Well that's strange...

Why wasn't Dean Crady in his office today, the day his "abrupt" resignation was announced? The Dartmouth reports:

Crady was out of the office and unavailable for comment on Tuesday.

Also, it looks like Spears will serve as Acting Dean of the College for at least two years. Seems like a long interim, right? Click here and look how many departments report to our poor Dean of the College. My bet is that the administration is going to use this time to cut up the job into smaller ones to deal with the tremendous number of responsibilities.

Implications of the Crady Resignation

David Nachman '09 of the erstwhile blog Super Dartmouth did some top-notch reporting in 2007 on Tom Crady's Ph.D dissertation and what it meant in light of his appointment to be Dean of the College. The work is titled "Written and unwritten rules: the use of alcohol by fraternities: a study of one college" and shows a refreshingly level-headed towards the Co-ed/Fraternity/Sorority system and campus alcohol policies.

Nachman quotes passages where Crady states...

I do not believe that colleges and universities should ban alcohol from their campuses, and alcohol education programming should focus on responsible drinking rather than abstinence.

and suggests that college administrators...

• Assist Greek Letter organizations in emphasizing the positive aspects of Greek life. Many Greek letter organizations are developing and implementing impressive social justice and/or community service programs. These should be highlighted and reinforced on campus. Standards should exist for Greek letter organizations outlining activities they are expected to offer to the campus.
• Provide Greek letter organizations with the resources and tools to accomplish their goals both on and off campus. Greek letter organizations should be fully supported by campus officials to ensure that resources are available to assist these organizations.
• Develop positive and constructive interpersonal relationships with the leaders of Greek letter organizations on campus. Campus administrators should establish positive working relationships with Greek leaders before problems occur.
• Resist the temptation to view Greek letter organizations as negative elements of student life and the campus culture. Resolve problems that arise quickly and efficiently while maintaining positive interpersonal relationships with students in Greek letter organizations.

Certainly Crady was a breath of fresh air for the oft-maligned CFS system as evidenced by his willingness to increase the number of sororities and work to reconcile with banned fraternities.

The questions now are how will Sylvia Spears approach Greek life in the short term and how will her permanent successor act in the long run? The Office of Pluralism and Leadership is known for its institutional disdain for all things Greek and for its perception that Greek houses directly threaten their social agenda. Hopefully we'll see Dean Spears build off the progress of Dean Crady instead of reverting to more antagonistic and dichotomous paradigms.

Dean Crady Resigns from the College

The recently appointed Dean of the College, Tom Crady, has suddenly resigned from his post "effective this week," after just 18 months on the job, to "return to Iowa to pursue other opportunities." Sylvia Spears, from the Office of Pluralism and Leadership will take over in the interim. (Both pictured at right)

Due to the sudden nature of this move, something here seems a little off. It seems hard to believe that Hanover's climate drove him away. His previous home of Grinnell, Iowa is similarly rural, has a comparable population (9,000+, compared to Hanover's 10k+), and appears to have similar weather (rainy summers and cold winters). Crady also appears to be doing the exact same thing at Dartmouth as he was at Grinnel. So then why the sudden move? Disagreements with the college? Hard time breaking into the Dartmouth social bubble? Kids don't like Hanover High?

It seems like there is more at work here and LGB appreciates any tips our loyal readers can give us. More updates to follow.

Below is the full campus blitz sent by Provost Barry Scherr:

From: "Barry P. Scherr"
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 2009 10:20:27 EDT
Subject: Announcement
To: All:;
Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to inform you that Tom Crady has resigned as Dean of the College, effective this week. Sylvia Spears, who has been a significant contributor in providing student support in the Dean of the College area, will serve as Acting Dean for a period of two years.

I know that the decision to leave Dartmouth has been a difficult one for Tom and his family. Tom started at Dartmouth in January 2008, after serving 10 years as Vice President of Student Services at Grinnell College in Iowa, where he had worked for more than 25 years. Tom has decided to return to Iowa to pursue other opportunities.

I want to thank Tom for his service, for his commitment to improving the student experience, and for the many innovations he has introduced in his 18 months on campus, including the reform of the COS system, his reorganization of the student deans, and his decision as the Dean of the College to be more accessible by holding regular office hours in Collis for undergraduates. He brought to the job a great deal of energy, a willingness to embrace change, and a true enthusiasm for his work with students.

In the coming months we intend to examine the scope of responsibilities in this critical area; only after completing that process will we launch a national search for the new Dean.

Sylvia joined Dartmouth as Director of the Office of Pluralism and Leadership/Associate of Student Life in July 2007. This past year, she also served as Acting Senior Associate Dean of the College with responsibility for guiding academic support programs and outreach to faculty. Sylvia's expertise is student development, with particular emphasis on factors that contribute to the success of students. Sylvia holds a Ph.D. in Education, an M.S. in Human Development and Family Studies, and a B.A. in Speech Communications. Before coming to Dartmouth, Sylvia held a faculty position in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Rhode Island, where she taught courses in counseling, research methods, higher education law and cultural competence.

As we get ready to begin a new academic year on September 24, we will continue to look to the Dean of the College area to complete the process of putting in place the new student dean system, to carry out an ongoing assessment of existing programs and services, and to work on strategies for ensuring student success.

I want to take this opportunity to wish Tom well and to express my appreciation for what he accomplished in his time at Dartmouth.

At this time, I would also like to thank each and every member of the staff of the Dean of the College area, for their professionalism and support during this transition. I have every confidence in that office, and in Sylvia, as together we seek to provide an extraordinary educational experience for the students of Dartmouth.

Sincerely,

Barry Scherr
Provost

UPDATE: from The Dartmouth (4:10PM)

1. Crady may be leaving to pursue the Presidency of Grinnell College which becomes vacant in July 2010.
2. This was a "difficult" "family decision".
3. Provost Scher will be staying on until June 2011, instead of leaving in the summer of 2010 as originally expected.