Clark magazine | Special Inauguration Issue | Summer 2022

SPECIAL EDITION / Summer 2022

THE INAUGURATION of

D AV I D B . F I T H I A N ’ 8 7 THE 10Th PRESIDENT of CLARK UNIVERSITY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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The Processional

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The Ceremony

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President’s Address

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David re: David

20 From the Podium 22

Academic Symposium

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Celebration Festival

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Breaking New Ground

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Jill Friedman EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Jim Keogh ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Melissa Lynch ’95, MSPC ’15 DESIGN

Kaajal Asher kaajalasher.com PHOTOGRAPHERS

Steven King Andrew Hart Erika Sidor Phil Smith Tim Cheney

Printed by Flagship Press Inc. ON THE COVER: The Clark medallion was presented to David Fithian upon his investiture as the 10th president of Clark University.

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Clark University signaled an era of new possibilities with the inauguration of David B. Fithian ’87 as the 10th president in the University’s 135-year history.

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ITHIAN, the first Clark alumnus to hold the office of president, was formally invested into the position during the April 30 ceremony held in Worcester’s historic Mechanics Hall before an audience of students, faculty, staff, alumni, visiting dignitaries, and delegates from higher education institutions from across the country.

Among the guests were former Clark presidents David Angel and John Bassett.

In his inaugural address, President Fithian laid out a vision for “higher altitude” — an unbounded future for the University marked by even greater academic excellence, an improved campus experience, advanced efforts toward achieving diversity, equity, and inclusion, expanded outward engagement, and increased institutional capacity.

“I have no doubt that we can, indeed, achieve the vision we’ve set out for ourselves when we collectively embody these core values. We can, indeed, reach for altitude through the preservation, persistence, progress, and perpetuity of our distinctive identity as Clark University.”

Clark, he said, exhibits a “fearlessness to assert itself when the moment arises” and is rooted in a set of shared values that have strengthened over time and ensure that Clark “is as relevant, necessary, and essential as ever.”

The inaugural ceremony began with a procession up Worcester’s Main Street and into Mechanics Hall, led by a corps of bagpipers and drummers. Joseph Corazzini, vice president for government and community affairs, served as master of ceremonies, and Ross Gillman ’81, chair of the Board of Trustees, officially welcomed the guests and talked about the unique opportunity to formally install a president who has been serving in the role for two years.

“We are even more enthusiastic now that we have had a chance to both work with David and to observe the truly transformational vision and infectious enthusiasm that he has brought with him,” Gillman said. “There is a palpable and unmistakable sense of possibility that will surely help us to continue to accelerate the trajectory that Clark is currently on. Indeed, the changes that we have seen are neither subtle nor limited, neither random nor impulsive — rather, they are the beginning of the ambition that David has brought to the campus and to the entire Clark community.”

Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty spoke on behalf of the city, emphasizing Clark’s close ties with Worcester and its longstanding partnership with the Main South neighborhood.

Colby College President David Greene, a longtime friend and former University of Chicago colleague, noted that “Clark shaped David in profound ways” as a

student, providing him the tools to turn his intellectual curiosity into a lifetime of discovery and achievement.

In a video message, Robert Zimmer, president emeritus and chancellor of the University of Chicago, for whom Fithian worked as executive vice president, remarked that Fithian is “a person of unshakable integrity and of careful and nuanced judgment.”

The ceremony included greetings and observations from Robert Deam Tobin, chair of the faculty and Henry J. Leir Chair in Language, Literature, and Culture; Mary Owens ’86, president of the Clark Alumni Council; and Maria-Elisa Gallant, co-chair of Staff Assembly.

Clark students Rena Zisser ’24 and Aditi Singh, M.S. ’22, offered heartfelt remarks about the president. Zisser spoke of an ongoing email correspondence with Fithian that has established a genuine and personal connection between them and illuminated “what it means to truly be a Clarkie.”

Following remarks by David Rubenstein, co-founder and co-chair-

man of The Carlyle Group, renowned philanthropist, and a friend of Fithian’s (see page 18), Gillman conducted the formal investiture, bestowing on Fithian the presidential robe, hood, and medallion with help from Professor of Sociology Shelly Tenenbaum and Fithian’s husband, Michael Rodriguez.

Gillman read the same citation used in 1946 to install Clark President Howard B. Jefferson.

“You are given a rare opportunity,” the citation read in part. “Yours is to plot and direct the course Clark University shall pursue to the end that it may meet its designed purposes and obligations.

We have every confidence in you and your ability, not only to keep and maintain the position which Clark University has already attained, but to increase and add luster to its record of achievement.”

