As classes start at Barnard, the administration still has not announced a replacement for Dean Dorothy Denburg.
Denburg announced in July that after 17 years as Barnard dean, she would no longer hold the title—but for the time being, it appears she still will fill those shoes.
In an email sent to Barnard students over the summer, Denburg said that she was asked by Spar to instead take on the position of vice president for college relations.
Denburg primarily served as dean under former Barnard President Judith Shapiro, and she is a BC alumna. In her new position, she wrote, she will oversee the offices of Alumnae Affairs and Career Development and the school’s global initiatives. She will also work with pre-college programs and teach a first-year seminar.
“Being your dean has been a privilege, something I will always cherish,” she wrote. “The relationships that I have had with several decades of Barnard students are very dear to me.”
She added, “Please note, I am not going anywhere, I am simply changing hats.”
Spar said Denburg’s new position was created to embolden the relationship between students and alumnae.
“What was becoming increasingly important and obvious to me is that we have a lot of alumnae out there who want to be engaged with the college, and we need to find different ways to engage these alumnae,” Spar said. “In the existing structure we have, there’s just no one who can do that.”
She added of Denburg, “Who knows more of our alumni than any other single person on the planet?”
Lara Avsar, BC ’11 and newly elected president of Barnard’s Student Government Association, said that SGA hopes to work closely with Denburg in her new role.
Avsar wrote in an email, “The new position is definitely a crucial one because I have heard, from both students and alumnae, that there is a gap between the two groups.”
Shapiro also praised Denburg, with whom she worked closely on major initiatives, including the Diana Center.
“We planned that building,” she said. “Dean Denburg was involved in really looking at campus life and how the new building would fulfill the needs of students.”
Some concerns have arisen as to how the decision was made and why it was made so abruptly after the school year ended. But Spar maintained that the decision was mutual, and that she and Denburg both look forward to seeing the position come to fruition this semester.
“Formally, it’s ‘at my request’ because I created the position,” Spar said. “This is something that Dorothy and I have been talking about for some time, and we’re both very excited about it.”
Spar added that they wanted the announcement to coincide with the alumnae reunion, since this year will mark Denburg’s 40th reunion.
“The symmetry, if you will, was so perfect,” she said.
Shapiro said that, while she is not completely familiar with Spar’s administration, she thinks Denburg will be able to transfer her skills and expertise to her new role.
“The fact she [Denburg] was such a good dean and connected so well with students should carry over into her new job,” she said. “It’s very important for the health of a college to have good, productive, rewarding ties with the college’s graduates.”
The initial announcement included no word on who Denburg’s replacement would be, and months later, this is still unknown.
“There is no one in line, so we’re going through a full search,” Spar said over the summer.
Avsar said she looks forward to building a similar relationship with the new dean.
“I would love for the new dean to follow in Dean Denburg’s footsteps,” she said. “She is truly an incredible person and has a passion for Barnard that I respect and admire greatly.”
Ultimately, Shapiro said, only Spar can really speak to the future of Barnard’s administration.
“As she [Spar] restructures the administration and puts people in different positions, she is the only one that can really know what direction the administration is going to be taking in the future,” she said.
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