At the Faculty Service Awards Luncheon held at Rutgers University President Holloway’s house on May 4 to celebrate and honor faculty members marking 10 or more years of service to the university, Distinguished Professor of Communication Brent Ruben delivered an address on behalf of the faculty.

Looking back on his 50 years at Rutgers so far, Ruben, who is Advisor for Strategy and Planning in the Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, and Senior University Fellow at the Center for Organizational Leadership, said when he arrived, he was given what was most likely a typical faculty “startup package that consisted of a used IBM Selectric typewriter (anyone remember those?), several bottles of white out liquid paper to make corrections, an old wooden desk, chair, and wastebasket.”

I was recruited to Rutgers in 1971 with a colleague from the University of Iowa—where I was a young assistant professor ­—to help create a department of Communication.

He also added, “Advancements have been remarkable at Rutgers. The changes have not always been linear, but the overall pattern of progress has been extremely impressive to be sure.”

Ruben was invited to speak by Prabhas Moghe, Rutgers University’s Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer.

The invitation was a distinct honor for Ruben, who said, “I was very pleased to represent the other faculty being honored.”

Below is the full transcript of Ruben’s address.

Thank you Prabhas. I am honored to be here with faculty colleagues celebrating 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 years of service to Rutgers. Asked to share a few comments on this occasion—with thoughtful guidance that it is important to be 'brief (5 minutes), upbeat, and celebratory.' I guess administrators are just never sure how much to trust a faculty member with a microphone and a podium—particularly when they are a representative of the senior faculty community. I’ve condensed my first 30-page draft speech and ppt deck, and will do my best to be upbeat and celebratory.

I used that typewriter for my teaching, research, and publications, and my first book was created on that typewriter and published in 1972.

Indeed, the years do fly by. In my case I have 50 years of memories. Occasions like this prompt reflection and I want to share a few brief highlights with which I hope many of you can relate. I do know we each have our own stories—and old stories can be a bit like family pictures on our cellphones—in that we’re always far more interested in our own than others’. So, I promise not to ramble on.

I was recruited to Rutgers in 1971 with a colleague from the University of Iowa—where I was a young assistant professor ­—to help create a department of Communication. Arrived from a big ten school to what I was often reminded was really pretty much an ivy league school—more like Harvard, Princeton, and Yale than universities like Iowa, Michigan, Texas, UCLA or other large public state universities.

First year only men at Rutgers New Brunswick; women at Douglas. Separate colleges. Each with its own version of disciplines, e.g., 3 or 4 distinct NB depts of sociology, English, psychology, etc. with separate faculties and chairs, and limited interaction among students and faculty. Pretty unique—and likely not a best practice even 50 years ago. Emphasis on liberal arts and science. Some misgivings about the ‘upstart' more professionally-oriented disciplines like business and communication—neither of which had undergraduate programs at the time.

I smile when I realize that fifty years later, I’m back at a large diverse big ten school, with a nationally distinguished program in communication, and a football team aspiring to greater moments ahead—which had also been the signature mantra of the University of Iowa program at that time.

My arrival was probably fairly typical for faculty then. My startup package consisted of a used IBM Selectric typewriter (anyone remember those?), several bottles of white out liquid paper to make corrections, an old wooden desk, chair, and wastebasket. My office was in Van Dyck Hall under the lecture hall, and the loud noise from students ascending and descending the elevated rows of chairs provided hourly reminders of its location and the fledgling status of our discipline here on the banks of the historic Raritan.

I used that typewriter for my teaching, research, and publications, and my first book was created on that typewriter and published in 1972. Ironically, and gratifyingly, this week I completed my most recent book that will be published this year—50 years after the first—thankfully completed with the benefit of considerably improved technology.

Ruben was asked 30 years ago by the Rutgers president at the time to begin a program to promote advances in organizational improvement and leadership—a program which continues to be a significant influence within the university today.

I’m sure I’m not alone when I reflect on the many opportunities and also the challenges – personal, professional, and institutional—that have marked my time here. 

Advancements have been remarkable at Rutgers. The changes have not always been linear, but the overall pattern of progress has been extremely impressive to be sure. Great opportunities for growth, development, and contribution as a faculty member through scholarly, professional, instructional, and community engagement work, serving in various academic and administrative roles, helping to create new organizations, serving as the first director of the Ph.D. in Communication and Information, representing Rutgers as an inaugural liaison to Big Ten Academic Alliance, asked by the then president 30 years ago to begin a program to promote advances in organizational improvement and leadership—a program which I believe continues to be a significant influence within the university today, on and on.

As we all celebrate the 10-year anniversaries, I hope you all share this same sense of accomplishment . . . and the gratitude to an institution and colleagues that contributed in so many ways to these outcomes.

For me Rutgers has been a wonderful intellectual and professional home. Like each of you, I have had the opportunity to work with bright and talented faculty and staff colleagues, and wonderful students, all of whom have helped to make this possible. As we all celebrate the 10-year anniversaries, I hope you all share this same sense of accomplishment . . . and the gratitude to an institution and colleagues that contributed in so many ways to these outcomes.

At this point, I find myself looking back appreciatively on 50 challenging, inspiring, and rewarding­—never boring—years. Time has flown by for me as it has—and will for all of us—as we celebrate our time at Rutgers, reflect on our experiences to date, and try to decide exactly what we’ll do when we grow up. Congratulations to all of us . . . and thanks to Rutgers!

To read more about this event, see the SC&I article: "Four SC&I Faculty Members Receive Rutgers Faculty Service Awards."

Discover more about the Communication Department at the Rutgers School of Communication and Information on the website.

Photo: Courtesy of Brent Ruben