Professor of Religion Tom Burke is resigning as the dean of humanities at the end of the semester, after 27 years of leadership and service.
Burke said he is choosing to step down as the divisional chair, because of the growing responsibility that the position includes. His love of teaching led him to set aside the administrative responsibilities that accompany the position, he said.
“The college is growing in size,” Burke said. ‘The given responsibility of the provost office is becoming more overwhelming, so the deans will be given more administrative responsibilities rather than teaching opportunities, How do I want to spend my last five to 10 years here? There’s really no choice.”
Provost David Whalen said Burke will continue to serve as chairman of the philosophy and religion department and as a full-time member of the faculty.
As the dean of humanities, Burke oversees 10 academic departments, including English, classical studies, modern languages, journalism, art, music, theater, rhetoric and public address, and religion and philosophy. This involves evaluating faculty members on a regular basis, leading the hiring process in each department, and acting as a liaison between the faculty and the administration.
The job is a way of making sure everything was done right, Burke said.
“At the time I entered, it was a matter of just doing your job,” he said.
When Burke accepted the position in 1990, however, he never anticipated the drastic changes that the college would undergo over the next couple of decades, he said. Burke said it’s hard to imagine what the college was like before.
“The improvements have been dramatic in every way,” Burke said. “The student body is much better academically — almost every student is now at a higher level, rather than just a handful,” Burke said.
The faculty has also seen improvements, according to Burke, tripling in size in more than four departments.
Burke attributed these improvements to the quality of education the college began to emphasize and the faculty members that made that possible.
“The college, academically, is what they wanted it to be when I first came here,” Burke said.
Burke had a hand in many of these improvements, specifically in the hiring process. Whalen estimated that around 37 percent of the college’s hires occurred under Burke’s supervision.
“His intelligence, wit, and obvious good character have helped draw many to the college, and many of us remember our interviews with him as important elements in our deepening desire to join the Hillsdale College faculty,” Whalen said in a statement.
Professor of Philosophy Jim Stephens said Burke encourages the faculty to make the college outstanding.
“He has the good of the college, the good of the humanities, and the good of each department very much on his mind,” Stephens said.
Stephens said he believes the growth of the college is, in part, a testimony to Burke’s servant-minded leadership. His willingness to listen, encourage, and support has been integral to the success of the college, Stephens said.
“The most important thing of all is that he is a very caring man who supports, individually, all the faculty,” he said.
Both Whalen and Stephens attested to Burke’s humble yet effective leadership and his ability to manage relationships in such a way that allows them to thrive.
“He possesses that all-too-rare ability to refrain from managing what does not need managing,” Whalen said in an email.
Burke’s own philosophy is that if someone in a leadership position treats others with respect, that person will be successful.
“One of the things I’ve learned is that if someone is working in academe, it’s because they want to be here. So, if you leave them alone, they’ll thrive,” Burke said. “Treating people like responsible human beings goes well. If you do that, by and large things will go pretty well.”
Although Burke’s leadership and dedication to the faculty will be missed, his colleagues said, Burke said he looks forward to spending time focusing on scholarship. He said he plans on taking a sabbatical next year to focus on reading focused on theological philosophy, particularly regarding the trinity and the incarnation.
“Personally and professionally,” Whalen said in an email, “I am grateful to Dr. Burke and consider him one of the great blessings given to Hillsdale College.”
