Dean Townshend Delivers State of the College Address

Before a standing-room-only crowd in the McKeldin Library Special Events Room, Dean John Townshend delivered the annual State of the College address on Oct. 22.

The dean outlined the numerous ways in which BSOS has strengthened and grown in the past year, noting its more than 6,000 undergraduate and graduate majors, more than 50,000 3-credit seats taught per year, and rising number of faculty hires. He also outlined plans for additional faculty hires and noted renovations and planned improvements in several BSOS buildings. Further highlights included excellence in computing and technology; scholarship, research and blended learning initiatives; and the launch of the College’s “Be the Solution” identity campaign. 

[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"809","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","height":"269","style":"border-width: 0px; border-style: solid; margin: 5px; width: 294px; height: 265px; float: left;","width":"300"}}]]After new faculty and staff members were recognized, the Dean’s Medal was presented to Samuel N. Goward. This Dean’s Medal is the highest honor the College bestows.

Dr. Goward joined the Department of Geographical Sciences in 1982, after serving at Columbia University. The first externally-funded faculty member in the College, Dr. Goward took a one-year visiting appointment with NASA Headquarters in 1984 to manage the hydrology and remote sensing science programs. In 1992, he was promoted to professor, and from 1995 to 2001, he served as chair of the Department. During his time as chair, Dr. Goward was responsible for recruiting key faculty members, supporting technological advances and creating the administrative structure needed to support the large external funding coming into the University.

The new opportunities and science that Dr. Goward brought to the University were quickly recognized by campus leaders, and transformed the Department into a vibrant, heavily-funded research division in less than a decade, elevating and strengthening its reputation both internally and externally.

Following the State of the College address, a reception was held in Tydings Hall for faculty, staff and student employees, who were given the opportunity to view newly renovated spaces throughout the building.

Published on Thu, Oct 24, 2013 - 1:10PM