(Image taken from Skidmore.edu)
When Skidmore College enters a new academic year in Fall 2020 — with two construction projects among other initiatives in tow — President-Elect Marc C. Conner, whose term officially starts in July, will have a busy job waiting for him.
Despite the demanding nature of his new position, the President-Elect expressed excitement regarding his upcoming move to Skidmore and said that his first priority is to get to know students, staff, and faculty.
“I have so much to learn about the institution, and it’s only through hearing what people are concerned about, what their aspirations are, what frustrates them, what gives them joy about Skidmore that I can understand what to get behind and what to support,” he said.
Conner plans to build these relationships, formally and informally, either over a get-together or going to a variety of different events already set up at the college, like student art shows and athletic games.
The President-Elect further mentioned that he hopes ten years from now, “I’m still saying that’s the first thing on my agenda.”
Conner, who has wanted to make the move to become a college president for some time, said he has enjoyed working with students in the past as a Professor of English, Department Chair, and Provost, among other titles, at Washington and Lee University.
During his time there, he was involved in similar initiatives that Skidmore is currently undergoing or has recently, such as establishing an African American Studies program and helping guide the university as it embarked on the $125 renovation of its science-center.
He mentioned that the African American studies program was a key commitment for him due to his belief that “If we want to attract an increasingly diverse student body, and faculty and staff…people have to see their culture in the curriculum.”
He is supportive of the similar approaches undertaken at Skidmore and stressed that area studies programs, beyond the Black Studies program, are directly related to supporting diversity and inclusion efforts.
In terms of broader community inclusion with the town of Saratoga Springs, Conner said Skidmore’s college town is one of its main draws. At Washington and Lee, an important aspect of his work revolved around community-based engagement.
“Having strong communication in place means when great opportunities arise, we can quickly move to take advantage of them, and when there are challenges…. we are able to pick it right up,” he said.
Saratoga Springs is considered to be “a great college town” for its beautiful, historic and cultural nature. However, the city’s demographics — which stand at around 90 percent white — and affluent nature with a median household income of $76,775, may make it a challenging space for unrepresented and low-income students at Skidmore.
Conner responded that this issue is “not just a challenge at any local community like Saratoga Springs, but this is the American challenge.”
He mentioned that as communities become increasingly diverse, some tension can arise, “between what has been, what’s happening, and what is to come.”
The relationship between Skidmore and Saratoga Springs is a crucial one, and like any other relationship needs constant attention along with strong communication, as he emphasized.
Conner believes that building these relationships will enable both “to move together into what is to come in a way that is welcoming to all.”
As for diversity and community inclusion efforts within Skidmore College, The College’s press release stresses that Conner is a “longtime advocate of diversity and inclusion” — specifically, towards bringing a diverse set of professors. The announcement said that he “steered [Washington and Lee University’s] faculty recruitment, hiring and retention diversity project.”
The President-Elect said that he has been following Skidmore’s efforts as well: “To me the key of the whole process is to think about that process in as large a time frame as possible. Bringing a diverse population to your community is just the first step.”
According to the Common Data Set (CDS) initiative, a collaborative effort among data providers in the field of Higher Education, the percentage of faculty who identify as “members of minority groups” at Skidmore in 2019-2020 is 17.7 percent.
He stressed what is important is “helping [faculty of color] feel welcome, helping them feel that they have ownership of this community from the first step.” In order to do so, Conner claims that trust has to be crucial within all different aspects of the community.
The college is embarking on a new era as President Glotzbach retires after a lengthy reign, and not without a lengthy to-do list. But if Conner’s history is any indication, he seems ready for the challenge.