Dartmouth Dean Leaves to Head Swarthmore

James Larimore, dean of Dartmouth College, has announced that he will leave that institution this August to accept the deanship at Swarthmore College.

Larimore said his reasons for moving to Swarthmore include a desire to "dean more and administer less." He expects that Swarthmore's smaller size will allow him "to be visible and active in the campus community" and to have a greater impact on the school.

Larimore also cited Dartmouth's academic calendar as a reason for his decision to leave. Swarthmore follows a traditional academic calendar with fall and spring semesters and summers off. Dartmouth, by contrast, follows the Dartmouth Plan, a unique academic calendar that uses four 10-week terms distributed throughout the year. The Dartmouth Plan was adopted in part to make it easier for students to arrange off-campus study and internships. Over half of Dartmouth undergrads take part in at least one of the College's many off-campus study programs. Larimore thinks that Swarthmore's traditional academic calendar will make it easier to start and maintain an ongoing dialogue on college issues with students.

Larimore's accomplishments as Dean of Dartmouth College include improving the relationship between administrators and students and increasing the diversity of the College community. Larimore was a key figure in Darthmouth's decision to hire Josie Harper as athletics director, making it the first Ivy League school to name a woman to that post.

Source: "Larimore Resigns, Plans to Leave for Swarthmore," by Rebekah Rombom, The Dartmouth, 4 May 2006

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