University President John J. DeGioia focused primarily on non-controversial issues in his first State of the School address Tuesday. He applauded the Georgetown community for how it handled the events of Sept. 11, praised the senior class for its unprecedented leadership and reaffirmed dedication to fostering strong faculty, facilities and financial aid programs.
These are notable University achievements and DeGioia gave them their proper attention. On the other hand, he avoided more controversial topics. When questioned on the proposed creation of a gay, lesbian, transgender and bisexual resource center, DeGioia said next to nothing?only that the Office of Student Affairs is handling the issue. Beyond that, he said he didn’t know many of the details.
The GLBT issue demands more attention from the University president, especially given the recent protest at last week’s Sunday Mass presided over by the D.C. Archbishop, Theodore Cardinal McCarrick. The protest has helped generate a campus-wide discussion over the merits of a proposed center. At the very least, DeGioia should acknowledge this important campus issue.
DeGioia should also have explained his recent decision to promote an unpopular Medical Center administrator to a higher executive position. Medical Center faculty have criticized DeGioia’s appointment, saying in a recent petition that it would “seriously undermine” the Medical School. Rather than ignore the issue, the University president should clearly explain decisions that faculty say will hurt the University.
In response to concerns abut the president’s accessibility to students, DeGioia did propose the idea of holding presidential office hours. We applaud this proposal, which would make the University president more available to discuss these important campus issues. Students would certainly benefit from more access to their president.
On the whole, DeGioia presented a warm and congratulatory speech that praised the University’s strengths. But what he didn’t say was far more important than what he did say. Georgetown is running smoothly, but DeGioia should take issue with some of the bumps along the way.
