Chancellor Gora’s Inauguration: A Celebration of UMass Boston

By Anne-Marie Kent

Ever wish you could don a hard hat and tour the Campus Center site? How about taking a greenhouse tour or getting the official scoop on those Arts on the Point sculptures located throughout campus? Maybe you’d just like a free scoop of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream to go with a fun outdoor concert. These experiences and more are included in the lineup of events planned to celebrate the inauguration of Jo Ann Gora as sixth chancellor of UMass Boston.

At last September’s convocation, Chancellor Gora introduced herself to the campus community and outlined her plans to make UMass Boston "the best urban university this country has ever seen," with physical improvements, expanded use of technology, a strengthened curriculum, greater roles for the centers and institutes, and closer integration with the community.
This September, as she is officially installed as chancellor, the university will mark the event with a main inauguration ceremony held on September 27th outside on the university plaza and with a host of other activities drawing from the strengths of the university as a whole.

"In the inauguration of Jo Ann Gora as our Chancellor we will not only celebrate the formal investiture of an individual who brings to us a distinguished career and significant leadership qualities, but also we will honor who we are and what we as a community stand for," says College of Management Dean Philip Quaglieri, planning committee member. "The events surrounding the inauguration allow our students, faculty, alumni, and friends in the local community, and in the public and private sectors, to share in our optimism about our new chancellor and the future of the campus."

These events include outdoor concerts for students, student art exhibits at the Harbor Gallery, a free student barbecue, an ice cream social, plus nearly 30 forums, lectures, tours, and exhibitions, all open to the public. These all showcase the strengths of UMass Boston faculty, students, and alumni. The forums in particular reflect the university’s regular participation in high-level public policy dialogue. The social events are intended to help foster a greater sense of community among UMass Boston students and to recognize the importance of students to the university.

"Inauguration week will enable students to see some of the wonderful things that go on at the university," said student Jeffrey Howard, a political science major from the class of 2003. "We will have an opportunity to attend forums of interest and a chance to come together and join with friends and enjoy free food, which is always a good thing!"

If students are interested in meeting successful business-people, they can attend the two College of Management Senior Executive Forums, featuring Ben and Jerry’s CFO Mickey Wiles ’83, and Lightbridge, Inc. CEO, Pamela Reeve. Anyone interested in a nursing career can meet alumna Barbara Blakeney, ’89, MS, RNc, president of the American Nurses Association.

University forums will also bring noteworthy people to campus, including experts from the fields of literature, environmental sciences, education, and the media. For example, one forum, which will be held on September 26, will examine the role of media in public policy formation. It will bring together the editor of the Boston Globe, Governor Weld’s former press secretary, and the former executive director of the PBS Democracy Project. Another will feature administrators from local public school systems, including Boston, to discuss urban education renewal and the federal "No Child Left Behind" act.

There will also be lectures by UMass Boston faculty and others on topics ranging from literature to child fitness to academic freedom, and even a boat tour of the harbor, led by Harbormaster Chris Sweeney.

For a complete listing of inauguration events, dates, and times, please see the insert in this issue of the Reporter or visit www.umb.edu/inauguration.

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