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Harpur council raises support for faculty

Harpur faculty member working on research

The Harpur College Advocacy Council Faculty Development Endowment would help faculty advance their research

Members of the Harpur College Advocacy Council are answering the call to establish an endowed fund that invests deeply in the research, creative activities and professional development of our faculty.

The intent of the Harpur College Advocacy Council Faculty Development Endowment is to provide a durable stream of revenue that can be used to support tenured and tenure-track faculty in departments across Harpur College of Arts and Sciences.

"Although Harpur College has been investing in faculty development for many years, our needs in this area have grown disproportionately greater as we have hired more faculty in recent years," said Terrence Deak, interim dean of Harpur College. "And because we know faculty development will always be a priority for Harpur College, we must — by necessity — shift our approach toward building a substantive endowment to support faculty development."

The endowment will provide faculty with essential support for research and creative activities, travel to conferences and workshops, colloquia and workshops to be held on campus by visiting speakers, grant writing seminars and much more.

"Faculty development is by far one of the most critical areas where we invest because it directly impacts the student experience," Deak said. "Moreover, the availability of resources to support faculty development is essential to the effective recruitment and retention of outstanding faculty at all stages of their career.” 

With this support, our faculty can compete on the leading edge of their disciplines, bring their latest discoveries to the classroom, and provide practical research and experiential opportunities for students.

"The lifeblood of the University is having great students, great faculty and great facilities," said Paul R. Turovsky ’73, LHD ’12, chair of the Harpur College Advocacy Council. "The state has provided a lot of support for the facilities that the University occupies. Students continue to be very strong, and the University offers them a very affordable way to get a great education. But faculty is the other element of it that needs to be supported.

"If you can’t retain great faculty, the University’s value is going to diminish, its quality is going to diminish and its reputation is going to diminish. This is a simple way to try to help with that."

Learn more about the Harpur College Advocacy Council. 

 

Last Updated: 4/5/21