Colorful balloons, Godiva chocolates and a bottle of champagne decorated the office of Timothy Law Snyder, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Thursday afternoon. These gifts celebrated his coming birthday as well as the announcement that he has accepted the position of vice president for Academic Affairs at Loyola College in Maryland.
Snyder, who has worked at Fairfield for six years, will assume his new position in Baltimore in July.
“It’s bittersweet because I have to leave good people, good friends, good colleagues, good students,” Snyder said. “I’ve accomplished a lot, and it’s been wonderful.”
Before coming to Fairfield, Snyder spent 14 years at Georgetown, where he was a professor of mathematics and computer science, was named a Wright Family Distinguished Professor and served as the computer science department chair before being named dean of science in 1995.
Snyder earned a bachelor’s degree in both mathematics and psychology and a master’s in mathematics from the University of Toledo in Ohio. He also holds a master’s and a doctorate in applied and computational mathematics from Princeton. He has taught at both Toledo and Princeton, as well as the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.
Now, after 20 years as a distinguished part of the Jesuit education system, Snyder will move onto a sibling Jesuit institution, about which he said he is very excited.
“Loyola is known for innovation and a kind of nimble approach to Jesuit education,” said Snyder. “They are not afraid to try new things and frequently assess themselves.”
Snyder also said that he looks forward to working with Loyola’s faculty. “They [Loyola faculty members], like ours, balance well education and scholarship,” he said.
Snyder interviewed at Loyola on Wednesday and Thursday of the week before the announcement, when he met with members of the Loyola community and was asked to make a public presentation followed by a question and answer session.
Orin Grossman, vice president of Academic Affairs at Fairfield, said that the process of finding a replacement for Snyder has yet to begin. He will most likely hire an “interim dean” who will hold the position for a year while a committee is formed and a national search is performed, he said.
Grossman said that he will look for someone who is qualified and has the ability to continue the many initiatives that are currently in place. Many of these initiatives will act as long-term reminders of Snyder’s positive impact on the University, he said.
Snyder said that one the accomplishments he is most proud of is the increase in faculty diversity, which he believes will translate into more diversity in the student body. Snyder also said he is proud of his effort to implement a new compensation system and expanding the number of full-time tenured faculty or tenured-path faculty.
Additionally, Snyder was a leader in the creation of the first ever Long-range Academic Plan for the College of Arts and Sciences, which involved the collaboration of almost 150 faculty members. He said that he is also proud of the principal role he has taken in creating the College of Arts and Sciences Board of Advisors, an external and active group of alumni, parents and friends.
In addition, Snyder served as a mentor in the Ignation Residential College with his wife, CNN reporter Carol Costello, for the past two years, which enabled him more interaction with the student body.
James Barry ’09 is a member of Snyder’s mentor group this year.
“He genuinely cares for the people he works with and for,” said Barry. “He thinks in a unique way and always puts an insightful spin on things in my mentor group. I am sad to see him leave as my dean and my friend but am happy that he is doing what he feels is best.”
Grossman also said that Snyder is a great person and is sad to see him leave. Grossman, who holds the Fairfield equivalent of the position that Snyder will assume at Loyola, said that Snyder will successfully make the transition from dealing with department chairs and proposing programs to dealing with college deans, making decisions on proposals and working more closely on budgets.
“I’m confident that he’ll do a great job there,” Grossman said.
Norman Solomon, Dean of the Dolan School of Business, who was hired the same year as Snyder, said he is proud to have Snyder as a colleague and friend.
“Dean Tim Snyder is an inspiring academic leader. I thoroughly enjoyed working with him,” said Solomon. “Loyola is fortunate, indeed, to be hiring him.”
Snyder said that he has been overwhelmed with congratulatory sentiments from colleagues, friends and family, which flooded in only hours after the announcement was made. ‘It’s really humbling,” Snyder said with a smile as he scrolled through his e-mail inbox.
Asked if he had originally planned to move on from Fairfield from the start, Snyder said this was not the case.
“Anywhere you are is a destination, and anything can become one,” he said.
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