Lehman Provost to Leave for Dartmouth Post
by Claudyne Vielot
Issue date: 5/1/06 Section: News
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 Media Credit: Claudyne Vielot Provost Garro |
At the end of this academic year, Dr. Anthony Garro, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Professor of Academic Affairs will bid Lehman farewell. Provost Garro will accept a position as the Provost of the University of Massachusetts's Dartmouth campus. Naturally, the departure of such a prominent figure leaves its mark on staff and students alike; especially since many of Lehman's newer undergraduate programs were created under Garro's influence.
Dr. Garro is an extremely hardworking and well rounded individual with a résumé that many can simply dream of. Garro, who was raised in Queens, worked on his family's truck route at the age of fourteen. He received his B.S. degree in biology from Manhattan College, and has his PhD. in microbiology and immunochemistry from Columbia University. After receiving his PhD. Dr. Garro was a research fellow at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Department of Biochemistry from 1968 to 1970. From 1970 to 1981, Garro was a faculty member at the Mount Sinai School of Science, where he won grants from the National Institutes of Health, the American Cancer Society, and the March of Dimes. From 1981 to 1991, Dr, Garro was a professor and the Head of Microbiology the CUNY Sophie Davis School of Biomedical Education/CUNY Medical School. From 1991 to 2001, Garro was the Assistant Dean then Vice Dean of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey where he was not only a Professor of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, but also the Acting Associate Dean for Public Health. He has been Lehman's Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs since July 2001, and was named Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs in 2003. Not only is Dr. Garro well learned, he is also "a great runner", according to his friend and colleague Michael Sullivan, the Director of Campus Life, "He is a true 'Renaissance Man' and a very cultured person."
Dr. Garro also had an excellent rapport with students at Lehman, coming to Senate meetings and other student-related events before he was even appointed our Provost. "One of his strengths as an administrator is that he took it upon himself to learn about our programs, not just for surface information, but he really delved into the details", said Dean Digby. "In general, I think he has promoted scholarship," President Fernandez said. "He's organized seminars in where our own faculty does presentations and expanded the dialogue on individual research, not just in the sciences but across the board."
News of Dr. Garro's departure has been somber for much of the faculty. "I'm saddened, though I'm happy for him", Sullivan said, "I think the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth is blessed to get him. Professor Gary Schwartz, Director of the Lehman Scholars program, added, "I feel that his departure is a great loss to the college. He has been a major factor in bringing the college into prominence because he has great pride in and appreciation for Lehman. Tony's endless energy and sense of our attaining a competitive edge in all aspects of college life are unparalleled here."
When asked about his departure, Dr. Garro stated that he had both professional and personal reasons for leaving Lehman. "Professionally, this is just a wonderful opportunity for me," he states, "I'm leaving Lehman to be the Provost and Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs at U Mass, Dartmouth. The challenge to me, now that I've accepted this position, is to continue to grow their doctoral programs while maintaining the quality of the undergraduate programs." On a personal level, my wife and I are raising our grandchild, and the commute from New Jersey is difficult with a four-year old child."
Dean of Sciences, William Tramantano said of Dr. Garro, "We were very, very lucky to find Dr. Garro and I give a lot of credit to the search committee to finding an individual with Dr. Garro's characteristics. What he did for us in a five-year period is simply remarkable."
Dr. Garro also speaks fondly of the faculty and staff that has helped him develop many of the programs at Lehman. "Provosts don't do these things by themselves. The programs developed here have really been developed by the faculty. I've encouraged them, I've tried to find resources for them." The Computer Graphics and Imaging program the BBA program, Department of Journalism Communication and Theatre program and, the Masters in Social Work program, Masters in Public Health program, CUNY Honors College at Lehman, and the expansion of the adult degree program were developed in Dr. Garro's five years as Provost.
Dr. Garro also has faith that the programs created during his time as Provost will continue after his departure. "I have no question that they are going to continue; none of these things are going to go away because I'm not here. I think we have a great team of deans who work extraordinarily well together. There are faculties I've gotten to know very well, people who had been very involved with the General Education programs here." President Fernandez does not foresee any disruptions in any programs due to Provost Garro's departure. "I don't envision any major disruptions; it won't be the same, but the college will continue to function". Dean Annette Digby also shares President Fernandez and Provost Garro's sentiments, "I think there is a system in place to continue the work that has begun." Dean Tramantano agrees, "He leaves us in great shape, and we know what to do to continue the programs that began."
