He comes to Fordham from Santa Clara University, where he served as provost and vice president for academic affairs for eight years. Jacobs led Santa Clara’s strategic planning process, recruited all of the school’s current academic deans, helped faculty launch the first three online degree programs, and created a new office for diversity and inclusion. 

As a chemistry professor for many years, Jacobs conducted research on reactions relevant to semiconductor processing in the microelectronics industry. In 2002, he was named the U.S. Professor of the Year for Doctoral and Research Universities by the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

In addition to his role as Fordham’s chief academic officer, Jacobs is a painter, a father of three adult children, and a brand new grandfather.

In a Q&A with Fordham News, Jacobs speaks about his early inspiration and outlines his goals and plans for Fordham.

What inspired you to become a scientist? 

My father was a fifth-grade teacher, and he would bring home materials from his class. He stored a whole boxful of things in my room when I was quite young, maybe 8 or 9. I went through the box, trying to figure out all the stuff: circuit boards, batteries, lightbulbs, wires. I started connecting them to see if I could make them work. I would make burglar alarms and small robots. If I clapped my hands, the door to my bedroom would automatically open. 

I would also plug things into the walls in my room. Some of them would spark, taking out the power to the whole house; other times, small fires would start. But every time, I learned more and more about how the world works. And I realized that although I thought I wanted to be an inventor, really what was driving me was curiosity. It was asking the question, why? 

You’ve lived on the West Coast for most of your life. What drew you to Fordham?

Given the location Fordham has in New York City, this global gateway, this mecca around everything from finance to fashion to media, how can this Jesuit university at Fordham be a real guiding light and partner in this region, and in the world? There are very few universities in the country that can do what Fordham can do, given its commitments and its location, and so what attracted me is to come and be a part of that. 

You’re the provost and senior vice president of academic affairs. What does that entail?

The provost is the chief academic officer. I’m responsible for ensuring that the student experience fulfills the promise of a Fordham degree. It includes things like international study, what happens to the library, undergraduate research, and the ability of our students to interface with the arts here at Lincoln Center. Whatever it may be, if it shapes the academic experience, it is the responsibility of the provost. 

You’ve attended many student research symposiums here, including this year’s Calder Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium. What strikes you about their work? 

You can see a student on fire. I mean, you can see students lighting up because they’ve found something where they can make a difference. Whether they choose to do it for the rest of their life or not, it is a transformative moment for a student to be able to say, I worked on tackling this issue or problem.  

It’s also important that our faculty are engaged in advancing the frontiers of knowledge in their respective disciplines. We create knowledge through research, we share that knowledge, we disseminate it in our teaching. Research plays a vital role in Fordham’s mission.

One of your goals as provost is to improve undergraduate retention and graduation rates. How do you plan to address these things? 

Intentional programming that meets the full and comprehensive set of needs of students is part of helping students feel very early on—sometimes even in their first six weeks—that they belong here. We’re going to take a deep dive into looking at how we can do better in that regard at Fordham. 

Another goal of yours is to better integrate the academic programs and communities across the Lincoln Center and Rose Hill campuses. Can you elaborate? 

I think what brings us together is often when we think about large problems or challenges that can’t be solved by a single discipline or unit. That’s when collaboration across units makes even more sense. 

One of the things I’ve been working with the deans on is thinking about these bigger areas where we want to make an impact. Imagine urban inequality. It would certainly involve economics, but it would also involve understanding sociology and anthropology. Understanding educational systems where inequalities often exist involves understanding the law and social services, creating a response that’s holistic in a community or serving a need. All of a sudden, you ally units—students, faculty—around those kinds of problems. 

The geographic divide between Rose Hill and Lincoln Center is yet another challenge. But it gives us two very different local environments in which to live and work. As an urban campus, we’re also situated better than many to have authentic relationships with our neighbors and partners and address across a broad swathe of challenges and issues spanning from the Bronx to Manhattan. 

The University is creating a faculty space with 3-D printers and virtual reality gear, where they can try out new technology that might be used in their classrooms. It’s one of several planned projects under the Continuous University Strategic Planning (CUSP) Committee, of which you are a co-chair. Tell me about that. 

Yes, there’s a renovation underway in the lower level of the Walsh Library to create the LITE (Learning and Innovative Technology Environment) space for faculty to experiment—using cutting edge technology, virtual reality, and other things—and create a new learning environment for our students. In other words, we’re creating a place for faculty to come together and think and reflect on how their teaching practice can change and adapt to better meet the needs of students. 

Our students come to us today with a very different mindset than 10, 20, 30 years ago. They’re digital natives. They interact with each other and the world differently. And higher ed is changing very rapidly now. For Fordham to get ahead on that, I think we have to create opportunities for faculty and administrators to reflect on where our students are, what their needs are, and how we can best teach them. 

We’ll have a kind of a maker-lab type of space for faculty to experiment and try new and innovative things—pilot them, assess whether they have benefits or not, and to the extent that they do, then support and scale them up. We’re waiting for the contractors to start renovation on the space.

Lastly, what’s something that many people—particularly new members of the Fordham community—don’t know about you?  

I paint paintings and I play the piano. My art is eclectic: everything from surreal to abstract to landscape. It all depends on my mindset at the time. (See Jacobs’ paintings on Instagram @dcjacobs2.) 

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Staff from the Fordham provost’s office took the lead in organizing the United Nations’ first-ever International Education Day.

Held during International Education Week on Nov. 16, the event brought together leaders from the UN, government, and nongovernmental organizations around the world to talk about goals, best practices, and the power of global education to create a better world. More than 700 were in attendance in the UN’s New York headquarters, including Fordham faculty members, staff, and students.

