{"id":6086,"date":"2019-07-03T09:55:53","date_gmt":"2019-07-03T13:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/?p=6086"},"modified":"2024-05-07T13:35:32","modified_gmt":"2024-05-07T17:35:32","slug":"exit-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/exit-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Exit Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Exit Interview<\/h1>
Outgoing president Grey Dimenna reflects on his time at Monmouth.<\/div>
Interview by Tony Marchetti
Photo Matt Furman<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/header>\n\n\n\n

on July 31, Grey Dimenna, Esq., will step down as Monmouth University\u2019s ninth president, a position he has held since Feb. 28, 2017. After serving as vice president and general counsel from 1995 to 2015, Dimenna returned to Monmouth as president at the request of the Board of Trustees. He said from the start he would stay only until the board hired a new president, which it did last winter: President-Elect Patrick F. Leahy, Ed.D., will take office on Aug. 1. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dimenna\u2019s affable nature and devotion to the University made him beloved by the Monmouth community, particularly among the students. And though his tenure always had a fixed endpoint, it doesn\u2019t make leaving the community he considers family any less bittersweet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From day one, you said your top priority was to be as visible and accessible as possible on campus. As your tenure comes to a close, how would you assess the pulse of this University? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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I leave here feeling that morale is sky high. Monmouth feels like a family. It continues to be a great place to get an education. The people care about the students, and the students are proud to be here. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What achievements are you most proud of?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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One is our scholarship campaign [Together We Can<\/a>]. I\u2019m proud that we\u2019ve been able to raise so much money and that so many people got on board to help students attend Monmouth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another is fixing the Greek system. It was headed in the wrong direction, and we were able to turn it around with the help of the students and Vice President [Mary Anne] Nagy [\u201991M, \u201901M] and others. That was a great decision to make because it really has made things better for the students. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I\u2019m very proud that we got the Martin Luther King exhibit set up before I left. A lot of people have said to me how much it means to them. Connected to that was starting the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Distinguished Speaker in Social Justice series last October. The two items tie in with the efforts to balance Woodrow Wilson\u2019s legacy on campus. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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In terms of the Waves of Change exhibit, what do you hope visitors take away from the experience of interacting with it? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Part of Monmouth being a family is that we welcome and embrace everybody, no matter your background, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation. Particularly in today\u2019s national climate, where there is a lot of divisiveness on these issues, it\u2019s important to me, important to the campus climate, and particularly important to the underrepresented students coming here that they understand Monmouth is a place that welcomes all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. King\u2019s message long ago was that we\u2019re all human beings, that we\u2019re all together and we shouldn\u2019t separate ourselves on the basis of artificial categories. We\u2019re still working on it in this country, but it is a message that I think is important to get out, and I think the exhibit does that. And I love that the exhibit is right there when you walk into Wilson Hall. You can\u2019t avoid it. It\u2019s so prominent. So I think celebrating Dr. King\u2019s legacy helps to reinforce the message that, at Monmouth, we welcome everyone. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What have been some of your biggest challenges as president? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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One was changing the Greek system, which as I mentioned I think we came through great. Something I wish I could have done more for is address the cost of attending Monmouth. The scholarship campaign is going to help with that, but it [the rising cost of college] remains a huge challenge\u2014one that all institutions are struggling with, not just Monmouth. Higher education is expensive these days. One of the reasons it\u2019s expensive at Monmouth is because of the nature of the education we provide: the small classes, the individualized attention, all of the support systems. It\u2019s not cheap to do that. We could make cuts in places, but it would change the nature of the Monmouth experience, and I\u2019d hate to do that.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What\u2019s been the best part of this job for you? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Being able to make a difference in individual students\u2019 lives. I love spending time with students, going to student events, talking with students. They\u2019re our future, and it\u2019s been great to be on campus and have students just come up to me to talk about their issues and problems. I try to always eat lunch in the student dining hall, and I\u2019ll pick students at random to talk with about how they got to Monmouth, what their family situation is, what they like about Monmouth, what they\u2019re going to do after graduating. Some of my favorite times have been just sitting in the dining hall eating and talking with students. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another thing has been being the ambassador of the University\u2014particularly outside of campus, talking to donors and others in the community about how great Monmouth is. It\u2019s fun to be the face of the University. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

