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�ǿ����޴�ý University President Jonathan Koppell hosted a Town Hall meeting on Wednesday, April 17 attended by faculty and staff, where he reflected on a year of “progress, promise and partnership,” notably the strengthening bonds with the city of Paterson, including the celebrated opening of the Charles J. Muth Museum of Hinchliffe Stadium and One Square Mile initiative, where Montclair students are working within the community teaching English-as-a-new-language for Spanish- and Arabic-speaking residents.

These partnerships reflect the University’s commitment to serving society and creating powerful community partnerships that make a positive impact on both communities and students, Koppell told the audience in Alexander Kasser Theater and on a livestream (see below).

“We’re a community with a special purpose … because what we are as a community, as partners, is a mission to deliver transformational opportunities for students from all backgrounds. That’s our assignment,” Koppell said. “I’m 100% committed to that assignment.”

Among the initiatives, Montclair is working to break down barriers and create new pathways to higher education by partnering with community colleges and high schools, and addressing statewide issues, including maternal health and the teaching shortage with a Teacher Certification Apprenticeship and the nation’s first Alternate Route Teacher Certification Program to attract music teachers.

Looking ahead, the University will of Bloomfield College into the wider Montclair community, as well as launching a revamped Honors Program, providing resources to help students manage their mental health, and focusing admission growth on international recruitment, Koppell said.

In answering questions submitted prior to the event, Koppell talked about his goals by saying, “It’s impossible for �ǿ����޴�ý University to be what we want it to be without functioning as a community … We need to be part of the process of revisiting everything that we do. Sometimes that means doing new things and sometimes that means doing things that other people have been doing for years.”

He pointed to revisions in the University calendar, introducing new programs like the pre-college summer programs for high school students, offering courses in different modalities to meet students where they want to be, and being part of the protection of American democracy as showing that Montclair is a “university capable of adaptation and change. That’s the university I want to be.”

Photo Gallery

Photos by John J. LaRosa for �ǿ����޴�ý University.