Remarks by Provost June Schlueter

Indeed, the academy, though steeped in history and tradition, is a brave new world, made so by a continual renewal process best symbolized by occasions such as this, when our hopes, our aspirations, our sense of possibility are as palpable as Miranda’s wide eyes when she first sees “mankind”—or our own when we walk into our classrooms at the beginning of a new academic year. With the continuing presence of 18-22 year-olds, replenished each year so only we get older, we are constantly in touch with young minds and daily challenged to make a difference. And brave we are too—for accepting that challenge, for working at it semester upon semester, a student at a time, until we are ready to hand the next generation over to the world.

The truth is there is no better place to spend one’s career than the academy and no profession more rewarding than that of the teacher/scholar. As teachers, we have the privilege of cultivating young minds, the pleasure of watching those minds expand, and the satisfaction of having students remember us long after they leave College Hill. As scholars, we can engage in the process of discovery, extend the boundaries of our disciplines, become expert on anything from genetic sequencing to public policy to the medieval crusades. Try not to float down the corridor when you’ve taught an amazing class or just heard that your article was accepted for publication. There are pleasures in this profession that are peculiar to it—and that constantly remind us of how smart we were to have chosen it. A survey published every three years in The Chronicle of Higher Education repeatedly indicates that if they could turn back the clock, an overwhelming majority of faculty nationwide—83% this year—would choose this profession again—despite cries across the country, and here at Lafayette, that we’ve simply run out of “discretionary time.” But in the end—bottom line—there is no profession with more rewards—or more influence—than ours.

Art Rothkopf liked to call himself the “accidental” President. He had not intended to spend more than a year in the presidency but tarried for 12. I had no desire to leave my life as a teacher/scholar but agreed to do so temporarily—12 years ago. Life takes unexpected turns: we all have stories of happy—and hapless—accidents. But I introduce the term “accidental” deliberately, prompted by a slip-of-the-tongue I recently heard: a colleague, about to say “academic excellence,” started saying “accidental ex . . . ,” then recovered. In that moment, I was struck by how “unaccidental” our excellence is. Lafayette has a place among this country’s premier undergraduate colleges because we collectively and deliberately put it there. Lafayette’s success is the unsurprising but gratifying result of the efforts of everyone who lives or works here. There is no “accidental”—or “incidental”—excellence here. Nor will there be with Dan Weiss as our President, for Dan, like Arthur, knows how hard-earned every gain in higher education is. Accidents may happen in his presidency, but our academic excellence will be deliberate, intentional, thoughtful, and planned.

This is a proud occasion for Lafayette College. For many of us, it is one point in an ongoing relationship, marked by a deepening affection and a growing regard for the College. But for at least one of us—our 16th President—this is a brave new world, and we are the people in it. Let it be our resolve to join him, support him, advise him as we purposefully move Lafayette toward excellence in all that we do. With such a Faculty, such a support team, and such a President, how can we not succeed?