By Dr. Michael Harvey
Outgoing Provost and Dean
I am very proud to have served as interim Provost for the past three years. It’s been a time of change: COVID-19, an interim President, a new President, new vice presidents, and the emergence of new stability for the college. It’s been a great privilege to be a part of trying to help with all that.
I’ve tried to be a force for stability and supporting our people — staff, students, everyone who cares about, contributes to, and is connected to Washington College. At the same time, I’ve tried to encourage new ideas.
I’m very proud, for instance, that we’ve just passed a block transfer policy that will make it much easier for students from community colleges to transfer to Washington College, and complete their degrees in four years. I’m very proud that we now have an Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion, and I look forward to seeing Dr. Alisha Knight lead powerful change in that role in coming years.
I’m so happy to see amazing teacher-scholars join us, to meet new students, and to help launch new initiatives like a business incubator that will create more entrepreneurial opportunities for students, and more connections to the community.
And I’m really happy I’m not leaving, but just shifting positions! It’ll be exciting to be the President’s Special Assistant for Strategic Initiatives. That’s a lot of syllables, but the job will be very clear: help make change happen—but a special kind of change: change that is aligned with our enduring identity as a great liberal arts college; that is aligned with the ideas and vision of our faculty, staff, students, alumni, and Board members; and change that makes the student experience even more meaningful, powerful, and life-changing.
And of course, best of all, I still get to teach! There’s nothing better than being in a classroom with the College students, talking about work and leadership and motivation and all the great topics we cover in Organizational Behavior.
It’s been an amazing three years—but they’re just the latest in 25 great years at the College for me, and I’m very happy that much more is to come.
Elm Archive Photo
Photo Caption: Dr. Harvey looks forward to the next stage of his journey at the College as the president’s special assistant for strategic initiatives.