Chenette appointed new Dean of the Faculty

Jonathan Chenette was appointed Dean of the Faculty this summer, taking the place of former Dean Ron Sharp, who stepped down in favor of teaching English. Chenette is a former music professor and has spent the past four years as the Associate Dean of Grinnell College.

As Vassar's Dean of the Faculty, Chenette is responsible for hiring, supporting and evaluating faculty members. He also acts as Chair of the Committee on Curricular Policy, which oversees the Vassar curriculum and advising system, and as co-Chair of the Course-Load Committee, which is in charge of determining the number of courses that each faculty member teaches.

Chenette hopes to work with the Course-Load Committee to determine whether or not Vassar faculty members should teach fewer courses in coming years.
"There is both competitive pressure and internal reasons to consider if we should move in the direction of a lower course load," said Chenette. "But if we do that, there will potentially be significant curricular conversation…and possibly some revision of the curriculum."

Vassar professors currently teach a 3:2 course load, meaning that they teach five courses a year, three in one semester and two in the other. Many of Vassar's peer institutions are on a 2:2 plan, under which faculty members teach only four courses each year; two per semester. Last spring the Course-Load Committee began weighing the potential benefits and drawbacks of changing Vassar to a 2:2 plan. They have not yet decided whether or not to change faculty course loads.

Chenette himself hopes to make some revisions to the current 3:2 plan. "One thing I want to think about and talk to people about this year is whether we might put a higher value on senior projects," said Chenette. "Are there ways to credit those sorts of very close student-faculty mentoring as part a of faculty member's teaching load? And if there are—and I think there are—is that a direction we would want to go?"

Chenette cited advising, participating in the Undergraduate Summer Research Institute and conducting independent research as activities that could potentially become part of a professor's course load.
Advising students is of special importance to Chenette, who worked as a pre-major advisor at Grinnell. Chenette hopes to help pre-major advisors work more closely with students and become a source of support for underclassmen. "Advising is a kind of teaching—and it can be the best kind of teaching," he explained.

But if advising and research projects do become part of a professor's official course load, it may mean that fewer classes will be available to students. Chenette acknowledged the potential drawbacks to changing the course load and explained that no decision will be made until every aspect of a potential change is considered.

"I only want to do it if we can figure out a way to do it that enhances the educational experience for students," explained Chenette. "And to me, what that means right now is that certain valued activities that are not currently given the emphasis that they might receive are credited as faculty teaching them."

In addition to determining each faculty member's course load, Chenette is responsible for reviewing their evaluations. The Faculty Appointments and Salary Committee (FASC) conducts the evaluations on most faculty members every three years. Armed with a teaching portfolio from the faculty member, a letter from tenured members of the professor's department and the results of students' course evaluations, FASC makes a recommendation to Chenette and President Catharine Bond Hill. This process determines whether  faculty members receive tenure, whether they receive merit and ultimately, what percentage increase or decrease they will see in their salaries.
Through his committee work and faculty reviews, Chenette intends to "make sure we have a really top-notch faculty to teach you and to carry on path-breaking research and creative work."