Camille Pfister, Editor-in-Chief
Lizzy Donker, Executive Editor
It’s been a snowy, hectic, start to the semester here on the Mountain, but Vice-Chancellor Rob Pearigen (C ‘76) is excited for what is to come in the next few months. After his triumphant return to the Mountain on July 1, 2023, Pearigen began his mission of getting to know students, faculty, and staff.Pearigen and his wife, Phoebe, love hosting people over at Chen Hall and getting to connect with everyone on campus.
“One of the things I’m looking forward to is to build in time during the week where I can be out on campus,” Pearigen said. “I can get stuck in this office in meetings all day, but I’m going to be very purposeful about getting out.”
The biggest thing that’s coming to Sewanee is the Strategic Plan. Over the spring semester, Pearigen will meet with various groups around campus to get their input and open Sewanee’s newest chapter.
“The next chapter of an institution is shaped by its strategic plan, so it’s really important that we do this,” Pearigen said.
Pearigen’s current focus is get the word out about the Listening Sessions and Town Halls and invite more students so more students get involved in the process. There is a large strategic planning steering committee, and three smaller sub committees. The three sub committee’s are focused on academics, student life, and the domain.
“One committee is focused on matters of the mind: What does our curriculum need to look like moving into the middle of the 21st century,” Pearigen explained. “Another committee is focused on matters of the heart. What are we doing to help ensure our students are leaving as good citizens with lives of meaning and significance. Another committee is focused on the Domain. This laboratory, playground, sanctuary, and home of ours.”
This plan is structured around these three pillars, which he noted allows for “lots of interplay between the committees, so that it’s not just confined to one particular area.” Pearigan plans to move quickly with this strategic plan and plans to present the final document to the University’s governing board in June of 2024. “It’s gonna be collaborative, it’s gonna be ambitious, and it’s gonna be fast.”
In looking closely at the curriculum, Pearigen said he wants to emphasize the importance of being open to changes and adaptations when it comes to what we teach our students and how we teach them.
“I think we always have to be looking closely at our curriculum,” Pearigen said. “Making sure it’s the right curriculum to both attract future students and help the current students be in a position to have great opportunities after college.”
Pearigen said that he hopes to strengthen and renew the curriculum in the future and to continue and maintain Sewanee’s strong liberal arts curriculum.
Pearigen also wants more diversity at Sewanee. “We need to look more like this diverse world in which we live,” Pearigen said. “I hope over time our student body will look more like this diverse world.”
Another priority, Pearigen said, is the beautiful Domain this university calls its home and focusing on strengthening our use of the Cumberland Plateau. “I think there is even more we can do to realize the full potential of the Domain,” Pearigen said. “It’s 13,000 acres, it’s kind of amazing. I think we can do more to make sure the Domain is a rich and meaningful experience for our students and we can be a leader in forestry, geology, and environmental studies.”
Last semester, Pearigen hosted 25 Sewanee Club events around the country, and he’s got more than a dozen more slated for this spring. This allows Pearigen to connect with the families and alumni connected to Sewanee. “Gives me a chance to go out and meet alums, parents, and friends of the college,” Pearigen said. “Part of what this job is all about is making those connections.”
There will be another Tiger Tuesday in April which Pearigen hopes will increase “financial support for the institution.”
Another big event for the semester was the opening of Biehl Commons. After a delayed opening due to the snow storm, Biehl Commons was to have a soft, surprise launch on January 29. The hours of Biehl Commons will be 8 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and the cafe will be open 10 a.m. through 3 p.m., at least while Biehl Commons continues hiring student workers. There will also be a student launch and a grand opening ceremony in coming weeks.
Pearigen said the opening will be a major milestone for campus life.
“From the very beginning, I’ve really wanted to help bring the center of campus back to the quadrangle,” Pearigen said. “When we built McClurg Hall in 2000, that was an attempt to get more activity over here. And now with Fitwell and Biehl Commons, it’s all coming back here.”
The opening of Biehl Commons and the continued movement of the center of campus back to the quadrangle is all about student life and making sure the students thrive at Sewanee.
Pearigen also shared thoughts on Sewanee’s Greek system, which is a large part of Sewanee’s student life.
“I’m an advocate for a strong and accountable fraternity and sorority experience,” Pearigen said. “I think there is so much these organizations do that is meaningful and good. The relationships that are built, the opportunities for leadership development, the philanthropy, and providing a social outlet on campus.”
