Dean Tom Crady to Resign

Provost Barry Scherr just sent a campus-wide blitz informing us of Dean of the College Tom Crady’s decision to resign:

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to inform you that Tom Crady has resigned as Dean of the College, effective this week. Sylvia Spears, who has been a significant contributor in providing student support in the Dean of the College area, will serve as Acting Dean for a period of two years.

I know that the decision to leave Dartmouth has been a difficult one for Tom and his family. Tom started at Dartmouth in January 2008, after serving 10 years as Vice President of Student Services at Grinnell College in Iowa, where he had worked for more than 25 years. Tom has decided to return to Iowa to pursue other opportunities.

I want to thank Tom for his service, for his commitment to improving the student experience, and for the many innovations he has introduced in his 18 months on campus, including the reform of the COS system, his reorganization of the student deans, and his decision as the Dean of the College to be more accessible by holding regular office hours in Collis for undergraduates. He
brought to the job a great deal of energy, a willingness to embrace change, and a true enthusiasm for his work with students.

In the coming months we intend to examine the scope of responsibilities in this critical area; only after completing that process will we launch a national search for the new Dean.

Sylvia joined Dartmouth as Director of the Office of Pluralism and Leadership/Associate of Student Life in July 2007. This past year, she also served as Acting Senior Associate Dean of the College with responsibility for guiding academic support programs and outreach to faculty. Sylvia’s expertise is student development, with particular emphasis on factors that contribute to the success of students. Sylvia holds a Ph.D. in Education, an M.S. in Human Development and Family Studies, and a B.A. in Speech Communications. Before coming to Dartmouth, Sylvia held a faculty position in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Rhode Island, where she taught courses in counseling, research methods, higher education law and cultural competence.

As we get ready to begin a new academic year on September 24, we will continue to look to the Dean of the College area to complete the process of putting in place the new student dean system, to carry out an ongoing assessment of existing programs and services, and to work on strategies for ensuring student success.

I want to take this opportunity to wish Tom well and to express my appreciation for what he accomplished in his time at Dartmouth.

At this time, I would also like to thank each and every member of the staff of the Dean of the College area, for their professionalism and support during this transition. I have every confidence in that office, and in Sylvia, as together we seek to provide an extraordinary educational experience for the students of Dartmouth.

Sincerely,

Barry Scherr
Provost

I’ll be quite sad to see him go – The Review interviewed Dean Crady last year and was impressed with his open-mindedness regarding such topics as alcohol policy, Greek life, and COS reform, and I know many students appreciated his weekly open office hours.