Ready to start, Brodhead steps in

On the evening of July 1, Richard Brodhead was standing in a tentless Krzyzewskiville as a small mob of Duke students chanted his name adoringly. The 19th-century literary scholar had been scrutinized months ago by a search committee. The Dean of Yale College had been selected by the Board of Trustees in December. And in a grassy plot sprinkled with beer cans, the ninth president of Duke University was confirmed by the popular acclamation of a few dozen college students.

Brodhead's surprise visit to K-ville was part of a turbulent first day at the University, in which the Duke community learned that men's basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski was considering an offer to become the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. But the resolute new leader was clearly at ease, speaking in the center of an enthralled flock of students.

"It wasn't the week I'd been expecting," Brodhead said. "And yet, I have had university administrative jobs for years, and the main thing you know about them is that you never can know on any given day what's going to happen."

To Brodhead, his trip to the Allen Building earlier that morning did not represent a watershed moment. He had been unofficially on the job for several days and had been learning his new responsibilities for months. He directed the hiring of Dr. Victor Dzau, chancellor for health affairs and president and chief executive officer of Duke University Health System, and George McLendon, dean of the faculty of Arts and Sciences.

�� �In an official sense, it was the beginning of an era--his first day as president. And despite the active role he has taken as an incumbent, his on-the-job education will likely continue while he forges the connections essential to realizing the potential that has gained him so many admirers already.

"I have been pretty deeply enmeshed in the business of my new home, certainly since late February," Brodhead said. "In truth, this thing I went through in the last few months was called a transition, and that's exactly what it was. And that's to say that I was an outsider at the beginning, who didn't know very many people here, and I had a lot to learn about every aspect of Duke. People took the time and trouble to help me to an amazing extent and by March I'd say that I began to know quite a number of people here more than a little."

 �Stepping into former President Nan Keohane's role, Brodhead ended his period of learning through observation and began learning through experience. His early discussions have covered a variety of topics, including the relationship of the University to the Duke University Medical System, the search for a dean of the School of Nursing, and plans for construction on Central Campus and the stalled student plaza behind the West Union Building.

Although he has been involved with these issues, his presidential agenda is in its early stages. "It's easy to believe that someone comes in as president and has a secret blueprint for every single issue that comes along," Brodhead said. "If that were true of me, I should be impeached. People need to learn the place before they know what's right and what's wrong."

Although undergraduate education plays to one of Brodhead's strengths, the administration of a health system is new territory for the humanist. Brodhead has called his consultations with Dzau "terrific," and administrators have said that Brodhead has already taken to the complex task of administrating DUHS.

"The simple fact is that running a health center is one of the most complicated jobs anywhere," Burness said. "He's spent a great deal of time learning... the whole Health System--more than any other issue."

Whatever Brodhead's specific plans turn out to be, their implementation will benefit from Brodhead's wit and effusive manner. His sense of humor and intelligence have impressed his colleagues, who, almost in unison, praise his demeanor while giving thanks for the continuity between his vision of Duke and the vision that is common among current University administrators.

"I enjoy looking at my calendar and seeing, 'Oh, I'm going to meet with the president today,'" Lange said. "[He's] not going to be content to let any complacency in. One of the great things about having new folks in place is that it injects energy into the whole system; it gets everybody revved up."

Brodhead has proven his ability to get people revved up from trustee meetings to pep rallies. But his first true opportunity to excite a significant portion of his new university by explicitly describing his vision for Duke may come Sept. 17 at his formal inauguration.

"[It is] a good chance to sound the notes, to strike the chord that the rest of [my presidency] will be in the key of," Brodhead said.