Save the Villa Spelman

The president of the GRO, John Matsui, recently discussed replacement programs with the dean of student life. Last night John reported that the dean had said talks to give students access to scholarly resources were in progress, with opportunities in Bologna looking promising. What such opportunities will consist of remains unclear at the present time.
Thanks to Jamie Magruder, History of Art GRO representative, for pursuing this matter.

At the meeting of the department chairs on Friday, September 7, Dean Falk officially announced the sale of the Villa Spelman to an anonymous Italian gentleman.

Unofficial reports put the sale figure at 13 million euro, which at the current exchange rate of $1=0.72 euro as of 9/14/07 is about $18,051,800.

The university plans to put some of the money from the sale towards humanities graduate student stipends, the amount of which remains undisclosed. This so far accords with Dean Falk's earlier stated intentions in his public letter, posted at http://www.krieger.jhu.edu/pages/villa.htm.

Efforts to continue some type of program for graduate student study abroad proceed, but it is so far not clear what resources will be made available to operate these.

The Graduate Seminar will be held in the spring at the Villa, and will be directed by Professor Celenza.

There has been no news to post in the past few months. Work progresses to find some solution that would allow the university to continue to have access to the villa while still making the situation fiscally viable.

Meanwhile, an article has appeared in a Slovenian newspaper on the situation of the villa. We hope to be able to post the article itself sometime soon, currently there seem to be some technical difficulties.

Following is a letter from students in the humanities departments given to Dean Falk today, March 14, requesting that the University not only stop the sale of the Villa Spelman but renovate it and work to build the program there. The over 50 signatures that accompanied it have been removed for posting.

Dear Dean Falk,

We, the undersigned graduate students in the Departments of History of Art, Romance Languages and Literatures, History, Philosophy, English, Anthropology, Political Science, Classics, German, the Information Security Institute (ISI) and the Humanities Center are writing to state our position regarding the Villa Spelman. We understand that as of this moment sale of the Villa has not been finalized, but wish to take this opportunity to outline what we believe would be an ideal course of action regarding the Villa.

The Villa Spelman has played a pivotal role in the intellectual life of Florence for over twenty five years, hosting weekly Italian Studies seminars led by the finest Renaissance scholars from around the world as well as frequent conferences, whose published proceedings represent cutting-edge research on medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque studies. Its sale would put at risk this celebrated program and the many other projects associated with the Villa Spelman, including the recently introduced undergraduate program. The Villa Spelman is unique among institutions run by American universities in Florence for its rich and varied set of programs, each of which plays a vital role in educating Hopkins students and showcasing Hopkins to a European audience as a serious center for intellectual activity.

The Villa presents an optimal site for Johns Hopkins in Florence. Housed in a Renaissance building, it features a seminar room that is large enough to accommodate seminar participants with appropriate space for slide presentations. A large reception room serves as an informal gathering point following presentations where students make vital contacts with established scholars in their field. The graduate work facilities at the Villa currently offer free high-speed internet, a desirable feature for students living for relatively short periods in Italy and thus unlikely to be able to set up internet facilities at home, in a quiet environment with desk space for laptops. Equivalent structures, with large seminar rooms and technological infrastructure, are extremely difficult if not impossible to find in central Florence, and are prohibitively expensive.

Further, the support staff of the Villa provides important services for graduate students. Staff members write letters of introduction (which are required for entry to every library and museum in Italy), help in finding accommodation in Florence, and handle daily concerns related to both library research and the organization of the seminars. They also provide invaluable help in emergencies, both scholarly and personal, when skillful bureaucratic maneuvering, fluency in the Italian language, and vital personal contacts are required.
The Villa Spelman has also provided invaluable teaching opportunities to Hopkins graduate students. In an academic job market flooded with many qualified candidates, the opportunity for History of Art graduate students to teach on-site (and directly with art objects) has made Hopkins graduates stand apart. Furthermore, the Villa’s intimate setting cultivates an atmosphere in which graduate students act as mentors to undergraduates, advising them in their academic and professional pursuits.

