After 17 years in the Dean’s Office at Haverford, Philip Bean has left his positions as Associate Dean of the College and Dean of Academic Affairs to become the Executive Director of the Central New York Conservancy in his hometown of Utica, NY. His last day at Haverford was March 27.
“As I have told many people over the years, I have earned degrees from or worked at 7 different institutions, large and small, on two sides of the Atlantic, and I have never met students so consistently admirable as those at Haverford. As a group, you embody an unusual combination of talent and character, and it is ultimately the students who make Haverford distinctive and special,” wrote Bean in an email to his current advisees. “I hope you will not interpret this departure (the timing of which cannot be helped) as a sign of disregard for you—nothing could be further from the truth, as I will indeed miss the students of this college.”
In an email sent to all faculty announcing Bean’s departure, Dean of the College Martha Denney highlighted the many critical programs which Bean had a hand in creating. “Phil’s legacy at Haverford is both broad and deep: I cite, as just a few examples, his work on bringing HHSI to Haverford; his contributions to the development and success of the Chesick program and the OAR; the excellent staff hires he brought to campus; his creation and masterful stewardship of our consistently successful fellowships program; his revamping and professionalizing of the registrar’s office; his critical role in improving the advising program and significantly moving the needle on understanding retention; his dedication to accurate reflection of policies on the web and in the catalogue and his constant vigilance around consistent and fair practices; his support for a number of key faculty committees; and – perhaps most important – his devotion to his students, with whom he achieved an admirable balance of empathy and challenge in his tireless work with them,” Denney wrote.
Rachel Kline ‘20, a former advisee of Bean’s, worked closely with Bean in her role as Transfer Student Resource Person for Customs and after transferring to Haverford herself. “I transferred from a school where the administration was very walled-off from the students. When I came here and met with Dean Bean for the first time, it was so refreshing to work with an administrator who put students first and who could advocate for me,” said Kline. “He was super receptive to our ideas to try to make Customs Week more helpful for transfer students. He was always looking out for the new students and always trying to do what’s in their best interest. It was really nice to work with an administrator who I really connected with and who I felt was on the same page as me about helping new students feel welcome at Haverford.”
Kline is hoping that her work with Bean for Customs planning for transfer students will continue on even after Bean’s departure. “The transfer students are such a small population on campus, so I feel like [planning for Customs Week for Transfer Students] could easily get brushed under the rug during this transition period. Dean Bean was our advocate on campus so I’m hoping to continue to work with the Dean’s Office to plan for Customs for next year,” she concluded.
According to Denney’s email, for the remainder of the year, Bean’s former assigned advisees—sophomores, juniors, and seniors with last names beginning with M-Q and all transfer students—can choose to work with any other dean. However, students who are on warning should refer to Dean Michael Martinez. Next year, Denney will redivide the alphabetical assignments for upperclassmen among the remaining deans, and first-years will continue to be assigned to Dean of First Year Students Katrina Glanzer ‘02. No plans to hire a replacement for Bean have been announced at this time.
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