Pearigen added that he loves that “our Greek system is smaller” and believes the open party systemworks for the school and makes the organizations successful.
“I think it’s important that the Student Life Office is working closely with the organizations and that each organization has a strong internal leadership, a strong advisor, and a strong alumni advisory board,” Pearigen said. “With those three things, you have the ingredients for a successful system.”
Along with the opening of Biehl Commons, Pearigen has been very focused on renovations and construction of residences for both students and faculty. Recently, the University hired architects to “come take a good look at McCrady, Hunter, and Gorgas.” The VC doesn’t have a clear timeline for renovations as it’s a multi-million dollar project but the University is aware “those three resident halls need some serious upgrades.”
“One of my top priorities is to help recreate for faculty and staff opportunities to live on the Domain, if they want to,” Pearigen said. “For those who want to live here, we really want to make sure they can.”
The University recently finished building six houses, five of which went into a pool for faculty to work towards this goal. In the spring, The University will also be breaking ground on an employee apartment commons. “It’s got 48 units split over six buildings, and is expected to be completed by the fall of 2025.”
“The very fabric of the institution changes when our faculty aren’t able to live and be a part of the community,” Pearigen said. “Running into them onto the streets and being able to go to their homes is so important to who we’ve been in the past.”
Pearigen also spoke about the recent snow storm that was experienced at Sewanee and the University’s response to it. “I think we were reasonably well prepared, but we can always do better.”
The Emergent Management team met with Facilities Management following the storm to “debrief” and think about “what we might have been able to do better.”
“We have limited equipment, because it just doesn’t happen very often,” Pearigen said, along with noting that the University itself only has one snow plow. “I think they did a great job staying on top of it. The problem is that it got worse as it went on because of the icy conditions.”
Facilities Management shoveled sidewalks and took care of roads the best they could ahead of Convocation on Friday January 19, which went on as scheduled despite the storm.
“We could probably use some more salt,” Pearigen said. “We looked to the county for support, but they were clobbered as well. They got here as soon as they could, but it was not easy for them either. We’re learning lessons. We want the place to be a safe campus.”
Despite the snow, Pearigen, the University, Facilities Management, and other parties worked hard to make sure Winter Convocation could go on as scheduled. Pearigen said the decision was met with mixed opinions from the student body and faculty , but was due to the number of parents and family members who had traveled to Sewanee to see students inducted.
Pearigen also instituted a significant change in this year’s Winter Convocation. Instead of bestowing people with honorary degrees and asking one of them to give the opening address, which is what happens at Convocation in the fall and graduation, Pearigen made the shift to honor a faculty member of the University and ask them to give the opening remarks.
“I thought it would be a great idea to recognize the outstanding faculty we have here,” Pearigen said. “We have so many faculty members that are outstanding teachers, scholars, mentors, and advisors. This seemed like a way of recognizing and honoring the faculty in general by selecting one of their members and asking them to give the opening address.”
Professor Stephanie McCarter was asked to be the inaugural faculty member. “She was a terrific inaugural speaker for opening Convocation,” Pearigen said. “I think we started a new tradition that will last because there will never be a lack of outstanding faculty members.”
Pearigen also spoke about some of his favorite traditions that are unique to Sewanee, including Sewanee dogs, pins on gowns, (a newer Sewanee tradition according to Pearigen), and the sharing of meals, emphasizing “the joy of being around the dining room table.”
“I think our honor code is our most important tradition because it helps bind us all together in a sense of integrity and honor,” Pearigen said.
Since arriving back on the Mountain, Pearigen has often spoken of his intentions to return to the classroom. Pearigen expressed his excitement towards the possibility of him teaching Politics courses during his time at Sewanee. “I’m likely to teach courses in Constitutional Law or Political Theory,” Pearigen said. “Something in the area of law and theory. I’d love to teach any of those, I’m looking forward to it.”
The VC has served Sewanee in many different roles, first as a student, then as a professor, and finally as a Dean before taking on the role of vice-chancellor. After 13 years away from Sewanee, serving as the president of Millsaps college, Pearigen is excited and ready to usher in a new era of Sewanee. In his closing remarks, Pearigen made clear his love for Sewanee, which he has rediscovered since returning to the mountain.
“I’ve relearned what an extraordinary place this is,” Pearigen said, “and what a magical environment it is for students to learn, grow, and develop, and what a magical place it is for faculty and staff to be in relationship with one another and with those students.”