The Associated Colleges of the South (ACS) named
its second cohort of ACS Mellon Academic Leadership Fellows following a
competitive selection process among its member institutions. Hendrix College is
proud to announce that among the nine professors selected this year was Hendrix
Associate Professor of Spanish Dr. Garbiñe Vidal-Torreira.
Vidal-Torreira also serves as faculty director
of the Hendrix Women’s Leadership Community. Her research interests span from
Spain’s contemporary literature and culture and the Spanish Civil War to LGBTQ+
studies and age studies.
Vidal-Torreira's fellowship project involves
collaborating with stakeholders across the College to create programming to
enhance retention and student success, particularly as Hendrix students enter
their first year. She aims to review current curricular and
co-curricular policies and practices to identify outdated and/or unjust
policies and recommend changes that better serve current students. She also
hopes to research best practices for hiring and retaining underrepresented
faculty and staff and to expand Women’s Leadership Community programming to
reflect and better serve the diversity of Hendrix’s student population.
“I am excited to work with the administration
at Hendrix to evaluate our policies and practices so that they can better meet
the needs of our incoming students,” said Vidal-Torreira. “The changes that
will result from this project will empower all our students to become the best
version of themselves while being supported by a community where they belong.”
Hendrix Provost Dr. Teresa Garrett said, “I
am thrilled to work with Gabby on this project and support her leadership
development during this program. I know that she is going to really help us to
make Hendrix a place where all of our students succeed.”
The ACS Mellon Academic Leadership Fellows program
is funded by a $2 million grant from the Mellon Foundation. It aims to provide
leadership opportunities to a diverse group of humanities faculty members and
thereby expand the demographic representation in academic administration at ACS
colleges and beyond.
“ACS is honored to partner with the Mellon
Foundation to develop college leaders who reflect the diverse students we serve
and elevate humanities expertise in the advancement of our institutions” said
Dr. Anna Drake Warshaw, ACS president.
The program combines leadership development,
mentoring, and hands-on experiences for a diverse group of tenured humanities
faculty as they enter administration. Each fellow will take on a two-year role
at their institution involving a portfolio of responsibilities or a distinct
institutional project. Fellows will receive a release from certain teaching
responsibilities, a stipend, a professional development fund, and the
opportunity to work with an executive coach. Each fellow will also benefit from
two mentors—one on their home campus and one external expert in higher
education administration.
Fellows will take part in cohort programming
designed to support their transition into higher education leadership. They
will participate in expert-led sessions on topics relevant to higher education
administration, campus visits to participating institutions, and virtual
meetings for networking, sharing experiences, and exchanging best practices.
ACS Mellon Fellows will also gather with parallel Mellon Fellows cohorts from
the Associated Colleges of the Midwest and the New York Six Liberal Arts
Consortium, creating a robust and diverse network of emerging higher education
leaders.
About the Associated Colleges of the South
Founded in 1991, Associated Colleges of the
South (ACS) is a consortium of fifteen nationally recognized colleges and
universities committed to providing excellent and accessible liberal arts
education. ACS strengthens and advances residential liberal arts education
through connection and collaboration, leadership development programs,
diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, and by administering grants to
support collaborative curricula and innovative instruction practices.
About the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is the
nation’s largest supporter of the arts and humanities. Since 1969, the
Foundation has been guided by its core belief that the humanities and arts are
essential to human understanding. The Foundation believes that the arts and
humanities are where we express our complex humanity, and that everyone
deserves the beauty, transcendence, and freedom that can be found there.
Through our grants, we seek to build just communities enriched by meaning and
empowered by critical thinking, where ideas and imagination can thrive. Learn
more at mellon.org.
About
Hendrix College
Founded in 1876, Hendrix College is featured in Colleges
That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges
and celebrated among the country’s leading liberal arts colleges for academic
quality, engaged learning opportunities and career preparation, vibrant campus
life, and value. The Hendrix College Warriors compete in 21 NCAA Division III
sports. Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since
1884. Learn more at www.hendrix.edu.
“… Through engagement that links the
classroom with the world, and a commitment to diversity, inclusion, justice,
and sustainable living, the Hendrix community inspires students to lead lives
of accomplishment, integrity, service, and joy.” –Hendrix
College Statement of Purpose