for its members and for the national conver- same time, we are partners with schools and organizations sation: Working together, how can we collectively improve in our immediate communities . We must strengthen those our ability to meet the intellectual and pedagogical needs of connections and expand our reach to other communities in students and faculty members? Where are the most produc- our region, particularly the urban centers—vital environ- tive points of curricular intersection and innovation? How ments for partnerships in education and service . can strategic cost-sharing strengthen educational excellence? Today, the consortium is recognized as one of the oldest Underlying every aspect of this plan are three core ideals: and strongest consortia in higher education, serving 35,000 • Seamlessness: maximal opportunity and minimal barriers students and 2,500 faculty members, and supporting two to collaboration, where pursued; joint departments and a joint major, 13 interdisciplinary cer- • Thoughtful convergence: synergistic program development, tificate programs, and nearly 6,000 course cross-registrations resource sharing and cost-containment, where appropri- each year . ate; and The value proposition of the consortium is clear: • Scope: a consortium of local impact, regional influence, Through collaboration and cooperation, there are greater national importance and global reach . academic and intellectual opportunities for students and faculty members than could be offered at any single cam- The strategic directions in this plan represent the collective pus, greater efficiency in operations and administration, wisdom of hundreds of faculty members, students, staff and greater opportunities for innovation . We should take members, trustees and administrators, whose insights were advantage of these opportunities while remaining mindful gathered in focus groups, retreats and online forums over and respectful of the differences that create the separate the course of more than a year . The goals will be realized identity of each campus . over time through working groups, relevant administrative As higher education budgets come under increasing bodies and, in some cases, the engagement of external spe- pressure—from growing need for financial aid and reli- cialists . A number of matters identified in the course of the ance on less certain public financing, investment earnings planning process as requiring urgent attention already have and philanthropy—the advantages of collaboration are improvements under development or being put into practice . ever more apparent . Five Colleges, Incorporated, has To succeed—to optimize the consortial advantage—we a leadership role to play in demonstrating a model for must raise awareness of the valuable outcomes of collabora- higher education that is both pedagogically and financially tion across our organizations, recognizing these as compelling sustainable . incentives for collaborative decision making and investment . In undertaking this comprehensive strategic-planning Doing so will result in more successful and distinct member in- process—the first in a decade—we charged the members stitutions, allied productively in a more powerful consortium . of our campus communities to look beyond the immediate —Board of Directors, Five Colleges, Incorporated moment, beyond many of our own personal relationships December, 2010

Five College Strategic Plan | 1 Principal Categories for Strategic Initiatives I. Enhance Academic Excellence

commitment to academic excellence underlies all that In developing new institutional models and academic we do . Our collective endeavors rest on the assumption programs, we are informed by a tradition of innovation per- Athat supporting a remarkable range of academic offer- haps best exemplified in the founding of Hampshire College ings cost-effectively is the promise we make to students by the preceding four partners . Established as a continually and faculty members . experimenting institution, Hampshire’s innovative institu- The central distinction of our consortium—the alliance tional and educational philosophy, as well as innovations on of liberal arts colleges with a research university—presents each of our campuses, can continue to inspire, as we explore numerous opportunities . As a consortium, we offer much new alignments of disciplines, new interdepartmental and larger intellectual and pedagogical communities, even in multi-departmental models, and new pedagogies . Individu- subfields, than any single campus could offer . Building on ally and collectively, we have innovated and will continue to the lessons and successes of existing initiatives in Five Col- do so, leading to more sustainable programs and stronger lege departments (astronomy and dance), interdisciplinary institutions . Central to our success is our commitment to certificate programs, a shared major (film studies), joint learning from other institutions and consortia and rigor- faculty appointments, centers (Five College Women’s Stud- ously reviewing our own consortial initiatives, adopting or ies Research Center, Five College Center for the Study of adapting best practices tested elsewhere and phasing out World Languages, and Five College Center for East Asian less-effective programs when appropriate . Studies), lecture series, and faculty seminars, we are eager A particularly strong opportunity exists for the develop- to actively pursue other opportunities for academic col- ment of preeminent offerings in sustainability studies . Our laboration and cooperation . Our opportunities include region is notably rich in resources—human, programmatic supporting interdisciplinary collaborations in emerging and entrepreneurial—for study and research in sustainability fields; coordinating support for specialized programs de- across multiple disciplines in such areas as environmental sci- veloped on only one or two campuses; considering integra- ence; environmental studies; climate change; green design; tion and coordination of upper-level curricula in selected agriculture and soil science; renewable energy; green com- disciplines consistent with disciplinary needs and resource puting; environmental ethics; environmental social justice; limitations on each campus; developing articulations public policy; and environmental impact on international between undergraduate and graduate programs; and relations, peace and world security . Through coordination sharing library and academic support services . Through and collaboration, the consortium has the potential to thoughtful, cooperative planning, we can achieve even develop signature sustainability programs spanning the greater academic strength . undergraduate and graduate levels .

