The many groups of recently accepted UM students on their campus orientation today, and pushing  “The Cube,” were a happy prelude to the featured speaker’s talk today.

President Dawn Johnson rang the bell to start our meeting, with Pianist Extraordinaire Jody Tull de Salis at the piano keyboard accompanying us as we sang our National Anthem.  President Dawn led us in reciting the 4-way test, then invited Jake Phillips to deliver the inspiration.  He spoke about the power of small changes and fresh perspectives that often spark something big.  He encouraged attendees to be present and open to new ideas, as well as to breathe deeply and listen with curiosity.

Past President and ebullient Song Leader Joanne Marttila Pierson led our club in a rousing version of the 1961 classic, The Lion Sleeps Tonight.

President Dawn welcomed guests Kenneth Robbins, Rona Hu (who is to be oriented and inducted as a new member on August 6), and John Hurd. Former Club members John Rasmussen and Lois Stenger were welcomed with a warm round of applause. President Dawn thanked to today’s meeting team: Larry Gray, Linda Kentes, Tom Millard, Emily Olson, Agnes Reading, Jennifer Richards, Tucker Rossmaessler, Leo Shedden, Mary Steffek Blaske, Jody Tull de Salis, Kathy Waugh, and John White.  She also thanked Dan Romanchik for his work getting the weekly Rotarian e-newsletter published each week.

Happy Birthday huzzahs to Ashley Plichta and Shannon Polk.  The room erupted in cheers for Arthur Williams celebrating 24 years of being an Ann Arbor Rotarian!

Items on this week’s business agenda included:

• Rotarians need to register for the August 20 meeting featuring the Honorable Debbie Dingell, at the Cobblestone Farm.
• A new edition of our Club’s one-page Strategic Plan is now available.  It will be posted under Member Resources tab on our website.  Contact President Dawn if you’re interested in working on the strategic plan.
• Rotarians are invited to complete and submit “Why” sheets about their reasons for joining/staying in Rotary.  President Dawn read Marlena Studer’s compelling story as an example.
• Committee chairs will be following up with Board Directors regarding budget allocations for FY26.
• GPO leader and next year’s President Roy More reminded Rotarians to register for the Golf and Pickleball Outing fundraiser because it is an excellent opportunity to share time with fellow Rotarians and community members all for the purpose of helping kids succeed.  More reminded us to register before July 31 for early-bird pricing.  He invited Rotarians to sign up as volunteers.  See Kate Van Horn at the registration table.  Rotarians are urged to consider donating items for the GPO silent auction by contacting Rosemarie Rowney or Peg Talburtt.

From the barrio to LS&A

Club Member Linda Kentes introduced our keynote speaker, Dean Rosario Ceballo.  Dean Ceballo has degrees from Yale and the UM.  She began her academic career at U-M as an assistant professor of psychology and of women’s and gender studies, and remained on faculty for 26 years.  In 2004, she was promoted to associate professor with tenure, and to full professor in 2014. She chaired the Department of Women’s Studies from 2015-18, and was associate dean for social sciences from 2018-21. She served on the Advisory Board for Poverty Solutions at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, the Institute for Social Research Executive Committee, the LSA Strategic Planning Steering Committee, the Professional Latinos at UM Alliance Directive Board and the Rackham Graduate School Executive Board.   She served as Dean of Arts and Sciences at Georgetown University before returning to be LSA Dean on August 15, 2024.

Dean Ceballo began by sharing her personal background as the child of Dominican Republic immigrant parents living in New York.  She learned from her parents’ and grandmother’s example that education was the Key to Success.  She shared her journey through education, emphasizing the importance of a liberal arts education and scholarships that shaped her life.  “One could lose your home, or your job, but you could never lose your Education.”

Dean Ceballo described the current assault liberal arts education that include attacks on thinking, questioning, and generally devaluing educational pursuits. She shared that when freshmen arrive on campus today, they are already focused on planning for their first job four years from now instead of learning how to learn.  She described the transformative power of a liberal arts education for both the individual and society.  Because we don’t know all the jobs that will be, we can not teach for those yet-unimagined jobs.  However, a liberal arts education will teach how to think critically, how to work with others, to listen, to tolerate uncertainties, and to foster a greater good for others – all core job skills for each of those yet-unimagined jobs.  Dean Ceballo praised the fact that a liberal arts education is rooted in a practice of discernment.

Dean Ceballo’s goals are to promote interdisciplinary scholarship, and finding cutting-edge solutions across the disciplines.  She gave numerous examples of students combining philosophy and statistics, or economics and Classics giving them an edge in the work world as well as making a positive impact on community.

She expressed her concern about the mental health crisis among college students and the importance of creating a supportive learning environment. She believes that the current chronic levels of stress in today’s students can be addressed through encouraging tolerance for debate, constructive dialog, and promoting a culture of purpose and well-being among students.

During the Q & A, Dean Ceballo shared that there are 20,000 students in the 19 colleges and schools that make up LSA, and that there are 900 tenure-track faculty.

Her 5-year-plan includes LSA using its interdisciplinary capacity to continue to address real-world problems.  She stressed the value of learning from diverse perspectives and urged students to resist narratives that push them away from exploring different subjects. The Dean concluded by encouraging alumni to become ambassadors for higher education.  She highlighted the need for mentorship, and suggested that alumni can make a significant impact by offering their time and connections to current students who are anxious about their majors and future careers.  “Mentors come in all sizes and shapes.”

Rotarians gave Dean Ceballo a warm and hearty round of applause.

President Dawn thanked the Dean for her talk, then rang the bell to conclude today’s meeting.