Salvatore Longarino and Kelly Roberts, both of the Office of International Services in the provost’s office, spearheaded the event. They worked in conjunction with NYU, Columbia, City University of New York, and other universities who were represented in the day’s programming.

“In these times, when nationalistic themes have become stronger around the world, we felt it was imperative to bring together our international community from Fordham, New York City, and the world and reaffirm our common global goals,” said Longarino. “Our event was designed to celebrate the role of international education in creating a more peaceful, just, and equitable world.”

The day’s programming included three panel sessions: “Global Leadership Development”; Inspiring the Next Generation of Peacebuilders—The Power of Civil Society to Engage Youth to Take Action”; and “Education Across Borders—Ideas, Innovation, and Idealism from Intercultural Exchanges.”

Roberts organized the second panel, which focused on the power of young people to create positive change. It featured leaders from the UN’s youth programs and other youth organizations.

“Our goal in planning the youth panel was to highlight the unique innovation abilities of emerging adults in the context of peace and development,” said Roberts, “and to inspire the next generation of changemakers to take action to make the world a better place.”

Madison Ross, a member of the UN Department of Public Information’s Youth Steering Committee, called upon young people to “see human development as a right, not a privilege. See education as a right, not a privilege.

“There are close to 60 million youth without access to education,” Ross said. “We shouldn’t take it for granted … there should be no barriers for such human rights.”

In a special ceremony, Longarino and Roberts were each presented with an award in recognition of their leadership and advocacy in creating the inaugural event.

When Stephen Freedman died suddenly in July, he left behind a profound legacy as Fordham’s first provost. Finding someone to succeed him will be a significant task.

Virginia Roach, Ed.D., dean of Fordham’s Graduate School of Education, said the University hopes to honor Freedman’s memory by finding a replacement who can build on his initiatives and chart an ambitious path forward for the University.

Just as Fordham was vastly different when Freedman joined Fordham in 2007 than it is today, so too has the job changed. Roach, who is chairing the committee tasked with searching for a replacement, said that expanding on some of the innovative programs that Freedman spearheaded will be key, but otherwise, the committee is keeping a very open mind as to what sort of candidate could serve Fordham well in an evolving higher-education landscape.

A Search Unencumbered by Borders

Taking its cue from Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, the committee is also very open to input from the Fordham community and beyond, Roach said.

“When Father McShane asked me to chair the search committee, he was adamant that his goal was to have the best provost for Fordham that we can find, even if it’s someone outside of the country if there’s an appropriate match,” she said.

“He certainly has no preconceived notion of who’s going to come, or what they look like, or what background they have. He’s very reliant on the committee to help shape that and to bring forward really strong candidates.”

The process of hiring the University’s new provost—its chief academic officer—kicked off this month on several fronts. A job listing was posted on the University’s website, and the search firm Witt Kieffer was enlisted to recruit potential candidates.

At the same time, a 13-member search committee, chosen by Father McShane after consultations with the Faculty Senate, has begun to solicit feedback from the Fordham community. Roach said the goal of the outreach is to help it settle on parameters to winnow the list of candidates down to a list of semifinalists and finalists. The due date for applications is October 29.

Unvarnished Opinions Welcome

In addition to public forums, the committee has also set up an email account for feedback. The account, [email protected], is overseen by the Witt Kieffer, and feedback is passed along anonymously to the committee. That measure of protection is meant to ensure that the committee gets unvarnished, honest feedback.

“Many people in these forums have given us really great feedback and input, but some people feel more comfortable providing feedback anonymously. We want people to feel like they can say whatever they want to say regarding the search, the email address provides that opportunity,” Roach said.

When it comes to the future provosts’ qualifications, Roach said several aspects of the job are particularly relevant. International endeavors, such as the partnership that Freedman established with the University of Pretoria, will continue to be important, as will exploration of new learning modalities such as online learning. Maintaining Fordham’s reputation as a nationally recognized center for research is key as well.

A One-of-a-Kind Opportunity

Finally, there is the University’s unique tripartite identity.

“Anyone who comes here should know what it means to be a Catholic university, what it means to be a Jesuit university, and what it means to be a university in New York City,” Roach said.

Ultimately, no less than a visionary leader will suffice for the job, she said. The University has an aggressive timetable laid out: the new provost is expected to be announced in January, and to start in September, 2019.

“The reality is, no institution of higher education can stand still. We always have to think about what the challenges are today and tomorrow, and what the profile of a learner is in 2018 and into the future. There are very different ways people acquire information, and very different ways in which people are integrated into the community. All of that is something a provost has to think about, as well as the larger issues, both here in the United States and around the world,” she said.

“We want to hear from the community, and we desperately need people to be aggressive in talking to others they know in the field to encourage recommendations for ideal candidates our search firm can pursue. We’re a complex, sophisticated, nationally ranked institution. I think it’s an attractive challenge.”

It is with profound sorrow that I write to tell you that Dr. Stephen Freedman, beloved Provost of the University, died suddenly at his home in Hastings on Hudson last evening.

It is hard to overstate what a shocking and terrible loss this is to Stephen’s wife, Eileen; his sons, Zac and Noah; his grandson Aaron; and his friends and colleagues here at Fordham and in the academic community.

For more than a decade, Stephen has served Fordham tirelessly. He was known for his devotion to the faculty, students, and the academic community, and for his commitment to research and a global university. He was a warm and insightful friend and colleague, and a man of deep conviction and rectitude. Stephen’s death is a grievous loss not just for his family and Fordham friends, but for everyone who knew him. We will miss him terribly.

I have asked Dr. Jonathan Crystal to serve as interim vice president and chief academic officer. We will form a search committee in the following weeks.

We will share information on services for Stephen as soon as they are available. In the interim, I know you join me in keeping his family and loved ones in your thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,
Joseph M. McShane, S.J.