[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 143 (Thursday, October 1, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7090-S7092]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO DAVID WOLK
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I want to take a moment to recognize the
achievements and contributions of a remarkable educator, a personal
friend, and a celebrated leader in my home State of Vermont.
For decades, David Wolk has successfully distinguished himself as an
educator and public servant to the people of Vermont. Now in his 11th
year as president of Castleton University, formally known as Castleton
State College, David likes to call Castleton ``the small college with a
big heart.'' As the longest serving president in its history, he has
increased the college's involvement in the community and has expanded
the university's commitment to civic engagement and service among
students and faculty alike. His personal commitment to his hometown of
Rutland, VT, is evidenced through his service as a former State senator
and current role as a local justice of the peace.
As David has emboldened Castleton's primary mission to serve
Vermonters, the institution has forged new partnerships and expanded
its opportunities to reach far beyond its footprint in Rutland County.
David's leadership is currently enabling the Castleton Polling
Institute, which conducts surveys for Vermont politicians and media
outlets, to expand to a national audience. Meanwhile, the Castleton
Center for Schools continues to serve hundreds of Vermont educators by
offering advanced continuing education opportunities each summer. Under
his leadership, Castleton athletics has expanded from 12 sports at his
inauguration to 27 varsity offerings, enabling Vermont students to play
Division III sports. Most recently, David has provided the vision and
guidance for Castleton to undergo its own transformation as the college
seeks to grow its prestige and opportunities as newly named Castleton
University.
David held a distinguished career in education even before stepping
foot at Castleton. He served as chief of policy for former Vermont
Governor Howard Dean and as the Vermont commissioner of education.
Dedication to his native community of Rutland may also be witnessed by
his impressive resume as a school principal, superintendent of the
Rutland City Public Schools, a guidance counselor and teacher, and a
college instructor. He has also served as a member of numerous boards,
including the Vermont Business Roundtable, the Vermont Public Education
Partnership, and the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation. In
recognition of these achievements, he received the 2009 Eleanor M.
McMahon Award for Lifetime Achievement from the New England Board of
Higher Education.
If his career is not inspiration enough, David's commitment to family
surely is. The proud father of four children, David led his family
through the celebration of the life and legacy of his wife, Diane, when
she passed away this summer, nearly a decade after being diagnosed with
early onset Alzheimer's. A lifelong educator herself, Diane and David,
together, gave more to their community than most. And David's
compassion and commitment to Diane leaves a lasting impression on those
of us who call him a friend. Marcelle and I admire him.
In recognition of David Wolk's service and resiliency, I ask
unanimous consent that Terri Hallenbeck's article from the August 26,
2015, edition of Seven Days be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From Seven Days, Aug. 26, 2015]
Resilient David Wolk Champions Castleton University
Between the playing fields that serve the Castleton
Spartans, a marble monument tells the story of the Greek king
Leonidas and how he bravely resisted an army of invaders.
David Wolk chose the 22,000-pound stone from a Rochester
quarry and had it polished and engraved in Barre. As
Castleton's longest-serving president and its cheerleader-in-
chief, he hoped the monument's message, titled ``Spartan
Pride,'' would inspire students. He installed it six years
ago, just after the college football team's inaugural season
in a brand-new stadium.
Players quickly made the monument the focus of a new
Castleton tradition, stopping to touch it on their way to
practices and games. It offers no guarantees of victory on
the field but is an apt symbol for the little college's
fighting spirit to survive--and make a name for itself--in
the increasingly competitive world of higher education.
For the past 14 years, Wolk has labored to transform
Castleton from a tiny, isolated college into a growing
university with adequate funding, marketable programs and
satisfied students. Last month, it got a new name: Castleton
State College became Castleton University.
``Not a lot of colleges are planning on increasing their
enrollment these days,'' said Vermont State Colleges
chancellor Jeb Spaulding, who oversees Castleton and four
other state colleges. ``Dave's different. His plan is, `I'm
building something that's attractive.' ''
``He's the pied piper of Castleton and Rutland County.''
Just as impressive is the fact that 62-year-old Wolk
managed to remake Castleton while he waged another, personal
battle. Beneath the engraved tale of the Spartan king,
there's a hint at that story, too. In small type at the
bottom of the rock, it reads, ``In honor of Dr. Diane Wolk.''
Wolk's life is so intertwined with his work at Castleton
that he brought in this monument, at his own expense, not
just to create a Castleton tradition, but as a tribute to his
wife. Diane Wolk was a longtime teacher, school principal,
chair of the State Board of Education and one-time director
of student teaching at Castleton. She was diagnosed with
early-onset Alzheimer's disease in 2007, on her 57th
birthday, four years after she first started noticing
symptoms.
