President Toll welcomes students back to campus
Welcome to the 2001-2002 academic year. This fall, we begin the year with a record student enrollment, which has caused some difficulties with housing and classes, but our faculty and staff have worked together especially hard to overcome most of these challenges.
Our residence halls are at capacity due to the large freshman enrollment and the renovation of the Queen Anne residence hall. We thank our students for their patience as we renovate old and construct new residence halls. Your patience will be rewarded with modernized living spaces.
We ask all members of the College Community for their understanding. Growing pains, while sometimes difficult to manage, are in the end good for Washington College. The high quality of our professors and staff, course and extracurricular offerings, academic and athletic facilities, and our new and remodeled residence halls are desired by many prospective students. All should be proud of the recent progress at Washington College. I hope that the entire College Community will work together for the benefit of this great institution. For 219 years, Washington College has been educating young adults and helping them to become responsible citizens.
This year, we are designing an addition to Dunning Hall and Decker Science Center to improve the teaching and working space for our science faculty and students. We have also worked with architects to plan future expansion of facilities for the performing arts. We are in the very preliminary stages of seeking program development assistance for a new campus center. Although any new campus center will not be built for a few years, we understand the need for improved facilities for our students in these and other areas. We look forward to working with students, faculty and staff during this process of careful planning.
I hope you will agree that, when we work cooperatively, we can accomplish great things. There is much to be done in the academic year ahead. For students, the primary goal should be to meet all academic requirements. We will help you to do this in every way we can. But you should use your free time, away from classes and studying, to pursue all your other interests, from athletics and the arts to rounded personal development. We hope you will find joy in your life on campus as you also contribute to the advancement of this historic institution and the campus ambience.
I welcome your suggestions for the further improvement of Washington College. To this end, I have scheduled open office hours for students, faculty and staff. Before October 8, please call my secretary Annie Coleman at extension 7201 to schedule an appointment. After October 8, I have set aside the 2nd and 4th Mondays at 5:00 p.m. for office hours. Please feel free to drop in at this time. If this time is not convenient, please call Annie Coleman to arrange a mutually convenient time for a meeting.
The first formal ceremony of the semester will take place on Thursday, September 6 at 7:30 p.m. when we celebrate our progress and recognize academic achievement of students at the Fall Convocation. Honored guests include singer and songwriter Eddy Arnold and former chairman of the Washington College Board of Visitors and Governors, L. Clifford Schroeder. (Eddy Arnold has sold more records than any other living musician. Your parents may be more familiar with his music than you are; they are welcome to join you if you and they wish together to hear the remarks of this great artist.) I look forward to seeing you at the Convocation.
Sincerely,
John S. Toll
President
300 Washington Avenue, Chestertown, Maryland 21620 | 410-778-2800 | 800-422-1782