Along with a flourishing capital campaign raising money for the school, University President John DiBiaggio has been a visible presence on campus this year, attending a multitude of events of both small and large scale. He has appeared at Coming Out Day and attended the premiere of TUTV this year, and next semester he will also be teaching a course on leadership.
Now in his eighth year at Tufts, DiBiaggio is not eligible for tenure, as are faculty members. "In this position there is no tenure, you are appointed on a year-to-year basis and you serve at the will of the trustees," he said.
Before coming to Tufts, DiBiaggio was president of Michigan State University for seven years, and before that served in the University of Connecticut for six years. Although he has been at Tufts longer than either of his two previous presidencies, DiBiaggio has no plans for retirement.
"I'm going to be here for several more years. I don't see that a chancellor position would be what I would do after this," referring to the role former president Jean Mayer assumed after he relinquished the presidency. "This will be the last presidency I'll serve. As long as the board wishes me to continue on, I will continue on, of course," DiBiaggio said.
DiBiaggio is modest about his presence on campus, "It stays about equivalent from year to year. I've been so engaged in outside things, fund-raising and other activities," DiBiaggio said, "A lot of nights and a lot of weekends I am engaged, but whenever it is possible I try [to attend student events]."
His decision to teach a class this semester is largely based on the flexibility the team-teaching concept allows. "I haven't felt it was fair to teach a class where I would miss a number of classes," DiBiaggio said. "This is team taught, so if I have to be out of town, I have confidence someone will be there. Until we got the leadership of the University College of Citizenship and Public Service, we didn't think [the class] was meaningful enough."
DiBiaggio is very careful not to become intrusive, however, explaining that his recent visits to two dormitories for question-and-answers sessions with residents resulted from invitations from the students, rather than from his own suggestion.
"It's not my style to be intrusive, if I am invited to certain events, I try to participate. I have been in several residence halls, but I was invited there," he said.
Aside from taking a highly visible role at school functions, DiBiaggio meets with students privately at their request.
"It's not unusual for me to see one or two students a day while I am here. Sometimes it is about an issue that they are concerned about or interested in, or sometimes they just want to talk," he said.
"We have a rule here in my office that any student that comes or calls with a concern, we respect them. I don't think students forget that, I think they remember that kind of thing more than anything else.
"I chuckle because I hear the guides say that I am accessible and they see me around walking my dogs, for me at least it is gratifying to hear that."
DiBiaggio prides himself on being more accessible than many university presidents. This is the smallest school DiBiaggio has presided over, as the large state schools Connecticut and Michigan State dwarf Tufts.
"Students who have transferred here are astonished, they say, 'where we were we never saw the president,'" DiBiaggio said. "I want to be in the middle of the campus, I want them to know that I'm living right here on the campus. It's a matter of student engagement and interest.
"What I mean when I say student-centered, it doesn't just mean good teaching, you shouldn't have to go through an enormous bureaucracy to get something simple done," he said.
