Inouye to step down

Dean of the Colleges Charles Inouye has decided to leave his position at the end of the summer but will remain an active professor within the Japanese Department.

Dean of Arts & Sciences Susan Ernst and Interim Dean of Engineering Vincent Manno will head the search for Inouye's replacement. Ernst sent out on a memo to the entire faculty on May 1 calling for suggestions from both staff and students to make suggestions on possible replacements.

Inouye's departure ends a nearly four-year term that was framed by his participation in the Task Force on the Undergraduate Experience. Inouye served as co-chair of the Task Force and, as Dean of the Colleges, expressed support for implementing the Task Force's proposals.

Inouye's fellow Task Force co-chair Gil Metcalf was optimistic the change in leadership would not affect implementing the Task Force's goals, which will be outlined in a report released later this month.

"We certainly hope the next Dean of the Colleges will take up the mission," Metcalf said. According to Metcalf, the information and work of the Task Force will be passed to the next dean.

During his tenure, Inouye also focused on working with students on Fulbright Scholarships and other grants. Tufts is now the leading recipient of Fulbright awards among schools of its size.

Inouye helped to set up the Summer Scholars program, which provides funding for undergraduates to conduct research. He expanded the Undergraduate Research Symposium and the undergraduate research clearinghouse.

Inouye described his work as seeking to create a campus of "life-long learners" and encouraging teachers to instill valuable communication skills into their students.

To create this kind of campus, Inouye emphasized a need for increased student-faculty interaction. Working with faculty is a vital step for students finding their niche on campus, according to Inouye. "If you don't, you don't really catch on fire - you never appreciate the resources here," he said.

Inouye only filled the position of dean of the colleges half-time, as he continued to teach courses and complete research as a professor of Japanese literature. He admitted the difficulty in juggling two positions factored in his decision to step down. "I was a half-time dean. Still, the researching and teaching expectations were always the same... it was hard for me to keep up," Inouye said.

Several faculty members and the Task Force recommended that the next of Dean of the Colleges be a full-time administrator. The position had traditionally been full-time, and only became half-time when Inouye was hired. Ernst will be working during the summer to define the additional responsibilities taken on by the new full-time dean.

Inouye will continue to work as a dean through Aug. 31, although Ernst would like to have a replacement hired and working by the beginning of the fall semester.

Administrators have moved back and forth between the faculty with some regularity in recent years. One example was Lelia Fawaz, who left the position of Dean of the College of Liberal Arts to become the director of Fares Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies and a history professor.

President Larry Bacow was supportive of Inouye's move, and noted that "people don't do these [administrative] jobs forever."

Ernst recognized the difficulty of being both a teacher and an administrator. "He has given so much of his energy into the deanship I think he wants to put that energy into being a faculty member," Ernst said.

Upon returning to the Japanese Department full time, Inouye plans to complete a manuscript he is working on with students in his class "Introduction to Japanese Culture." He also will co-teach a class in the fall entitled "East-West Perspectives on Fascism: Germany and Japan."

Reflecting back on his tenure, Inouye was impressed by where the University found itself.

"I learned from the Task Force that Tufts is really well positioned. In many ways we're kind of the school both liberal arts and research institutions want to be," he said.