CAS Blog
Each week in the CAS Bulletin, a member of the College of Arts and Sciences write a blog. Those blogs are collected here for reference.
April 10, 2025
Undergraduate researcher has elevated impactAndrew Fan, a senior researcher in my lab, approached me about research collaboration last spring. He saw my research presentation during my interview at Xavier, and when I was hired he took the...
April 03, 2025
Defending against clipped wings“the sacrifice of wings hurts at first and you can sing about the pain. Then you come to love immobility and fear composes the song’s words.” In...
March 27, 2025
The push and pull of holding on and letting goStepping foot into a completed gallery, one that I worked on through years and years with my time at Xavier University, is the most bittersweet feeling I have ever felt. Given the significance of a...
March 20, 2025
Catholic social teaching--now more than everToday's blog is the acceptance speech from this year's Fortin Award Recipient, John Sniegocki, Professor in the Theology Department (right in photo). John accepted the award from Roger Fortin (left...
March 06, 2025
New humanities major, minors, and concentrationsLast week's CAS Bulletin included an overview of the business addressed at the winter meeting on Feb. 24. The meeting also featured information about three new academic opportunities for our...
February 27, 2025
Winter college meeting recapWith an audience of about 70 faculty and staff, our CAS All-College Winter meeting was well attended. I want to thank everyone who came, and particularly our presenters and those who contributed to...
February 20, 2025
Supporting first-year student success
Starting college is both exciting and overwhelming, and educators recognize how crucial this transition is for first-year students' success and persistence. Many first-year students face...
February 13, 2025
Preparing students to protect systems, data, and infrastructureThe Computer Science Department is excited to talk about our Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity. Cybersecurity continuously changes, which keeps it interesting but also challenging in a...
February 06, 2025
A Day of Engagement: XU Preview DayClose to 500 prospective students had registered for the event on Groundhog Day, including almost 200 who expressed interest in CAS majors. This first Preview Day was reserved for early...
January 30, 2025
Empowering our students to guide their peersMany students are approaching college-level work differently than their peers just a few years ago. Fewer students seem to want to read, and some are now asking for short videos instead...
January 23, 2025
Educating adults for over 150 yearsAPEX, also known as Adult and Professional Education at Xavier, has a long history. From the Evening College, which was established in 1841, the College of Continuing Education in 1972, the Weekend...
January 16, 2025
Cold and DarkIt’s cold and dark now, but only for a while. One of the real joys of the spring semester is watching the gradual transformation—from cold and darkness to warmth and light. With...
December 12, 2024
Using time with your students effectivelyLooking back on my first semester at Xavier, I cannot emphasize enough my gratitude for the warm and welcoming reception that I received from faculty, staff, and students. Xavier has...
December 05, 2024
Where everybody knows your nameOne of the hardest things for introverts, at least this introvert, is meeting new people. So, when I was asked to fill in at the front desk of the dean’s office just a few short weeks...
November 21, 2024
Embracing thankfulnessAs the year draws to a close, it is natural to reflect on the events, lessons, and moments that have shaped our lives. This year has undoubtedly brought its share of challenges, whether personal,...
November 14, 2024
Are you creative?Are you actually fostering creativity in the classroom? This seems like a bold question for a third-year, undergrad art major named Ian McIlvain to be asking the College of Arts and Science; but I...
November 07, 2024
Preparing students for meaningful, reflective livesBack in January, I got an email out of the blue from a former student. A couple years earlier, she had been a first-year History major. But she soon switched to another, non-humanities major and...
October 31, 2024
The unfamiliar "other"It’s spooky season! For most parts of the city, we know what this means—Halloween night includes a parade of costumed kids and guilt-free candy consumption. As...
October 24, 2024
Mutual MentorshipDuring my first three-and-a-half months at Xavier, my main interaction with the Sustaining Excellence project has been through my support of our college’s numerous new majors, minors, and...
October 17, 2024
Creating accessible college experiencesDuring the Spring 2024 semester, I represented CASDI (College of Arts and Sciences’s Diversity and Inclusion committee) as a participant in three webinars sponsored by the Greater...
October 10, 2024
Advising seasonIt’s almost advising season! Good quality advising is key to our students’ success both here at Xavier and beyond. It’s a way for us to connect with our students,...
September 26, 2024
Improving adaptabilityToday’s blog is from junior Sarah Lemming about her study abroad program this past summer. While planning for study abroad often requires thinking about classes, passports, and logistics,...
September 19, 2024
Personal transformation through leadershipOver the last year or so, we’ve heard a lot about the importance of transformation from an institutional perspective. What is less appreciated, I think, is how important it is for the...
September 12, 2024
Common goodI am very much enjoying the many opportunities to learn more about the College. I had great tours of the labs in biology, chemistry, and physics, as well as the spaces of arts and DIFT, I...
September 05, 2024
Skills the liberal arts provideAs fall recruiting season approaches, our student appointments in the Career Development Office often focus on a common theme: how can I stand out when speaking with recruiters at events like the...
