On Wednesday Nov. 6 at 5:53 p.m. Brandeis’ Interim President, Arthur Levine ’70 addressed the Brandeis community for the first time since taking office on Nov. 1, with an email titled “Greeting from Interim President Levine.”

Levine began his email by reflecting on the positive memories he made during his time at Brandeis. Most notable of these being meeting his “closest friends who later introduced [him] to [his] wife, Linda Fenitman.” He also shared that Brandeis is the place where he found his vocation and realized he wanted a career in higher education. 

The interim president revealed that through returning to the Brandeis campus he has been reminded of his “roots” and how his experiences at Brandeis have guided him through life. He then went on to share his top three reasons that he believes that Brandeis will continue to excel. 

First, Levine points out that Brandeis is both an “outstanding liberal arts college” and an “eminent research university” simultaneously. He notes that while typically a research university will dominate and determine an “institution’s character and priorities” Brandeis is unique, or a “unicorn,” in that both are able to thrive. In his words, at Brandeis “the integrity of both is sustained, and enriches the other.”

Levine’s second reason is that Brandeis is “a nonsectarian institution established by the Jewish community, is imbued with the values of its founders — a love of learning, a dedication to academic excellence, an antipathy to discrimination, and a commitment to social justice and social action.” 

Third, Levine asserts that Brandeis is a trailblazer, both “intellectually and socially.” Brandeis, since its beginning, has led the way as an “elite” university for those who might be discriminated against by traditional higher education. This spirit of diversity has attracted “renowned scholars and promising academics early in their careers to the Brandeis faculty,” the email said. He details that from Brandeis’ very first graduating class in 1952, affectionately known as “the pioneers,” Brandeis’ environment has fostered and attracted students who strive to “study with society’s greatest and most innovative minds.” He stated that  these great minds have taught — and continue to teach — Brandeis students how to “think critically, creatively, ethically, and out of the box.    

Levine concluded his email by saying that, especially after the presidential election, he is excited to return to the Brandeis campus and be a part of a community that rejects hate and is committed to repairing the world.