Welcome Back
August 14, 2024
To the Brandeis Community:
I write with a warm welcome to all of you as you return to campus. It’s great to see more Brandeisians arrive each day. There is a natural energy that comes with the arrival of a new class and new faculty and staff, helping us usher in the start of the new academic year.
I’d like to share some summer updates and preview some activities for the 2024-2025 year.
Summer Connections and Activities
- Various campus divisions hosted six employee appreciation events with food, music, and prizes. Thank you to everyone—particularly our colleagues in HR and on BUSAC—who helped make these events so special and welcoming to the hundreds of people who attended each one.
- Along with other members of our senior administration, I visited staff in several departments to hear about their ideas for Brandeis and to answer questions about the university and our future. I am impressed by the dedication of the people who make Brandeis run and grateful for what they accomplish on a daily basis.
- The Provost and I also met with the Faculty Senate Council to talk about our goals and our vision for Brandeis. I continued small group faculty meetings as well. These thoughtful conversations were very helpful and I look forward to hosting more this fall.
- We continued to raise the profile of Brandeis worldwide. As we come to the conclusion of celebrating our 75th year, we took Brandeis “on the road” to visit alumni and friends in Toronto—the 15th off-campus anniversary celebration event of the year. In addition, I was honored to speak about Brandeis at events including the annual Herzliya Conference in Israel, and the American Jewish Committee’s Global Forum in Washington, D.C.
- Institutional Advancement closed out our fiscal year by exceeding our fundraising goals (by 16%), having the second-best single year of fundraising since 2009. Of particular note, donors endowed four faculty positions, bringing the total to 11 over the past three years, showing critical support for the academic enterprise.
Selected Academic Activities from the Summer
- Scifest XIII was held August 8 in in the Shapiro Science Center. This annual poster session features and celebrates undergraduate summer research. With more than 100 posters and several hundred attendees, the event highlighted, once again, the exceptional opportunities available to our talented undergraduate students—research opportunities typically reserved for graduate students at most other universities.
- 37 students received WOW (World of Work) funded fellowships, allowing them to participate in internships that would otherwise be unpaid at organizations focusing on climate change, public health, and civic engagement.
- Professor Sara Shostak worked with three members of the Class of ’24 on a manuscript for publication based on research performed by her capstone class on Waltham Field Community Farm’s Produce Prescription Program, VegRx.
- We began discussions about an enriched residential life system that focuses on students’ first two years at Brandeis; we look forward to campus discussions on this initiative.
- We launched the Summer Institute on Countering Antisemitism in Higher Education, welcoming to Brandeis an array of U.S. higher education leaders working in academic affairs, DEI, legal affairs, student life, and other key campus roles.
- Dean of GSAS Charles Golden led a research project in Chiapas, Mexico in June and July involving undergraduate and graduate students from Brandeis. His research is focused on understanding how, before the 16th century, the pre-Hispanic communities transformed their landscape to meet the challenges of political conflict and climate change.
Looking Ahead
As we think about the year ahead, we know it will be busy and intellectually enriching. With a presidential election on the horizon as well as political and social issues at play around the world, we are all deeply affected by these tumultuous times. There will be updates on policies, activities, and opportunities for learning and conversation related to the presidential elections, the wars in Israel and Gaza, Russia and Ukraine, and other events. It is my hope that as the year unfolds, we will engage with one another with respect and compassion, and avail ourselves of the exceptional expertise and resources on our campus and within the broader Brandeis community.
Students should expect invitations to senior staff office hours this fall, where members of university leadership will make themselves available for casual conversations with students to get to know them and learn about their priorities and concerns. And to hear their ideas on how we can do better at Brandeis.
We will also be making opportunities available for the community to engage in a planning effort to implement key recommendations from the Framework for the Future. Students, faculty, and staff should all expect to see invitations to sessions this academic year.
We will also be working on plans for a new 650-bed residence hall this academic year. We expect to break ground next summer. This is one example of the much-needed investment we are making in our campus infrastructure. In the meantime, we will continue to make improvements to our current facilities. We hope students will enjoy Phase two of the Shapiro Campus Center (SCC) renovation, including moving the game room from Usdan to the second floor of the SCC and outfitting it with new equipment. In addition, there are new televisions in common areas, a refinished dance studio in the Village, and new fitness equipment in Rosenthal. These changes come alongside many new programs through which to socialize, volunteer, and of course, learn from our world-class faculty.
Finally, speaking of learning, we are gearing up for a robust review of the Brandeis CORE in the School of Arts and Sciences.
These are just some of the highlights from the summer and things to happen in the upcoming 2024-2025 academic year. Both Jessica and I look forward to seeing you all later this month and around campus throughout the academic year.
Sincerely,
Ron Liebowitz