Three years ago, Dr. Lisa Anderson-Levy began to get to know Macalester in one role, as a Mac parent. In July, she joined the community in a new capacity: as the college\u2019s new provost and executive vice president.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Anderson-Levy comes to Macalester from Beloit College, where she spent the past 13 years as an anthropology professor who also served in multiple administrative roles. As an anthropologist, her scholarship focuses on race, class, and gender in the Caribbean and United States, and she\u2019s committed to providing students with tools to understand their worlds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe search committee was particularly impressed with her proven experience facilitating meaningful change for greater equity and inclusion, among many other strengths,\u201d says committee chair Professor Victoria Malawey. \u201cDr. Anderson-Levy is the kind of leader who will shepherd us with grace and grit into a new era.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We asked Anderson-Levy to share the approaches that guide her work\u2014and will help her as she and President Rivera launch a strategic planning process to shape Macalester\u2019s future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a faculty member, it was really important that my scholarship, teaching, and advising were inextricably intertwined. Often, students would come to my office for advice about work or life\u2014and while it\u2019s important to support students as they move through the curriculum, it\u2019s also important to be curious about who they are and who they want to be, and to hold space with them as they figure that out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is important to acknowledge that students have lives beyond the classrooms. They may be worried about their families, money, or their health, and they bring all of these concerns to class. Being able to see students and work with their whole humanity is important because what they\u2019re dealing with outside the classroom impacts what\u2019s possible in the classroom. Our work with students must integrate their intellectual and social lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Students come to Macalester to work with faculty who are doing cutting-edge research. I\u2019ve been impressed by and support the college\u2019s longstanding commitment to faculty scholarship and the high-impact research opportunities that are available to students who collaborate with faculty. Research not only helps faculty stay current in their field, it generates what happens in the classroom. Our students\u2019 experiences are amplified by the incredible scholarship in which faculty members engage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A strong strategic plan requires community input and has to be an expression of our entire community. While we may not have consensus on every point, we need to come together on the major themes. My goal with strategic planning is to identify mechanisms for community members to provide feedback, so everyone is heard and feels involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My equity and justice work and perspective informs everything I do, including encouraging students to find their paths and supporting faculty and staff to do meaningful work. For me, being at a liberal arts institution is about creating a generative environment in which students grow roots that make them flexible and resilient\u2014roots that prepare them for the rest of their lives.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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