| Dan Lassiter |
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Interim President Dick Niemiec’65, his wife, Joan, and student volunteers take a breather from helping new students move into Beloit’s residence halls in August.
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Fall term is always a time of excitement and lively activity on Beloit’s campus. This year is busier than usual. Beloit is searching for the 11th president of the College, launching the Weissberg Program in International Human Rights and the Miller Upton Forum on the Wealth and Well-Being of Nations, enjoying the presence of Mackey Distinguished Professor of Creative Writing Scott Russell Sanders, welcoming an outstanding class of entering students, and opening the Center for the Sciences.
This is also a new and exciting role for me as interim president. We are concentrating on a number of important fronts—from fund raising to admissions and from curriculum review to resource allocation during challenging economic times. Joan and I are enjoying our time on campus and our work with faculty, students, staff, and alumni to move the College forward.
Only a few weeks after students arrived in August, family members returned for Family and Friends Weekend, a strong sign of support from those stakeholders in Beloit’s future. Parents have come together to add their commitment to Beloit’s future as members of the Parents Fund Committee. We extend special gratitude to them.
Within days of that event, we welcomed alumni from as far back as the class of 1935 for Homecoming/Reunion Weekend, offering them lectures, class receptions, and athletic events, including an impressive 38-0 football victory over Knox College.
But the hub of activity this fall has surrounded the Center for the Sciences, which opened for classes and research on August 26. Home to 10 academic departments and programs, it spans 117,000 square feet and four floors, but statistics cannot capture what it is like to enter the center’s atrium and see the suspended walkways and grand views of campus, the city, and the Rock River. Whether it was families gathering for the first reception in the building, alumni who came for a ribbon-cutting, or trustees and city leaders who took part in the formal dedication in October, I watched people search for words as they gazed up inside the soaring glass-enclosed space.
We still have some work to finish. By the time you receive this issue, Chamberlin Hall will be a memory, and the footings of the greenhouse should be in place. We will finish the landscaping, gardens, and structural elements of the greenhouse in the spring, at which time we anticipate submitting our application for LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council—and the distinction of having one of the few science education facilities in the country to receive this environmental designation.
Underlying all the campus activity is an important success story: the five-year, $100 million Classic. Daring. Life-Changing. comprehensive campaign.
As we approach the halfway point in the life-span of the campaign, we have surpassed the three-quarter mark in its financial goals. Annual giving to the Beloit Fund is a critical part of the campaign that continues to need your participation so that we may realize the demanding objectives we have set for the College.
I’ve been given a unique opportunity to work with the Beloit family and to make a special contribution to the College’s future. I will be visiting a number of cities in the coming months to share this experience with alumni, friends, and supporters. As one who benefitted from the academic programs, faculty, and financial aid of Beloit College during my years as an undergraduate, I urge you to reflect on the role Beloit has played in your life.
The years ahead will be great ones for Beloit, and I am proud to play this small role in preparing for its future. Contact me if you would like to discuss any aspect of the direction Beloit College is taking. I would love to talk with you.
Interim President Dick Niemiec'65
niemiecd@beloit.edu
608-363-2201