I believe very strongly that universities aren\u2019t ivory towers or islands, that they are part of their surrounding communities \u2026 I want people to see Monmouth as a resource.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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Has it been a priority of yours to strengthen Monmouth\u2019s community connections?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Absolutely. I believe very strongly that universities aren\u2019t ivory towers or islands, that they are part of their surrounding communities, and that it\u2019s important for them to have connections with and to serve the surrounding communities. So things like the Rumson field station, which is coming along, and Lakehouse; our programs for Asbury Park High School students; and the Big Event, where our students go out every year and do community service projects\u2014all of these are very important. Whether it\u2019s coming here for an athletic event, or for a lecture or art show\u2014I want people to see Monmouth as a resource, and I\u2019ve tried to make that happen as much as I can. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Tell me something fun you were able to do as president that you didn\u2019t get to do as general counsel.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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I got to meet Bruce Springsteen because of the connection with the Springsteen Archives<\/a>.\n Last year during the Blue\/White football game, Coach [Kevin] Callahan \nlet me call the offensive plays. How often do you get to do things like \nthat? I got to dance on stage in the Winter Dance Concert. I got to \nrecord a song at Lakehouse because the Blue Hawk Records students asked \nme to play on it. I can\u2019t play guitar to save my life, and I tried to \ntalk them out of it, but they insisted. How many people\u2014especially with \nmy limited musical experience\u2014get to record a song in a professional \nrecording studio? Or live in such a beautiful residence as Doherty \nHouse? Or preside over Commencement? I love being in front of people, so\n getting to be on stage and talk to the crowds and make jokes and \nsuch\u2014it\u2019s been a lot of fun.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Speaking of Commencement, you thanked your wife, Nancy Kaplen, during the graduate ceremony. What has her support meant to you throughout your tenure? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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She is the most important person in my life. She\u2019s one of the smartest people I know, and has always been a great sounding board for me when I have a tough issue here. She\u2019s got a great sense of judgment, which has been super helpful to me. She\u2019s also been a great hostess for the University in terms of the events at Doherty House and on campus.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What\u2019s next for the two of you after July 31? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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On Aug. 2, we fly to Santa Barbara for a couple of days, just to break up the flight, and then we fly to Bora Bora. I wanted to do something crazy and exotic right after retiring, something that would be completely relaxing. We\u2019ll be there for five days, living in a hut over the ocean. The resort is the only thing on the island, so other than snorkeling or kayaking and such, there\u2019s nothing else to do. It sounds like the ultimate relaxing vacation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What will you miss the most about this job? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Spending time with the students. When I retired before, what I found was you miss the people the most, whether it\u2019s the people who work here, or the donors and supporters. As president, I\u2019ve made a lot of friends among the students, so I\u2019m going to certainly miss that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ll also miss going to the athletic events. I hope to get to some, but it\u2019s not going to be like it is now. But mostly it\u2019s the students and the people I\u2019ll miss\u2014and Doherty House, because that\u2019s a nice<\/em> place to live. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Is there anything you won\u2019t miss? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Setting my alarm. Putting on a suit and tie every day. The responsibility. As president, you\u2019re responsible for everyone, and you\u2019re constantly thinking of that. It\u2019ll be nice to not always be focused on that. It\u2019ll be nice to always be relaxed. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Do you have any parting sentiments that you\u2019d like to share with the Monmouth community? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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I hope that students will always continue to come first at Monmouth University. We\u2019re very student oriented here. It\u2019s an important part of our culture and part of the Monmouth story. [President-Elect] Pat Leahy understands that, and I know he\u2019ll be carrying on the tradition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other thing would be that I hope the Monmouth family atmosphere continues. By that I mean that everyone continues working together for the benefit of the students. I know we\u2019ve made a lot of progress in the last two and a half years, and I think everyone on campus is on board with the idea. As a family, everyone\u2014faculty, administrators, staff\u2014has an important role to play. And when we all do our role together, Monmouth is a wonderful place and a great place for students.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Outgoing president Grey Dimenna reflects on his time at Monmouth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":6104,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"image_focus":"","hide_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6086","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-currents","category-tides"],"thumbnail":"\"\"","catString":"Currents, Tides","issue":"Summer 2019","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6086","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6086"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6086\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18844,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6086\/revisions\/18844"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6104"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6086"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6086"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6086"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}