Hundreds of members of the Union community and distinguished guests will celebrate the inauguration of Stephen Charles Ainlay as the 18th president of Union College.
The two-day event begins Friday, Sept. 15, at 7 p.m. with an academic symposium in the Nott Memorial. “Bridging the Academic-Social Gap” will feature a keynote address by Richard Light, the Richard Walter H. Gale Professor of Education and director of the Harvard Seminar on Assessment at Harvard University.
Union Professor of Political Science Byron Nichols will moderate the panel, which includes officials from Middlebury, the College of the Holy Cross, Franklin and Marshall, who will speak about what their schools are doing to strengthen social life and academic engagement for students. Suzanne Benack, professor of psychology and Minerva faculty representative from Sorum House, will talk about Union's Minerva program.
On Saturday morning, Sept. 16, close to 700 people are expected to fill Memorial Chapel for the 10:30 a.m. installation of Ainlay as president. The procession of delegates begins at 10:15.
William R. Brody, president of Johns Hopkins University, will give the address before James Davison Hunter, LaBrosse-Levinson Distinguished Professor of Religion, Culture and Social Theory, University of Virginia, introduces Ainlay. Representatives from noted colleges and universities, including Harvard, Yale, Williams and Oxford, will be on hand as Ainlay outlines his goals and vision for the future of the College.
The formal Inaugural Gala Feast and Dancing on the campus grounds begin at 7 p.m., followed by fireworks at 10.
“It will be a wonderful time on our beautiful campus,” said Stephen J. Ciesinski, chairman of the College's Board of Trustees. “One of the things we're proudest of at our intimate school is the breadth and depth of diverse learning, scholarship and campus activities. Stephen Ainlay will be part of that first-hand as we induct him into his new leadership role.''
The inauguration is being planned by William Finlay, associate professor and director of the Yulman Theatre and artistic director of the Saratoga Shakespeare Company in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Ainlay, a native of Goshen, Indiana, was the vice president for academic affairs and professor of sociology and anthropology at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. He is married to Judith Gardner Ainlay, and they have two sons. Ainlay assumed the Union presidency in July.
For more on the inauguration events, visit www.union.edu/inauguration.