On Red Hawk Day, Montclair State University\u2019s new president Jonathan Koppell opened the academic year with two welcome addresses \u2013 one to employees and one to incoming students \u2013 encouraging all to seize the opportunity to use their imaginations to envision the future and to act to make the world a better place.<\/p>\n
He congratulated students for not only becoming a part of \u201cthis powerful, inspiring, amazing community\u201d but also for their resilience in getting through the extraordinary experience of the last 18 months of the ongoing pandemic.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sure you\u2019re all thrilled not just to be at college but to be in the same room with a whole bunch of people together \u2013 finally \u2013 on campus,\u201d Koppell told the masked crowd in Memorial Auditorium, pointing out that masks are required not just because it\u2019s a University rule, but \u201cbecause we\u2019re part of a community and being part of a community means we take care of each other. … And there\u2019s joy in being part of something bigger than ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his remarks to faculty and staff, he also talked about the importance of the greater good and urged the academic community to build on its history of public service to address the challenges of the present moment and model the philosophical saying \u201cI criticize by what I create.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBy criticizing through our creation, I don’t pretend for a minute that Montclair State University can solve all the world’s problems. But we can create solutions and show that those problems can be solved,\u201d Koppell told faculty and staff in the Kasser Theater and via livestream. \u201cWe can show that despair and hopelessness is not the right reaction. It\u2019s using the tools that we are giving to our students, and that we have cultivated in ourselves, to come up with better answers, to achieve the aspirations we have for society.\u201d<\/p>\n
Koppell said that it’s important to address the world\u2019s most pressing issues, including the global pandemic, systemic racism, political and ideological divides and climate change while also ensuring success for a diverse and talented student body, including the largest incoming class in the University\u2019s 113-year history<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are committed to learning inquiry and discovery, but that is not enough. We must also be committed to action. And we must ask the question: How might we harness the power of more than 20,000 souls so that we can be a powerful force for good in the world?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMy goal as your president is to lead that effort, to create a dynamic, innovative institution that is capable of adaptation and redesign. One that is able to empower faculty, staff and students to make an impact in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n