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The Campaign Trail:
Looking Into the Future
Since returning from New York, I have been on campus focusing on the upcoming Faculty/Trustee Retreat and Board meeting. The retreat offers faculty, trustees and staff an opportunity to come together to solidify a vision for Pitzer's future. This is a pivotal time in Pitzer's history as we begin the search for a new president while preparing to launch the public phase of our first major fundraising campaign.
I want you to know that, while I care deeply about Pitzer, I will not be directly involved in the discussions of its next president, since it will be important for the members of this community to exercise candor in expressing the characteristics they desire in a new leader. I am confident that Pitzer's excellent faculty, trustees, staff, alumni and students will identify and attract the right person to lead the College to even greater heights.
Despite my recusal from the search process, I remain highly involved in issues currently affecting the campus community. Last week, I met with a group about the importance of the first-year experience and the possibility of adding some type of outdoors or service component to Welcome Week.
I also convened a joint meeting of the Ad Hoc Facilities Committee and the Facilities Advisory Committee to talk about how Pitzer can adopt a leadership role in response to California's power crisis and broader environmental concerns. Members of the advisory group informed us about the many outstanding conservation measures Pitzer has undertaken in the past three years and shared thoughts about what more can be done. We also discussed the possibility of creating new residence halls that are energy independent. Models for this type of construction already exist at Oberlin, Cal Poly Pomona and the Rocky Mountain Institute. The Rocky Mountain Institute, co-directed by Pitzer alumna Hunter Lovins, is an entrepreneurial, nonprofit organization that "fosters the efficient and restorative use of resources to create a more secure, prosperous and life-sustaining world." We will be looking to these institutions, as well as the members of our own community, for ideas and insights on energy conservation over the next few months.
You will be hearing more about this issue soon. In the meantime, I urge everyone to continue conserving energy wherever possible!
-- Marilyn Chapin Massey
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