David Wolk watched in awe as his wife accepted her fate and
even strove to demystify
[[Page S7091]]
the cruel disease. In 2008, she rallied 400 friends to take
part in a ``Walk With Wolk'' Alzheimer's fundraiser, and,
while the disease had already started to affect her mind, she
addressed the crowd. Quoting Lou Gehrig, she said she felt
like the luckiest person in the world.
``She just stood up and was very brave,'' Wolk recalled.
``The monument is a testament to a woman who had a lot of
courage.'' Diane Wolk died last month.
``The Castleton Way''
Tony Volpone was the football coach for opposing Endicott
College when his team visited Castleton State College in
2013. Endicott defeated Castleton 43-7 that day, but the
``losing'' side left an indelible impression on Volpone.
He saw a stately new stadium filled with an enthusiastic
crowd, a marching band, fans holding tailgate parties in the
parking lot, a bouncy house for kids. And at the end of the
game, the team locked arms and led the crowd in the singing
of the alma mater.
``I was so impressed with what I saw,'' Volpone said. ``It
made me go, `Wow, I could really see myself here.' '' A year
later, he became Castleton's head coach. Volpone credits Wolk
for the scene that sold him.
For most of those home-game Saturdays, Wolk is in the
crowd, beaming, with his soon-to-be-96-year-old father,
Arthur. ``It's a beautiful thing,'' he said. It's what Wolk
envisioned when he became Castleton president in 2001 and set
in place a 10-year plan to boost the college's profile.
Wolk was uniquely positioned when he took the job running
the public college in his native Rutland County. The son of a
local pediatrician, he graduated from Rutland High School and
Middlebury College and went on to a career as a teacher,
principal and school superintendent. Wolk also represented
Rutland County for four years in the state Senate, made an
unsuccessful bid for lieutenant governor in 1992 and served
as chief of policy for governor Howard Dean before becoming
state education commissioner.
By the time he took over at Castleton, he had experience
navigating educational and political waters. Wolk also
brought boundless optimism and salesmanship to the job.
Zachary Devoid of St. Albans, a senior computer information
systems major and lacrosse player at Castleton, remembered
meeting Wolk at the start of his freshman year. The president
hosts a barbecue for new students every year at his on-campus
house. Later, when Devoid's lacrosse team was holding an all-
night fundraiser in memory of a student, Wolk came by with
pizza.
``He eats in the dining halls. He goes to sporting
events,'' Devoid said. ``He's very personable.''
``At orientation last year, he shook everybody's hand and
introduced himself. It was really cool,'' said Cassie
Papandrea, a senior English major from Orwell who was on
campus last month getting ready for this year's orientation.
Spaulding said he visited Wolk at Castleton recently and
went off on his own to the gym. When he returned to Wolk's
house, he said, ``I asked him, `How come all these students
look me in the eye and open the door for me?' He said, `It's
the Castleton way. They have to open doors for people, and
they have to pick up trash.' ''
In fact, there's no rule about acting responsibly, but
Devoid said the campus is so close-knit that people just do.
Wolk has created a campus atmosphere that makes students
want to stay, said Scott Giles, president of Vermont Student
Assistance Corp., whose organization administers college
loans and interacts with a wide variety of colleges. Although
its student-retention rate hasn't budged much in the last
decade--it's average, at 73 percent--Castleton's six-year
graduation rate has climbed by nearly 10 percent. Enrollment
has grown from 1,598 in 2000 to 2,183 last year. The goal is
to reach 2,500 by 2023.
Students, faculty and outsiders have noticed a difference.
``Castleton has been one of the real success stories,''
Giles said, likening its emergence to Champlain College's
transformation from a two-year to a four-year school a decade
and a half ago.
``Dave has been really, really successful in taking an
institution that had a reputation as something of a suitcase
college--where you can get a solid degree but you leave to do
other things on the weekend,'' Giles said. ``What he's really
done is transform the campus. It's a community that meets a
student's full range of needs.''
Double Duty
Not every faculty member was convinced Castleton needed
football, according to Louis ``Tersh'' Palmer, a union rep
and English professor. Some ``would like to see more emphasis
on academics,'' he said, and ``throw all the rest of that
stuff out.''
The football program has had some problems. In 2011, its
first coach was forced to resign after allegedly violating
National Collegiate Athletic Association rules by arranging
loans for an athlete. In 2013, six players were suspended
from the team following a scheme to steal sporting goods from
a store.
