February 3, 2005
Good morning UMass Dartmouth! Welcome back!UMD is our own winter wonderland. I hope you were all able to travel back safely and will be able to get around through the incredible snow mounds. It has been a monumental task to clear the parking lots and pathways. I am very appreciative of the hours of labor put in by our facilities staff to get us up and running again.
While the classrooms and parking lots and dining rooms were quiet for the inter-session, there has been lots of work going on behind the scenes to make this semester one of the most memorable in our 40-year history.
From celebrating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. this past Friday, to welcoming one of the world’s current human rights leaders in February, to sharing our faculty’s ideas and innovations with the greater community, to a Board of Higher Education vote on the UMass School of Law, our campus is going to be ablaze in ideas and aspirations, just as it should be.
***
First, following the UMass Board of Trustees historic vote to create the UMass School of Law here in Dartmouth, we have been working with the UMass President’s Office to move this initiative through its next phase – approval by the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education.
We are seeking a vote of the BHE on the proposal at a March special meeting. The proposal, which will bring a donation of over $10 million in assets from the Southern New England School of Law to UMass, has strong support throughout the higher education, political, legal, and business communities.
It remains imperative that we – as public higher education leaders, students, faculty, parents, and friends -- make our case for UMass Law loud and clear to the Board of Higher Education and the Massachusetts Legislature.
Please visit, www.umassd.edu/law to learn more about the law school proposal and how you can help make the law school a reality -- help make UMass history -- this semester.
***
In the fall, we began Breaking New Ground/A Tradition of Innovation to commemorate the 40th anniversary of this campus. We envisioned an enhanced intellectual and cultural climate that brings more of the exciting ideas generated on this campus out into the world, and brings world issues here to our campus community for closer examination.
This semester, you will have unprecedented opportunities to engage in issues and ideas that cut across disciplines, cultures, and nations. I invite everybody to participate in as many of these mind-expanding, dialogue-provoking events as possible.
We began the semester by honoring one of our nation’s greatest groundbreakers – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. – at our annual Drum Major Award breakfast this Friday. YWCA Executive Director Yvonne Drayton and UMass Nursing Prof. Jeanne Leffers were honored at this year’s event.
U.S. Rep. James McGovern, a true champion of justice, was the keynote speaker. Congressman McGovern delivered a passionate and reasoned speech on the role of the U.S. in protecting and expanding human rights around the world.
Yvonne Drayton and Jeanne Leffers were honored for contributing in powerful and inspirational ways to expand educational, cultural, and health care opportunities for all people. It is important that our University and our greater community recognize such leaders and learn from the example they set for all of us.
We all owe our gratitude to George Smith and his team at the Office of Equal Opportunity, Diversity and Outreach; as well as a UMass/community gospel choir, and three student participants -- Student Senate President Brian Silver, College of Arts and Sciences Senator Amaryllis Pina, and Bruce Tench II -- for making the event truly inspirational.
***
On February 23 we will be among the fortunate U.S. audiences to hear Dr. Sima Samar, leader of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission. Dr. Samar, a Kennedy Library Profile in Courage winner, is among the world’s leading human rights leaders, having stood up for women and children against the Taliban. She is also the founder and director of the Shuhada Organization, which administers a network of hospitals, clinics and schools for Afghan women and children.
Also, throughout the semester, all of our colleges and major divisions have created compelling events designed to connect their teaching and research with the issues that affect the community around us. Innovative faculty members have been recruited to deliver Breaking New Ground Colloquia presentations on campus and in the community.
You can find the full schedule at www.umassd.edu/breakingnewground. I hope to see you at these events.
***
As we return to campus, let us remember how richer we are in opportunities to grow thanks to the deeds and ideas of people such as Dr. King, and let us also remember that most people around the world, such as those Dr. Samar is fighting for every day, can never dream of such opportunities.
Let us spend this next semester taking full advantage of our opportunity to seek and share knowledge.
