Photo coming soon…
Acceptance Remarks
My Dear Colleagues,
Thank you for indulging me in my process to depart from over 30 years at UO. As an artist I am compelled to express my experience. This time, through words. More typically through music or traditional art.
I became a climate refugee in 1976 from the east coast to the rural Oregon coast to wait until it was over – I was not a “hippie” I was more a conservationist and pagan. Coming to Oregon literally saved my life.
A decade into my “waiting for the end”, I re-entered the ivory tower reluctantly in 1986, though convinced it was the core of all that I fought; supremacy, oppression, propaganda, and yes white male European dominance – all encased in the virtue of “higher” education, I entered the academy to pursue a degree. Like many, seeking a path to a career with stable income.
Over 30 years later, and three degrees, I have had a most surprising career. I have been able to establish what I consider an Oasis for students trying to navigate the very institution I felt so alienated from – to support them to trust their own intuition and learn skills to glean all they can and not compromise who they are and who they aspire to be. I have advocated for staff and faculty in the same way.
hat has been a most unexpected bonus of all are the collaborations across campus with peers and colleagues, who individually bring their passion, intelligence, and urgency to the imperative of education for the future of humanity. Sure, we have disagreed on essential policies, but that has been almost my favorite part! The dialogue and debate – what I always imagined higher education stood for. I only wish that our structure fostered more of this type of engagement across all ranks because to me, it may be my richest experience overall. I believe this type of engagement is the hope for the future and models the very thing higher ed aspires to be and MUST be in service to the future of not only humanity but the whole of the world.
I am ever grateful to all the people with whom I have shared the tasks of our committee charges and engaged in hearty debates – from the Space Use Committee to the On-Line Task force, the earliest days of the NTTF policies to undergraduate council and the senate or early failed efforts at Equity and Inclusion.
We are human, we try, and even in the face of what seems absolutely hopeless – we move forward slower than a snail but at times like a tectonic plate. I am grateful for my time here and hopeful that the spirit of challenging debate and respectful disagreement will flourish.
Regardless of where I go next, I hope to promote these essential skills and I leave the UO with such a better understanding of the complexities of the human experience than when I came in to dismantle the structure of higher ed. I will say I still believe educational institutions need a major overhaul to truly achieve equity and to foster and support all of us to think for ourselves “freely” and be active in shaping our collective future. I will be rooting for this over the next few years and find new ways to engage.
I thank you all for being a large part of my rich journey in life. Kassia