President learning and telling Silver Lake story
Manitowoc college leader also wants to add to school's story
By Tony Staley
Compass Editor
Since becoming president of Silver Lake College on July 1, Dr. George Arnold has been both learning and telling the Silver Lake story.
Now he's determined to expand that story by enhancing college offerings without losing sight of what Silver Lake College is and does.
He is interested in adding more residential students and expanding athletics and other student activities.
He's already made some low-cost changes - paint, adding ping-pong and pool tables at the student center and more recreational sports.
There are several things Arnold wants to preserve:
• Silver Lake as a primarily undergraduate liberal arts college. The difference between it and a university is that Silver Lake's faculty is dedicated to teaching, not to research, writing for professional journals and securing grants while leaving much of the teaching to graduate assistants, Arnold said.
• its Catholic identity and its "feel."
• the commissioned ministry program offered in conjunction with the Green Bay Diocese to prepare lay people for employment in church ministries, because it meets a real need, he said.
• its strong program for non-traditional students.
The college, which the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity founded and sponsor, has the right mission, Arnold said, "the Franciscan mission. And also educating students in a
way that empowers them to become not only good learners, but also good citizens."
The former vice president for Academic Affairs at Monmouth College in Illinois said he values collaboration and "give and take" discussion before approving policies so they have broad support when adopted.
Above all, he stresses "putting students at the center of everything we do. I think it's so critical. There might be a lot of different perspectives on issues, but if you put students at the middle of it, it helps sort things out."
He said he is sure this philosophy will help in implementing "Ex Corde Ecclesiae" ("From the Heart of the Church"), a 1990 document by Pope John Paul detailing worldwide norms for Catholic higher education. It includes a requirement that all Catholic theologians have a mandatum or authorization from the local bishop to teach theology.
The U.S. Bishops adopted norms for applying "Ex Corde Ecclesiae" in November 1999 and the Vatican approved them the following May.
In 2001, the bishops approved a procedure for granting, withholding or withdrawing a Catholic theologian's academic mandatum. Bishops, theologians and Catholic colleges continue to discuss various aspects of "Ex Corde Ecclesiae."
"I consider it to be more of a process than an end product, - like 'now we've got it solved' - because I think things change and you might have always to go back and revisit the issue," he said. "But having said that, the whole spirit of the pope was to make sure that our schools did not forget their Catholic mission.
"I think that's the crux of the matter and the mandatum is just an implementation strategy, if you will. If the focus is on the mandatum so much and forgetting the bigger picture: 'Are we making sure that our Catholic mission is being fulfilled,' and I think at Silver Lake we have a strong mission," he said.
He said he looks forward to discussing the 'mandatum' with Bp. David Zubik and acknowledges that it is a hot issue across the nation.
As for changes, he said he is interested in increasing the number of residential students because so much learning goes on outside the classroom. But, he said, he doesn't want to lose
sight of commuter students, because he was one himself.
The college has leased an apartment building - "I've visited them and they're beautiful apartments" - a mile from campus where students can live, he said. Eventually, if there is
enough demand, Arnold said, the college will build a residential hall on campus.
He also is interested in adding more athletic programs - women's basketball is Silver Lake's only intercollegiate sport - provided that education remains first and school standards are maintained.
Athletics also could increase male enrollment at Silver Lake, where 68% of students are female, compared to a national private college average of 60%.
For now, it's an issue to be studied to determine if it should be done and how - through club sports or by adding intercollegiate teams and possibly joining a league.
Athletics, he said, "provide a chance for student leadership, competition and to get excited and show the skills they have. It's also a chance to build excitement in the school through team spirit. It also will help recruit. When students come to school they want
more than just education."
He also wants more activities for students - whether it be frisbee, frisbee-golf, volleyball and dodgeball or through the music program.
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