GENERAL FACULTY MEETING
Summeral Chapel
Thursday, 13 March, 1997
- General Poole welcomed the faculty to the meeting. He
then introduced General Grinalds, the incoming
eighteenth president of The Citadel.
- In his opening remarks, General Grinalds said that he
saw The Citadel primarily as an educational
institution. He stated that he was totally dedicated
to the integration of women cadets into the corps. An
even greater challenge was his opportunity to
articulate the mission of The Citadel to young people.
He discussed this mission in light of the changing size
of the armed forces, the need for educational training,
and cutbacks in military spending.
He said that The Citadel should prepare students for a
broad spectrum of purposes, including preparation for
the armed forces. He stressed the importance of
graduating young people who will be leaders in society.
To accomplish this, educational programs should prepare
students in four areas:
(1) a good education
(2) preparation to be leaders
(a) leadership on an individual level (the
academic life should integrate well with
the military life in providing this type
of preparation)
(b) leadership in small groups
(c) societal leadership
(3) sense of honorable conduct (where the honor
system is the nucleus)
(4) sense of public service
General Grinalds said that he wants to hear from
faculty as much as possible. He requested that each
faculty member update his or her resume and send it to
him through the president's office. He asked that a
picture be included with the resume. He suggested that
each faculty member include a statement about what he
or she likes most about teaching at The Citadel,
academic interests, etc.
General Grinalds pledged to work for certain changes,
including seeking more motivated cadets (academically).
In particular, he wants to recruit a diverse group of
students in terms of interests and students who want to
learn. He made several suggestions about things
faculty members could do to motivate students once they
arrive on campus.
He visualized two important aspects of his job as
president: (1) helping cadets succeed and (2) helping
faculty succeed.
In closing, General Grinalds thanked faculty for their
wonderful welcome.
- Following his remarks, General Grinalds responded to
several questions from the faculty. When questioned
about the 4th Class system, General Grinalds said that
he had read a number of documents on what needs to be
done. He said that he prefers "Cadet Leadership
System" to "4th Class System." He emphasized that he
does not support hazing. He is not yet sure of how the
system needs to be changed, but said that he would
listen to all voices. In summary, he said that he
believed in responsible, educated, principled
leadership.
In response to a question regarding the role of
graduate students, General Grinalds said that he wanted
to see the College of Graduate and Professional Studies
integrated into the conceptual model he discussed
earlier.
He commented on the possibility of The Citadel taking a
role in working with the military magnet high school to
create an impact on public education.
Another question related to how he planned to
assimilate women (not just cadets) into the life of the
campus. General Grinalds said that it was important to
get more women involved. He suggested one possibility
would be a forum that would bring to the attention of
the administration issues that concern women.
- After the meeting was adjourned, there was a luncheon
in the Riverview Room for those attending the meeting.