Following the investiture, the audience stood to applaud Clark’s newly inaugurated 10th president.

The ceremony was graced with several musical pieces, including “Call to Post,”

composed by Matt Malsky, the Tina Sweeney, M.A. ’49, Endowed Chair in Music and director of the Higgins School of Humanities; “New Paths,” composed and performed on the Worcester organ

by Leonardo Ciampa, Mechanics Hall composer-in-residence; and “The Builders,” with music by John Aylward, associate professor of music composition and theory, and lyrics based on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem of the same name.

“The Builders” was sung by baritone Cailin Marcel Manson, associate professor of practice and director of music performance, with accompaniment by Yelena Beriyeva, distinguished artist and director of chamber ensembles.

Thomas Mueller ’22 concluded the event in style with a soulful rendition of “Feeling Good.”

“That is how you end an inauguration,” Corazzini said to Mueller, before concluding the ceremony and inviting the newly installed president to lead the recession out of the hall.

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2 (Right) David Fithian proceeds through downtown Worcester. (Below) Dean of the College Betsy Huang, Vice President of Advancement Jeffrey Gillooly, and Dean of the Faculty Esther Jones join in the procession.

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@ Robert Muir of Facilities Management carries the Clark gonfalon.

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@ (Clockwise from left) Joseph Corazzini, vice president for government and community affairs, and Provost Sebastián Royo prepare to march with (from left) Michael Rodriguez, incoming Board of Trustees Chair Gary Labovich, and Vice-Chair Ron Shaich. David Fithian with his presidential predecessors David Angel and John Bassett. President Fithian greets a Worcester mounted police horse en route to Mechanics Hall. Professor Shelly Tenenbaum with student speaker Aditi Singh. Trustees Kevin Cherry and Dr. Anthony Cannon process down Main Street.

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The Inauguration of David B. Fithian

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(Clockwise from left) Cailin Marcel Manson performs “The Builders.” A view of the presidential gown prior to the investiture ceremony. President Fithian and David Rubenstein applaud a musical performance. Provost Sebastián Royo addresses the audience. President Fithian dons Clark’s presidential robe and hood with help from husband Michael Rodriguez. The robe replaced the blue regalia of Yale, where President Fithian earned his Ph.D. and which he wore until he was invested. Fithian greets Professor Kristina Wilson after the ceremony. Behind Wilson is Andrew Shennan, provost and dean of the college at Wellesley College.

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Inaugural Address of David B. Fithian ’87 President of Clark University

‘Reaching for Altitude

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‘

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T IS A GREAT HONOR AND PRIVILEGE for me to be standing here today, having just been formally invested with the symbols of Clark’s presidency. It is an even greater honor and privilege to have all of you here with me — along with others watching this ceremony online — and to have everyone across this very special weekend participating for Clark.

Ours is a great university and deserving of moments like this one through which it can be formally recognized and celebrated. Thank you all for doing just that.

I am truly humbled and deeply grateful for the opportunity I have been given by the Board of Trustees to return home to my alma mater as its 10th president.

What you are observing today is a ritual of academic life that at its core is about continuity. It is, then, both natural and important that today we look back as well as ahead. Recalling at least some aspects of the path we have already taken provides helpful context for where our institutional foot may fall next. In a moment I will share some reflections on our history and goals for our future, and ask you all to help me write a next chapter

for Clark that is both faithful to our distinctive beginnings and also has us together reaching higher.

••••• Let me first thank those who brought such personal, warm, and thoughtful greetings: Mayor Petty, David Greene, Robert Tobin, Maria Gallant, Rena Zisser, Aditi Singh, and Mary Owens. Your presence and words mean so much to me personally and greatly honor Clark as well.

Bob Zimmer, a giant of my professional life, was determined, despite all he is contending with health-wise, to record a message for today’s event and I couldn’t be more grateful or moved that he did so.

To David Rubenstein: The initiative that you and I worked on together at the University of Chicago was one of the greatest gifts and most exciting challenges of my professional career. I thank you for that opportunity, as well as the gift of your friendship and your many roles of service to our country.

To Ross Gillman, chair of Clark’s Board of Trustees, I express tremendous appreciation for being such a deeply invested partner in our work together.

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The entire Board of Trustees is a remarkably dedicated group that cares deeply about Clark and is unafraid of the challenging questions that lay before us, both at Clark and in higher education more broadly.

