Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan R. Wente has relaunched her Open Dore on Location series as she continues the transition back to her role as provost full time. The series, which began in July, is being held in a new digital form due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Initially focused on the university’s Return to Campus Plan and addressing faculty questions, sessions will now offer faculty a small, open-forum format to discuss their challenges and successes throughout the fall semester.
The series is conducted via Zoom and occurs weekly. Upcoming session will be held on the following dates:
- Wednesday, Sept. 2, at 1 p.m.
- Thursday, Sept. 10, at 4 p.m.
- Friday, Sept. 18, at 3 p.m.
To express interest in attending, please email program coordinator Annie Hornung at anne.m.hornung@vanderbilt.edu to receive the Zoom log-in details. Interested faculty may visit the provost’s calendar for information on upcoming sessions.
“I’m excited to relaunch the Open Dore on Location series, creating additional opportunities to engage directly with faculty to discuss how we will meet our mission of discovery and learning in these unprecedented times,” Wente said. “Our Return to Campus Plan involved complex decisions and hours of planning engaging stakeholders across campus. However, I know many still have questions and feedback to share, so I look forward to connecting for these conversations.”
Wente’s original Open Dore on Location events launched in the fall of 2015 as an offshoot of her monthly newsletter, “The Open Dore,” and consisted of meetings in different physical locations across campus where she addressed questions and gathered feedback. It was placed on pause while Wente served as both interim chancellor and provost during the 2019-20 academic year and has now re-launched in the online format given the pandemic. The goal of all of the programming associated with the provost’s Open Dore initiative is to foster “open” dialogue, to keep faculty and staff apprised of new developments, and to serve as a forum for discussing some of the most pressing topics impacting Vanderbilt and higher education today.
Open Dore on Location is open to all university-employed faculty and will be limited to a group of no more than 10 people per session.