Meet Joe Cassidy, the newly-hired Director of the Collis Center and Associate Dean of Student Life.
Cassidy previously served as the Director of Student Activities and the LaFortune student center at the University of Notre Dame -- a vastly different school from Dartmouth.
One adjustment has been the mountainous topography of the Upper Valley, which is a marked contrast from the flat landscape in Cassidy's previous job South Bend, Ind.
Similar to Hanover, "South Bend is not a major metropolis either," the native of Louisville, Ky. said, noting Indiana's rolling cornfields.
At Notre Dame, Cassidy was responsible for overseeing three facilities -- the student center, the recreation center that doubled as a concert hall and the campus pub. Similar to his new responsibilities at Dartmouth, Cassidy oversaw most media and student publications except for the newspaper.
Plans for Collis
Among his initial tasks at the College, Cassidy is trying to familiarize himself with the Centerbrook Architects' proposed plans for improvement of social spaces on campus, including Collis, he said.
"It's a nice time to walk in," he said of his recent arrival at the College. "The institution has plans, but the program has not been finalized about what it's going to look like or what's going to be in it."
Looking to the future of Collis, Cassidy said the current student center is just too small to meet the needs of the community, and that his work will involve expanding Collis to provide a more attractive social atmosphere.
Cassidy explained Notre Dame's LaFortune student center was different from Collis because the former fulfilled commercial transactions not able to be completed over the telephone or Internet.
While the shops of Main Street are a stone's throw away from Collis, the Notre Dame campus is landlocked with a residential area lying beyond the campus boundary. Without commercial establishments nearby, LaFortune provides basic commercial necessities in its one floor mini-mall.
Designed for students unable to leave campus easily, LaFortune houses a beauty shop, travel agent, florist, branch bank, barber shop and a copying office, according to
Cassidy.
Given Collis's different geographic situation, Cassidy said providing such services in Collis that can be found only a block away might not be the most practical use of space.
Instead, Cassidy said he has heard flat-floor programming space and a site for continuous programming are in greater demand.
"There is a need for constant programming like a bowling alley, movie theater or someplace social to hang out that you know is going to be there," he said, noting that the Big Green Bean and Lone Pine Tavern are current examples of venues on which students can depend.
In contrast, flat-floor space is functionally flexible to allow student groups to hold a range of events. Cassidy said striking a balance between the two types of social spaces is desired.
Opinions of Dartmouth
Cassidy, who replaced Mark Hoffman, arrived at Dartmouth by "pure luck" after crossing paths with Dean of Student Life Holly Sateia working on a committee together.
"I heard about the things going on with the Student Life Initiative and it sounded exciting, and when the [position of] director of Collis opened up, I applied," Cassidy said.
With one "stimulating" week under his belt, Cassidy said he is pleased with the quality of Collis.
"I have been very impressed with the facilities and especially impressed with the folks who work here -- they are outstanding professionals," he said.
Cassidy said the appeal of Dartmouth students factored into his decision in coming to the College.
"One of the main things I was interested in was to meet with students who are impressive," he said. "I wasn't surprised, but I was glad to find not only are [Dartmouth students] intelligent, but well-grounded and active."
Cassidy praised the Collis staff, which encompasses many student positions, and said their competence will enable any changes to be made to Collis in the offing.
"The people structure that is here are decent and committed. That makes it easier to move up to the next stage," he said. "You can tell folks working here are enjoying themselves."
Cassidy and his wife Emily have two kids and enjoy taking family trips with their dogs, when possible.