To my faculty colleagues who crafted and performed original musical compositions for today’s ceremony — Matt Malsky, John Aylward, Cailin Marcel Manson, and Yelena Beriyeva — I am so grateful for the gift of your time and talent. To Leonardo Ciampa, the composer-in-residence and organist here at Mechanics Hall, thank you for showcasing that remarkable instrument in this historic space. To Clark senior Thomas Mueller, I know your performance — still to come — will bring today’s ceremony to a happy and energizing conclusion. Thank you all, including the Sterling Brass Ensemble, very much.

Let me also thank all of the faculty who presented at the Academic Symposium yesterday. Your work and your ability to connect it so compellingly to the many challenges we face as a society is a testament to why Clark offers such a compelling education and has such an impact on the world.

Of one thing I am sure: I am the beneficiary of a strong foundation upon which to build because of the outstanding leadership of my most recent predecessors. Please join me in acknowledging the eighth and ninth presidents of Clark University, John Bassett and David Angel.

It is truly my honor to welcome as guests today distinguished colleagues representing colleges and universities along with learned societies and academic associations across the country; valued partners from city and state government; members of Clark’s remarkable faculty, staff, and student body; and dear friends and family.

I especially want to acknowledge my sisters Dianne Pisarek and Lisa Fithian, and my stepsister Diane Stefanic. Their hard work and resilience, as well as their creativity, causes, and accomplishments, have been an inspiration to me. My

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husband, Michael Rodriguez, has — since the time we met three decades ago at Yale — been a catalyst every day for the very full and happy life we have shared together. I am deeply grateful to all my family for their love and support and the many ways they enrich my life and contribute to the person I am. My parents, were they alive, would have loved this occasion — my father for the bagpipes, my mother for the photographs, and my stepfather for the chance to people-watch.

Finally, let me thank the Inauguration Committee, the members of which are listed in your program, and the dozens of other staff and students who are supporting this weekend’s festivities.

Events like this never just happen, and when they happen well it is because tirelessly dedicated colleagues attend to countless details. I am very grateful to these colleagues and thankful for the opportunity to serve with them.

‘It is through a fearlessness to assert ourselves in the moment that we will reach greater altitude as a university.’

•••••

‘ We must together make wise choices about our distinctive strengths, emerging opportunities, our wealth of cultural capital and human achievement.‘

The story of Clark University’s past is really a multiplicity of stories about Clark’s people. Throughout its history, and to the present day, Clark has been home to remarkably talented and engaged teachers and scholars, researchers, students, and staff. Many have been intellectual pioneers and fearless proponents of unconventional thinking, leading Clark time and again to having an outsized impact on the world.

G. Stanley Hall, Clark’s first president, was a developmental psychologist who introduced the concept of adolescence and founded the American Psychological Association. Clark physicist Robert H. Goddard’s research in liquid-fuel rocketry brought us to the moon and earned him the title “Father of the Space Age.” Clark biologist Charles Otis Whitman became the “Father of Zoology,” and was the founding director of the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, the oldest marine biological lab in North America, of which I am a proud trustee. Albert Michelson, the first American to win a Nobel Prize in science, did seminal work here at Clark in measuring the speed of light — work that inspired Albert Einstein. Professor Gregory Pincus’ research at Clark later paved the way for the development of the birth control pill.

A graduate student at Clark, Miriam Van Waters, became one of the most influential voices in prison reform in our country in the early 20th century. Paul Siple, another graduate student, advanced the theory of wind chill and devised a way to measure it. Still another graduate student at Clark, Francis Cecil Sumner, was the first Black person in the United States to earn a Ph.D. in psychology, and went on to be instrumental in founding the psychology department at Howard University and to become known as the “Father of Black Psychology.” Trustee Alice Higgins was the first woman to serve as chair of a board of a private American research university, which she did with great distinction at Clark from 1967 to 1974.

These are just a few of the Clark people who fill the pages of our University’s first chapters, and there have been many more since. What I believe all of these individuals had in common was the will and determination to push beyond what was known and knowable at the time.

They all reached for something more, something higher, and Clark was an environment that embraced, nurtured, and bolstered their efforts.

Consider Robert Goddard, “Father of the Space Age.” His work was about a future that few could even imagine, one powered by freshly conceived technologies and the audacity to exceed the limits of what was believed to be true, let alone possible. Goddard wasn’t content to look only toward the horizon. He looked up and out beyond the horizon and saw no limitation despite the claims of so many that his ideas were nothing more than science fiction fantasy. Goddard reached higher. Goddard’s drive to achieve what most people thought was beyond human endeavor reflects the pioneering ambitions of our founder, Jonas Clark, who envisioned an institution that would defy prevailing attitudes and expectations by doing important, true, and daring things in this world. His University would be characterized by a fearlessness to assert itself when the moment arose — through innovation, through boldness of thought, and with a desire to do the hard work and the good work.