We believe that the university should take advantage of this wonderful resource and its reputation in Europe by transforming the Villa into an ideal graduate study institution. This would convey Hopkins’ commitment to the Humanities, a field of study in which the university has traditionally been a leader. It would also signal Hopkins’ support for its graduate students by allowing them to continue to benefit from the Villa’s renowned reputation in Florence. We request:

1) that the villa be renovated, not just repaired, to better enable the student experience. Existing buildings on the grounds can be turned into graduate student housing. We feel such a renovation is preferable by far to sale, considering the tremendous advantages of the facilities to the program.
2) that the University consider establishing a consortium with other universities. Outside institutions can help fund the renovations and allow their graduate students to participate in and further enrich the seminars.
3) that graduate student representatives from the Arts and Sciences be included in continuing discussions about changes to the Villa and to the program. As many of us have first-hand knowledge of the Villa Spelman and its workings, we would be valuable participants in future conversations.
4) that these graduate student representatives and faculty be brought together to consider the ways in which the Villa might be used by departments not directly involved in Renaissance studies.

The GRO has endorsed our endeavor to save the Villa Spelman, to secure the future of the programs in Florence and to enter into a productive dialogue with the administration on this topic.

The following is the transcript notes, compiled from multiple students' notes, of the meeting Dean Falk held to discuss the sale of the Villa Spelman with students. It is not a verbatim transcript. It should be noted that these notes have been screened by students at the meeting in an attempt to ensure accuracy and fairness. It is our intention to share information with those who are interested but could not be there.

Notes taken at meeting between Dean Falk and graduate students on Thursday, March 9, 2006, 8 am:

Dean Falk:
The rumors we hear do not reflect what is going on. The Spelman Villa is not sold and there are no negotiations to sell. Considering these rumors, I decided to develop a list of people to talk to. We are not as far down the path as you think we are. There has been no appraisal.
All this has raised certain issues:
1. If we no longer own the villa, we need to consider a buyer who would enable us to run the program elsewhere in Florence, or perhaps would allow us to continue the program in the villa.
2. I understand that the Spring semester is important and has to continue, but the Fall semester has less to do with Florence (fewer students have been going in the fall)
3. Walter Stephens has made it clear that he was not happy about running an undergrad program in the Villa Spelman.
4. We are considering running it better and more economically.
5. We have had a problem with sexual assault in the past there has been one incident on via San Leonardo, and are concerned about the safety of our students.
6. Students (graduate students present) need to discuss how they feel they are being treated by the school of Arts and Sciences and not use the villa as a proxy.
7. Unless 5 million dollars are raised, the building WILL fall. It’s a “piss or leave the pot” situation. The paint is peeling, retaining walls are falling, the plumbing needs fixing, it needs a new furnace, the garden wall needs replacing. A structure in the garden has fallen [students protest, say jokingly it is the tool shed; Dean then says he has not been there in 14 years]. Among other costs: gardeners, lawyers, architects. We need a 10 million dollar endowment. A 15 million dollar endowment total, 5 million for restoration and renovations. That is a lot of money to raise.

Question from audience (Italian):
Other schools run similar programs with less funds. How do we sell the Villa without losing face?

Dean Falk:
Viewed externally, operation budgets are hard to understand. The house was given to the University in the 60s, which gave it to Arts and Sciences in the 70’s. The University did not want to keep it. The Spelman family anticipated that the Villa might become a burden to Hopkins and instructed that the property be sold if such became the case.

Question from audience (Art History):
It is extremely valuable for graduate students to teach in front of the artistic objects. Teaching at the Villa Spelman has distinguished my research, I now have a better chance to get a job. Also, the interaction between graduate and undergraduate students is rich and should not be lost.

Question from audience (French) :
Two things: 1) I have heard rumors that there is a potential buyer; I have also heard that Romance Languages was not given the option to raise funds to keep the Villa; 2) We have been talking a lot about money, but it is important to consider the fact that this Villa has enormous symbolic value, and taking that value away from Hopkins is taking away something from the humanistic tradition for which it has been so well known in the past. Besides, the whole University was founded on those very grounds.

