The Observer, February 2, 2007
Volume XXXIX, Issue 15
Taylor shares hopes and plans for College of Arts and Sciences
Cyrus Taylor, the Albert A. Michelson Professor of Physics and Chair of the Physics Department, was appointed Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences while most of the student body was home over winter break. He had been serving as Interim Dean since Mark Turner resigned on July 1.
Taylor has been part of the Case faculty since 1988, but says becoming Dean of the College was never even a consideration until John Bassett vacated the position in 2000 and Taylor was nominated as his replacement.
When the opportunity arose a second time, "I thought I could do a superb job," said Taylor. "I love the College of Arts and Sciences, so I felt both a responsibility and an opportunity to step up. And after seven months, I've concluded that it must be the best job in the university."
Taylor isn't afraid to acknowledge the turbulent times that have affected the university and especially the College of Arts and Sciences over the past few years. The first step to improving the situation, he says, is to "reach out to all our constituents and improve communication and get things back on track."
At least some of the current $14 million budget deficit can be attributed to reduced alumni support prompted by the 2003 branding of the university as "Case" rather than "CWRU" or "Case Western."
While the Branding Task Group is currently re-examining the benefit of this mark, Taylor is already making a personal effort to help acquire financial resources. Earlier this week Taylor was on a development trip in Florida, meeting with potential alumni donors who "are quite angry with the university."
"It must be done in a series of phases," Taylor says. "We've made huge progress with communication over the past couple of months."
Taylor's second goal is more specific to the College of Arts and Sciences. "We've never really gone through a comprehensive self-study or planning process," Taylor says. "We need to develop a shared vision that represents the goals of all faculty, and execute it."
Case, of course, is predominantly known as an engineering and science school; how will Taylor, a particle physicist, be able to connect with those students more geared toward the arts and humanities?
"My personal interest is far beyond science," he says, citing examples: "My wife and I attended the theater every night of our honeymoon. I've studied classical Greek. I'm an avid reader of history. Recently, with some help, I've been reading Chinese poetry for fun. I love this job because it incorporates many of my personal interests."
Taylor is an extremely accomplished academic, having published more than 60 papers and given more than 70 invited talks in recent years. Will his appointment as Dean interfere with research?
"I'm trying to keep a finger in it, but the bulk of my energy must be given to the College," he said.
Though office hours haven't been set, Taylor is available for discussion – e-mail him at cyrus.taylor@case.edu to set up an appointment.
"I'm really honored to be in this position," he said. "It's a very exciting time to be here."