In both cases, Wolk publicly acknowledged the fumbles and
recovered the ball. ``We will stay positive and upbeat as we
move forward together as a family,'' he said in response to
the 2013 case.
He took the same approach to his wife's illness. Diane
Wolk, who'd been named the state's teacher of the year in
1984, was the popular principal of Rutland's Northeast
Primary School when Alzheimer's began to manifest itself. In
his Woodruff Hall office, Wolk keeps a photo of her 2006
retirement; it shows his wife surrounded by smiling
children--a happy spin on a somber moment.
Wolk likes to focus on the positive. He hands out cards
printed in Castleton green that say, ``Keep smiling.'' And,
amazingly, it works.
He tried to follow his own advice during the nine-year
ordeal that Wolk calls the ``long goodbye.'' But he also
acknowledged it's been a roller-coaster ride. Asked how he
managed the double duties of handling his wife's illness and
raising the college's profile--two long but very different
journeys--Wolk said candidly, ``I didn't.''
He relied on his team at Castleton, he said, and there were
times he considered quitting to become his wife's full-time
nurse. But as the disease progressed, Wolk realized she
needed professional care. Diane had chosen to move to
Florida, where she could participate in Alzheimer's research
and access different levels of specialized care. Wolk said
his wife actually preferred being far away because it spared
her friends and colleagues the pain of watching her decline.
``She didn't want to make them sad,'' he said with
admiration. But for Wolk, who visited many weekends, it was a
long haul.
``I think it's been very difficult,'' said Spaulding, who
served in the state Senate with Wolk in the 1980s. ``But I
think Castleton University is part of his family. It's part
of what's enabled him to continue.''
Wolk confirmed that Castleton was his salvation during that
decade of decline. ``I was able to dive into the college,''
he said. ``It gave new meaning to my life.''
Castleton had 12 athletic teams when Wolk arrived on
campus. It now has 27, which is more than any other Vermont
state college or the University of Vermont. The school is
providing Vermont students with an opportunity to play
college sports in their home state. And they're tuition-
paying students. Because it is Division III, Castleton
doesn't offer athletic scholarships.
The school has added a lot more than sports teams. It has
invested more than $75 million in new construction and
renovations to every building on campus. The college has gone
from offering one master's degree to 10, with plans to add
doctorates in education and nursing practice.
While some Vermont state colleges have endured layoffs,
Castleton has avoided them, according to Wolk. The college
does plan to cut one program next year, though: its
associate's degree in nursing, a program that Vermont
Technical College offers.
Wolk has also launched a variety of branded initiatives
that are generating revenue: The Castleton Polling Institute,
which conducts paid surveys for Vermont politicians and media
outlets, is expanding and going national; the Castleton
Center for Schools brought 800 Vermont teachers to campus
this summer for continuing education; the Castleton Downtown
Gallery showcases art--and the Castleton name--in downtown
Rutland. The university also owns the Spartan Arena at
Rutland's Diamond Run Mall, a public operation that gives
students real-world business experience. The college bought
the building to accommodate its men's and women's hockey
teams, which Wolk started in 2003. When they aren't
practicing or playing there, it's a rental rink and fitness
center.
The income-generating programs have been developed in
response to a shrinking pool of college-age students and
declining state funding. Vermont routinely ranks near the
bottom in state support for its public colleges. This year,
Vermont State Colleges will receive $24.4 million from the
state, which is split equally among the five colleges.
Castleton's allotment pays just 10 percent of its budget.
``We're getting less money from the state this year than we
got in 2008 or '09,'' Wolk said, and he knows enough about
Vermont politics to realize that is unlikely to change
anytime soon.
The name change is also intended to counteract the lack of
state funding. Wolk said he hopes Castleton University will
attract more out-of-state students, who pay higher tuition.
Currently, 74 percent of its students are in-staters. By
2023, Castleton's goal is to have a 60-40 in-state versus
out-of-state split. Wolk said Castleton's main mission
remains to serve Vermonters but will reflect the reality that
there are fewer college-age students in the state.
Castleton's other programs within the community, including
the polling institute and the Spartan Arena, are examples of
other ways it's contributing to the public good.
Particularly for international students who equate the word
``college'' with high school, the ``university'' designation
should send a clearer message. Castleton had 25 students from
other countries last year and expects 50 this year, Wolk
said. The college upped its overseas admissions efforts by
hiring a Chinese-American recruitment coordinator and making
two trips to China last year, he said. As part of a
residency, 13 Chinese scholars are due on campus this fall.
