Presidential finalist Casey visits campus

Friday was take two in DePauw's parade of presidential finalists, as candidate Brian Casey, associate dean for academic affairs at Harvard University, came to campus for a full day of meetings and forums with students, faculty and staff. Trinity University's vice president for academic affairs, Michael Fischer, did the same on last Tuesday.The wide range of subjects Casey discussed at the forums included many of the usual top issues at DePauw, including diversity, sustainability and the state of the greek system.

At the student forum - which brought slightly fewer students than Fischer's, possibly due to its timing on a Friday afternoon - Casey said he was committed to creating a sustainable university, though like Fischer, he said he couldn't commit to specific actions as a presidential candidate. Casey said sustainability is something that has strong importance to him "personally" and is excited about.

Regarding expansion of diversity at DePauw, Casey said it is an issue "the president has to own."

"Dr. [Robert G.] Bottoms has done a nice job in diversity of faculty members. It's just the beginning," Casey said. "If we don't provide a diverse faculty, we've impoverished the educational experience."

He added that issues of diversity should not be limited to race.

"Diversity should cross a variety of parameters," he added. "This has got to be a constant intellectual, sort of institutional effort."

Casey's ideas on the benefits of diversity and internationalization overlapped with his answers to questions about DePauw's greek system. He said he hopes DePauw students might come to define themselves more broadly through exposure to new ideas and variety of experience.

"I would like to think - and I think this is already happening to some extent - that your greek life just becomes one layer of your full experience at DePauw," he said.

Casey said he understands the importance of DePauw's greek system to students and alumni.

"Any person who's contemplating DePauw's presidency who isn't willing to consider the greek system really doesn't know exactly what they're applying for," he said.

As Casey explained his support for a strong greek community, he also said he would hold the system accountable for its role on campus. In response to one professor's criticism of the greek system as "dysfunctional," Casey said, "If you have the privilege to be a part of this community, you have an obligation to contribute to this institution not just socially; ... you have an obligation to contribute to this institution culturally and intellectually."

Intellectual growth was a subject Casey said he would emphasize as DePauw's president. Asked what he would hope his legacy as president would be, he said he'd be most proud "if 10 years from now the student body that was here was marked by a real sense of intellectual curiosity."

Casey said one of the most attractive features of DePauw for him is the chance to work on a personal level with students and faculty at a closely knit institution - a rarity in his job at Harvard.

Students and faculty who got to see Casey up close during Friday's visits had mostly positive comments, and voiced general approval of both Casey and Fischer.

"Fischer taught at Trinity and he said he'd be willing to teach here. Casey had more knowledge of where students stood," said freshman Craig Melancon. "Either would be reasonably good."

Senior Brandt Buell said he was really impressed.

"I feel really excited, and I hope he delivers what he said he would," Buell said.

Professor David Alvarez said he liked Casey's discussion of the positives of a liberal arts education, and that he views both candidates favorably.

"I was impressed with their commitment to DePauw," Alvarez said.



Moving forward

Sarah Wallace '76, chair of DePauw's Presidential Search Committee, said the next step for the committee is to decide which of the two finalists it would like to endorse. Then formal negotiations with that candidate on issues like compensation and length of contract will take place.

After negotiations are finalized, the committee will present the candidate to the University's board of trustees for final approval, at which time President Robert G. Bottoms' successor will be announced. Wallace said she expects the announcement to come in "the next month or two."

"I think the campus visits went very, very well," Wallace said. "It was wonderful that so many of the DePauw constituents got to see the candidates and interact with the candidates."

- Jessica Adams and Courtney Hime contributed to this article