Strategic Directions

• Foster intellectual communities through focused Five • Expand incentives and opportunities for faculty mem- College academic projects, institutes, and symposia, as bers to teach on other campuses, particularly when the well as coordinated exhibitions, lectures, and support sharing of faculty expertise can enhance and enrich the for extended-term visitors and residencies . Build com- course offerings at a particular campus as well as reduce munity among cohorts of faculty and students in areas the need for students to travel to another campus to of shared interest . find those offerings .

• Actively consider and explore accelerated master’s and • Coordinate deadlines for course submissions and ap- other post-baccalaureate degree and certificate pro- provals for each semester’s schedule of classes to facili- grams, drawing on courses and resources at one or tate joint curricular planning . several of the institutions, to create uniquely attrac- tive opportunities for specialization or preprofessional • Explore consortial approaches to a range of academic- preparation . Such programs might be imagined as pri- support functions, such as learning-disability assessment, marily serving students currently enrolled at one of the disability services, and alternative course materials; five institutions or new students attracted to courses of grant and fellowship application; and facilitation of study not available elsewhere . Each campus will approve study abroad/study away programs, community-based its own involvement in these programs . learning, service learning and internships .

2 | Five College Strategic Plan Principal Categories for Strategic Initiatives

• Continue to explore the integration of information • Encourage that reviews at our member campuses of operations and services, implementing additional collab- departments and programs take Five College oppor- orative strategies for improved services at a reduced cost, tunities into account . Consult when planning strategic including increasing and streamlining access for students investments and adjustments following department and and faculty members at each campus to the physical and program reviews . Encourage each institution to ask its electronic library collections at the other campuses . departments and programs to include descriptions of consortial resources and opportunities in their self studies • Develop a collaborative approach to faculty devel- prior to reviews; and encourage review teams to consider opment; multi-institution teaching and publication current and potential complementary and parallel pro- workshops; and active support and dissemination of col- grams at the consortium partner schools, as well as how laborative teaching demonstration projects, especially resources might best be invested at the institution under those employing instructional technology . review in light of consortial opportunities .

• Create more shared access to and use of each institu- • Foster greater involvement of graduate students as tion’s specialized intellectual resources and research contributors in the undergraduate summer research sites, such as the Folger Shakespeare Library, field sta- projects across the colleges . tions, research sites, study-abroad sites and research institutes . • Expand our traditional notion of the academic calendar to intensify opportunities for shared endeavors in short • Coordinate the development of shared and complemen- courses, research, internships, and other academic proj- tary courses and academic programs that address issues ects in January, May and the summer months . of environmental studies, climate change and its social impact, and the sustainable interaction of people and our planet .

