Re-envisioning eNews

Date: June 11, 2003
Subject: Farewell Message from the Principal Investigator

Dear colleagues, friends and members of the virtual community of those interested in effecting change in doctoral education,

As many of you know, I decided several years ago to find time to achieve some of the other aspirations in my life. As of June 30, 2003, I will officially begin my retirement. So this will be the last message you will receive from me as Director of the Re-envisioning the Ph.D. initiative. I leave knowing that due to your interest and assistance, and with funding from The Pew Charitable Trusts, we successfully launched the thoughtful examination of doctoral education for the 21st Century. Our goal was to ensure that the Ph.D. degree and the doctoral educational experience continue to attract leaders for our society writ large--in educational institutions, government, non-profit organizations, business and industry. Through this project, we have been providing opportunities for rich exchanges of ideas and experiments regarding Ph.D. education. The result has been absolutely thrilling. It does not seem possible that we began the effort less than five years ago.

Your contributions have been significant and invaluable. Hundreds of you have submitted articles and Promising Practices and posed inquiries that enabled the staff to pursue important new solutions to shared challenges. Thousands of you have participated in the subscriber list, and in my frequent travel I have had the pleasure of meeting many of you whose talents and skills have been brought to bear on the question of “how we can we re-envision the Ph.D. to meet the societal needs of the 21st Century?” I say, “We are well on our way! Carry on!” 

In that spirit, I would like to direct your attention to the new News and Updates: http://www.grad.washington.edu/envision/news/current_news.html.  Highlighted this month is a recent Chronicle article by Susan Warner (2003, June 2) that focuses on university and industry partnerships. In the article, Ed Harlow, dean of research at Harvard Medical School, sums up our unified quest by saying, “All academic places are trying to figure out how to embrace research opportunities that take advantage of the expanding capability.” Collaborating with doctoral stakeholders is an effective way to share valuable resources among partners and prepare the next generation of scholars. Also featured, is a resource for students in the job placement process, an informative presentation on “How to Negotiate a Job Offer” by Heather Malcolm, Senior Human Resources Generalist, at Seattle Genetics.

The Graduate School at the University of Washington will assume responsibility for maintaining the Re-envisioning website. Because the Re-envisioning the Ph.D. project itself has come to an end, the website will be updated on a periodic basis rather than a continuous one. You will be informed of future developments as they emerge.

In closing this final message I would once more like to express my appreciation from the entire Re-envisioning staff for the opportunity to work with so many of you. What a wonderful experience it has been to collaborate with visionaries and professionals of such good will. I leave knowing we have all made a difference in doctoral education, a key to the future of our society, and that each of you and your colleagues will continue to do so! On behalf of the Re-envisioning staff our best to everyone. 


Jody D. Nyquist
Associate Dean Emeritus, The Graduate School
Principal Investigator, Re-envisioning the Ph.D.
University of Washington
422 Sieg Hall, Box 351725
Seattle, WA 98195
206-543-6588
Nyquist@u.washington.edu
http://www.grad.washington.edu/envision