Michael Martinez, Dean of Student Life and Title IX Coordinator, will be leaving Haverford at the end of this school year. During his tenure at Haverford, Dean Martinez has worked on a variety of different projects including Horizons, LIFTFAR (Low-Income and First-in-Their-Family Assistance and Resources), and Customs Committee. Starting next fall, Martinez will be moving to the U.A.E. to work as the Associate Dean of Students at NYU’s Abu Dhabi campus.
“I’ve been here for six years which is longer than I’ve ever been anywhere other than elementary school basically. And I think I have grown so much as a result of my experience here,” said Dean Martinez. “Haverford has taught me to look for opportunities to bring students into the conversation really at every level, from both sort of identifying the kind of issues that exist within a community and also brainstorming solutions and how to move forward.”
On campus, Dean Martinez was a controversial figure—particularly surrounding his work as the Title IX Coordinator. Addressing these concerns, Martinez said, “I think some of the controversy that has been associated with me is the nature of [working on] difficult community issues and the challenge of finding solutions to address these complicated issues and the imperfection that is very often the result of looking for solutions. I know I look back at some of those issues over time and I think I’ve learned a lot at certain points. And also I’m proud of some of the things that we’ve done that I’ve been a part of bringing to the table here.”
Some students are nervous about who will fill Dean Martinez’s slot. “In regards to Dean Martinez leaving, I’m mostly wondering who will become the Title IX coordinator. I’m hoping the next Title IX coordinator will be a trained professional who does not have pre-existing ties to the administration because of the potential for conflict of interest,” said Olivia Wong ‘21.
Looking forward, Dean Martinez hopes to bring the Haverford mindset to NYU Abu Dhabi as he begins working with students there: “I’ve been changed as a higher education administrator because of my experience here and I’ll always be looking for opportunities to bring students into the equation going forward no matter what kind of institutional context that I’m in. And that won’t always work in certain contexts but that’s something I’ll be looking for.”
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