Important Updates from the Town Hall

Dear Colleagues:

I enjoyed seeing so many of you at our Town Hall last week. Thank you for your many thoughtful comments and questions.

See the full video recording of the Town Hall meeting.

As Provost Michelle McCauley put so well, what Middlebury College and MIIS share is a commitment to experiential learning and a mission to prepare students to lead engaged lives and address the world’s most challenging problems.

As we face fires, floods, and war across the world, our work has never felt more important. We are preparing the professionals the world needs now. Moreover, the world is changing and so are we.

I want to acknowledge how tough the last few years have been. We have been in a state of one adjustment after another – many of them painful. We’re moving into a new phase, in which we are less reactive and more intentional in building the Institute of the future.

Expanding our Programs

Our focus right now is two-fold:

• Renewing, reinvigorating, and growing our in-person, on-campus programs and 
• Expanding our offerings by launching new online programs.

Our initial enrollment estimate (subject to updates) is 450 FTE for fall. We are working to increase on-campus enrollment, which has been particularly impacted by the suspension of important partner programs like Peace Corps during COVID. 

We have a number of marketing initiatives underway and are also designing and launching new programs in high-demand areas, such as the online MPA in Sustainability, to be followed by an online cybersecurity degree.

What we’re working towards over the next decade:

• A vibrant campus community with all of our existing in-person programs and 500-600 on-campus (FTEs), plus 30 undergraduates each semester.
• 10-12 online programs that are ‌growing steadily each year, reaching 600-1,000 in total annual enrollments, primarily part-time students.

Middlebury is investing in this transition, and senior leadership and the Middlebury board are committed to the Institute’s success.

Shifting our Teaching Modalities

We have taken a step forward towards this vision by starting the process of phasing out blended synchronous instruction as the default modality (see my update). It has been a critical tool for us to weather a time of crisis. However, it is not the ideal experience for students, and it’s more taxing for faculty, 

We have a range of students with very different needs from full-time students at the start of their careers to mid-career professionals and career-changers who are part-time, as well as students with distinct requirements such as international students, military, and undergraduates. Blended synchronous serves most of these student groups less well than programs designed in light of their expectations and needs. 

I fielded many great questions about this in the Q&A. Dean Laura Burian and I will also be joining the Faculty Senate on Tuesday to discuss this further and will work closely with all of the program chairs.

If you had additional follow up questions around this, please submit them here. We’re using a form to ensure that we capture all questions in one place.

Leadership Council Roles

We want to make sure that our team is structured effectively and that people have the right authority, responsibility, and accountability. With Fernando DePaolis returning to our faculty ranks, we’re reassigning that work. Toni Thomas is taking the lead on some pieces related to academic operations and the budgetary process improvements are being moved forward by Barbara Burke, with assistance from Angie Quesenberry. Some of the systems integration work is still being assigned.

We have a lot of complex curricular and organizational changes underway, especially for our on-ground programs. 

• Laura Burian’s role is shifting to be even closer to a classic Dean of Faculty role, leading on faculty evaluation, contract renewal, promotion, and sabbaticals, as well as recruitment of new faculty.
• Patricia Szasz’s role will focus completely on online programs, including the contract with an online program management company, developing processes and guidelines for online programs, and overseeing the design and launch of new online programs.
• Advancing academic innovation is my primary focus. We have created a new role, the Director of Academic Initiatives, as an in-house consultant and project manager for these change processes and who will be focused on supporting the strategic directives of the Council. Professor Daniel Chatham will be starting in that role on Oct. 1.

See our key initiatives this fall and who is leading for each one in our Institute Council Objectives and Key Results.

As I shared at the Town Hall, I will be taking a sabbatical in spring 2024, returning in the fall. During this period, Stephen Snyder, Dean of Language Schools and Vice President for Academic Affairs, will serve as interim VPAA. Michelle McCauley will also spend more time here in Monterey during the semester, working closely with the Institute Council to ensure continued progress on our many change initiatives.

Language and intercultural competency are in the DNA of Middlebury and one of our greatest strengths. We look forward to working with Steve – and Thor Sawin in his new role – to promote greater integration of language programs across Middlebury.

In other exciting news, you may have noticed that painting has kicked off for the new mural on the side of McCone. Learn more and sign up to help paint. Latine Heritage Month kicked off September 15 and we have a couple of upcoming events, including one this Wednesday with the muralist Yermo Aranda, who is speaking at 5 p.m. in Irvine auditorium. The Jewish high holy days kicked off with Rosh Hashanah on September 16 and 17 with Yom Kippur coming up on September 24.

Thank you all for making MIIS what it is today. Have a great week.

JDJ