I think we, today, must do the same. We must fearlessly assert ourselves when the moment arises.

To be sure, when we talk about Clark’s people, it’s not just about famous names like Goddard and Michelson. It is also about the individuals who put their Clark education or their professional experience to work every day, challenging convention and changing our world in ways equally as important, if not always as well recognized. It’s not just our faculty and students carrying Clark’s ideals forward, but also our staff, including administrators like Jim Collins and Jack Foley, who are here today and who each gave 40 or more years of their

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professional lives to Clark; or Lu Ann Pacenka, a publications associate at the Marsh Institute, who has been at Clark nearly 42 years; or Bill Racki, Clark’s longest-serving employee, who has been a custodian on our campus for 51 years.

In looking back at our history, I focus on Clark’s people — their talents, their aspirations, their ambitions, their accomplishments, but also their commitment and devotion — because this is what will define our future. However we describe the mission of our institution, unleashing human promise and potential, inspiring curiosity and an eagerness to grow in knowledge and understanding, developing passionate leaders and helping them to succeed — this is why we exist and why we matter.

This focus may be true at other academies, but what is especially true at Clark is the way in which we engage with our students, faculty, and staff as individuals — and the nature of our distinctive educational environment.

In his book, “Clark University, 1887– 1987, A Narrative History,” Professor Emeritus William Koelsch talks about three things that characterize Clark’s institutional identity. The first is, in fact, this focus on the individual. The second is the focus on the quality of our people and their shared commitment to rigorous intellectual exploration along with a high degree of institutional loyalty. And the third is the attention we pay to our past as a resource for our present.

The Clark of today continues to be rooted in these characteristics, as well as a set of shared values that have not only endured but have strengthened over time. These include a commitment to our institution, to each other, and to the communities we serve, along with a fierce embrace of individuality; a commitment to discovering new solutions and creating new knowledge, driven by a relentless passion to challenge the status quo and change our world for the better; and a deeply held commitment to social justice and inclusive excellence, which underpins an uncompromising commitment to translating our values into action and

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being a more just and equitable institution.

I have no doubt that we can, indeed, achieve the vision we’ve set for ourselves when we collectively embody these core values. We can, indeed, reach for altitude through the preservation, persistence, progress, and perpetuity of our distinctive identity as Clark University.

Let me go back to our trailblazing Trustee Alice Higgins and a sentiment of hers that was captured in Koelsch’s book.

In the lead-up to Clark’s Centennial, the year I graduated from Clark, Mrs. Higgins was asked why Clark hadn’t come apart at any of several times of great institutional stress in the 1960s and 1970s. She replied: “One [factor] was what can only be called good will. Each one of us depended upon the wisdom and generosity of others.

Paramount was the dedication to the institution, which is characteristic of Clark, on the part of the faculty, administration, trustees, students, staff, secretaries, grounds people — literally everyone who works for Clark in any capacity. It is a thread that seems to run through the whole institution. That thread,” Higgins observed, “has stretched; it has frayed; but it has never broken. It is ephemeral, but it is there, and it may be our most precious possession.”

••••• Among my commitments to you as president is that I will not allow us to lose touch with who and what we are as an institution — our core values, our identity, our “most precious possession” — even as we will of necessity have to evolve in response to circumstances in higher education and in society.

In my State of the University address I have spoken of the competitive landscape in which we find ourselves and some of the ways in which our peer institutions are winning more students and faculty who might otherwise have chosen Clark but for this or that. To be sure, our goal should not be for Clark to compete by trying to do everything that others are doing, nor should we do those things we

feel make sense for us in precisely the same way others have done them. Instead, we must together make wise choices about our distinctive strengths, emerging opportunities, our wealth of cultural capital and human achievement — all the while drawing on our profound and unique history and, crucially, communicating all of this more widely and effectively.

In many ways, Clark is stronger than it has ever been — and this, despite the global pandemic. It is this strong foundation that affords us the opportunity to push even further, to reach even higher, to secure our distinctive place in the future of the academy.

Our goals in the years ahead — laid out in the Strategic Framework, on which we have been working for the past two years — are very straightforward: achieve greater excellence in our academic and research programs; improve the campus experience for all, but especially for our students; advance diversity, equity, and inclusion; expand our engagement outside of the University; and augment our institutional capacity.

We will achieve broader excellence in our academic and research programs by

building on Clark’s distinctive University College model. We will seek to improve our academic reputation and research productivity overall in measurable and meaningful ways.