Dean Falk:
Walter Stephens was consulted; there are potential donors. My priority is those who give to Gilman Hall, and I often redirect potential donors to that. Fundraising, a complicated matter. The Villa Spelman is a symbol, but a symbol that costs money. So does the Evergreen house, another symbol. Symbols are not necessarily valueless, but they don’t necessarily have infinite value. The villa will always be a symbol…

Comment from audience (Humanities):
Yes but it will not always be OUR symbol [laughter in audience].

Dean Falk:
There is a whole space of possibilities, there are other facilities.

Comment from audience (History of Art):
What about the possibility of sharing the Villa with other schools or Institutions?

Dean Falk:
That possibility has been discussed, but in the past there has been considerable resistance to that kind of arrangement.

Comment from audience (undergraduate student):
Our program works better than others. I was there for a semester and we worked a lot more than the other schools. You get much closer contact with faculty there than at Homewood. Most of them were there for fun and rented their own apartment. You cannot separate the villa from its symbolic value. It would be a setback to sell it.

Comment from audience (undergraduate pre-med student):
The villa emblematizes why people come to Hopkins. You are giving up a huge value.

Dean Falk:
I am curious to know how you see our priorities. The University turned the villa over to A&S. We have 30 million dollars, and Gilman has a priority. I have been asking for a renovation for a long time now. There are other priorities: graduate students’ stipends which are inadequate, and endowed chairs. In any budget decision there is a tipping point where cost has to outweigh the value, symbolic or otherwise, to the community, where should that point be drawn for the villa?

Question from audience (History of Art):
Why did it take so long for this public dialogue to be established? Will students have a place in the conversation in the future?

Question from audience (History of Art):
The staff at the villa is invaluable in helping students gain access to works of art through their contacts and letters of support. Without the staff the program is useless.

Question from audience (Anthropology):
I would like to come back to the distinction you make between A&S and the University. We are clearly a non-profit making section. Why doesn’t the University take the Villa back?

Dean Falk:
The relation between A&S and the University is unique. A&S is indeed a cost center, and vulnerable. The University doesn’t want the Villa back.

Question from audience (Hist. of Art):
If money is tight, why not make use of all the energy created by the Villa? Why not put our energies into a visible spokesperson who could go out and look for a way to save the Villa.

Question from audience (co-chair of GRO)
General Council of GRO voted unanimously that we SHOULD put our efforts into renovation. Petition signed by 1500 people (many outside scholars). Concerned that the administration isn’t taking into account how Hopkins’ reputation directly impacts the faculty and students. Next time you look at the balance sheet you ought to consider the symbolic value of the villa.

Dean Falk:
My highest priority at A&S are the students and the faculty. We do need to consider that the undergraduates pay tuition. The 300,000$ spent on a garden wall at the villa is 300,000$ I do not spend at Hopkins. I have an ethical responsibility in this matter.

Question from audience (French) :
We must consider that selling the villa implies we need to build a new staff, there are costs involved, it may be just as costly as renovating, both financially, and to the cost of the program. It will be very difficult to start from a blank slate. What is the time-line?

Dean Falk:
All programs will continue through the summer. Since Walter Stephens resigned, we cannot continue in the fall. Without a director there is no degree of freedom. There are possibilities out there for renovation.

Question from audience (Italian) :
You put much fog on the issue of priorities: Gilman/students’ stipends/Villa Spelman. I am pessimistic: if you need to sell the villa can you at least keep its furniture and the library?

Dean Falk:
It is not repatriable.

Question from audience (Italian) :
I am also pessimistic about the next step: I do not see the viability of anything new being done. The atmosphere created by the Villa is important to what happens there in the seminar and in other events. I cannot see scholars in Florence taking an elevator in a modern building in suite 200 to go to a lecture for the seminar.

Dean Falk:
I am not a Florentine real estate agent. I don’t know what’s available as a replacement. We make resources available.

Question from audience (Italian) :
Before you sell the house I would like to see a plan for the future after the Villa.

Question from audience (History) :
Would you commit yourself to 1) give a plan 2) give a timeline, say 12 months before anything is done 3) publish the figures concerning the cost of renovation

Dean Falk:
No. But I will commit my good faith. I am not in a position to know what is going on. We are so early in the process. I would be very surprised if it took less than a year. In 2000 it was estimated that the renovation would cost 3-5 million dollars. Put this information in the newsletter? No! We do not publish faculty’s salaries, why would we publish this? You believe me or you do not.

