A Message From the President to the Dean College Community

Dean College has celebrated the lives of our students, faculty and staff from around the world for 155 years. The Dean Difference, implemented by all of us in our Community, demands equality and intolerance for racial injustice as we recognize the gifts that all members of our Community share with each other. We are anguished by the longstanding pain endured as a result of racial injustice and are committed to coming together as a community to listen, learn, grow and contribute toward progress in building a stronger, compassionate and more equitable democracy for all.

We mourn the tragic death of Mr. George Floyd and stand in unity recognizing the gift he was to his family and to his community. Through personal responsibility we all must take a stand against violence, racism and the injustice that prevails in its shadow. As faculty and staff, we will take concrete actions designed to deepen our collective understanding and empower our students as citizens.

Embracing social responsibility, including racial justice, is an essential value at the heart of the Dean College Mission Statement. Global and Intercultural Fluency, the “awareness and respect for commonalities across and differences between identities, cultures, experiences and/or global origins,” is one of our six Learning Goals. Collectively, these shape our holistic approach to education which prepares our students to have respect for all in the classroom, through co-curricular activities and in leadership and internship experiences and they inform our daily work. This summer, members of our faculty and staff will be engaged in professional development designed to infuse this Learning Goal, and others, with curricula and co-curricular practices to advance equity, both inside the classroom and in all of our campus life experiences. 

The Dean Difference ensures that each of our students can advance the cause of social justice in their lives and the lives of those that they encounter. Our future as a democracy requires that we stand in solidarity against racism and injustice. We must challenge each other to move to a place where justice prevails for all. 

Dean College reaffirms its values today and every day in our actions as we live our institutional Mission. 

Please join me in your own prayerfulness and actions to bring peace and comfort to those who need our support, our compassion and our willingness to listen and to hear their message.

With respect,

Dr. Paula M. Rooney, Dean College President