We will improve the campus experience by better promoting a sense of belonging, shared community, and vibrant campus life for students, faculty, and staff through direct engagement, enhanced support, and cocurricular programs. We will improve Clark’s facilities, grounds, and campus operations to inspire and enable opportunities to thrive, individually and as an institution.

We will advance diversity, equity, and inclusion to achieve an environment and campus culture that is more fully accepting and that supports our entire community well, allowing everyone to be themselves and do their best work. We will make Clark an ever more welcoming and attractive place, especially for those who have been excluded historically. We will continue to embrace difference, including in intellectual thought, and we will work to achieve even greater breadth of perspectives and experiences in our community.

We will expand our outward engagement and broaden our reach by communicating more assertively, by more frequently convening great thinkers, and by more actively partnering with those locally, regionally, and further afield. At the same time, we will deepen our close ties to the Main South Community and the City of Worcester. Clark will more fully “act” on the global stage as an engaged, thought-provoking, and thought-leading research university.

Finally, we will increase our institutional capacity by attracting and driving philanthropic, grant, and operating revenue toward impact, and we will build strength through strategic partnerships.

We will also catalyze momentum by the successful execution of our initiatives. We have for too long had to do more with less, and over the coming decade we must do more with more in a virtuous cycle.

This Strategic Framework belongs to us all and the engagement of the campus community, including the trustees, has been remarkable. I could not be more grateful for the time and energy so many people invested in this work alongside so many other regular responsibilities and the extraordinary challenges of the pandemic. The fruits of your labor are already evident.

The ultimate aim of our Strategic Framework is that it further positions Clark University to be a relentless force for positive change in the world. We will achieve this through our research, through our scholarship, through our teaching, through the local and global impact of our alumni, and through the distinctive environment in which we champion the myriad talents of all the remarkable individuals that day-by-day comprise our community. And we will do this while remaining true to our institutional values and identity.

In short, it is through a fearlessness to assert ourselves in the moment that we will reach greater altitude as a university.

••••• Let me conclude on a personal note. I believe my path to Yale, to Harvard, and

to the University of Chicago from Westlake High School in Thornwood, New York, was an improbable one.

Except for the fact that it went through Clark.

Clark was unquestionably the right place for me at that early stage of my life.

The rigorous liberal arts education I received at Clark; the individualized attention I got from not one but virtually every faculty member and staff person I encountered in my four years here; the embrace of difference and not just its acceptance; the sense of being at a place that was about something larger than itself and was unconstrained by its modest footprint; a place where it was okay to stumble and not be made to feel you were wrongly admitted. All of this is the reason I am here today.

Reflecting on my education at Clark, it is plain to me that the skills I honed, the habits of mind and ability to think critically that I developed here, the way faculty who cared about me pushed me, and the opportunities to learn about the world by learning about life in Worcester, served me well.

And now I have been given the tremendous privilege of leading Clark and helping to sustain and advance the education we provide to new generations of students — students for whom liberal arts study and/or professional and graduate training — given current political, social, economic, and environmental challenges — is as relevant, necessary, and essential as ever.

I am here today because my own higher education enabled me to reach for more, to reach beyond what I might have expected let alone imagined as a child.

Today, while some question whether higher education can and should endure, I stand here to say it must and it will, and that Clark is ready to play a leading role in that future. I intend to repay the tremendous gift of my Clark education by doing everything I can as president to help Clark itself reach higher — and I hope you will agree with me that that is as relevant, necessary, and essential as ever.

Thank you very much.

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David re: David HEN DAVID RUBENSTEIN, the founder and CEO of The Carlyle Group and a well-known philanthropist, made the anchor gift to fund a new conference building on the campus of the University of Chicago, he assumed that would be the end of his involvement with the project.

Typically, he said, once donors write a check, “they’re not heard from again until the groundbreaking.”

But David Fithian had other ideas.

As executive vice president at the University of Chicago, Fithian was in charge of every detail surrounding the planning and construction of the David Rubenstein Forum, and he was intent on ensuring that the building’s namesake was apprised and consulted every step of the way.

“David was meticulous in asking for my views, even though I did not have a lot of expertise in these things,” Rubenstein recalled. “He wanted to make this a crown jewel, and he did — it turned out to be a spectacular building, with everything designed to the nth degree because David worked tirelessly and relentlessly with the architects.

He did it all.

“I talked to other people at the University of Chicago and asked if David is always this detail-oriented, this conscious of other people’s feelings, this focused on making certain everything is perfect. The answer was — yes. This is the way he is in everything he does. And I said, ‘This is a person who is going be very hard to hold at the University of

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Chicago. He’s clearly going to be a university president.’”