Question from audience (History):
We would like some formalized itemization so we know what we are talking about. We do not need to know the faculty’s salaries.

Question from audience (Humanities) :
The attraction of graduate students to Hopkins is predicated on having the villa.

Dean Falk:
It matters a lot that we get good graduate students. Their stipends are essential.

Dean Falk:
I have a cost of 3-5 million dollars. I do not have a architectural plan, only a conceptual design study. I will share the Miller report on the state of the villa with students who come to see me. You are questioning my credibility.

Question from audience (Humanities) :
No, I think you are a lovely guy. We just want some figures to understand what is going on.

Question from audience (Anthropology) :
It is important for us to have your understanding in this matter. This is a transparency question.

Question from audience (Co-chair GRO):
You say that this is a Krieger problem, not a University problem, but then we get announcements from Pres. Brody that the university has received a large donation and that part of that will go to Gilman Hall; we simply do not understand who we need to take our concerns to. Would it help if we went to Brody, Knapp, the Trustees?

Dean Falk:
I need to know what you think – are we spending too much on science, is that it?
[yes from audience]
I am constantly struggling to protect A&S, as a Dean I think A&S is the most important issue. Gilman is my top priority. In order to get the support of the Trustees you need to set clear priorities, your plan can’t be too diffuse. We got the money for Gilman because I spent all last year saying Gilman, Gilman, Gilman. When I addressed them last weekend I said my three priorities were Gilman, stipends, and endowed chairs.

Question from audience
Are you open to the priority of the villa?

Question from audience
Are we allowed to try to raise more money? Will you give us a time frame?

Dean Falk:
This is how we raise money. The money we need is millions of dollars. The number of people who give millions of dollars is small.

Question from audience (Co-chair GRO) :
Can we designate some graduate students to come to you as representatives so we can get a fuller scope of the costs of renovation?

Dean Falk:
I do not understand what this report is about

Question from audience (Co-chair GRO) :
We fell we are left in the dark.

Dean Falk:
We need to leave this meeting with an action item. At meeting with GRO leadership on Tuesday [March 14] we will determine a way to include graduate students in the discussions.

Question from audience (French) :
We would have liked to have a plan before the program was interrupted. The program was interrupted without our prior knowledge, and this is symptomatic of how things are being done.

Dean Falk:
I want not to have an interruption in the Florence program. Currently working on a plan to ensure that Spring ’07 is not cancelled.

The JHU Newsletter has published an article addressing the wider concerns of students and faculty about the committment to the Humanities by the University, including the sale of the Villa Spelman.

Read the article

Thursday, March 9, Dean Falk met with students from a number of departments concerning the sale of the Villa Spelman. We will soon post a trnscripit of the meeting, which is curently being screened for accuracy.

Tonight's Graduate Representative Organization meeting included a discussion of the University's decision to sell the Villa Spelman. The History of Art graduate students presented a letter requesting the support of the GRO in their position, which requests that the University stop the sale, renovate the villa, and include students in plans for the development of the program. The GRO voted to support this position. The History of Art department also hopes to include students from other departments when they present a letter outlining their points of action to Dean Falk. The German dept. rep and the Romance Languages dept rep both expressed interest in joining in the letter. If any other dept. would like to be included, please contact Christina Neilson (cneilson@jhu.edu) in the History of Art Department.

Dear All,

After discussions among graduate students following the recent decisions made by JHU administration that have begun to affect intellectual life at the Krieger School, a number of us have decided to sit down and try to focus our concerns as a group.

As Hopkins Grad Students, we'd like to meet collectively to discuss our concerns, and to brainstorm about how to best have our voices heard by University Administration. Ultimately, we want to begin conversations with the Administration—likely by voicing our concerns through the GRO (but also through other avenues as needed)--in order to start influencing the Administration's decisions regarding the KSAS. Some pressing issues to be discussed will include:

1. The sale of Villa Spelman
2. The future of the Humanities and Social Sciences at Hopkins
3. Graduate student stipends

We hope you will join us, THIS THURSDAY, March 9th, at 6:30pm, in Macaulay 400.

Questions? Concerns? Email neena.mahadev@gmail.com.