August 29, 2024
What sophomore slump?When I was extended the invitation to write a blog sharing my thoughts as a second-year faculty member at Xavier, I was excited. However, I slowly found it difficult to sit in reflection and write...
August 22, 2024
Helping students find each otherLike many of you, I have been busily running around campus for the past week. Between supporting Manresa programs, new faculty orientations, working groups, college meetings, a department...
August 15, 2024
Eureka!—Experiences that lead to learningThere are many suitable topics for your new Dean’s first blog post. But I decided to start with a confession: I have always felt that the term teaching offers a poor description...
May 02, 2024
More than keeping the lights onWhen we first introduced the “dean team” to the college back in August, we shared that we hoped to do our “best to support you in carrying out the mission of...
April 25, 2024
Core ConversationsGet ready, everyone! We’re about to start talking about the Core.
Work will begin this summer in clarifying the process that the anticipated review of the Core Curriculum in 2024-2025...
April 18, 2024
McDonald Award recipients McDonald Award winners announced The College of Arts and Sciences is pleased to announce that the selection committee for the McDonald Award has completed its work. Chaired by last year's winner,...
April 11, 2024
Earlies or SeasonedSome of you might be thinking that it is much too early for a blog to address putting in an application for rank and tenure. On the contrary, now is precisely the time to start...
April 04, 2024
A genuine wonder of existence“What terror is this that overwhelms you?… The sun is obliterated out of the sky… a lethal mist spreads all across the earth!” – Homer’s...
March 28, 2024
Meaningful impact and contributionsServing on the College of Arts and Sciences' Student Advisory Board has been among the most fulfilling experiences of my time at Xavier University. Each meeting has been a testament to the impact...
March 21, 2024
Why study the humanities?Today's blog is the acceptance speech from this year's Fortin Award Recipient, Randy Browne, Associate Professor in the History Department (right in photo). Randy accepted the award from Roger...
March 14, 2024
Connecting with piToday is March 14, Pi Day, an excuse to reflect on that irrational number we use to represent how many times the distance across a circle can wrap around the outside of that same circle. It turns...
February 29, 2024
The comedic spirit of springThis semester, I'm teaching one of my favorite classes—an upper-level course titled "Novel Writing," where students compose an entire novel from scratch. At the outset of the...
February 22, 2024
Helping our students discern and respond to political disagreementMy current research explores tolerance for political disagreement on social media with friends and family. This topic resonates with our students. They experience tension when viewing incongruent...
February 15, 2024
Roses, chocolates, and...ashes?Roses, chocolates, and … ashes? Perhaps I wasn’t the only person experiencing cognitive dissonance yesterday, as the calendar threw together Valentine’s Day and Ash...
February 08, 2024
Academic mentoring for internshipsFor many Xavier faculty members, fostering the professional development of students extends beyond the classroom, encompassing guidance in securing meaningful internships. Reflecting on my own...
February 01, 2024
Meaningful and intentional celebrationsAs we move into Black History Month, it is worth being reminded of some key factors that helped establish Black lives as worthy of both celebration and academic study. In 1915 Carter G....
January 25, 2024
Alive with the sound of musicAs we begin 2024, music is flowing through the Xavier campus! New clubs, new courses, and new musical ensembles reflect an invigorated spirit in the university’s music community. The past...
January 18, 2024
Hot views during a cold caucusThis past weekend, a group of 30 students from the PPP (Philosophy, Politics, and the Public Honors Program), Smith Scholars (Williams College of Business honors cohort), and Political Science...
January 11, 2024
Pura vidaReflections on 15 years of the Costa Rica Study Abroad course The Xavier winter program that takes students to Costa Rica for an experiential biology course has operated for 15 trips. We had a...
December 14, 2023
That works for meAs retirement looms, I’ve been mulling over the last 35 years. In August 1989, I joined a mathematics department that was mostly male, mostly white and with many members having...
December 07, 2023
Light in the darknessTonight, the Jewish holiday of Chanukah starts, and we mark its beginning by lighting a menorah (a nine-branched candelabrum) at nightfall. This custom is to commemorate the rededication of the...
November 30, 2023
An organized observation of the natural worldWhile I would like to think that I am always actively thinking about how my courses fit into what students learn at Xavier, when the CAS Associate Deans asked me to write a blog entry...
November 16, 2023
The Place of GratitudeWith the holiday arriving soon, many of us will likely turn our thoughts in the coming days to the things we have to be thankful for. Considered historically, we owe this time of thanks to the...
November 09, 2023
Speed deaningTwo weeks ago, we three Associate Deans of Arts and Sciences – Tim Brownlee, Steve Yandell, and I – set out for the University of San Francisco to attend the annual Association...
November 02, 2023
Getting the shiversI get the shivers when I see how hostile to the humanities many politicians, members of the public, and even some college presidents have become. Poor ROI, they declare.
How fortunate we are at...