Rubenstein asserts that our system of higher education is the foundational influence that has shaped the United States into “the most important country in the world.” He has served 45 combined years on four university boards — Harvard, Johns Hopkins, and Duke and Chicago, where he earned his undergraduate and law degrees, respectively — and has seen strong leaders make the kind of sound and visionary decisions that have brought distinction to those institutions in both good and difficult times.

“When you have a great leader what you want are the kind of qualities I think you see in David,” he said. “Great leaders are people who know how to articulate what they want to do. They know how to communicate with people; they know how to share the credit; they know how to persist and how to rise to the occasion when there’s a crisis. They know how to be highly ethical, and how to be role models. These are things great leaders do, and that great university presidents do. “[Chicago President Emeritus] Bob Zimmer was a great role model for David, because David, as executive vice president, helped transform Chicago from a very good school to an extraordinary national university, better than it had ever been before.”

When Fithian was considering returning to Clark as its 10th president,

Rubenstein counseled him about the singular opportunity it represented.

“I talked to David and said, ‘Nothing is greater in life than going back to your alma mater, because your alma mater is the place where you were formed as an adult,’” he said. “If Clark is as important to you as I think it is, as Duke was to me, as Chicago was to me, this is going to be the great pleasure of your life. While Chicago would greatly miss you, you have the opportunity of a lifetime.”

‘I asked if David is always this detail-oriented, this conscious of other people’s feelings, this focused on making certain everything is perfect. The answer was — yes.’

An avid student of history, Rubenstein has channeled much of his philanthropy into restoring precious national monuments and artifacts, including the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. He was also instrumental in leading the establishment of the African American Museum of History and Culture. Were the U.S. to hold a second Constitutional Convention to consider a new path forward for the nation, he said, university presidents, like David Fithian, would be at the forefront of those who

serve because of their ability to manage through complex challenges to accomplish important things.

“He’s a leader,” Rubenstein said. “He’s committed, has a great intellect, great skill, and courage.

“Clark has chosen a very good person to be its president.”

David Rubenstein’s quotes are adapted from his remarks delivered at the Inauguration Ceremony of David B. Fithian, and from an earlier interview with Clark editor Jim Keogh.

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FROM THE PODIUM

“ We knew, almost immediately, that David Fithian was not just the right person to serve as our next president, but, in no small part because he is a ‘Clarkie,’ the perfect person to do so.”

ROSS D. GILLMAN ’81 Chair, Board of Trustees

“ Your new president is the perfect leader for this era.

He brings a collaborative spirit, a penchant for creative problemsolving, a compelling vision for the university, and a singular track record of bringing a singular vision to life.”

DAVID A. GREENE President, Colby College

“ For generations, Clark University has been an integral anchor in the Main South neighborhood.

As your university grew, you worked collaboratively with [local] institutions to ensure that this neighborhood was not forgotten.”

JOSEPH M. PETTY Mayor of Worcester

“ David is a profoundly and deeply empathetic person … a person of unshakeable integrity, and careful and nuanced judgment. He will bring both imagination and deep values to the task before him.”

ROBERT J. ZIMMER (VIA VIDEO) University Chancellor President Emeritus The University of Chicago

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“ It was striking to me that [my] brief meditation on the word ‘inauguration’ resulted in drawing upon a wide range of scholarly disciplines from within the liberal arts and sciences that are at the heart of the mission of Clark University.”

“ President Fithian’s vision for Clark’s future will be compelling for prospective students who want to improve the human condition.

He is smartly bringing together the best of what makes Clark distinctive.”

MARY OWENS ’86 President, Clark Alumni Council

ROBERT DEAM TOBIN Henry J. Leir Chair in Language, Literature, and Culture Chair of the Faculty

“ President Fithian and his new leadership team have included staff perspective in spaces and conversations that we have not been part of before.”

MARIA-ELISA GALLANT Assistant Director for Student Leadership and Programming Co-Chair, Staff Assembly

“ Something I learned about you, President Fithian, is when you care about something or someone you do so in a nonjudgmental and accepting way. I’ve learned from you that that’s what it means to truly be a Clarkie.”

RENA ZISSER ’24

“ This institution has gone above and beyond to provide opportunities for growth and success for its students. Clark has provided me with a great college experience, molding me into an individual ready to step into the world.”

ADITI SINGH, M.S. ’22

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Academic Symposium

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IGITAL TECHNOLOGY EMPOWERS US TO FACE MANY MODERN CHALLENGES,

but does it pose its own unique challenge to the ways we interact as humans?

