After hearing about University President Morton O. Schapiro’s meetings with numerous fraternities, sororities and other groups on campus, Hannah Durschlag and seven of her friends decided they wanted some face time with Northwestern’s new leader.
The eight seniors extended an invitation for Schapiro and his family to eat dinner at their off-campus apartment. Durschlag said she didn’t expect much of a response, but Schapiro set a date for dinner on May 16.
“I thought the response would be, ‘Thank you so much … but I can’t,'” the McCormick senior said. “It was actually surreal that he was coming until he pulled up outside our apartment.”
With some advice on Schapiro’s tastes from his secretary, the seniors put together a three-course meal of a bruschetta and green olive appetizer, a dinner of chicken, baked potatoes and pesto pasta, and apple puff pastries for dessert.
“We had just such a magnificent time,” said Schapiro, who brought his wife, Mimi, and his two daughters. “We spent hours with them. We learned so much about Northwestern just talking to those eight young women about what they like, what they didn’t like, why they came, what they’re going to be doing later in life.”
Others, however, have not been fortunate enough to fit into the president’s loaded schedule, and Schapiro said it’s frustrating for him to have to turn down requests. He said he is only able to accept 20 to 30 percent of invitations, compared to about 90 percent while he was president at Williams College.
“It’s a little daunting. The community’s large,” he said. “I’ve done the best I can. … If you saw my e-mails, every day I get invited to at least 10 things.”
These public appearances, which Schapiro said included about 50 fireside chats and “countless” alumni events, have typified his first year as NU’s president. Instead of telling the community what to do, he has spent time listening to the community.
“I never stop learning,” Schapiro said. “I’ve been listening very closely to figure out how I can contribute to this place.”
THE LIFE OF AN UNDERGRAD
Schapiro said he has focused on the undergraduate experience at NU, and his role as a professor aided this process.
“It’s amazing and gratifying,” he said. “I don’t think you really get a sense of what the students here are like until you teach them.”
Schapiro taught an undergraduate economics class during Fall Quarter and Winter Quarter called “Economics of Higher Education.” Samir Pendse, a Weinberg senior, said he went into his Fall Quarter class with high expectations and Schapiro surpassed them.
“I was immediately struck by how personable he is,” Pendse said. “He really took effort to get to know all the students.”
Pendse said the class focused on topics relevant to NU, including financial aid and admissions policies. Students discussed class material with Schapiro, which Pendse said was often written by the president himself, and didn’t have to take exams or complete problem sets.
At one point, Schapiro hosted his students at his house for dinner, Pendse said.
“We got to know each other really well,” he said. “He took a genuine interest in all the students, and I didn’t really expect that.”
Schapiro, who is also active in student life outside the classroom, will speak at 3 p.m. on Saturday during Dillo Day. Mayfest co-Chair Katie Halpern said they have been talking to Schapiro about his participation for a while.
Halpern said she didn’t know what Schapiro would be doing on stage, though she said “he usually doesn’t disappoint.” Just don’t expect a musical performance.
“You know what, I actually asked him if he wanted to sing a little bit, but he didn’t seem to appreciate that joke so much,” the Weinberg senior said jokingly.
Even if “dorky and out of the loop” (he thought the night headline act was Nelly Furtado, not Nelly), Schapiro said more should be done to create this kind of community event. The University earlier this month approved an Undergraduate Budget Priorities Committee proposal to add a fall concert to A&O Productions’ programming.
“I’m going to be there, not for the whole thing,” Schapiro said of Dillo Day. “Students should be alone. They should have their fun.”
CAMPUS CONTROVERSY
Schapiro’s first year was not without controversy, as debates over race relations, questions about NU’s labor policy and drawings of the Prophet Muhammad popped up on the president’s radar.
On Halloween, two students wore blackface as part of their costumes, and photos of them were posted on Facebook. The images sparked outrage from some in the NU community, and a forum was organized to discuss the issues at hand.
Schapiro sent an e-mail Nov. 3 encouraging participation in the Nov. 5 forum. He wrote he had “cleared his schedule” and hoped others would do the same. More than 600 people attended.
“(The e-mail) was a major reason why so many people were there,” said Communication senior Mike McGee, who was Associated Student Government’s president at the time. “Normally there would be like 20. We were very appreciative of that.”
Schapiro spoke at the end of the forum and said, “If I can’t solve those kinds of things, Northwestern should get someone who can,” according to The Daily’s archives.
“(The forum) was the moment he really put himself on the line,” said Matthew Fischler, who helped organize the event.
After student group Secular Humanists for Inquiry and FreeThought chalked images of the Prophet Muhammad on campus, Schapiro said in a meeting with the group that their decision was “a mistake.” Still, he said the drawings were protected under the First Amendment.
