Winter 2012–13
Around the Quads
Meet Dean Valentini and Share Your Thoughts on the College
Dean James J. Valentini is going on the road, traveling to cities in the United States and abroad to meet alumni, parents and friends and engage them in conversations about undergraduate education at Columbia and the role alumni can play in the College and University.
Photo: Eileen BarrosoThe dean already has held several of these events — which are co-hosted by the Columbia Alumni Association and the Columbia College Alumni Association — in New York City, Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Los Angeles. In New York, he was interviewed by Jerry Kisslinger ’79, ’82 GSAS, chief creative officer for the Office of Alumni and Development; in San Francisco, by Trustees Chair William V. Campbell ’62, ’64 TC, former executive of Apple Computer, Kodak and Intuit; in Los Angeles, by Janice Min ’90, ’91J, editorial director of The Hollywood Reporter and former editor of Us Weekly; and in Washington, by author, journalist and University Trustee A’Leila Bundles ’76J. In February, Valentini will travel to Boston and will be interviewed by WGBH Boston president and CEO Jonathan Abbott ’84 at the station. Visits to Paris and London will follow in March, with a trip to Asia planned for June.
Meet the Dean
- Boston February 11
- Paris March 18
- London March 21
- Asia June, TBA
See details and up-to-date cities and dates.
See photo galleries from the New York City, Washington, D.C. and California events.
Valentini believes that “Shared Ideas + Common Values = Community” and hopes alumni will share their thoughts with him on several key questions, including:
- What’s the place of undergraduate education in the University?
- How can the alumni network help students?
- What should globalization mean for teaching and learning?
- How can we make Columbia even better?
His goal is for alumni to talk about their visions for the College and find things that all members of the College community can agree on and support to help the College provide a better experience for the students and faculty who teach them.
In addition to these in-person events, Valentini hopes that alumni will engage in the conversation via email: columbiacollege@columbia.edu.