ࡱ> :<9a f'jbjb,, 4NNf!2222222  ,R F2F22[22F4z"222222 o:q0  2RS Beams address for the opening faculty meeting, Fall 2006: Colleagues, Welcome to what I hope will be a good and productive year for each of you, and for your students, as well. Let me say first, that I do not intend to speak for very long. Thats partially because, as many of you know, Im much more comfortable working behind the scenes, as a director, designer or technical director, than I am as a performer. Its also because what none of us need at this point is a long meeting. As Chair of the Faculty, I serve as President of the Faculty Senate and I would like to invite each of you to come to the Open Faculty Caucus tomorrow afternoon at 1 in the Hospitality Room of the Ramsey Center. There, we will try to establish the initial faculty concerns, which the Senate, through its Councils, needs to address this year. Some are obvious. We need to resolve some outstanding issues regarding the AFE/TPR process, especially in the light of the planned restructuring of the university and the SACS accreditation. Restructuring the University will also have an impact on the structure of faculty governance, and that will need to be addressed. We need to consider the fact that much of the Faculty Handbook is difficult to read, out of date and getting more so as we move towards restructuring. And, there are, undoubtedly, many other issues that we will need to address which I havent mentioned. But the time to consider them is not now, but at the caucus tomorrow. Mostly, today, I want to discuss briefly three words: Teaching, Research & Service. These three words have always been stated as the keys to success at Western. I remember first encountering them in the fall of 1971, when I joined this faculty, and I have tried to live by them. I believe in them. Lets look at those words more closely for a couple of minutes: Teaching: We all know what teaching is: its the imparting of what we know to others and the encouragement of those others to understand and relate that information to their own lives and careers. Like many of you, I expect, information from classes didnt always make sense to me as a student. It was often only long after I was through with a particular class or unit that I woke up to realize the importance of a bit of information or an idea which I had encountered there. You know what I mean: the Aha! experience (also known as the So THATs what that [expletive deleted] meant!). Teaching is the creation of an environment for learning and all of us participate in that every day in everything we do. Its important to remember, however, that we are not just teaching our students to be biologists or nurses or historians or fill in your field, but to be productive, useful citizens in a global community. That means, I think, that what each one of us does in the classroom, office or lab is important, even if it may not be exclusively in the area where we have the greatest scholarly expertise. Research: There are probably many definitions of research (which also includes a myriad of creative activities). One definition might be: studious inquiry or examination; especially: investigation or experimentation aimed at the discovery and interpretation of facts, revision of accepted theories or laws in the light of new facts, or practical application of such new or revised theories or laws (I looked it up). Whats important, at least to me, is that research may involve the traditional contemplation of the nature of things. In theatre, that would mean the consideration of the ideas of Aristotle, Plato, Horace, the neoclassicists, Appia, Craig, Robert Edmond Jones, Brecht, Artaud, Grotowski and others, who have explored ideas about the fundamental nature of theatre as an art and practice. It may also mean, at least in theatrical design, the more applied process of developing an understanding of the history of theatrical venues and facilities, furniture, architecture, dress, manners, philosophy, literature, social and political history, and many other areas, which are necessary for the creation of a specific theatrical event. Personally, I can (and have) done both of these sorts of research. My Masters thesis was an historical examination of a promptbook from a production of Shakespeares The Merry Wives of Windsor at a mid-Nineteenth century English provincial theatre. My dissertation was a very practical empirical study relating to the creation of color in lighting for the stage. Both types of research have been essential to me in my career and I consider them both important for my students. I would hope that both sorts of research are valued and rewarded by all of us, whether the results are published in scholarly journals, appear on a stage or manifest themselves in some other form of presentation to a public. Service: Ive left service for last because it has always been listed as the third leg of the triad, not because it should be viewed as being of less importance. Service is difficult to define. I would define it as that work which we do because it needs doing. Its that work which we do for the betterment of society. I would (and will) argue that there are many forms of service and all should be valued. Certainly, work done to advance our professions through various professional associations is important, as is the donation of our time and skills to advance the community, region, or nation, economically and socially. On the other hand, I would argue that there is important service to be done on campus, as well. It may be advising our students, both in the selection of classes and in broader career guidance. It may be advising a student organization or just being a friend to a student in need. It may be participation in the affairs of the university through faculty governance, committee work within the university, the colleges and the departments, or in many other forms. All are important to me, and, I believe, to the university. All should be rewarded, or, at least, recognized as valuable. Oh, yes. I know all of the reasons for doing as little of this university service as possible: It takes time from my research.; I have too little time already to do my important stuff. (whatever that important stuff is), The faculty have no real power anyway, so what does it matter? I beg to differ. Important decisions are being made all around us every day. While we, as a faculty, do have little real power in the sense of control (thats a matter of law, not of an individuals choice), the fact is that we, as a faculty, can have considerable influence. I think that many of us who have been around a while will recognize that there are very few cases (I cant really think of one) where our current administrative leaders have not taken the input of the faculty, as expressed through the Faculty Senate or in other forums, seriously. And, generally, they have responded in a manner which reflects the desires and needs of the faculty whenever it was possible. Mind you, I speak from experience with administrations where this was not always the case. On the other hand, decisions must be made and, if we as a faculty abdicate our right to have well reasoned input, we will find that such decisions will be made without it because they must be made. If we wish to have influence, we must make the time to participate and to see that that participation is valued. This is service which, I believe, is as important to ĢƵ as editing a journal, chairing a professional association committee or working on a development project. As we start this new year, I hope you will remember these three words and be productive in all of them. As your representative, I promise you that I will always listen to your concerns. I confess that I doubt that I will always please all of you. I will promise you, however, that I will always act with what I believe to be the best interests of the faculty at heart. As Edmund Burke once said, ... a representative owes the People, not only his industry, but his judgment -- and he betrays them if he sacrifices it to their opinion. It is also a matter of faith to me that, as the character Stephen Hopkins in Peter Stone and Sherman Edwards musical, 1776, says: . . . in all my years I never heard, seen nor smelled an issue that was so dangerous it couldnt be talked about. I anticipate an interesting year ahead. Thank you. See you at the caucus tomorrow. Have a good year. F O |&&e'f'hh!QOJQJ$hh!Q6B*OJQJaJph$hh!Q5B*OJQJaJph!hh!QB*OJQJaJph >?M_ F I(i!#%'e'f'`gd!Qgd!Qf'/ =!"#$%8@8 NormalCJmH sH tH DA@D Default Paragraph FontZiZ  Table Normal :V 4 l4a _H(k(No List f!4 z z z Uf!>?M_F I (i%!e!h!0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0 0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0ʀ0 0О00?M_F I %!e!h!: Pw8 Pw: Pw8 Pw: Pw: Pw: Pw: Pw8 Pw: Pw: Pw: Pw0: Pw: Pwy58 P8f'f'f'h!FJ:<y2?h!::::@p$R`ff!@ @UnknownGTimes New Roman5Symbol3 Arial;Helvetica"hzFfC :>4z!Y8RSB s speech for the opening faculty meeting, Fall 2006:Richard S. BeamRichard S. Beam Oh+'0t  4@ \ h t'<RSBs speech for the opening faculty meeting, Fall 2006:Richard S. BeamNormalRichard S. 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