Chancellor Keith Motley’s inaugural events, including a student welcome ceremony and a panel discussion, are on Nov. 8 and 9, commemorating his place as the eighth chancellor of UMass Boston. With his 20-plus year career geared towards students, Motley’s focus during the two days is on improving the UMass Boston community.
“I am happy that celebration of my installation as chancellor starts with students because the work of the university begins with students,” Motley said.
Darrell Byers, the Vice Chancellor for Advancement, said that each chancellor puts on their own personal touch on inaugural events and that each chancellor involves the community in different ways.Schedule of EventsNovember 8Student Welcome Ceremony1-2:30 p.m., Campus Center BallroomPanel discussion: Strengthening the Educational Pipeline: K-164-5:30 p.m., Campus Center BallroomReception to follow.
November 9Inauguration of Keith Motley11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Clark Athletic CenterReception immediately after ceremony.”I can’t give away everything, but I think we’re involving every facet of the community,” Byers said. “Chancellor Motley is also doing that; we’ve got people from the community and students participating. We have a student welcome, which is the first time that has been done for an inauguration for a chancellor here. He’ll have the opportunity to speak with the students one-on-one.”
While he added in details to personalize the inauguration, Motley was not the only person behind the events. An internal inauguration committee, which Byers is the head of, did the majority of the work, implementing Motley’s ideas with those the committee found in other areas to create the best program they could.
“We have the panel discussion on one of the most pressing issues in the country,” Byers said. “The field of education and how can we strengthen the educational pipeline to get more kids who normally don’t have a chance to go to college and what we can do to improve them academically and give them all the tools to do well in college. […] We have about 200 people who attending that so far, about 125 from the external community. Once again, I think we have a chance to show off our college by the fact that so many faculty and students are interested in these issues.”
Each chancellor has a different length of time; former Chancellor Michael Collins’ inaugural events in 2006 lasted about one week. However, it is not the length of the time, but the message that is encompassed in the events.
“I think we use the inaugural to celebrate our students; they’re the primary reason we’re here,” Byers said. “It’s a way to attract our alumni back, friends of the school, corporations and foundations to the campus, to see what we’re all about and what our students and faculty are all about, and to celebrate the chancellor and the point of his career he’s at.”
Another new thing announced with the inaugural events is the creation of the J. Keith Motley Scholarship Program. The establishment of this program was to provide scholarship support to students who have completed pre-collegiate programs like Upward Bound, which Motley is a graduate of.
“A corporate donor, State Street Bank, and an alumnus, Richard Leahy, have come together and pooled their money to offer a challenge grant, if you will, to raise some funds and start a scholarship,” Byers said. “It was inspired by the chancellor and his story, as it sounds like so many other stories we hear from people who come to UMass Boston. We see it as a way to celebrate his inaugural and make a donation in his name, so he will always have a touch-point for students during the lifetime of this campus.”
“We think this is going to be a wonderful program, and it’s a special time for UMass Boston,” Byers said. “We look forward to celebrating with the greater Boston community, and we think it says something that the mayor [Thomas Menino], an alumnus of UMass Boston, will be taking part in the celebration, as well as the governor [Deval Patrick] and Senator [John] Kerry. It’s been great to see such an outpouring of support, and we hope that as many people from the campus will come and take advantage of what’s offered in the two-day period.”The O’JaysThe O’Jays, a 1970s Philadelphia soul band from Ohio, will be performing for Chancellor Keith Motley on Nov. 9 in the Clark Athletic Center.
Invitations were sent out to about 800 people for a private concert. However, an announcement was made on Nov. 2 to the UMass Boston community to invite them as well. There is not enough room to accommodate everyone, but the decision to open it up was decided because the inauguration is “a campus-wide celebration,” according to Darrell Byers.