After six years as the Dean of First Year Students at Dartmouth, Peter Goldsmith will step down at the end of the school year to accept a position as Dean of the College at Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio.
Goldsmith formally accepted Oberlin's offer on Wednesday to replace its Acting Dean of the College, Deb McNish.
"I was nominated for this position, and it is a wonderful position at an extraordinary institution," Goldsmith said. "Opportunities like this don't come along very often."
At Oberlin, Goldsmith will be responsible for student life, the student union, residential life, the chaplaincy, safety and security, counseling and health services. He will also help restructure the academic and nonacademic support systems at Oberlin.
"We've traditionally had a student life administration which has been very separate from the academic administration," President of Oberlin College Nancy Dye told The Dartmouth. "We would like to have a more holistic approach, rather like Dartmouth's."
She said Goldsmith was an attractive candidate to Oberlin because of his commitment to diversity, and his career-long dedication to integrating all aspects of College life for students.
"We also like Mr. Goldsmith's warmth, his dedication to students and his great concern for the needs of students," Dye added. "His humor and warmth will fit really well with Oberlin."
Goldsmith said that before Oberlin called him about the job opening, he had not considered leaving Dartmouth.
"In fact, I would have been very pleased to have remained at Dartmouth for some years yet," he said.
Goldsmith said he is looking forward to his new job, which will officially begin on Aug. 1, but he will miss many aspects of Dartmouth, especially the time he spent at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge during the freshman Outing Club trips each year.
"But I'm leaving Dartmouth with some real sadness," he added. "I love my job at Dartmouth. The challenges have certainly not run out. I work with wonderful people here. I have loved working with Dartmouth students."
Goldsmith also said his family will miss living in the Upper Valley.
Dartmouth will also miss Goldsmith, according to many people who have worked with him since he came to the College in 1993.
Acting Dean of the College Dan Nelson said he is "very sorry to see a very successful and effective dean leaving Dartmouth."
"At the same time, this is a wonderful professional opportunity for Peter to be at Oberlin as its dean," Nelson added.
Christine Kim '99, the administrative intern in the first-year office, said Goldsmith makes a special effort to get to know students.
"I would think that the Dean of First Year Students would be too busy to pay attention to students' names, but he really remembers everybody," Kim said.
She said that when someone gets sick or injured and goes to Dick's house, he always sends them a get-well message over BlitzMail.
"He tries to make an effort to be involved in the class," Kim said. "He always asks what's going on in freshman council meetings."
Josh Warren, president of the class of 2002, also praised Goldsmith.
"I think Dartmouth's going to be losing something with him" he said. "He's a smart man, a good man. Guys like him are hard to come by, it seems."
Nelson said the search for Goldsmith's successor will begin sometime after the newly appointed Dean of the College James Larimore takes office in July.