Five College Strategic Plan | 3 Principal Categories for Strategic Initiatives II. Strengthen Five College Effectiveness, Community and Identity

he , while viewed positively in prin- make transparent each campus’s acceptance of credits from ciple, is unevenly experienced, valued, and articulated, even other institutions for both graduation and major credit . Twithin the Five College community itself . It is most obviously From that base, we can expand to such areas as com- manifested in course cross-registration, and yet transporta- mon co-curricular programming, collaborative academic tion, registration and enrollment present barriers . To create institutes, additional Five College certificate programs, true intellectual and cultural community for students and and consortial resources for emeriti and retirees . faculty members, we must improve the basic infrastructure To maximize the advantage of the Five College system that makes taking courses at other campuses possible: we in recruiting students, faculty members and staff mem- must maintain closely aligned academic calendars, dramati- bers, it will be important to align these activities under a cally shorten travel times between campuses by supporting common—and reenergized—identity, one that comple- alternative express transit options, integrate online catalogs, ments the individual identity of each of the institutions enable more seamless course registration, and clarify and while promoting the value proposition of the consortium .

Strategic Directions

• Commit to a transit study, with the goal of significantly • Develop one or more multicampus events to showcase reducing travel times; a single interface to the course students’ academic/intellectual accomplishments, such as catalogs and schedules of classes of all institutions, includ- a senior research symposium or thesis competition, with ing articulation of course equivalencies and prerequisites; meaningful prizes awarded in each of the academic divi- and significant improvements to processes for cross sions . Similarly, review existing discipline-specific events registration . (e g. ,. Chinese speech contest, geology symposium, physics symposium, theater portfolio review, PoetryFest, Africa • Recognizing that academic opportunities and the ability Day, Coastal and Marine Sciences student talks, and an- to earn credentials are important motivations for students’ thropology student symposium) to see whether potential engagement with other campuses, review the existing exists to align them with a larger event similar to the cur- set of Five College Certificate Programs (and new ones rent LEAP symposium at Mount Holyoke College . in development) to make them more visible, transparent and clearly linked through advising to majors, minors and • Study how to better communicate the value of the con- concentrations . Similarly, consider encouraging courses sortium and the distinctive ways in which it enhances and/or certificates in applied areas not traditionally of- the experience of students and faculty members across fered in the context of liberal arts education (e g. ,. finance, institutions . accounting, journalism, nursing, arts management, public health and public policy) to engage students with multiple • Capitalize on the broad reach of Five College Radio (WFCR campuses and provide them with useful complements to and WNNZ) to reinforce the intellectual and cultural value a liberal arts degree, whether for degree credit or not, as of the five colleges . Establish dedicated segments or pro- approved by individual campuses on a case-by-case basis . grams featuring content from our campuses, and increase the involvement of Five College community members in • Develop programs to bring together cohorts of majors shaping the stations’ programming . from the five colleges . • Dedicate space on each institution’s Web site for Five Col- • Encourage co-curricular projects or groups that bring lege news and events . together large groups of students from different institu- tions for common purposes, such as the successful Five College Opera Project .Enhance the number of Five College celebrations and festivals . Consider also the expansion of Five College intramural and club sports activities .

4 | Five College Strategic Plan Principal Categories for Strategic Initiatives III. Align Administrative Investments; Share Services

