In the Mood for Change

Yesterday, Michele Moody-Adams was appointed as the next dean of Columbia College and vice president of undergraduate education. Just over two decades since the college went co-educational, its administration is now taking steps toward emulating its diverse student body. Moody-Adams brings a fresh perspective from her broad academic background and her installation will provide an opportunity to re-examine undergraduate academics at Columbia.

Last May, Austin Quigley announced that he would end his 14-year tenure as Columbia College’s dean. Since then, a search committee of faculty, students, and alumni—led by Nicholas Dirks, vice president for arts and sciences­­—has been working to find a replacement. While several other University posts remain noticeably empty, the committee successfully reached a decision in less than a year. With a speedy selection, the academic administration can transition to new leadership with minimal interruption.

Moody-Adams will arrive at Columbia with impressive accomplishments as a professor, author, and academic administrator. As both the first female and first African-American dean of Columbia College, her appointment will bring long overdue diversity to the administration. As someone who comes from outside Columbia faculty to fill a position that has remained in the same hands for more than a decade, she is in a unique position to break new boundaries. Her experiences at other academic institutions provide her with an enhanced capability to bring innovative ideas and programs that will keep Columbia at the forefront of education and research. Simultaneously, her scholarship in moral philosophy gives her an understanding of the aims of the Core, the foundation of a Columbia education. With this background, she can both move undergraduate academics forward while still staying true to the school’s fundamental principles.

As Moody-Adams’ tenure beings on July 1, 2009, the undergraduate student body awaits the changes she will bring. She should use this new beginning as a chance to affirm Columbia’s dedication to undergraduate education.