Is the assault on Ukraine only the latest example of an ongoing pernicious threat to global democracy?

What does the future portend for all of us if global climate change goes unchecked?

Members of Clark University’s faculty from across a range of disciplines came together to address these and other pressing questions during the Academic Symposium, a series of eight discussions and presentations held on campus April 29.

The Symposium, which was part of the University’s Inauguration events, highlighted the distinctive expertise, impactful research, and creative talents of Clark faculty, and inspired lively conversations about the social, political, cultural, and environmental imperatives of the day.

Connections and Impact: Clark in the Community “Clark’s motto is ‘Challenge Convention. Change Our world.’ You can’t change the world unless you’re engaged with it,” said Eric DeMeulenaere, associate professor of education, at the start of this panel discussion.

Clark University has a long history of partnering with the neighboring community, particularly through the University Park Partnership. Faculty discussed their work in local schools, with area organizations, and prisons, among other engagements.

Professor Laurie Ross, who has spent decades gathering and analyzing data on youth violence prevention in Worcester, emphasized the need to let community members speak for themselves and represent their own stories and perspectives.

What makes this culture of community involvement so strong at the University? The professors cited supportive colleagues and interdisciplinary collaboration, the lack of physical barriers separating Clark from the neighborhood, and community engagement being written into the curriculum.

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Global and Climate Change Climate change is the challenge of our time — but it’s one that Clark University researchers are well prepared to meet. In fact, they’ve been confronting it for decades. In this session, four of the University’s internationally renowned scholars shared their individual work, along with a common goal: that their research will inform action and help society effect transformational change.

At Clark, faculty and students engage in research that has a tangible impact, said Christopher A. Williams, professor of geography and director of environmental sciences. “We try to research things that are important to society, and we’re excited to keep doing that at Clark — a smaller institution with an outsized impact in global and climate change.”

The panel stressed the importance of moving beyond basic research and into climate action, to get from where we are now to where we need to be.

Read the full stories from the Academic Symposium.

Advances in Digital Technology From virtual reality to blockchain to YouTube, Clark faculty in 2022 are incorporating a wide range of emerging digital technologies in their research and teaching.

Faculty from distinct disciplines — interactive media, management, and computer science — described how that looks in practice.

“It’s wonderful to have introductory courses where you can allow students to build a comfort level and then realize that they’re totally capable of working with new technology,

and understanding the history behind it, so it becomes more approachable,” said Terrasa Ulm, professor of practice in the Becker School of Design & Technology and director of the undergraduate interactive media program.

And while technology — and social media — frequently get a bad rap, computer scientist Shuo Niu shared his research on video sharing, which showed that the widespread impact of YouTube during the pandemic had a positive influence on viewers’ mental health.

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Democracy in Distress?

Political science faculty came together to address the crisis in democracy unfolding in Russia, China, the Middle East, Latin America — and the United States.

Professor Valerie Sperling used the democratic deterioration in Russia as a lens through which to view threats to democracy in the U.S. “One unfortunate commonality between the United States and Russia is the rise of censorship on certain subjects, and the spread of disinformation,” she said.

And a recent NPR poll revealed that a majority of Americans believe U.S. democracy is in peril, Professor Heather Silber Mohamed said, noting that while social media can be a powerful tool for good, it can disrupt trust and destroy the public’s understanding of truth.

The professors also noted that the pressure put on American educational systems has left many people ill-equipped to identify what is plausible and what isn’t. The topics addressed pointed to the value of a liberal arts education and “the ability to debate freely about complicated and difficult ideas,” said Professor Ora Szekely.

Race, Gender, and Ethnicity

Geography of Changing Lands and Seas Clark University geographers have spent decades researching land change through the use of both remote-sensing technology and in-person observation. “The truth is what we see on the ground,” said Professor Gil Pontius. In this session, geography faculty highlighted their research, from Antarctica to Africa, as they seek solutions to achieve more sustainable living.

“On the ground” is where the student researchers in Clark’s Human-Environment Regional Observatory (HERO) program do their work. Over 23 years, more than 180 students have conducted hands-on research in Worcester and the surrounding communities, becoming critical contributors to initiatives to increase green space and respond to infestations of invasive beetles.

HERO fellows are able to interact with policymakers and stakeholders in the community, said Co-Director Deborah Martin, and have published their research in prestigious journals. Clark students also have access to conduct research well outside of Worcester.

Two students this summer will be accompanying Professor Karen Frey aboard an icebreaker in the Arctic’s Bering and Chukchi seas.