hared-service approaches to some administrative and sup- Joint procurement, collaborative purchasing and align- port functions enhance value, improve service, reduce costs, ment of major investments also offer significant opportuni- Sand free each institution to focus on its primary mission: ties to reduce costs and grow our collaboration strategically . education and the creation of knowledge . Our experiences This is particularly true in regard to the purchase or upgrade in a number of areas—libraries, risk management, energy of major administrative and academic technology systems, management, recycling, student health, a fiber-optic net- which represent significant financial and labor investments work and public safety—underscore the significant poten- to which institutions are typically committed for more than a tial for improved services and cost savings in administrative decade . Other opportunities to explore include coordinated collaboration . As we identify possible areas for shared ap- efforts in health benefits and wellness services . proaches that enhance services and/or reduce costs, each Key to success in this area is recognizing that no single institution must determine its level of participation, and approach will fit all situations . In some cases, collaboration the timing of that participation to match its local needs, will make sense among two, three or four institutional its commitments with regard to protecting jobs of current partners, perhaps including partners from outside the Five employees and its resources . College consortium; in other situations, we might elect a As we seek to reduce the environmental impact of our commercial solution or the designation of a single campus operations and stabilize or reduce our energy costs, we are as the service provider for all five entities . Alternatively, as presented with multiple opportunities to act collectively, in the case of the fiber-optic network and the library de- invest jointly in alternative energy sourcing and attract grant pository, Five Colleges could produce its own “products,” funding for sustainability initiatives . Our multi-institution with the potential to market services to those outside the approach to recycling and energy management provides a consortium . We have established effective models of in- useful basis on which to build further and more ambitious cremental introduction of cooperation, often starting with collaboration . Our expanded and collaborative efforts will bilateral arrangements that other institutions join later . We also offer students opportunities for rewarding internships . consider bilateral, trilateral and quadrilateral cooperation With strategic vision and collaborative planning, we have to be as valuable as five-way sharing of administration and the opportunity to position the Five College consortium as services . By working consortially in the design and evalua- a leader in resource stewardship . tion of such initiatives, we will maximize the opportunities for partner schools to join successful pilot programs later .

Strategic Directions

• Continue to streamline administrative and business func- • Explore collaborative approaches to maintenance and tions through collaboration, as we have for risk manage- servicing of sophisticated research instrumentation and ment . Stay well informed about the innovations and proj- equipment . ect results at other consortia .Areas in which other consortia and organizations collaborate include financial transaction • Continue to develop convergences in information technol- processing, technology support, data warehousing, fleet ogy systems and licenses, as outlined in section IV . management, plant management, unified card access, project bidding and construction management . • Find ways to work together to reduce emissions and ad- dress our collective carbon footprint . These might include • Building on the successful experience of joint bidding for exploring joint purchasing of energy from alternative auditing services, move toward additional joint bidding sources or generating more of our own; supporting and procurement, where appropriate . more efficient management of transportation and fleet resources; purchasing more food locally, for freshness and • Seek to ensure that major investments made by each cam- reduced transportation impacts; diverting more of our pus are undertaken from the earliest point of exploration solid waste to composting or reuse; and sharing building with advice and consultation with colleagues from the capacity throughout the consortium for swing space dur- other campuses, enhancing the possibility of other cam- ing renovations and student housing overflows . puses joining in any major endeavor either immediately or at a later date .

Five College Strategic Plan | 5 Principal Categories for Strategic Initiatives IV. Make Optimal Use of Information Technologies

he diversity of our institutions—four distinctive liberal arts processes and such educational elements as analysis, discus- colleges in partnership with a research university—presents sion and teamwork . Ta powerful opportunity to develop and model the optimal Technology also enables us to envision a consortium role of information technologies in each of these settings unconstrained by geographic proximity . Five Colleges’ high- and in linking these settings . With a commitment to shared speed fiber-optic network, completed in 2007, offers virtually innovation and investment, we can enhance the residential unlimited bandwidth for educational and research purposes, college campus experience—including its emphasis on close facilitating national and global connectivity for videocon- student-faculty relationships and a small student-faculty ferencing, high-performance computing, and shared access ratio—via appropriate technologies . At the same time, to Internet-based software and resources . As we connect technology can support individualized learning in the ever more effectively among the member schools in our context of a larger-scale teaching environment, providing consortium, we should look to extend our connections to ap- access to course content in a way that allows faculty-student propriate educational institutions and resources throughout face-to-face interactions to focus on higher-order cognitive the nation and the world .

