Where’s Judy?

Last April, President Judith Shapiro announced that this academic year would be her last at the helm of Barnard College. The news was met with sadness at her departure as well as gratitude for the involvement and accessibility that characterized her tenure. Yet in the flurry of activity to find a replacement this year, Shapiro has seemed markedly absent. Many undergraduates have come to expect a certain aloofness from their deans, but the Barnard administration has traditionally held itself to a different standard of contact with its student body. Shapiro’s final year is not yet over, and although a period of transition is inevitable, Barnard still needs her leadership and guidance.

During Shapiro’s long and storied tenure, Barnard acquired a new dorm, performed significant renovations across its campus, and added over $100 million to its endowment, more than doubling its size. While these infrastructure projects are certainly impressive, Shapiro’s openness toward students and efforts to cultivate a personal feel for the college have been equally important to her presidency. In past semesters, Shapiro held forums open to the entire student body on topics ranging from on-campus controversies to the midterm elections. But this semester, just one such event—open only to political science majors—has been announced. Students say Shapiro has had comparatively little contact with them this year, too—a stark contrast to her usual level engagement.

Most troubling, Barnard’s student body has heard little from its president this year, a silence that became especially conspicuous during the tumultuous visit of Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Columbia. Barnard students received information about the event primarily from the Student Government Association and University announcements forwarded by Barnard’s Office of Communications. While it may have been a conscious decision by Barnard’s administration not to respond directly to the events across Broadway, the effects of the visit were felt in all corners of the University. Shapiro’s voice would have been a valuable one in the days before and after the speech.

While Shapiro’s sole obligation has never been to serve as the hands-on guardian of the student body, her absence will certainly be felt as Barnard enters a transitional period. With less than a year left in her tenure, the best parting gift Shapiro could give to her students would be an even stronger presence in campus life than in years past, as opposed to the apparent absence of these first few weeks. Redoubling her commitment to the student body would serve its members well and ensure that she is remembered broadly and fondly—and not swept out of the way when Barnard’s new president takes her place next year.