Letters

November 4, 2024

Dear colleagues,

I wish to acknowledge the tremendous care demonstrated by our campus community in the passing of Jason Askri. The work of our Student Life team was truly above and beyond in leading and supporting all of us, including Jason’s family, during this most difficult time. That gratitude extends to so many others – faculty, staff and students – who have been supporting and taking care of one another. Please continue to use the resources available and do not hesitate to reach out to me if I can be of assistance – your wellbeing matters to me. At the end of this email I’ve included information about the EAP services available to all employees. A formal College remembrance event to honor Jason will take place from 12-1 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 13, in Palmer Auditorium with a reception to follow. In addition, many have expressed their desire to send condolences to Jason’s family. Cards may be sent to the Office of Student Life (Cro 218).

October was a busy month. Kudos to the Holleran Center for Community Action and Public Policy for hosting the U.S. House of Representatives 2nd Congressional District debate on Oct. 10. The event, which attracted a near-capacity audience in Evans Hall, helped to inform the campus and local community about the important issues at stake in this election.

Thank you to everyone, especially our Advancement team, for their wonderful work in making Fall Weekend such a success. We welcomed more than 1,500 family members, friends and alumni to campus for a weekend of celebrations, panel discussions, athletic contests, research presentations, artistic exhibits, singing performances and more. Check out this recap of a truly memorable Conn experience shared through photos, video and social media highlights.

On Oct. 23, we celebrated the renovation of Holmes Hall, home of the Connecticut College Child Development Lab School, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The children held the ribbon, making it the cutest ribbon-cutting ceremony I have ever attended!

In advance of the Board meeting, we prepared the annual progress report with updates on the current strategic plan, Building on Strength, which can be found here. Thank you to everyone across campus who continues to help us make progress on these goals.

The Board of Trustees met Oct. 24-26. In addition to the full Board meeting, the Council of Former and Emeritus Trustees (CFET) had a full day of programming, and new trustee orientation was held. On Friday evening, two new members of the Ad Astra Society were inducted: Jonathan Stavin ’85 and Harold F. Wiley (posthumous). The Ad Astra Society recognizes donors who have made lifetime commitments of $1 million or more to Conn. At the meeting, in addition to reports from all College divisions, the Board acted upon and/or discussed the following:

With CFET, heard a presentation from Dean of the Faculty Danielle Egan on ways to achieve curricular equilibrium
Approved Admission goals for next year, including first-year enrollment, comprehensive fee and target discount rate
Reviewed the current year budget projections, which continue to track according to budget. As you will recall, this includes a projected deficit, so we will be working to identify additional opportunities for savings and/or revenue to reduce that deficit
Reviewed progress on Athletics’ Action Plan for Competitive Success
Reviewed progress on the $50 million investment on priority infrastructure repairs and upgrades, and our progress on the sustainability plan
Discussed campus programming to facilitate dialogue and engagement around difficult topics
The trustee-student liaison committee discussed dining, the presidential transition and investment policies
Discussed the initial results of the rollout of the GiveCampus platform to support social fundraising efforts in Advancement
Approved Larry Vogel, Professor of Philosophy, for emeritus status
Approved Debo P. Adegbile ’91 and Jonathan D. McBride ’92 for trustee emeritus status
Approved degree candidates for students who completed over the summer

I wish to thank the many members of this community who helped the trustees and former trustees feel welcome, and for all the hard work that contributed to a productive and engaging meeting.

In addition to these events, we had a month of intellectual and creative vitality on campus with guest lectures addressing climate change, housing justice, the U.S. elections and conflict in the Middle East, as well as inspiring performances, concerts, poetry readings and film screenings. Shout outs to the Departments of Mathematics and Statistics, Music, Theater, English, French, Government & International Relations, the Holleran Center, CCSRE, the Walter Commons and Library and Information Technology for supporting this programming. Also, congratulations to the Division of Marketing and Communications for receiving nine CASE District I Awards for their CC Magazine articles, digital advertising campaign and videos celebrating the Conn community’s achievements.

For the first time in 12 years, all fall teams qualified for the 2024 NESCAC Championships, including men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s cross country, women’s field hockey and women’s volleyball. Last week, the Camels came to play in the NESCAC Championships. In a tough battle, the women’s soccer team pushed No. 1 Wesleyan to double overtime, but the Cardinals scored in the last minute, while field hockey held off Williams for three periods before allowing two goals. The men’s soccer team faced No. 3 Amherst in double overtime and won in a penalty shootout, 4-2, to advance to the NESCAC semifinals. The No. 23 women’s cross country team finished sixth at the 2024 NESCAC Championship and Grace McDonough ’26 finished eighth to earn All-NESCAC honors. The men’s cross country team finished ninth, with Matt Scardigno ’25 turning in a stellar performance finishing third and earning All-NESCAC honors.

As part of my “listening tour,” I continue to hold office hours for faculty and staff. Please keep an eye out for those announcements. I encourage everyone to attend, even if it is just to say hello. I also have started faculty-staff conversations at the president’s house and look forward to welcoming you for dialogue and socialization. We continue to move forward on a number of recommendations noted in the Campus Climate Task Force reports, including the development of a robust onboarding process, using data to inform staffing and compensation plans, and increasing transparency and communication through campus messages and community events.

In response to the request for additional ways to show appreciation, we have a new camel in town – the brass Kudos Camel. Thanks to the Task Force subcommittee on Campus Climate and Communications for the inspiration! Each week, the cabinet will send the camel to staff and faculty in recognition of exemplary performance in service to our students and campus. Suggestions of who deserves a visit from the Kudos Camel are welcome – you can send them to any member of the senior administration.

Finally, a reminder that Christina Williams, our new vice president of Finance and Administration, joined Conn as a key member of our senior leadership team on Nov. 1.

Upcoming Events:

As we prepare for tomorrow’s election, Mara Suttmann-Lea, Associate Professor of Government and International Relations, is presenting “What to Expect When You Are Expecting an Election” this afternoon from 4:30-6:30 p.m. in the Hood Dining Room in Blaustein. On Wednesday, from 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m., I will host a Community Lunch in the Hood Dining Room, where we can gather as a community to discuss the election or not, as we wish!

Thursday, Nov. 7, is the sixth annual All-College Symposium. This major student conference highlights students’ integrative learning in Connections. All members of the Conn community are strongly encouraged to attend. More information can be found here.

Please join your fellow Camels on Friday, Nov. 8, for two special events. From 1-2:30 p.m., Race and Ethnicity Programs (REP) will host a celebration for National First Generation Day. From 7-10 p.m., there will be a reception and screening of Trivia at St. Nick’s, the Hallmark Holiday movie that was filmed at Conn last summer, in Olin Science Center Room 014. There will be cocoa and cookies, and everyone is encouraged to come in their favorite holiday attire.

This weekend, the men’s soccer team will travel to Middlebury to face Williams in the semifinals at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. Meanwhile, women’s volleyball secured the No. 8 seed and will travel to take on No. 1-seeded Bowdoin at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

Finally, I would like to remind everyone there will be a memorial mass and reception for former President Claire L. Gaudiani ’66 at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 9, at St. Paul The Apostle Church, 60th and 9th Ave., in New York City. Her family asks that you consider making a gift to the charity of your choice as a way to remember and celebrate her life and her passionate commitment to generosity.

Sincerely,

Chapdelaine Signature

Andrea E. Chapdelaine, Ph.D.
President

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