Strategic Directions

• Engage an external information technology consultant to • Explore the potential of cloud computing and communally review the internal inventory of resources and opportuni- accessible educational and administrative software, con- ties for collaboration, and to explore more broadly the tent and data services to collectively serve the information opportunities to strengthen our educational practices technology needs of our campuses . based on best practices elsewhere and national and inter- national trends in information technology . Our goal for • Explore possibilities of a shared data depository to address shared and coordinated IT services is to enhance academic both high volume storage needs and off-site disaster re- collaboration and cooperation (including faculty exchange covery services . and student course cross-registration) as well as adminis- trative cooperation, coordination and effectiveness . Gain • Negotiate shared licensing of software and electronic assistance in assessing the opportunities, benefits and resources—and concomitant pricing—to serve all institu- costs of moving toward either more compatible or more tions wherever possible . common technology systems, particularly in the areas of course management/learning management systems, • Consider ways to expand access to easy-to-use high-quality registration/preregistration, course catalog and course and compatible videoconferencing on all of our campuses, schedule information, single sign-on access to any of our allowing faculty members to choose appropriate ways to campus data networks and card-access systems . use these facilities for instruction, shared speakers, and outreach and in-reach both to students and faculty mem- • Commit to a full exploration of possible multi-campus bers abroad and to new national and global audiences . approaches before any individual campus makes a sig- nificant investment in academic and/or administrative • When reviews and planning identify ideal opportunities technology systems . for shared systems, develop migration strategies to guide new purchases, and develop revised work processes as • Through sufficiently compatible administrative enter- existing systems come up for replacement . Similarly, de- prise systems and more active sharing of data, develop velop a collective component to vendor/system review and an integrated interface for institutional course catalogs, selection at each institution that fosters and facilitates later and faculty and staff directories, and a more integrated buy-in for other institutions . schedule of classes . These solutions should appear seam- less and navigable to students and faculty members even if separate systems are retained .

6 | Five College Strategic Plan Principal Categories for Strategic Initiatives V. Extend Local and Regional Engagement and Partnerships

ollectively, Five Colleges constitutes a major employer and our home communities of Amherst, Northampton, and purchaser, a significant revenue generator, a longtime South Hadley; with the cities of Springfield and Holyoke; Csupporter of local transit and public radio, and a nation- with the institutions of the Hartford-Springfield Economic ally recognized source of intellectual capital . Inspired by Partnership or Knowledge Corridor; and with the many a commitment to regional well-being, the consortium communities we adjoin and intersect with in Hampshire, has the potential—and responsibility—to leverage that Franklin and Hampden counties . Through thoughtfully de- collective capacity in service of the economic, political signed educational and service collaborations, Five Colleges and community-building issues of western New England can offer significant analytical and research assets as well as well as those of our local communities . as technological resources to the important educational, We value the educational and research partnerships development and policy decisions affecting the future of made possible by the strong nexus of our campuses with this region .

Strategic Directions

• Strengthen our efforts in educational partnerships, sup- • Build or strengthen appropriate relationships with other port of public schools, community-based learning, and regional higher education partners, including the eight community service in our local communities, especially colleges of greater Springfield, and those of Greenfield, Amherst, Northampton, South Hadley and Hadley . Holyoke and Hartford, embracing all those, as appropriate, in the Knowledge Corridor . • Strengthen the Five College presence in Springfield and Holyoke, including program coordination and on-site • Develop a consortial approach to community and govern- locations that would provide ready access to the human, ment relations (local, state and federal) to engage more cultural and intellectual resources of the five colleges and robustly with key economic development initiatives and serve as bases for campus representatives to engage the to leverage funding opportunities . Areas of focus could community (e g. ,. schools and community-service organiza- include regional transit planning, including local/regional tions) . Initial programming at these sites might focus on rail; K–12 school support; cultural tourism; environmental community-based learning and employment recruiting . sustainability; job creation; technology infrastructure The Greater Springfield–University of Massachusetts Am- development; and the Holyoke high-tech renaissance, herst Partnership and the Holyoke Campus Community including the Green High-Performance Computing Center . Compact and Holyoke Bound programs offer examples on which we can build . • In support of both our regional economy and sustainable business practices, ensure the inclusion of local vendors, • Build or strengthen appropriate relationships with other whenever feasible, when procuring goods and services . regional communities, large and small .

