Roellke to take on role of permanent dean

Christopher Roellke was named Dean of the College on Nov. 24, according to an e-mail sent out by President Catharine Bond Hill. Roellke has been serving as the Acting Dean of the College since July, when former dean Judy Jackson become Vice President for Institutional Diversity at the University of Kentucky.

The Dean of the College position was created in 1994 to coordinate the Offices of the Dean of Studies and the Dean of Student Life. The position oversees offices that affect student life at Vassar, including Career Services, Campus Dining, Health Services and Security.

"I can sincerely say that my highest priority is to make sure that the Dean of the College division runs as smoothly as it can in 2008-2009," Roellke explained. "I am both eager and excited about this new challenge and hope that I can serve the College well."

"[Roellke] has been an outstanding member of the Vassar faculty since 1998 and is a highly respected scholar on the politics and economics of education, teacher education and secondary school reform," wrote Hill in the e-mail.

Roellke's former positions at Vassar include Dean of Studies and Chair of the Department of Education.

In a shift from previous years, the Dean of the College will live on Vassar's campus in Pratt House. Roellke believes that it is better for the Dean to live on campus in case of an emergency, so that he can take immediate action. "I think this is extraordinarily helpful," he said, "especially given the [recent robbery]."

In an interview earlier this year, Roellke outlined several of his main priorities as Dean of the College. "One of the key pieces is faculty engagement in residential life of the College."
To this end, Roellke and Hill have been holding town hall-style meetings in dormitories over the course of the semester.

Roellke also spoke strongly about student drinking on campus. "Like many colleges across the country, we are concerned with alcohol abuse," said Roellke. "You've heard, perhaps, about the Amethyst Initiative, which is a series of college presidents that are interested in dropping the drinking age from 21 to 18. I think that is really rooted in trying to get a handle on the culture of binge drinking on college campuses," he continued.

Roellke supports Hill's decision not to endorse the Amethyst Initiative. When questioned about his stance on student drinking at the Nov. 23 meeting of the Vassar Student Association (VSA) Council, Roellke said that "the College can't facilitate illicit activities."
However, he said that the Security Department should view its role as "educational, not punitive," and that they should try to keep students safe, not try to catch them committing a crime.

Another of Roellke's responsibilities will be to help the College deal with the present financial crisis. According to Roellke, the budget for renovating dormitories has shrunk from $20-$22 million to just $7-9 million, so the administration will have to talk to students and prioritize which renovations are most necessary. However, Roellke believes that this money "can go a long way."

Another issue that Roellke will have to deal with as Dean of the College is the new meal plan. At the VSA meeting, Roellke  suggested some sort of subsidized plan for students who need to attend academic sessions such as language tables in the All Campus Dining Center.

Roellke's appointment is still pending confirmation by the Board of Trustees, which will discuss the issue at its next scheduled meeting in February.