Charles R. & Martha N. Fulton School of Liberal Arts OCTOBER 2013 The EXCHANGE Visit Us On the Web n Salisbury University Home Page Leading Positive Change www.salisbury.edu By Dr. Maarten Pereboom, Dean, Fulton School of Liberal Arts n Fulton School of Liberal Arts aking my Kanter’s keys can help us to be more intentional in www.salisbury.edu/fulton older son off our efforts as we embark on a new academic year: n Advising Tto college 1. Show up – Kanter talks about how showing up www.salisbury.edu/fultonadvising several weeks ago allows opportunity to fall in our laps, but in n Department of Art was bittersweet, our world, where we prize work flexibility and www.salisbury.edu/art but my overall the solitude to research, write, prepare for class sense was one of and grade, we have to make an effort to be n Department of Communication Arts excitement for him present for the activities that create community: www.salisbury.edu/commarts and a renewed generous availability to students for advising, n Department of Conflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution appreciation of whether scheduled or on the fly; conversations www.salisbury.edu/cadr the four-year with fellow faculty members; campus cultural n Department of English residential college events and lectures. www.salisbury.edu/English experience. 2. Speak up – Many of us don’t have any trouble Enjoying the talking, but this is really about advocacy and n Department of Environmental Studies Fulton School Dean freedoms and being able to define and articulate what we do. www.salisbury.edu/Environmentalstudies Dr. Maarten Pereboom embracing the Especially in the national press, the loudest n Department of History responsibilities of voices don’t have a clue about regional www.salisbury.edu/history early adulthood in a diverse and stimulating comprehensive universities and the excellent n Department of Modern Languages environment with lots of smart people everywhere education we can provide because their view is and Intercultural Studies seems like a pretty good idea in an affluent society limited to the major research universities and www.salisbury.edu/ModLang where individuals can expect a lot from life. More elite liberal arts colleges they, in most cases, seriously, excellence in higher education is critical attended themselves. n Department of Music to a civilization that is going to keep moving 3. Look up – This one should be pretty easy, given www.salisbury.edu/MusicDept forward: That effort requires people who are the importance of education, but how often do n Department of Philosophy capable of achieving their full potential as we let other interests supersede the best interests www.salisbury.edu/Philosophy individuals, able to interact with one another as of our students? It’s those higher values that n Department of Political Science mature and responsible citizens, and ready to inspire us to pursue positive change with www.salisbury.edu/politicalscience enrich the workforce with creativity and a wide conviction and determination, while the variety of knowledge, skills and abilities. Not to narrower interests often stand in the way. n Department of Psychology mention football. 4. Team up – Any major initiative is going to www.salisbury.edu/psychology If you, like me, are completely sick of reading require collaboration and collective effort, it’s a n Department of Sociology articles about the decline of the humanities, or good idea to look for partners in unusual and www.salisbury.edu/sociology about psych majors being the worst paid, or about surprising places. General education came up at n Department of Theatre and Dance students not knowing anything after they graduate, a recent strategic planning brainstorming session, www.salisbury.edu/theatreanddance what can we do? One more article, by Thomas and that’s a good example of a critical Frank in the current Harper’s (October 2013), may component of the curriculum that will never be The Exchange is published twice a semester. be worth inflicting upon yourself. He makes a successfully assessed, reviewed or changed number of good points, laying out the politics of without true teamwork. these debates as well as the tendency of academics 5. Never give up – Lasting positive change is deeply themselves to indulge in self-loathing as well as rooted in the culture of an institution. Culture self-righteousness, but in the end he addresses can change and does change, but usually it takes IN THIS ISSUE: university faculty directly: “Don’t propagandize for a long time and requires patience and your institutions, professors: Change them. Grab persistence. Applying for grants springs to mind the levers of power and pull.” as a good example. Upcoming Theatre Productions A few weeks ago, in our Fulton School meeting 6. Lift others up – This one is perhaps the most to open the academic year, I talked about inspiring, and the one that encourages me to Sustainability on Campus leadership, and specifically about sociologist and encourage you to think of yourself as someone Harvard Business School professor Rosabeth Moss who can have a positive impact on the quality of