Colorado College Bulletin

203 Armstrong Hall
The Dynamic Duo

By SUZANNE TREGARTHEN

The acting president of the college has two Ph.D.s and an honorary L.H.D., specializes in Plato and plant physiology, was born after Black Thursday but before D-Day, has taught college courses for more than 57 years and has chaired two academic departments. How old is the acting president?

Our question leads the reader to conclude that the acting president (a) must be pushing 70 and (b) must have completed doctoral work before acquiring a full set of molars. The correct answer, though, is that the acting president is not one person, but two.

Next fall, Colorado College President Kathryn Mohrman will take a sabbatical in China; during her absence former dean Timothy Fuller and current dean Richard Storey will jointly serve as the acting president.

"The dual presidency will work very well for Colorado College," says Dean Storey, who explains that the arrangement will enable the college to benefit from Professor Fuller's energy and interest in the Campaign for Colorado College while allowing him to focus on the other important leadership elements.

The college must raise $19 million next academic year to meet the campaign goal of $83 million. The trustees' decision to position Professor Fuller as the institutional leader of this effort is seen as a positive step toward meeting that goal. "Tim Fuller does an excellent job articulating what Colorado College does, the value of a liberal arts education and how we do that at CC," says Mark Smith, associate professor of economics and chair of the Faculty Executive Committee. "He's very convincing and enthusiastic; that's a strong point [for CC]."

Professor Fuller has been involved in the campaign since its inception. As a charter member of the Campaign Executive Committee, he shared in the planning and writing of the first campaign case statement. His participation on the committee has been uninterrupted ever since. Even when he left the state for his sabbatical, he returned to Colorado College for Campaign Executive Committee meetings.

Fuller views his upcoming responsibilities as an opportunity to meet a personal goal -- to "keep up and advance the momentum of the Campaign for Colorado College." Indeed, when Fuller stepped down as dean last spring, he promised the trustees that he would continue to do all he could to help the college meet its campaign goal. "I did not expect to be returning to the administration so soon after leaving the deanship," he laughs, "but this is a special moment in the college's history, and I am pleased that the college has asked me to serve in this way."

While Professor Fuller keeps the campaign on track, Dean Storey will oversee the internal aspects of the college, including, of course, academic affairs. "This is a lot of business for him to manage," says Professor Smith, "but Dick is in a good position to draw other people in to help. I expect that he will rally people together." Besides, Professor Smith adds, "the dean's office has been working on things already - planning ahead" so the college will run smoothly in the fall.

The new arrangement officially begins August 1, although the senior staff and Professor Fuller are already preparing for the transition. Development officers have put together an impressive travel itinerary, President Mohrman has drawn up a thorough division of labor, and an office in the presidential suite is being outfitted for Professor Fuller to use during the five and one-half month stint. (Dean Storey will remain in the dean's office.)

Between August 1 and January 15, then, we can count on Dean Storey to chair senior staff meetings, oversee the divisions of business and finance, student life, athletics, legal counsel, information technology and academic affairs. He will also attend Faculty Executive Committee meetings as acting internal president and oversee opening convocation.

During that time Professor Fuller will oversee the efforts of the advancement division, work with foundations and private donors, continue his fund-raising efforts for the library, handle alumni and community relations, and work with the trustees in advancing the campaign. He will also oversee Colorado College's Homecoming 2000.

And Kathryn Mohrman? She will be a visiting scholar in the American studies program in Chengdu, China, where she hopes to strengthen Colorado College's relationship with Sichuan University and expand the college's Asian studies opportunities for both students and faculty. "One of my priorities is intercultural experiences for all students," President Mohrman says. Her interest in China, she says, blossomed while she was an undergraduate student. In addition to her teaching responsibilities in China, she hopes to continue to be a learner, expanding her knowledge of Chinese culture and language, honing her artistic skills and building new friendships with other scholars.

Keep tabs on President Mohrman as she travels in Asia -- click here for "Postcards from China."  

Now, back to our riddle...Professor Fuller is the Plato scholar; Professor Storey is an expert on plant physiology, and the two will make a winning combination for the leadership of Colorado College next fall.

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