Presidential Perspective: the Blog of Nazareth College's Daan Braveman

Presidential Perspective: the Blog of Nazareth College's Daan Braveman

Welcome to the blog of President Daan Braveman, Nazareth College's ninth president.  Founded in 1924, Nazareth College is a co-ed college with undergraduate and graduate studies in the liberal arts and sciences, and professional programs in health and human services, education, and management. The College is located near Rochester, New York, and currently enrolls approximately 2,800 students. For more information on the College, visit www.naz.edu.

Turkish Students Arrive at Naz

Late last night (actually 2 a.m. this morning), 21 students arrived from Turkey for a month long program at the College. Despite being tired and jet-lagged, they arrived promptly at 11 a.m. for my class on International Human Rights. We had a wonderful discussion of the concept of human rights as well as the sources and content of those rights.

I was impressed by the level of their interest, their understanding of the topics, and their proficient English language skills. They enthusiastically engaged in debate about enforcement of human rights in their country and were especially interested in comparisons with the U.S. They were surprised to learn that many rights that appear in the Turkish Constitution are not listed in our Constitution.

This is the third year of our program with Turkish students. This morning I was reminded about the great value of such exchange programs. I am sure that I learned more than the students from the discussion. More important, however, is the fact that through such programs we can develop deeper understandings of the differences and similarities that exist across cultures and nations.

Reunion 2009

Last week we held our annual reunion weekend, always an enjoyable weekend at the College. Alums who graduated a few years ago join with those who graduated over 60 years ago to share stories and experiences. A wide variety of events were available throughout the weekend and a good time was had by all.

Among my favorite events of the year is the luncheon for those celebrating their 50^th reunion. I hear about the College from the past and each year I am reminded that in some ways we are very different but in other important respects we have not changed.

In 1959, the College was a Catholic institution for women. The Sisters ran a tight ship with many rules, although I learned that the students found many ways to circumvent the curfews and other rules. At the time they thought they were fooling the Sisters but now they realize that their antics were probably well known. There were 89 members of the class of 1959, some of whom lived on campus while others were “day-hoppers.” There were only a few buildings on a campus that was then in rural Pittsford. The 1959 class members remembered that tuition was about $500 a year.

Today, we are no longer a Catholic institution, and we are co-ed. The many campus buildings are spread over 150 acres of land, and Pittsford is not quite as rural. The entering class is much larger with 465 freshmen and 160 new transfers, and the total enrollment of undergraduates and graduates is over 3000 students. The class of 1959 would be surprised by the relatively few restrictions and rules. And, tuition is slightly higher than $500 a year!

But in so many important aspects, the College has not changed. The 1959 class members spoke fondly of their teachers and the sense of community that existed on campus. Today, students repeatedly tell me that the two things they like best about Naz is the sense of community and the faculty’s commitment to student success.

The fifty year reunion alums also noted the strength of a liberal arts curriculum that was connected to preparation for professional programs, like teaching, nursing, and social work. Today, while the number of programs and majors has expanded, one of the hallmarks of the Nazareth education continues to be the integration of liberal arts and professional education -- an education that prepares students for making a life as well as making a living.

So too, the class of 1959 understood the importance of serving the wider community. And, today,Nazareth remains proud of all the different ways it is making a difference in the region and beyond.

As I sat at the 50 year reunion luncheon I was reminded that sometimes the more things change, the more they remain the same!

Judge Sotomayor

In my previous career I was a law professor and taught Constitutional Law. So, I follow closely Supreme Court developments and am interested in President Obama’s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to fill Justice Souter’s seat when he retires.  The public already has heard and read a great deal about the Judge in just the past few days. And, to be sure, there will be ongoing discussions and debates about the nomination.

There is one aspect of the discussion, however, that I find somewhat disturbing. Some have argued that she is not “qualified” to be on the Court, suggesting that she was nominated only because she is a Hispanic woman. Judge Sotomayor graduated from Princeton University, summa cum laude, and from Yale Law School where she was an editor of the prestigious Yale Law Journal. She has served as a Judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. She has taught as an adjunct at both New York University School of Law and Columbia Law School. She attained these remarkable achievements despite life challenges that included the death of her father at an early age as well as being raised by a single mom, living in a housing project, and facing discrimination along the way.

Others can debate whether Judge Sotomayor has the correct judicial philosophy for the Court. But, let’s take off the table any discussion about whether she is qualified to be a Supreme Court Justice.  If she does not have the requisite qualifications, who does?

Commencement 2009: A Day to Remember

Saturday, May 9, was a most challenging day for the College. We all anticipated another beautiful and joyful commencement ceremony and though we DID celebrate the many achievements of our graduating students that day, we also experienced many difficulties caused by uncertain weather patterns.

Throughout the day we were closely monitoring the weather with radar equipment. Before the undergraduate processional, it appeared that the storm would head north; however, once everyone was in the Commencement tent, I was informed that the storm was 20-30 minutes away and that it included lightening. Because of the threat of lightening, we had to evacuate the tent. Our plan was to disperse people to various buildings or their cars and then have security inform people when they could return to the tent. We assumed that the storm would pass through quickly, but a series of storms persisted. During this period there was no good way to communicate with all the people who were scattered around campus.

After nearly an hour delay, I decided that we should try to hold the ceremony in the gym. The gym holds 1700 people and, using other venues in the building that could be served by video feeds, we had sufficient space. However, most people wanted to be in the gym, and the crowd presented a hazard in case of fire.

At that point, we were informed that the radar indicated we would be free of showers for a couple of hours. We reconvened in the tent. I could feel the charge of positive emotions from the Class of 09 members as they bounced a beach ball (or two) through the crowd and cheered enthusiastically. To help with time, I asked all the speakers except the student speaker and Commencement speaker to cut their speeches, and they did. We completed the ceremony and many went to the Shults Center for refreshments or left campus for their own celebrations.

As the day progressed, the winds gained speed,and about 45 minutes after the completion of the ceremony, the tent collapsed. The tent company had assured us that the tent could withstand up to 70 mph winds; nevertheless it collapsed despite the fact that the winds did not reach such speeds. We are awaiting information about the cause of the collapse from the tent company, whose representatives were on campus at the time of the event. Thankfully, and most important, everyone got out of the tent safely and there were only four very minor injuries.

The local fire marshal reviewed our actions and told the director of security that we responded appropriately throughout the day. Nevertheless, we have already initiated a thorough internal review in order to develop plans for the future.

One of the bright spots was the assistance provided by so many people throughout the day. There are too many individuals to mention by name, but I want to thank each of you for your many efforts. Once again, the day revealed the ability of Nazareth to come together as a community.

I feel a strong connection with the members of the Class of 09: I started at Nazareth the same year as they, and I am proud that on Saturday I received an honorary 2009 diploma from one of the class members! I am hopeful the members of the Class of 2009 have the positive spirit to fondly remember their graduation day and, more important, all the memories of their time at Nazareth.