“I was very pleased with what he had to say,” said SHIFT President Cassy Byrne, a Weinberg sophomore. “I felt reassured that, even if he personally disagrees with anything, he separates his personal opinion from his administrative duty.”
Though Schapiro has said he won’t adopt a living wage policy for NU’s subcontracted workers, Fischler, one of the coordinators for the Northwestern Living Wage Campaign, said the administration has continued to work with the activists.
“We’re not going to see eye-to-eye about everything, but we’re hoping we can move forward,” the Weinberg senior said.
TISDAHL AND SCHAPIRO
Schapiro and Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl share an important trait: Both are in their first years in office, and both have successful predecessors. Tisdahl replaced Lorraine Morton, who held the city’s top job for 16 years. Schapiro succeeded Henry S. Bienen, who had been president since 1995.
“Talk about daunting: City Hall, where Liz’s office is, is named after her predecessor,” Schapiro said in reference to the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center.
Tisdahl said because she and Schapiro were both new, they had the liberty to form a new relationship between the University and Evanston. The city threw a party for the Schapiros when they arrived in Evanston, and Tisdahl has visited his home for brunch.
When Tisdahl received news from Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) of an $18 million grant for affordable housing, Schapiro was the next person to call.
“I said, ‘Morty, Morty! I’m having my best day … as the mayor of Evanston!'” she said. “And he said, without skipping a beat, ‘Because I called?'”
The University donated $550,000 to the city in September, which was used to purchase a new fire engine. Both Schapiro and Tisdahl said the University is considering donating another $275,000 to go toward a new ambulance.
These donations were mutually beneficial to the city and NU community because they improve public safety, Schapiro said.
Schapiro said town-gown relations have been one of the most challenging surprises of his first nine months in office. He said he was not warned about potential issues and is starting to see some of them with Dillo Day approaching.
While Sch
apiro will spend part of his Saturday at the Lakefill, Tisdahl said she will be riding along in police cars to see the day’s impact on surrounding neighborhoods.
“NU administrators who are on campus are going to see one Dillo Day, and I’m going to see a different Dillo Day in the neighborhoods,” she said.
Schapiro and Tisdahl said they understand situations may not be ideal always, but expressed a willingness to work through them.
“People are always trying to bring back memories of the battle,” Schapiro said. “I’m just interested in productively moving forward, and so is the mayor, so we’re doing it. I think we’ve made some good strides.”
Tisdahl said she was also hopeful for the relationship’s future.
“You ain’t seen nothing yet.”
ADMINISTRATION TRANSITION
Since Schapiro was named NU’s 16th president in December 2008, the administration has shown turnover in some positions.
Mary Desler stepped down as dean of students in July 2009, and Burgwell Howard was permanently elevated to the position in February. Carretta Cooke filled in Howard’s former position as assistant to Student Affairs Vice President William Banis, after vacating her post as director of Multicultural Student Affairs.
Banis, who has worked at NU for 16 years, announced in April he will leave his position by the end of the 2010-11 academic year.
“Change happens,” Schapiro said of Banis’ departure.
Schapiro said he uses a different method to manage his administration than Bienen did. During weekly Monday afternoon meetings, senior staffers report on their projects for the week. Everyone present has the opportunity to offer advice, but Schapiro said he expects the administrator who brought up the issue to make the ultimate decision.
“If there’s something where it’s my expertise, I have no trouble making the call,” he said. “I’m sure there are some presidents out there who feel like it’s the presidential prerogative to decide all types of things, and I don’t feel that way at all.”
Howard, Schapiro’s most prominent appointment to date, said the transition from Bienen to Schapiro has gone “incredibly well.”
“They have very different personalities, but you can definitely see the wheels turning when in their presence,” he said.
Schapiro said he encourages administrators to say what’s on their mind and doesn’t insist on unanimity. This attitude marks a sharp departure from Bienen’s administration, which usually communicated a common position in public.
“I don’t think we need a company line,” Schapiro said. “If we disagree, I don’t know why we have to hide that.”
When contacted for this story, Bienen said he was unavailable for comment because he was traveling abroad.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Rather than coming to NU with specific long-term objectives, Schapiro said it was best to take it one quarter at a time.
“The students are here for such a short period of time,” he said. “I want make sure that … every year that you look back and you say, ‘This place, it listens to me more carefully and invests more in me than the year before and the year before that.”
The University will have more specific goals in place after the completion of the University Strategic Plan, which Schapiro said will be finished by the end of the calendar year.As for all those invitations he receives, Schapiro said perhaps the novelty will wear off after his first year.
“People will say, ‘Oh I don’t want to hear Schapiro again,'” he said. “I hope that doesn’t happen, because I hope I can continue to engage with the community in the way I have, because I love it.”