During the 15 years he's taught at Castleton, English prof
Palmer has seen enrollment and programs expand and the
quality of students grow. ``There really has been an
improvement in morale, in offerings,'' he said. Football, he
acknowledged, helped.
What's in a Name Change?
As Vermont's colleges struggle with dwindling resources and
occasional layoffs, can
[[Page S7092]]
the state afford to keep all five alive--plus the University
of Vermont? In a recent commentary, Hinesburg author Bill
Schubart took on the issue, arguing, ``Vermonters can't
adequately fund six colleges in a time of declining
enrollments.'' He contended that renaming Castleton was not
the answer.
``I really doubt that their new name will do much to solve
the enrollment and cost challenges facing all our small state
colleges, to say nothing of our students,'' he said.
Spaulding, who took over as chancellor last year, said he's
heard all of those arguments before, but he sees no reason to
consolidate. ``We actually need the colleges we have,'' he
said.
Spaulding argued that Castleton's name change will be good
for all of them, adding that none of the other college
administrators objected.
Each of the state colleges has--and should have--its own
identity, Spaulding said. Lyndon has the largest percentage
of out-of-staters, a strong meteorology program and an
innovative electronic journalism program. Johnson is known
for external degrees for nontraditional students, social
service programs and the performing arts. The bread and
butter of Vermont Technical College is its two-year
engineering degree. Community College of Vermont offers an
affordable start for students of all ethnicities and
socioeconomic backgrounds.
Castleton's specialty is being less specialized. ``It's a
small university that has a robust graduate program combined
with broad academic programs,'' Spaulding said. ``It's the
only public higher ed institution in Vermont with a football
team, and it's got a very lively campus.''
Wolk acknowledged that the name change is really about
perception.
When Richard Stockton College of New Jersey became Stockton
University this year, the goal was to ``raise the school's
profile, helping it attract faculty, students--especially
graduate and international students--and raise funds,'' the
Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
Massachusetts state colleges changed their names in 2010,
though they retained the word ``state,'' so that Bridgewater
State College became Bridgewater State University.
Castleton students are buying into the idea that Castleton
University carries just a little bit more prestige. ``It
means we're expanding, we're growing,'' said Papandrea.
``It's going to help the college bring in more students,''
Devoid said. It might look a little jazzier on his resume,
too, he said.
For Wolk, the name change marks a major milestone for
Castleton, which has actually had seven other appellations
since 1787: It's been Rutland County Grammar School, Vermont
Classical High School, Castleton Seminary, State Normal
School at Castleton, Castleton Normal School and Castleton
State Teachers College. The Castleton State College
designation dates to 1962.
``Modernizing our name reflects who we've become and who we
aspire to be,'' he said. ``It's a wonderful turning point for
a wonderful institution.''
The idea for the name change emerged two or three years ago
as Castleton administrators crafted Wolk's second 10-year
plan. Although he was a driving force behind it, the
visionary president had to miss some of the meetings that
made it happen, during which his staff pitched the idea to
the Vermont State College committees. In the last few months,
as his wife's health worsened, he spent more time in Florida
than Vermont. He was with Diane when she died there on July
4.
``Our goal was that her death be peaceful and painless,''
he said. ``It was that.'' In the weeks after, Wolk received
hundreds of messages from his wife's former students,
colleagues and friends telling him how much Diane had meant
to them.
``Kids just loved her,'' said David Blow, a Castleton
journalism professor who had Diane as a first-grade teacher.
His mother, Lucille, who taught alongside her at Barstow
Memorial School in Chittenden, told her son that Wolk's was
the most difficult condolence card she has ever had to write.
When the full Vermont State Colleges Board of Trustees
gathered July 23 to make a final decision on the name change,
David Wolk traveled to Montpelier for the meeting. ``I just
wanted to be there, because it was historic,'' he said. The
vote was unanimous. Word went viral as Castleton spokesman
Jeff Weld announced the move on Twitter and Facebook, and the
university's website got more than 10,000 hits.
Afterward, Wolk continued on to Burlington to board a plane
for Florida, where two days later family gathered for a
celebration of Diane's life. In his eulogy, Wolk spoke about
his wife's courage.
``Her life was full of teachable moments, and this was the
final one,'' he said.
Diane Wolk's family members divided her ashes for each to
scatter as he or she wished. The next week, Wolk returned to
Castleton. That Friday afternoon, he and two of their four
children went to the Spartan monument and spread her remains
at the base of the rock that honors and encourages brave
souls.
____________________