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Kristina Wilson, professor of art history, and Parminder Bhachu, professor of sociology, put gender and race at the heart of their research, but from unique lenses. Wilson has delved into the study of the modernist design styles that boomed during America’s post-war decades, while Bhachu examines why people who migrate across international borders are particularly innovative.

Wilson shared her work, which explores the indelible mark left by modern design while also considering how modernism was marketed to diverse audiences, and Bhachu discussed her research that spotlights the resilience and creativity of migrants who navigate a changing world.

History has narrowed the stories of race and gender, Wilson said, and she and Bhachu are dedicated to working to contextualize these topics and explore counternarratives.

Learning Through the Pandemic For more than two years, the world has been inundated by numbers — case counts and deaths; layoffs and business closures. “We live in an interesting age where we have access to a lot of data,” said Nathan Ahlgren, assistant professor of biology. For some Clark faculty, those numbers provided an opportunity to examine a once-in-alifetime event from a variety of angles.

Ahlgren, his fellow Biology Professor Philip Bergmann, and Sociology Professor Rosalie Torres Stone worked together to explore the progression of the pandemic over time, and the disparities in its effect on different demographic groups.

Zhenyang Tang, associate professor of finance, found that when businesses exhibited higher levels of responsibility, people in their communities were more likely to follow masking guidance and practice social distancing.

“Socially responsible firms are associated with socially responsible citizens,” he concluded.

And Mary-Ellen Boyle, professor of management, and Jacqueline Geoghegan, professor of economics, teamed up to examine a different type of business: craft breweries.

These small businesses thrived during the pandemic, and the professors’ study showed that the industry’s resilience was due in large part to the collaborative nature of the business.

Medical Humanities: ‘With Dad’ For Stephen DiRado, professor of studio art, coping with his father’s decline and death from Alzheimer’s disease was more manageable through the lens of his camera. The result was the photo book, “With Dad.” For Soren Sorensen, professor of screen studies, DiRado’s photos of his father’s life, particularly in those later years, provided the narrative for a documentary film, also titled “With Dad.” Both men consider these creative works a framework to better understand aging, especially as people are living longer.

“With Dad,” which has won a host of awards at film festivals across the country, formed the basis for a wide-ranging discussion on aging, including how someone can extend their sense of self and live meaningfully.

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Scenes from the post-inauguration Celebration Festival on the Campus Green included student selfies, a game of oversized Jenga, high-fives with the Clark Cougar, and a cake designed as an exact replica of Jonas Clark Hall.

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@ Gathering for a family photo at Harrington House are (l. to r.) Tricia Cooke, Lisa Fithian, David Fithian, Michael Rodriguez, Dianne (Fithian) Pisarek, Barbara (Rodriguez) Bencivenga, and Diane Stefanic.

INAUGURATION COMMITTEE George Bacher Executive Director of Stewardship, Donor Relations, and Advancement Operations Katrina Banks-Binici Director of Presidential Support Sheri Davis, Chair Event Director Jill Friedman Vice President for Marketing and Communications Ashley Keyes Director of Marketing Outreach and Engagement Dan Roderick Director of Facilities Management Sebastián Royo Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Robert Deam Tobin Chair of the Faculty; Henry J. Leir Chair in Language, Literature, and Culture

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Breaking new ground ON APRIL 28, Clark broke ground

on the Center for Media Arts, Computing, and Design — the planned home for the Becker School of Design & Technology, Department of Computer Science, and programs within the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. “When we think about our facilities, and especially our new buildings, we don’t just think about containers of activity but rather purpose-built spaces that encourage collaboration, convening, cooperation,

and even collisions,” said President David Fithian. “The building soon to come out of the ground behind me will bring together different departments and programs with evident synergies but also the potential for new creative instigations and alchemy.” The 70,000-square-foot building will include a multimedia gallery, a robotics lab, a data science lab, teaching and collaboration spaces, and a video game library, among other features. It is slated to open in Fall 2023.

Participating in the groundbreaking ceremony were (l. to r.) Dean of the Faculty Esther Jones, Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty, Wednesday D’Angelo ’22, Dilasha Shrestha ’22, President David B. Fithian ’87, Chair of the Board of Trustees Ross Gillman ’81, Dean of the College Betsy Huang, City Manager Edward Augustus Jr., Dean of the Becker School of Design & Technology Paul Cotnoir, and Chair of the Department of Computer Science John Magee.

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Clark’s iconic pea pod poster — both the original and updated versions — is now available at the Campus Store located in the Shaich Family Alumni and Student Engagement Center. For all your Clark apparel and merchandise, visit the store Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m., or go online at campusstore.clarku.edu.

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