I applaud the Student Assembly for devoting itself this year to core academic issues. They have created an award to recognize the qualities Dartmouth seeks in its faculty, and have honored Professor Jonathan Skinner as its first recipient. Professor Skinner is a distinguished leader in his field of economics and crosses disciplinary boundaries, having formed strong ties with faculty members in the medical school. Equally important is his ability to inspire students with his excitement for his work and to challenge them to realize their fullest potential.
The Assembly's Undergraduate Teaching Initiative underscores the value Dartmouth places on learning, and compliments the awards we already make to honor faculty members for their contribution as scholar-teachers. This year, for example, the Karen Wetterhahn Memorial Award was given to Professor Adrian Randolph, the Robert Fish Award went to Professor Hans Penner, Professor Matthew Slaughter received the John M. Manley Huntington Award for Newly Tenured Faculty and Professor Gerd Gemnden was awarded its counterpart for newly promoted faculty. In addition, the senior Class of 2001 awarded Professor Rodolfo Franconi its Dartmouth Distinguished Teaching Award.
The recipients of the Student Assembly's award and the awards enumerated above exemplify what our faculty call the scholar-teacher. Last year, the Faculty Subcommittee on Priorities, chaired by Professor (now Associate Dean of Faculty) Lenore Grenoble, characterized Dartmouth as a place where research and teaching "meet in unique ways," thereby acknowledging that research and teaching are not necessarily mutually exclusive. At Dartmouth, we are well positioned to be the pre-eminent institution where the two spark each other. Dartmouth always has been known for its undergraduate learning experience and this is a reputation we must continue to enhance. However, our reputation for academic excellence can only be maintained by a faculty that is inspired by their active role in advancing the sphere of knowledge and creative works.
An outstanding institution that attracts and prepares the best students for leadership in the world is more than just a place where professors teach the work of others and students memorize this work. It is one in which professors are discoverers and creators who delight in engaging students with the latest ideas and one in which students take part in that process of discovery and creation. Much of what you learn as a student today will be either obsolete or forgotten by your 25th reunion. What's important in a liberal arts education is learning how to understand and evaluate new knowledge and new perspectives and how to continually develop your intellectual and creative potential for the rest of your life. Dartmouth's faculty, therefore, serve as models for discovery and creation and serve as catalysts for students to develop intellectual curiosity.
Active learning is much more enduring than passive learning. In the artistic realm, creating one's own works is much more transformative when under the guidance of artists who are themselves active. While this ideal is never fully realized, it is one to which we should aspire. President James Wright has called undergraduate research opportunities one of his institutional priorities. His initiative reinforces not only our desire to provide more meaningful learning opportunities for our students, but also our desire to encourage faculty to pursue their disciplines and involve students in their research. The result is an institution where learning and discovery form an organic whole.
In this spirit, I am delighted to announce that the Dean of Faculty office will offer a new competitive grant for undergraduate students who wish to spend a leave term working with a faculty member on a research or creative project. For this coming year we expect to offer up to three grants of $5,500 each. Our goal is to enable undergraduate students to stay on campus and earn what they would typically receive in an outside job.
Graduate students at Dartmouth also contribute in critical ways to the learning environment and I soon plan to announce some initiatives directed at recognizing their role in Dartmouth's unique learning culture. In a similar fashion, I am delighted to announce a research-mentoring award for faculty members who are making important contributions to their fields while making a dedicated effort to mentor student research. Details of these initiatives will be forthcoming.
