By Jack DiDomenic
Over the past decade, Dominican University has seen 4 individuals assume the role of provost, with interim office holders scattered throughout. At the start of this fall semester, the Dominican family welcomed new provost, Dr. Mia Hardy, with welcome arms.
Hardy comes from a background of nearly twenty-five years in higher education. Previous roles include working in student affairs and sponsoring student government. More specifically, as an International Admissions Counselor, Associate Dean of larger divisions including communications and behavioral science, and most recently, Dean of Liberal Arts.
For many students the term provost may be unfamiliar, as the office does not regularly interfere with the student body. Hardy described the position as being the overseer of “all academic enterprise” across the university. Essentially, “anything that you can think of that is related to your academic journey,” and “ensuring that the faculty that we select for Dominican University are excellent, ensuring that the curriculum that we deliver at Dominican University is, you know, on point, market driven…”
Such a role is designed for a leader that possesses a skill set defined by their calm, collected, and determined demeanor. President of the Faculty Collegium, Dr. Mickey Sweeney, emphasizes the importance of having such a figure in office, especially today. “I think people coming into [this field] have to have a calling,” said Sweeney. “I think to persevere in higher education right now, when we are under attack on every front, you have to really care.”
Recent government pushback against supporting post-secondary education has made it difficult to effectively support/fund academia. This problem is not unique to Dominican, rather a common trend within colleges and universities nationwide. “I’m not saying we have had wrong people for the job, but now we have the right person,” said Sweeney.
Sweeney oversees the entire faculty body at Dominican, or Dominican’s Faculty Collegium. The collegium votes together on changes that will support students across many fronts. Most pertinent to the collegium’s relationship with the provost being voting on academic decisions. These consist of including/omitting curriculum, courses, and/or degrees offered at Dominican.
Once the collegium comes together to vote on an academic proposal, they relay the bill to Hardy, who resides at the top of the academic hierarchy. It is imperative that the relationship between staff and the provost is fluid and functional. “She is tremendously supportive of faculty,” says Sweeney, “I am so impressed.”
Hardy is a provost of and for the Dominican family. She speaks fondly of her passion for students and faculty alike. These traits are just a few of the many positive attributes that stood out to the hiring committee that selected Hardy for the position. Dr. Tony Dunbar, a member of the committee and professor in the College of Business, Information Studies, and Technology, expressed a few of the values he and his fellow colleagues were searching for during their extensive interview process.
Each candidate had their own “unique assets,” but what Dominican was really on the hunt for was “stability,” considering the aforementioned turnover of the provost position. Hardy shows “robust effort no matter what she does.”
Dunbar hopes that in such a demanding position, Hardy is treated with the utmost respect. He commends Hardy her for her well-roundedness, and her strength in “assessing immediate and intermediate needs.”
Hardy is ecstatic to be working at Dominican. “It brings me joy to come to work, I enjoy the smiling faces of students.” One of the greatest pull factors for her was Dominican’s mission statement, as it deeply resonated with her. Hardy notes that Dominican’s mission aligns the virtues she lives by outside of school, things that “Mia does, not Dr. Hardy, not the provost.”
It is important for Hardy to form a relationship with students at Dominican, allow for more voices to be heard, and prevent the office of the provost from being an “enigma” to students. She hopes to create a platform for students to directly reach her office with suggestions and feedback.
Hardy mentioned that now being fully acclimated to the provost position, she first plans to expand Dominican’s view of service. She makes it clear that although Dominican will of course continue to focus on traditional students, there will soon be a big shift toward developing more opportunities for adult education. Hardy hopes to serve the adult student population better at Dominican. She also believes it is important to spread the word and communicate any new offerings Dominican will begin to push out. The likes of these offerings include a new Associate of Arts degree.
As far the future of the provost office goes at Dominican, the horizon looks brighter than ever. Colleagues and faculty speak highly of Hardy’s leadership capabilities, and big aspirations for her time at Dominican. With a passion for the Star family, and true calling for higher education, these are qualities that cement Hardy as a proper fit for the provost role. In her own words, “I’ll be a fixture (at Dominican) for a good while.”