Hopkins posted a statement submitted by Dean Falk on the JHU/KSAS website to the students of the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, to, in his words, "correct some misonceptions." His statements follow from his meeting with the JHU Student Council last Tuesday evening, February 28. It appears to lay out the basic argument of the school, although it leaves many issues unaddressed. We hope to post a response to this statement shortly that points out the unanswered concerns.

At the bottom it notes that he will be available to meet with all interested students at 8 a.m. on Thursday, March 9, in Mergenthaler 111.

Read the statement

The JHU Newsletter published an opinion article March 3 by Christina Neilson, Ph.D candidate in the Dept of the History of Art, regarding the Villa Spelman and its importance to Hopkins.
Read the article

The petition was delivered to the Board of Trustees and the President of Johns Hopkins University today at 2:00 pm, in preparation for the upcoming Board of Trustees meeting to be held Sunday, March 5. At the time of delivery there were 1482 signatures on the English petition, and 130 signatures on the Italian version.

This article was published today in the JHU Newsletter, announcing the suspension of the 2006 Villa Spelman program.
Read the article

This article was published yesterday in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Read the article

This article was published in the Johns Hopkins Newsletter last Friday, February 24. The information about the meeting was incorrect and the protest did not happen.
Read the article

Please forward the following message to Italian scholars:

Come molti di voi già sapranno, l’amministrazione di Johns Hopkins University ha deciso di vendere la Villa Spelman, lasciando di stucco docenti, staff e studenti. La Villa Spelman svolge un ruolo importantissimo nella vita intellettuale di Firenze da oltre venticinque anni grazie agli incontri settimanali di Italian Studies condotti dai maggiori esperti del Rinascimento da tutto il mondo e grazie anche ai numerosi convegni ospitati dalla Villa, i cui atti rappresentano materiale di ricerca d’avanguardia per gli studi sul Medioevo, il Rinascimento e il Barocco. La vendita metterà a rischio tutto questo, così come ogni altro progetto associato alla Villa Spelman. Non appena gli è stato comunicata la notizia della decisione di vendere la Villa Spelman, Walter Stephens, Direttore dal 2001, ha dato le proprie dimissioni.

Sperando di poter in qualche modo fermare l’iniziativa di vendere la Villa, è stata allestita una petizione on-line dai seguenti dottorandi di JohnsHopkins: Laura Blom, Helga Giampiccolo, Ryan Gregg, Richard Leson, Jesse Locker, Chelsey Moore, Christina Neilson, Christopher Nygren, Jill Pederson,Shilpa Prasad, Hyla Robicsek, Kära Schenk, Jennifer Sliwka, Jannette Vusich, and Ittai Weinryb.

Preghiamo anche voi di aderire alla petizione per salvare la Villa Spelman collegandovi al seguente sito: http://www.petitiononline.com/ispelman/petition.html
Vi chiederemmo altresì di inoltrare questo messagio a chiunque pensate possa essere interessato alle sorti della Villa

Grazie per il vostro aiuto.

The administration of Johns Hopkins University has decided to sell the Villa Spelman, a decision that has dismayed faculty, staff and students. The Villa Spelman has played a pivotal role in the intellectual life of Florence for over twenty five years, hosting weekly Italian Studies seminars led by the finest Renaissance scholars from around the world and frequent conferences whose published proceedings represent cutting-edge research on medieval, Renaissance and Baroque studies. The sale puts at risk this celebrated program and the many other projects associated with the Villa Spelman. Upon receiving the announcement that the Villa Spelman was to be sold, Walter Stephens, Director since 2001, resigned in protest.

In an attempt to prevent the sale an online petition has been set up supported by Johns Hopkins graduate students: Laura Blom, Helga Giampiccolo, Ryan Gregg, Richard Leson, Jesse Locker, Chelsey Moore, Christina Neilson, Christopher Nygren, Jill Pederson, Shilpa Prasad, Hyla Robicsek, Kära Schenk, Jennifer Sliwka, Jannette Vusich, and Ittai Weinryb.

Please sign the petition to save the Villa Spelman. The petition can be found at: http://www.petitiononline.com/spelman/petition.html

Thank you very much for your support.