Director’s Notebook #41
GPIA Community,
We’ve come to the end of another academic year—and a particularly challenging one at that—and while this spot on the calendar usually signals a pause of sorts, currently there is much still going on and much still to process. With that in mind, I have few stocktaking thoughts to share.
First and foremost, please join me in congratulating the GPIA class of 2024:
- Master of Arts graduates: Crystal Appiah, Zach Chaqor, Casey Donovan, Lucas Gioiosa, Tian-Tian He, Hannah Kim, Anh Lê, Elizabeth Magallon Ibarra, Nathaniel Manock, Justis Peppers, Ana Beatrix Pessoa Trejos, Pablo Portes Isidor, Taylor Reid, Katherine Shepherd, Jennie Spector, and Christina Wong You Cheong
- Master of Science graduates: Julie Caracino, Kyuma Gumaa, and Patrick Slavin.
Graduates, thank you for what you have added to GPIA. And we can’t wait to see what you do next.
Second, the strife at the New School surrounding the university’s investments in Israel’s war machine that is carrying out the slaughter of Palestinians as well as police presence and violence on and near campus has caused a rupture. This fracture seems mostly to divide the top level of administration and Board of Trustees from students and faculty. Moreover, within the GPIA community, while there is some diversity of views regarding how best to achieve a durable peace in Palestine-Israel, we exhibit universal agreement on the acute need for a ceasefire, the provision of life-saving assistance, and the freedom to protest. Furthermore, we can take some pride that we were not silent—the May 10 joint statement of the students, faculty, and staff—and has contributed to pressure that is having some effect. Recent messages from the President announcing the return and enhancements of the Advisory Committee on Investor Responsibility (ACIR) is a step in the right direction. However, it’s not a panacea as there remains a great deal to do on the justice and equity agenda at The New School, including some open questions on the processes and outcomes of student suspensions.
I sense many of us are asking ourselves, where do we go from here? How can we bring about the type of change we need? How do we rebuild the university’s integrity in the wake of this shame? How can we once again feel comfortable on campus? I do not have a ready-made recipe for this. But I will point out that our GPIA community has risen to this occasion in asking hard questions, not settling for easy cosmetic answers, and generally supporting each other. I will also add that the focus has been on a pursuit of truth, to accurately denote the circumstances, and to establish transparency. These are the precursors to accountability and reconciliation, and you should find some strength in that.
Third, what’s been happening on college and university campuses in the US and around the world is part of something larger. A surge in nationalist fury associated with the dark sides of globalization has been reconfiguring world order and cementing inequalities. From xenophobia and anti-migrant fervor to human rights violations and violent confrontations, more repressive, and in many cases aggressive, regimes have emerged. In response people are pushing back and while they are often focused on a single issue or instance of abuse, increasingly a common thread in resistance is appearing: a rejection of governance models that marginalize and securitize, that hoard authority and power rather than liberate and administrate. Thus, to be successful in apprehending and engaging the problems in our corner of the world, we must recognize and actively pursue how they connect to global struggles.
Lastly, my time as Director of GPIA is coming to an end. My term has had some challenges, I’d like to say it was a journey home but at times it felt more like holding off a siege—it was more Iliad than Odyssey! That being said, it truly has been my great honor, and dare I say privilege; to represent GPIA to students, to potential students, to other programs, to the administration, and to the public is a proud responsibility because of the exceptional character and work of the people who comprise this community. The sense of curiosity, the compassion and the humanity, the dedication and hard work are all remarkable and make the time and effort that goes into the director’s role worth it. As GPIA director you stand for something important and honorable because so many—faculty, students, staff, and alumni alike—have built the program into a force for fostering justice and finding meaning. There are far too few academic programs in the world where you can have serious conversations about such things as decolonization and the politics of knowledge that is wide-ranging, introspective, and practical, but at GPIA, intellectually and politically almost anything is possible. I want to thank the entire GPIA faculty for their constant support—in particular two of my predecessors, Michael Cohen and Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, were always available to offer their sagacious guidance. And as of July 1, I will pass the baton to my successor, Sean Jacobs, who will now lead the faculty’s continuing shared efforts in producing thoughtful critical scholarship, providing a timely and rich curriculum, cultivating students into professionals, and showing the values we stand for.
I wish you a contemplative and soothing summer.
PETER J. HOFFMAN
DIRECTOR AND ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR