By: Katie Sanders, Staff Writer
Wofford alumnus Curt McPhail returns to campus as the new executive director of The Space. Graduating in 1996 with degrees in business economics and sociology, he has, according to Provost Dennis Wiseman, “a wealth of experience as a leader and expertise in developing strong, diverse partnerships, building effective teams and achieving high quality outcomes in both local and global environments.”
McPhail became interested in the position after two different nonprofits he ran collaborated with The Space.
“Twice I had worked with The Space on consulting projects, once with the Northside Development Group, and another time with globalbike. So I knew their work and was interested when I heard there was an opening.”
Although he has been absent from Wofford for 20 years, he feels being an alumnus in this position has certain advantages.
“There are people on staff and in the administration that were here when I was, so there are fewer new relationships I have to build from scratch.” He adds, “I think one of the most essential aspects of The Space is being able to connect students to alumni, so being one helps.”
However, some things have changed. Not only are there physical additions to the campus that weren’t here during his days as a student, such Phase V and 400 more students, there are also new values.
“One important thing that has changed, in my opinion, is Wofford’s commitment to the community outside of the Wofford bubble,” he says. “It is much stronger than it was. When I came in 1992, I was only the second class of Bonner Scholars.”
Leading The Space in alignment with Wofford’s values is McPhail’s priority. His background working as a community organizer taught him to listen to everyone.
“The key tenant to community organization is listening to all parties involved, and then summing up those opinions in an answer.”
During his first five weeks on campus, his main duty was listening. He heard from faculty and staff about what they want to see from The Space and also began arranging focus groups with students.
So far, only one student has registered for the hour-long focus groups, despite the incentive of a Starbucks gift card. He says he won’t assume this means students don’t care, but that e-mail, which he used to contact 100 random students, may not be the most effective means of interacting with the student body.
He promises, “We won’t make any decisions at The Space until I hear from students. To me, that’s the key piece in this.” Until then, his answer to the question “what will be changing at The Space?” is “I don’t know yet.”
Spring semester will be one for strategizing. His hope is that by late April to early May, the staff will be able to take a retreat, to put their semester’s research on the table and make definitive plans for the summer and 2016-2017 school year. He says, “There is a commitment on my part that students leave here better prepared than at any other college.”