Message From the Dean
Dean Kenneth A. Gould
Greetings HSS community,
Spring has finally arrived and I hope that you all are taking some time to get outside and enjoy the beauty of the season. April is Earth Month, a time of hope and renewal and a time to rededicate ourselves to the thoughtful stewardship of this remarkable planet. It is also the time when we realize that all of the things we were going to get done this semester will need to be accomplished in the next six weeks. Take a moment to pause, reflect, and breath.
April is also the month when we host our annual School of Humanities and Social Sciences Student Expo. The HSS Student Expo will run all day on both April 25th and April 26th, with virtual and in-person events (in SUBO). Please join our outstanding humanities and social sciences students and help us to celebrate their accomplishments. If you are teaching, bring your classes. If you are a student, bring your friends. If you are a presenter, invite your family to participate virtually.
You will soon receive a digital program via e-mail. Please, plan to attend as many events as you can. The expo is an important opportunity to remind our community that the humanities and social sciences help Brooklyn College students develop essential career skills in critical thinking, creative expression, effective communication, data analysis, and assessment. We need to develop those skills to be adaptive and resilient in a rapidly-changing global economy, and to be effective, publicly-engaged citizens in a rapidly-changing political environment.
More than simple job training, we work with our students to build their survival skills in an uncertain and increasingly precarious world. In a contemporary social context that values material accumulation over human intellectual development, it is vitally important that we continue to remind ourselves, and the publics we serve, of the crucial contributions that the humanities and social sciences make to a humane, healthy, and sustainable society. The HSS Student Expo is a time to celebrate the full richness of the human experience.
If you are teaching or taking classes with us this summer, our campus is better prepared than ever to provide quality online and on-campus experiences. If we won’t see you again until the fall, have a safe and healthy summer. And if you are graduating, we look forward to seeing you at Barclays Center for a return to in-person commencement exercises. We know that your college experience was unique, and that the Brooklyn College class of 2022 shares a bond with graduating seniors across the globe who had the COVID-19 college experience. We are in awe of your perseverance and your accomplishments.
Congratulations!
Ken
Back to Critical Thinking—April 2022
