Humanities Express

From the Dean

From my office overlooking the Oval, I have just caught a glimpse of one of the many freshmen orientation groups that will pass my window this summer. I can always distinguish them from students attending summer session by the expressions of awe and wonder on their faces. As they walk slowly in tight knit groups around campus, they are further distinguished by the fact that their attention is riveted on a scarlet clad orientation leader who invariably leads the group while walking backward, gesticulating wildly to hold their attention, and talking non-stop in a frantic effort to share his or her knowledge of the campus with the group. Through anecdotes, recitations of obscure facts and, occasionally, participatory activities (they seem to stop and play a lot of games), orientation leaders instill in these incoming freshmen much about the places, histories, and traditions of the university that they will call home for the next four years.

After four years of having an office that looks out onto the Oval where so many freshman orientation activities occur, I suppose that I should not find any of what happens remarkable. However, I must admit that this summer spectacle always captures my attention because it seems so indicative of the unique nature of the university experience. In addition to playing an important role in providing incoming students with much practical information to ease their entrance into the university, the orientation program is designed to assist students in transforming themselves from “admits” to OSU students by fully immersing them into the culture of the institution. More importantly and perhaps coincidentally, it serves the function of introducing them to the transformative power of knowledge, which is also very much a part of the culture of the university. In this sense, the orientation experience serves the larger goal of reinforcing a view of the university as a dynamic place where knowledge leads to change, and change and growth are inevitable.

In this farewell issue of Humanities Express, the themes of orientation, change, and growth seem particularly appropriate as we embark on a new era at the university in which we will begin the process of creating a Division of Arts and Humanities within a new College of Arts and Sciences. We approach this task with a sense of awe and wonder, not so much because it is a daunting undertaking but rather because it entails the possibility of exciting change and growth of the liberal arts at The Ohio State University. We look forward to the opportunities that it will present for transforming the way we fulfill our mission of providing students with an intellectually enriching liberal arts curriculum.

We also look forward to being able to share with you our achievements in accomplishing this transformation in the months to come. Beginning in September, you will begin to receive Focus, an e-newsletter featuring articles about the happenings in and around the Colleges of the Arts and Humanities and the creative thinkers that make up their faculty, students, alumni and friends.

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