Kanter’s six keys to leading positive change, which what we do here, certainly in the courses you New Faces in Fulton she explains in an easily Googled, 20-minute TED teach and the students you advise, but more Talk well worth your time. She addresses a more broadly on the community we are and the Living Learning Community general audience, but her keys are worth applying experience our students have. to our setting as we consider our students’, and our Inside this issue you’ll read about the different ways Department Reports society’s, needs. Our profession calls upon us to be in which you and your colleagues are pursuing more than experts in our academic fields. We positive change. The curriculum, in particular, is a already value teaching excellence above all other major lever of faculty power, and you are pulling criteria in assessing job performance, but how well hard when it comes to responding to the challenge do we work together, and with students, to of climate change, to providing students with maximize the potential of the whole academic opportunities to study and learn abroad and to experience? We have good instincts and good making the learning experience in our home practices and, indeed, the value we place on campus community more diverse and collegiality is also a major asset, but I believe cosmopolitan. Thanks for everything you do! www.salisbury.edu/fulton 2 The Exchange Professors Logan and Tuske Attend Prestigious NEH Programs by April Logan, English neglected writers and works, literacy programs, for the pursuit of an independent project.” curricular originality, scholarship and the life-long The two professors also applauded the NEH’s learning of university and K-12 educators. embrace of interdisciplinary study. “I enjoyed the Indeed, one of the reasons that the NEH interdisciplinary nature of the institute. There were Institute drew Logan’s interest is that her book people from the fields of neuroscience, western project includes a chapter on the poems of philosophy of mind and Buddhist studies, and all of Frances Harper, whose activism and publishing them were very keen to learn from each other,” career, which spanned two centuries, made her Tuske said. Logan recalled that a highlight of her one of the most beloved African-American poets experience was the presence of both established of the 19th century. “Although many acknowledge and emerging literary critics/creative writers among Harper’s importance as a writer and proto- her institute’s attendees and faculty. She observed, feminist, her poetry has been somewhat neglected “The poets at my institute, people such as Eugene due to some prominent scholars’ questioning of its Redmond, Aldon Nielsen and Evie Shockley, have April Logan with award-winning poet, literary critic, and Institute literary merit as popular literature. The Institute produced some of the most important scholarship faculty member Dr. Eugene Redmond. offered a wonderful opportunity to study Harper’s on poetry; they have distinctive perspectives as pril Logan of the Department of English significance within the context of her practitioners and theorists.” and Joerg Tuske of the Department of contemporaries and the poets who followed Tuske and Logan stated that they intend to use APhilosophy were accepted to a National them,” explained Logan. assigned texts from their NEH programs in their Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) institute Tuske shares Logan’s enthusiasm for applying classes and to design new courses. In addition to and seminar last summer. NEH programs are for NEH programs. He has participated in an networking, which Tuske mentioned often leads to highly competitive and include stipends for travel institute and a seminar. This year, he attended the future research collaborations, institute and and living expenses. Through them, participants four-week “NEH Summer Seminar: seminar participants also exchange teaching are able to attend lectures by and receive guidance Understanding Buddhism through its Classic materials and discuss pedagogy. Therefore, from leading scholars, apply what they learn in Texts”, held at the Mangalam Research Institute SU’s students will benefit from Logan and presentations, take excursions to relevant local in Berkeley, CA. In 2012 he participated in the Tuske’s recent professional development landmarks and archives, and share their expertise two-week NEH summer institute “Investigating excursions, as well. with peers through informal and formal activities Consciousness: Buddhist and Contemporary such as dinners and group projects. The federal Approaches.” Tuske noted, government founded the NEH in 1965 to provide “The topics of the seminar and grant support to the humanities. institute fell exactly into my The focus of the institute Logan attended, area of research interest.” “Don’t Deny My Voice: Reading and Teaching Tuske added that NEH African-American Poetry,” was the important seminars and institutes differ in debates, evolution and history of African- terms of their size and the American poetry written during pivotal periods nature of their activities: “The from 1900-2013.