by Margaret Shuhala
In the Beginning ...
Twenty-five years ago, Dean Stuart Stritzler-Levine, sitting in his office in Ludlow, was having the usual busy day, with a steady stream of visitors lined up outside his office door. As he glanced at his appointments for that afternoon, he noticed a notation next to one set of names that indicated the visitors wanted to speak with him about “bringing to our campus an educational venture for senior citizens residing in our surrounding area.”
He was the right man for our Bard LLI founders to meet. Stuart Stritzler-Levine was about innovation and change.
About Dean Stritzler-Levine
Dean Stritzler-Levine had been at Bard for 36 years and had served as dean of the college since 1980. Bard College President Leon Botsein would say of him: “During his years as dean, he oversaw innovations in the admission process, particularly the Immediate Decision Plan; the rapid growth of Bard’s enrollment and curriculum; and the college’s expansion into graduate education. His teaching and research interests at Bard included social psychology, specifically obedience to authority, conformity, attitude measurement, and change; moral development; and experimental design.”
He was also a professor of psychology and began his career at Bard in 1964 as an instructor in the psychology program. Before coming to Bard, Dean Stritzler-Levine was a clinical and research psychologist who worked at various institutions, helping to rehabilitate those with chronic mental illness.
It Was All About to Change
On that sunny afternoon, Dean Levine was about to bring another innovative program to Bard. He met with that small group, those organizers, those visionaries of our LLI. As he said later, before listening to their appeal: “I had just met with the registrar about shoehorning our expanding course offerings into our existing classroom space and to contemplate what they (the LLI organizers) had in mind was not going to be easy or to be honest, possible. They spoke of their intention to recruit Bard faculty and local scholars and artists to offer courses to seniors who would pay a very modest amount to become members of LLI.”
Sharing His Recollections
He shared these reflections at an LLI luncheon in March 2015 honoring his Jubilee Celebration at Bard. Dean Stritzler-Levine, clearly relishing his recollection of that afternoon, went on to say: “They would offer no teaching stipend and…knowing a system of volunteer teaching was not going to fly, I saw Bard dollars floating out from our meager resources in support of all of this. But I knew that nine out of ten ventures of this type sort of expire on the vine well before fruition, and this one was likely to be among the nine. I might as well give, at the very least, moral support for the integrity and earnestness and spirit of those seated at my desk.”
How he loved to tell a story! Knowing his audience was enjoying this, he continued: “The conversation as I recall was enjoyable and while they might have been judged to be slightly pushy, they were pleasant, sincere people, and I admired them. I asked what they wanted from Bard, and they responded—space. I told them about my previous meeting with the registrar but then added that on Fridays, space was well in hand and that you could likely bowl down the corridors of Olin Hall without damaging the legs of students and faculty. I expected a round of thank yous and offers to meet again. What I got was an immediate ‘We’ll take it!’ and the rest is as they say history.”
At the luncheon, LLI members honored Dean Levine saying: “Without his inspiration, energy, and commitment, Bard LLI would not be the success it is today.”
Conclusion
Dean Levine passed away in May 2020, leaving Bard LLI a thriving, integral part of Bard College. His favorite quote, which guided his approach to helping LLI, was from Theodore Seuss Geisel: “It’s better to know how to learn than to know.”
Our thanks to Helene Tieger, Bard College Archivist, for locating Dean Stritzler-Levine’s notes for his remarks at the LLI luncheon in his honor held on March 11, 2015.
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