out what was really important to them. T e fi rm was a real democ- racy with 90 partners, all of whom thought they knew best. My life at the fi rm was spent managing and leading a complicated organization of strong, intelligent individuals. “Bowdoin is a similar place—a
place to build community in sup- port of academic excellence,” Mills said in his 2001 speech. “We are an organization of strong, intelligent individuals, all of whom care deeply about Bowdoin and its future.” Refl ecting on his observations
from 12 years ago, he says, “I’m still the same person and lead the same way as when I was in law practice. I do have views and priorities and try to build consensus, and hopefully the Bowdoin constituents can agree to some version of what issues we ought to face.” Mills adds: “T e job of a lawyer providing service
24
Ronald Mason Jr. developed a special program to improve graduation rates among African American males at Southern University and the A&M College System in Louisana.
and advice on the client’s schedule is complicated, stressful, and unpredictable. But running a college is diff erent because the impact of any decision on numer- ous lives is very signifi cant. It has deep reverberations.” He and others caution lawyers not to mistakenly
regard college presidencies as any form of early retire- ment. College presidents nowadays rarely enjoy spare time. T ey constantly meet with employees, business executives, and community leaders and are expected to attend as many campus events as feasible, ranging from intercollegiate sports, student government forums, and performing arts. Presidents spend increasing amounts of time raising funds from foundations and alumni in order to keep tuition hikes modest and to aff ord competitive faculty salaries. T ey’re also expected to prepare the campus to respond to crises such as accidents or violence resulting in casualties or natural disasters forcing class cancellations. And presidents are obligated to confer with and answer questions about even the tiniest matter from members of the governing board that hired them, sometimes with no notice. “It’s almost a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week job,”
DeCoudreaux says of her two years at Mills College. “It’s not always idyllic.”
MAKING A DIFFERENCE Despite the pressures, former attorneys such as Ronald Mason Jr. relish the top job in academia because they can pursue goals with far-reaching implications. When Mason became president of the multicampus Southern
DIVERSITY & THE BAR® MAY/JUNE 2013
University and A&M College System in Louisiana in 2010, he began developing a special project aimed at improving graduation rates of African American males, who in 2009 were outnumbered by almost 2-to-1 nationally by African American females in attainment of bachelor’s degrees. Under the project this past
school year, an initial cohort of 16 low-income, black male high school graduates began classes at Southern’s New Orleans campus although they hadn’t met its admis- sions criteria. A separate application and screening process had indicated their academic potential despite personal hardships such as lacking any real home since Hurricane Katrina devastated the region in 2005. T e students will major in education or another discipline allowing them to meet requirements for classroom teaching certifi cation. Upon graduation, they are expected to teach at least two years in a New Orleans public school in order to qualify for Southern’s loan forgiveness clause covering their college costs. Mason calls the students “hidden stars who have gone
through lots of tough stuff ” in their young lives. T e teacher-preparation project is part of a national
initiative led by Mason to enable black men with life challenges to become educators and leaders and just as importantly, he says, avoid poor choices that can land
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