Current and future students of Lehman should also not be concerned with any delays or cancellations in Lehman's Master Plan, a plan to renovate the campus, giving ample space to the sciences and a multimedia center in Carman Hall. Although Garro chaired the Lehman Planning Group and has been leading the planning for the new Lehman College Science Facility, there will be no disruptions in the renovation process. "We have all been involved in the production of a science building and construction will begin within the next year." President Fernandez declared, "so that by 2009 or 2010 the building will be finished. We will also be working on a multimedia center in the Master Plan and that will hopefully be finished in 2008."
Dr. Garro will not be choosing Lehman's next provost. That decision must come from President Fernandez out of a national search. As explained by Dean Tramantano, "Searches in academia are really pretty standard. We have a few journals that the advertisements go into; one of them is called the 'Chronicle for Higher Education'. Usually you put an ad in right around the beginning of the school year, you allow people to respond, and then the search committee gets really into high gear probably in November. And then the search committee takes about two or three months, so in a perfect world, we'll have an answer probably this time next year."
While Lehman is conducting its search for a new, permanent provost, Dean William Tramantano will be appointed Acting Provost, and the faculty interviewed feels that he will be able to help Lehman through this transition. "He [Tramantano] also comes from the sciences; that was very much Provost Garro's focus and I don't think Provost Tramantano change the direction of the campus," said Fernandez. There will be a search for a new, permanent Provost, which should take approximately a year. President Fernandez will be appointing a search committee, chaired by a senior faculty member, accompanied by deans and administrators. President Fernandez is also hopeful that Lehman's Permanent Provost will be appointed by July 2007.
When asked about whether or not being Provost at Dartmouth will be a faster or slower pace for him, Garro explained, "When I was Vice Dean of the Medical School, I didn't think I could be working any harder. When I came to Lehman, I found myself working harder and I suspect the same thing will be true when I come to Dartmouth. As I've gone up the 'administrative ladder', so to speak, I find myself putting in longer hours."
 Media Credit: Claudyne Vielot Provost Garro poses with Staff |
When asked what characteristics our next Provost is going to need in order for Lehman to continue to flourish, all of the faculty interviewed agree that our future Provost has to have a great deal of education, including a doctorate, leadership qualities and a genuine interest in the student body. Dr. Garro said, "The Provost is the chief academic officer on campus and has to be concerned with the quality and diversity of the education program for both undergraduate and graduate students and to see that we continue to recruit the faculty, develop the faculty, and retain the faculty. I think the Provost that comes in has to maintain the focus on academics and scholarship and bring people here whose scholarship will influence their teaching." Professor Schwartz thinks that the next Provost will need Dr. Garro's fondness for Lehman. "We have to ask the next candidates, 'Where is the love?' because he brought it with him." Digby also added, "I think the challenge will be finding someone with the desire to be as involved in the programs. It takes someone who is willing to listen, someone who is willing to talk and it takes someone with experience in academics, but also budget process, the approval process, and the system that CUNY is, because it is a complex system, and the willingness to be pulled in a new direction especially in a system as large as CUNY". "We need someone with both national and metropolitan recognition in terms of academic credentials, because sometimes as New Yorkers we have a 'New York' sense of the world. You need a person of character, a great communicator, a person of humility because this is a very humbling job."
President Fernandez mentioned the characteristics that will be needed in Lehman's search and that perhaps will be outlined by the search committee. "In general we are looking for someone with an extensive record of administrative experience at the level of Dean or higher. We want someone who is a scholar, to be able to be a leader of scholars. The Provost is also the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, therefore, this person is the leader of the faculty and it's hard to be a leader of scholars if you are not a scholar your self. And looking for energy and ideas, the ability to motivate; this is a job that takes a great deal of effort. He has a certain amount of energy that we will be looking for in a Provost."
It is apparent that Dr. Garro has treasured him time at Lehman with the faculty and students alike. "I have a great staff here in the Provost Office that I will miss. Then there are students here; it's a great group of students and you can characterize Lehman students as very hardworking. They don't come here with a sense that they are owed an education rather that we work together on that education. I think this is a great institution and it will continue to be a great institution and grow and treat the next Provost kindly." Lehman's staff and students alike will take Dr. Garro's words to heart along with optimism for our campus while he prepares to reshape the University of Massachusetts' Dartmouth campus.