Professor leaving after tenure denial

April 29, 1998

Letter to the Editor

College is supposed to be a place where professors are full of passion about the topics they teach, willing to go out of their way and inspire students to follow their dreams. However, not all professors are like this; in fact, few ever fulfill all of these high standards. So when we do find professors like this, maybe we should hang on to them.

Apparently the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences felt otherwise. Despite unanimous support by the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication and a tenure committee, professor Dom Caristi was denied promotion to associate professor with tenure. Professor Caristi, or Dom as he prefers his students to call him, appealed and was given a two-year extension on his probation. Instead of taking this extension and risking denial again in two years, Dom decided to accept an associate professorship at Ball State University.

Dom is the most energetic, knowledgeable and inspiring professor that we have had at Iowa State. He loves to teach and is always willing to sacrifice for his students.

Dom’s door is always open to students. He not a professor who only keeps office hours, rather he is always around to help students out. Dom even interacts with students outside of the classroom. He is well known for his annual end of the year barbecue, inviting all of his students, as well as faculty, to his house for a cook-out.

Dom is one of the top professors in the journalism department, as well as the university. He is a teacher, an adviser, a professional and a community member. We will not only miss him as a professor with enthusiasm and expertise, but also as a friend.

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is hampering the education of students by forcing professors like Dom to leave. Perhaps the university needs to take a step back and reevaluate why this university is here. Shouldn’t our main goal be to have the best possible educators?

The journalism students at Ball State University are lucky.

Jen Schaffer

Junior