By Rebecca Heath
News Editor
Christopher Murphy, associate provost for curriculum and liberal learning, began his tenure as interim director of the College’s Honors and Scholars Program on Sept. 20, replacing English professor Harriet Hustis.
The Honors and Scholars Program offers an individualized, rigorous curriculum of five Honors course units to students who seek to enhance their cross-cultural and disciplinary thinking, according to the College’s website.
Murphy, who oversees the program as part of his administrative duties, has temporarily assumed leadership while the College searches for a permanent replacement.
“The call has gone out, and so I'm waiting for applications from faculty at this point,” Murphy said via Zoom. “The idea is for the new director to come in in January.”
Administration declined to provide an explanation as to why Hustis, who had been serving in the capacity for the past two years, was suddenly replaced, stating the College does not comment on personnel matters. Murphy noted, however, that while the average tenure for the role is three years, it may be “shorter or a little bit longer, depending on the circumstances.”
“The decision came as a surprise, obviously, but I respect the fact that Dr. Murphy has to do what he believes is in the best interests of the Honors & Scholars Program and its students,” Hustis told The Signal.
Since joining the College’s administration in 2014, Murphy has coordinated a number of cross-College undergraduate academic programs in addition to the Honors and Scholars Program, including Faculty-Student Collaboration, First-Year Seminar, First-Year Writing, Global Engagement, Liberal Learning and Summer Reading. While each program’s respective director does “the vast majority of the work,” Murphy said he frequently collaborates on initiatives and serves as a source of guidance and support.
Murphy’s passion for academia stems from his early stint as a biology professor at James Madison University. After receiving his Ph.D. in neurobiology and behavior from Cornell University and serving in a post-doctoral position at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Murphy relocated to Virginia to begin his first faculty position at JMU, where he quickly “fell in love” with teaching science courses to students with career aspirations outside of the discipline.
“I've become very committed to helping to generate science proficient citizens who can go out and use high quality scientific information and scientific approaches to make good decisions, either in their personal lives or in their professions or as part of agents of change involved with social issues,” Murphy said.
During his 14-year tenure at JMU, Murphy kick started his career in administration through serving as coordinator of the math and science portion of the University’s general education program. He later transitioned to a full-time administrative position at Indiana State University, where he led the Department of Biology for several years before returning to his roots in general education at the College.
“I really love the job,” Murphy said.
As he settles into his interim position and prepares to hand over the reins to a new director this January, Murphy said one of his main priorities is to “innovate and make changes where necessary that'll improve the program and maintain its excellence.”
“The directors are the ones that serve as the leaders of the program and they also set the vision for the program, so I work with them to connect that vision and leadership with the mission of the College,” he said. “My main goal is to make sure it's an excellent program that serves the students well.”