Five College Strategic Plan | 7 Five College Member Institutions

Amherst College Founded 1821 Amherst, MA 01002 Coeducational liberal arts college, 1,700 undergraduates www .amherst .edu

Hampshire College Founded 1965 Amherst, MA 01002 Coeducational liberal arts college, 1,500 undergraduates www .hampshire .edu

Mount Holyoke College Founded 1837 South Hadley, MA 01075 Liberal arts college for women, 2,200 undergraduates www .mtholyoke .edu

Smith College Founded 1871 Northampton, MA 01063 Liberal arts college for women, 2,600 undergraduates; 100 graduate students www .smith .edu

University of Massachusetts Amherst Founded 1863 Amherst, MA 01003 Nine schools and colleges; 21,400 undergraduates; 6,100 graduate students www .umass .edu

Five College Board of Directors, 2010–2011

Anthony W . Marx President, Amherst College Marlene Gerber Fried Acting President, Hampshire College Lynn Pasquerella President, Mount Holyoke College Carol Tecla Christ President, Smith College Robert C . Holub Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Amherst Jack Wilson President, University of Massachusetts System Neal B . Abraham Executive Director, Five Colleges, Incorporated

8 | Five College Strategic Plan Foundational Commitments

In developing this strategic plan, the Five College Directors affirmed the following foundational commitments as essential to ensuring academic excellence and strength:

• Individually and collectively, we are committed to excel- • Faculty members teaching on multiple campuses hold lence in teaching, research, and scholarly and creative the privileges of full-time faculty members on their host work . Collaboration enables us to support a remarkable campuses . They receive appropriate recognition and credit range of disciplines and programs within the consortium, for courses and students taught regardless of their home in some cases through selective specialization on a single campus or their students’ home campuses . campus . • We encourage innovation and experimentation, seeding • Sharing the cost and delivery of nonacademic functions, some consortial initiatives with start-up funding with the whether among some members or all, enables each institu- expectation that successful endeavors will locate perma- tion to invest more fully in its primary educational mission . nent funding over time .

• The variety of our institutions—a research university with • We are committed to ensuring the ongoing pursuit of an honors college and four liberal arts colleges, two of best practices and reviewing, on at least a seven-year basis, which are women’s colleges and one of which has been an the effectiveness of our shared enterprises; as well, on at experimenting college from its inception—is a distinctive least a 10-year basis, we are committed to reviewing the asset . Manifest within the consortium itself is the power effectiveness of the consortium as a whole . of partnering undergraduate with graduate, public with private, and research university with liberal arts college . • As institutions and individuals, the five colleges are actively engaged citizens of our local communities, invested in the • The power of learning in a context of diversity—ethnic, strength of our region’s schools, workforce, infrastructure, socioeconomic, geographic and multicultural—is a distinc- and economic and urban development . Our support for tive asset of the Five College learning environment, which our region is manifest in school-college collaborations, itself includes a remarkable diversity of institutions . community-based learning, and local procurement .

• Course cross-registration is a core feature of our col- • Singly and collectively, we are international in our per- laboration and a basic right of our students . We aspire spective and ambitions, preparing students from around to make it as easy and seamless as possible . Our institu- the world for global citizenship and leadership . tions maintain closely coordinated academic calendars, with similar start dates for each semester and common mid-semester breaks . We impose no additional levies on students or institutions related to cross-registration, intercampus transportation, or meals on other campuses associated with attendance for courses or consortial ac- tivities, and we are committed to making course materials and electronic resources accessible to all students and faculty members from their home campuses .

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