We came from all over, from Art and from Chemistry, from Communications and from Sociology, from Mathematics and from Music (but didn’t Pythagoras hold that music is a branch of mathematics?), from Meier Hall and Sullivan, from the Library and O’Keefe, to participate in the 2006 annual retreat of the Salem State College School of Arts and Sciences.

The MLK room was full before the opening session kicked off, and the presence of keynote speaker Christopher Lydon ensured the presence of guests from across Salem State College.

It is rare that we get the chance all to gather and spend the day talking, reflecting, and arguing (collegially) about what it is we do, why we do it, and how best to do it. And although we bill this as an annual event, it has, in fact, been three years since last we all came together.

At times, perhaps, we forget what it is we share; indeed, perhaps it takes a physical bringing together to remind us all that we have a shared purpose, a common sense of mission, and that our whole is indeed greater than the sum of our parts.

Renewed, refreshed, and reinvigorated, we left at the end of the day ready to ensure that the central mission of the School of Arts and Sciences at Salem State College retains the place it so richly deserves and resolved to work together to build upon the foundation established to challenge ourselves, our students, and our administration to build an even healthier and more vital school.

Web Sites From Christopher Lydon’s Talk

Open Source: http:// www.radioopensource.org/

Technorati: http://www.technorati.com/

Times-Picayune on line: http://www.nola.com/

The Panda’s Thumb: http://www.pandasthumb.org/

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page/

Informed comment: http://www.juancole.com/