New VP of Campus Operations

Richard Reynolds will be the interim vice president of campus operations, the Office for Finance and Administration announced in a March 28 InBrief email sent to the Brandeis community. Reynolds, who will start in his new role on April 10, is set to replace Jim Gray, who will leave the University on April 19 for Smith College.

Previously the vice president of operations at Tufts University, Reynolds oversaw a staff of 350 people with a budget of $100 million. During his time at Tufts, he was responsible for “facilities management, construction, dining services, public and environmental health and safety, planning, and ancillary real estate,” per the same email.

Reynolds will provide leadership to the University during the search period for a permanent replacement, according to the same email. As interim vice president of campus operations, Reynolds will be tasked with “maintaining a safe, comfortable and attractive campus environment that supports excellence in teaching, learning and research,” according to the campus operations website.

Phi Beta Kappa

89 new members of the Brandeis chapter of Phi Beta Kappa will be inducted in a ceremony during Commencement weekend, per a March 27 BrandeisNOW article. Of the inductees, eight come from the Class of 2020, while the rest are from the Class of 2019.

These inductees represent “remarkable achievement inside and outside the classroom,” according to Prof. Alice Kelikian (HIST), the president of the University’s Phi Beta Kappa chapter.

The honor society was founded in 1776 by five students at the College of William & Mary and is based upon the values of “personal freedom, scientific inquiry, liberty of conscience, and creative endeavor,” according to the Phi Beta Kappa website. Today, only 10 percent of universities — 286 — in the United States have Phi Beta Kappa chapters, and those universities select only 10 percent of their graduating students to join the honor society. 

A student may receive an invitation to the Phi Beta Kappa society based on a number of factors, per their membership requirements. This includes a well-rounded education in both the liberal arts and sciences, good moral character, and knowledge of a second or non-native language, as well as coursework in mathematics, logic or statistics.

Hiatt Career Center

The National Career Association recognized Hiatt Career Center with the 2019 Service to International Students award, per a March 28 BrandeisNOW article. The award is given to a university career center “that has made an active commitment to partnering with and supporting the career development of international students.”

Hiatt won the award for its efforts to develop institutional support for international students, as well as “delivering data-driven and evidence-based best practices,” per the same article.

Over the past few years, Hiatt has created a full-time staff position to provide support for international students, connected with international partners for networking events, created a WeChat account — a Chinese messaging system — that has engaged over 350 individuals since the fall of 2017 and has provided workshops tailored to the needs of international students.


—Natalia Wiater