Dear CoCA and LLSS Faculty,
As you know, the College Councils have worked diligently on proposed structures for a merged college. On March 24th, the two deans brought forward a proposal that has a “School of the Arts” embedded within a combined college.
It is important to note, the “School of the Arts” has been a consistent discussion point from CoCA representatives and something that I had indicated seemed reasonable since this would not be a College with a School “tacked on,” but rather a School integrated into the College.
As with all of our Schools, there would be a Director who would be expected to teach and work actively to enhance existing local relationships, such as those with the Toledo Museum of Art, the Toledo Symphony and the Toledo School of the Arts.
I envision that the new college will have a college council with proportional representation from all 14 departments. While there are curricular issues to resolve, those are the purview of the faculty and should be discussed collectively. However, there should not be an imposition of majority will, or curriculum, on any departments. Instead, academic integrity and pedagogy should prevail.
Finally, I encourage us to make progress and position our newly constituted college for increased future success. As such, I propose that we complete this transition and then we allow new Provost Hsu to initiate a national search in August 2017 for the next dean of this new college.
It is my hope that we can proceed with the merged college and begin the process of working through the details. To defer this to next year extends this period of uncertainty.
Thank you for your help and patience in this process.
Sincerely,
Sharon L. Gaber, Ph.D.
President
