September 8, 2026

Dear Colleagues,

Thank you to all of you who signed up for Thinking Together. It was such a pleasure to start the semester in conversation with colleagues, unscripted, following whatever questions and curiosities emerged from our being in the same space. I see these opportunities—to come together across disciplines and roles, and to take the time to wander and wonder about questions—as among the highest privileges afforded by a university.

At its root, the word university (universitas) refers not to physical buildings or formal credentials, but to a community of people bound together in a shared endeavor. Perhaps what defines us most deeply is the questions we choose to explore together—and whether we create the kind of environment in which people feel free to explore them.

Thinking Together has reminded me how much intellectual energy is released when we create that space. I would like us to create more of it.

In his book Palaces for the People, sociologist Eric Klinenberg explores the fundamental importance of "third spaces"—libraries, parks, and other shared gathering places—in the health and well-being of communities. When people have inviting spaces to gather, cross paths, and share ideas, a place becomes far more than a location where people work and live; it becomes a resilient, living entity with rich relationships and vibrant output.

Are we, as a university, sufficiently nurturing spaces that bring us together across disciplines and roles? Are we creating enough of these spaces for ourselves and for our students? The president and I have also been talking about how we can create more of these spaces across the University. We both believe this is an area where we have the potential to do more. The small-scale Thinking Together conversations and the upcoming Wide World of Ideas series are two ways we can begin.

The Wide World of Ideas is designed to serve as a key piece of our intellectual and social infrastructure—an inviting space for our campus to step away from routine tasks, cross

departmental boundaries, and engage with compelling ideas together.

I invite you to read the guest feature below by Amy Aiello, who outlines the vision, inaugural speaker, schedule for the series, and calls for suggestions and contributions.

I look forward to seeing you at the upcoming lectures, crossing paths with you in these shared spaces, and continuing the conversations that make our community richer.

With warm regards,

Fatma

Montclair holds an incredible wealth of intellectual power. The central question for Academic Affairs is: How do we create intentional spaces for those assets to come together and interact around the most urgent issues of our time?  The Wide World of Ideas was created to answer that call.

Grounded in our institutional priorities, this series will bring scholars, writers, performers, and public intellectuals to campus to engage our university community in conversations that cross disciplinary boundaries. It will create opportunities for us to think together about questions that matter to our

disciplines, to our university, and to the wider world.

Among the questions we might explore:

Our inaugural session will take place on Tuesday, October 27, featuring educator, ethicist, and novelist Mark Peres, presenting “A New Story for the Age of AI - The Philosophy of Recognition and Moral Participation”.  

Drawing on philosophy, theology, technology, and cultural analysis, Peres argues that the central challenge of the AI era is not merely technological, but fundamentally moral. His talk will explore how we preserve and enlarge our humanity by moving toward a “philosophy of recognition”- a framework grounded in the understanding that the existence of other beings matters, and that our future depends on active moral participation in a rapidly changing world.

Because The Wide World of Ideas belongs to the entire University, its future direction should be shaped collectively. I invite your input as we plan future events. Which thinkers, researchers, or practitioners would you be excited to bring to Montclair? What pressing cross-disciplinary questions would you like to explore with colleagues across campus? What formats would be most engaging to you, your colleagues, and students? What topics or formats would be appealing and convenient to members of our community at large?

Please share your ideas with me directly at aielloa@montclair.edu. I hope you’ll join us on October 27 and help us shape where the conversation goes from here.

Amy Aiello

Chief of Staff, Office of the Provost

Creating a More Personal University Directory

Our colleagues in University Communications and Marketing have replaced the default Pebbles image in the online employee directory with a silhouette. I encourage you to add a photo to your profile so we can more easily put faces to the names of those we work alongside.

You can also add your CV, research interests and a brief biography through self-service by following the How to Update Your Profile guide. These details help showcase the breadth of scholarship at Montclair and strengthen our visibility as a research university. 

Welcome, New Faculty!

This academic year, we welcome new faculty colleagues whose knowledge, experience and perspectives will strengthen our academic community. I invite you to learn more about them and join me in welcoming them to Montclair.

Celebrating 10 Years as a Hispanic-Serving Institution

This year marks Montclair State University's 10th anniversary as a Hispanic-Serving Institution. As the largest HSI in New Jersey, this milestone reaffirms our commitment to fostering belonging, expanding opportunity and supporting student success.

Beginning September 14 through September 20, the Office for Hispanic Initiatives will celebrate National HSI Week by highlighting the people, programs and partnerships that advance Montclair's Hispanic-serving mission on social media, @montclair_hispanicinitiatives.