媚娘直播 president Tom Flynn faculty authors

Faculty showcases published works during a reception that featured 18 authors.


 

The following is an excerpt from the Winter 2019 issue of the 媚娘直播 Magazine and is part of the #FlynnFriday series that celebrates President Tom Flynn for his 14 years of transformational leadership. 

After a faculty council meeting in May 2012, Tom Flynn joined a group of professors for a drink at Trooper Thorns Irish pub, a common meeting place in Reading for the 媚娘直播 community. Soon the talk turned to how the university might better showcase and share the wide range of faculty research and scholarship that often remains under the radar. Flynn quickly picked up on the idea, and in collaboration with several professors there that evening, including Kevin Donnelly and Janae Sholtz, he introduced regular get-togethers called the Salon Series where faculty members used the opportunity to talk about their work. 

Over the years, the Salon Series became a welcoming and open environment for discussion and dialogue, especially among younger professors. It also became an enduring example of Flynn鈥檚 鈥渃lear commitment to faculty excellence and scholarship,鈥 Donnelly, an associate professor of history, said. 


 

媚娘直播 president Tom Flynn salon series

Flynn and faculty listen to presentation during the Salon Series at Cedar Hill. 


 

In interviews with faculty about Flynn鈥檚 tenure, an image emerges of an accessible, engaged and hands-on leader dedicated to enhancing faculty excellence and intellectual growth as a way to drive the university鈥檚 upward trajectory from a little-known college to a comprehensive, regional university. Besides the Salon Series, which took place several times each semester at the president鈥檚 residence, Flynn also would host receptions for faculty who had recently published books. By honoring and celebrating faculty achievements, Donnelly said, the president showed that he 鈥渞eally cared about faculty being leaders in their fields.鈥 

For Sholtz, an associate professor of philosophy and coordinator of Women鈥檚 Gender Studies, another example of Flynn鈥檚 commitment to faculty excellence is his unstinting support for and expansion of Neag Professorships to both junior and senior faculty. Sponsored by 媚娘直播 benefactors Carole and Ray Neag, these two-year honorary designations provide funding and course-release time for professors to pursue special projects and interests that they would not otherwise be able to do. 

Sholtz, who was a junior Neag professor from 2014 to 2016, said the scholarship afforded her the time to publish a book that advanced her career. 鈥淭hose two years of extra funding helped catapult my work to a different professional level,鈥 Sholtz recalled. 鈥淔lynn recognized an opportunity for the university to improve its stature and prestige by investing in its faculty and supporting their scholarship, and that has changed our profile as a university.鈥 

Flynn also strived to engage both faculty and students in critical campus initiatives. In spring 2018, for example, when many universities around the country were embroiled in contentious debates over free speech, the president created a task force on civil dialogue with faculty and student representatives. The goal was to stimulate discussion on how to balance freedom of speech and thought while upholding moral standards. 


 

媚娘直播 Tom Flynn Bongrae Seok

Associate Professor of Philosophy Bongrae Seok shares his work with Flynn during the Faculty Book Authors reception in Francis Hall. 


 

鈥淎s president of a Franciscan university, he took a stand and showed moral courage, leading by example to promote this discussion among faculty and students,鈥 said Sholtz, who came to 媚娘直播 almost a decade ago. 

That led to the publication in August 2018 of the university鈥檚 鈥淪tatement of Commitment on Civil Dialogue and Freedom of Expression,鈥 a set of guiding principles on respecting diverse points of view and promoting an open exchange of ideas while rejecting speech that espouses hate, harm or bigotry. 

Mary Ellen Symanski, an associate professor of nursing, said this type of collaboration was a hallmark of Flynn鈥檚 presidency. 鈥淗e would call people in and seek input on any matter of controversy and share what was happening,鈥 Symanski said. 鈥淗e listened, sought common ground and came up with common principles and values.鈥 

Dolores Bertoti, a professor of physical therapy, biology and healthcare science, credits Flynn with significantly growing the range and diversification of accredited academic programs and elevating them to include more masters and doctoral programs. For physical therapy students, another benefit will be 媚娘直播鈥檚 initiative to build the Recreation, Wellness and Health Sciences Complex鈥攌nown as the Flynn PLEX, an ambitious 100,000 square foot facility expected to open in summer 2019. Under Flynn, 鈥渢he environment on campus was dynamic,鈥 Bertoti pointed out. 鈥淚t always felt like the art of the possible was achievable.鈥 

Attaining university status was one of those accomplishments. Spencer S. Stober, a professor of biology who was on the search committee that selected Flynn, said this was only possible with the full and active participation of the faculty. As a university, 媚娘直播鈥檚 faculty teach at both undergraduate and graduate levels and students learn in close proximity to one another, creating what Stober calls 鈥渁 climate of academic rigor.鈥 

Another milestone was the establishment of the O鈥橮ake Institute for Ethics, Leadership and Public Service, which focuses on promoting ethical leadership and public service. The institute became a bridge to local organizations, along with broader student engagement and a commitment to community service. 鈥淭hese are the kinds of seeds Tom has planted so the university becomes not only regionally and nationally known, but also more involved in the broader community,鈥 Stober said. 鈥淗e has taken 媚娘直播 to the next level.鈥 

Looking back on the entirety of Flynn鈥檚 tenure, Richard Law, a professor of English at 媚娘直播 since 1992, sees the president鈥檚 handprint just about everywhere on campus 鈥 in new degree programs and learning centers, infrastructure and buildings, and in the idealism he instilled in faculty and students to always aim higher in their academic pursuits. 鈥淔lynn鈥檚 grand vision and leadership and personality have been able to move this school forward more than ever before.鈥 

Tom Flynn with ladies of the RCSP
Salute to Tom Flynn
Alvernia celebrates President Tom Flynn for his transformative tenure as the leader of the university. Share in the celebration by supporting the Reading Collegiate Scholars Program, the initiative he created to provide talented and deserving students from Reading an opportunity to succeed and graduate with a life-changing college degree.