The Woods

By Dottie King
SMWC President

I recently participated in the Wabash Valley United Way Hunger Challenge. According to the rules of this challenge, participants needed to eat for one week only the food that could be purchased for $32. I knew that it would take some careful planning for each day and that I would miss some of the treats that I am accustomed to enjoying but I was not prepared for the depth of emotions that I experienced as the week unfolded.
Several members of the United Way Board and associated agencies participated in the challenge. On Monday morning of the first day, I began receiving e-mails from participants containing photos of the food that they purchased for the week.
Since I was purchasing my food one day at a time, I was very interested in the choices that were made by others. I chuckled aloud at the sight of one weekly allotment; it consisted of a case of water, two 2-liter bottles of Diet Mountain Dew, a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, two packages of fruit cups and eight packets of tuna!
The ensuing emails that the group shared were a mixture of encouragement, light-hearted teasing and concern. As the week progressed the tone of the e-mails gradually became less trivial. Individually and as a group, we were changed by the experience. It is one thing to empathize with the circumstances of others and quite another to experience them.
“Food insecurity” is a term that is known to the agencies that provide food resources to needy families. It is a phrase that did not have very much real meaning for me until I experienced the Hunger Challenge. Planning to purchase food that would be nutritious and filling on a very limited budget was truly a challenge but the insecurity came from the worry about whether it would last for the entire seven days.
On day seven, we received a photograph from a participant depicting his remaining food supply. He had bread, peanut butter and one packet of tuna for the entire day. As we shared our experiences of hunger through the week, we found that we all experienced difficulty in sleeping at night and in concentrating during the day. We wondered how the parents of children in this situation feel knowing that their children, while not starving, are going to sleep every night without feeling full.
We were all eager for the week to end and discussed the things that we were going to eat on Monday; we were also fully cognizant that Monday never comes for some families. They live in a continuous state of food insecurity.
I am changed by my participation in the Hunger Challenge. I looked up the definition of the word “challenge” in a dictionary and found that it is a call or summons to engage in an activity. I like that and I would like to challenge the students, faculty and staff of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College to involve themselves in service to our community.
There are so many places where we can make a difference! Whether you choose a local church, Catholic Charities, Saint Ann’s Clinic, Big Brothers/Big Sisters or some other agency, I encourage you to find some time and do something to help others. It will benefit you far more than those whom you serve!

Popularity: 23% [?]

By Danya Long
Editor-in-Chief

As the search for a president continues at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, the search firm of Witt/Kieffer has compiled the information from their on-campus interviews with students, faculty, and staff and has put together a packet of information that will be given to qualified candidates.
A group of semi-finalists for the position is anticipated to be selected by mid-January from the applications that are received. If all goes as planned, a selection of finalists would be chosen by early February and on-campus interviews with the candidates would follows by the end of February.
The SMWC presidential search committee and Witt/Kieffer are hoping to have a president for SMWC chosen soon after the interviews at the end of February.
The search firm and committee asks that if anyone has an ideas about specific candidates for the position of president to contact Dennis Barden, at 630-990-1370, or Kate Will, at 603-748-4399, of Witt/Kieffer.

Below is the advertisement SMWC is running for the presidential position.

“Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College near Terre Haute, Indiana is the nation’s oldest and most historic Catholic institution for women.  Its founder is, quite literally, a saint – Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, founder also of the college’s sponsoring order, the Sisters of Providence.  After 170 years of offering an outstanding liberal arts education for women, the college now boasts programs of distinction, graduate programs that serve significant needs in the marketplace, and a robust distance education program.  To catalyze its continued development as a singular institution of higher education in the Catholic tradition, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods seeks a president
Located on 1,200 spectacularly beautiful acres shared with the Sisters of Providence, The Woods (as it is popularly called) is truly a peaceful and contemplative environment in which to learn and to grow.  So significant is the sense of spirituality that imbues the institution that it somehow transcends the physical campus to affect the students of the college’s sizable distance learning programs, as well.  Much of the permeation of the environment must be credited to the Sisters of Providence, whose central missions of social and ecological justice, human services, and education are intrinsic to the college with whom their motherhouse shares a campus.
The president will lead this historic institution to a new standard of performance and service for the 21st Century.  Doing so will require a leader of vision who balances the internal and external responsibilities of the office, adding significant value on both counts.  He or she will be active in a Christian faith tradition and will resonate deeply with both Catholic and women’s higher education.  The president will have a broad understanding of the issues facing higher education, combined with the leadership qualities necessary to address those issues.  Of particular import is the ability to lead a process of strategic visioning that results in a widely-embraced plan for the college’s future and the ability to provide leadership for the execution of that plan, including the ability to assist the college in adding resources.  An earned terminal degree is required, as is a significant track record as a relationship builder and as a successful advocate internally and externally.
[SMWC] finds itself in need of compelling and inspirational leadership at a moment of significant opportunity.  Its next president will be in a position to make a personal impact on this historic institution.”

Popularity: 29% [?]

