Santa Clara Magazine

Mission Matters

ADMINISTRATION

Comings and goings

Provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, Dennis Jacobs. Photo by Charles Barry.

New provost and vice president for Academic Affairs 

The University’s new provost arrived on the Mission Campus in August. Dennis Jacobs comes to SCU from the University of Notre Dame, where he served as vice president and associate provost for undergraduate studies. At Santa Clara, Jacobs is tasked with providing leadership and management of all aspects of academic and student life programs, information services, and athletics.

Jacobs—who played jazz piano in college—sees his role as akin to that of a director of a jazz band: inspiring, summoning unique talents, and using the whole ensemble to create something unique. “In order to bring coherence and vision to the University,” he says, “the provost needs to recognize the diversity of strengths and talents across the campus—and leverage them strategically.” Deepa Arora

Fr. Mick to lead the Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education

Michael McCarthy, S.J. '87 Photo by Charles Barry.

Associate Professor Michael (Mick) McCarthy, S.J. ’87 has been tapped as the new executive director for the Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education. He’s taught at Santa Clara since 2003, with joint appointments in classics and religious studies, where he holds the Edmund Campion, S.J. endowed chair. For the past three years he has also directed SCU’s Catholic Studies program.

As his biography notes, McCarthy was “born in San Francisco in the 1960s, the youngest of six children in a fairly traditional Irish Catholic family. Since then, he has wrestled with one question that forms the backbone of his academic interests: How does one make sense of commitment to the Catholic-Christian tradition in a world which is dizzyingly complex and richly diverse in cultures?” Connie Coutain

After 34 years at SCU, Don Dodson bids farewell

Don Dodson. Photo by Charles Barry.

Wisdom, professionalism, and selflessness are a few of the attributes used to describe Professor of Communication Don Dodson, who stepped down this summer after more than three decades of service to the University. Seasoned administrator, wise counselor, dedicated community member, generous spirit, and gifted listener are a few more descriptors.

What role did Dodson play? A better question: What role did he not play? 

He served the University as special assistant to the vice president for University Relations, director of research and academic development, associate vice president for academic affairs and university planning, vice provost for academic affairs, senior vice provost, and interim provost and vice president for academic affairs. Steven Boyd Saum