By Danya Long
Editor-in-Chief

The Presidential Search Committee at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College has settled on a search firm to aid in the hunt for new leadership. The search firm Witt/Kieffer sent two representatives, Kate Will and Dennis Barden, to SMWC on Oct. 27 and 28 for numerous meetings and forums with students, faculty, and staff in order to discuss qualities and challenges that may face the new president.
The representatives kicked off the series of meetings at noon on Oct. 27 with faculty leadership. Various other meetings were held with the President’s Cabinet, Interim President Dottie King, and Student Senate. Then an open forum was held for students and faculty.
During the open forum for faculty, staff, and students, the members of the community in attendance received a chance to voice their opinion about the search for the new president.
Even though some tension mounted during the forum overall it went smoothly, according to sophomore Grace Dubrowski. The conversation rarely paused once it got started, allowing for a lot to be said on a variety of topics.
Barden described two jobs that the search firm has with every process. First, their job is to ensure the committee has a robust pool of candidates to choose from in order to make the best possible decision. The second job is to help catalyze the process of selecting a new president. He posed three questions to the attending members to facilitate discussion. These were how to describe the ideal candidate, what does the candidate have to do in order to be thought of as successful, and why does someone want this job.
After a moment of silence that followed the opening of the floor for discussion, Barden asked a question to get people talking. “Does the president have to be Catholic?” There was a little debate over this, with most saying no.
Issues that were settled on is that the ideal candidate would know the traditions of the college and know the institution. The candidate would also have leadership skills, be able to interact with all groups, and have confidence. An importance was placed on having someone with previous experience because this college can be challenging, rewarding, and interesting.
Joyce Cadwallader, professor of biology, proposed that the new president should be involved in and good at fundraising.
Culture and diversity have been important issues on the campus in recent years. Director of Campus Admission Aaron Kelley suggested the candidate be genuinely interested in working on culture. He noted that the last two presidents of  were from California; both also left the position here to return to California.
Some things were discussed that SMWC has an advantage over other colleges and would appeal to presidential candidates. Some of these include charm, history, a safe campus, and one-on-one attention.
At multiple times throughout the forum, members noted how there is a need to define who/what the college is. The staff had a lot to say about how the school doesn’t really have a defined vision.
Cadwallader said that there used to be more values and community support; the Catholic tradition has also been lost and Saint Mother Theodore Guerin isn’t articulated as well as she used to be among the community.
Mary Lou Dolan, director of Earth Literacy, suggested that there is a need for the ability to help the community move forward and to plan a strategy.
“Someone coming to us needs to understand the potential to make an impact in women and future leaders’ lives,” said Assistant Professor of Education Theresa Boland.
One of the students in attendance was Dubrowski. With a strong urge toward change and interaction, she said that the new candidate can’t come in and force the community to change. Students don’t want drastic change, and the candidate can’t make them interact. She suggests that there be an increase in communication and to get the students and community involved early.
The meeting wrapped up with some closing remarks by the representatives of the search firm. They reminded members of the community that their opinions are valued and all thoughts, questions, and ideas are welcome.
Oct. 28 was a day full of meetings for the representatives from Witt/Kieffer. They met with members of the Sisters of Providence, staff members, the Alumnae Board, the Board of Trustees, the Presidential Search Committee, and other groups from campus.
The second step in the search for a new SMWC president is under way. From now until December the search firm will be identifying candidates for the committee’s review.

Popularity: 20% [?]

By Samantha Moore
Staff Writer

(Appeared in the Sept. 7 print edition of The Woods)

The hunt for a new president has begun at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College. After the resignation of David Behrs in June of 2010, Dottie King took over as interim president. A search committee has been established in order to find a permanent president.

The committee expects to have narrowed the list of candidates for the position by the end of the month.

Behrs was hired as the president three years ago; his hiring marked the 15th president of the college, as well as the first male president and lay Catholic in the history of SMWC.

David Behrs

In his short tenure as president, Behrs is credited with increasing enrollment, completing a program analysis to help SMWC run more efficiently, and creating more athletic opportunities for students.

Behrs announced in May that he would resign and move back to California with his family. He accepted a position as head of San Domenico, a Catholic K-12 school in the San Francisco Bay area.

King, who previously held the position of vice president for Academic Affairs, has taken over until a new president is hired. She has been a part of SMWC since 2002, when she started as an assistant professor of mathematics.

The process of finding the 16th president of SMWC is well under way, according to Henry Kuehn, a member of the search committee. There are 14 members of the presidential search committee. These include one staff representative, Terry Barr, and one student representative, junior Nicole Wieg.

Other members include committee co-chair Kathryn Martin and Trustees Randy Adams, Dave Bailey, Marcia Schmidt, Alice Shelton, Kathy Lubeznik, Al Watson, and Emeritus Trustee Phillip Summers. The cabinet representative is Art Criss, vice president for Enrollment Management. The faculty representative is Associate Prof. Brad Huffey.** Also on the committee is Sisters of Providence General Council and Trustee Denise Wilkinson.

There are four key steps to filling the position of president. The first step is to contract with a search firm. These search firms are companies that specialize in placing qualified individuals with businesses or schools in hopes of finding their dream jobs or the best fit for them. The committee will then narrow down the field of prospective employees. The third step is to create a short list of candidates. Finally, candidate interviews are planned for February.

Kuehn said the search will not be a closed-door affair. The committee wants students, faculty, parents, and the community to be aware of the progress.

** Due to an editing error, the print version of this story incorrectly stated Prof. Huffey’s title.

Popularity: 57% [?]