Matt Harmon: On this episode of Monmouth weekly, we welcome in professor Randy abate director of the university Institute for global understanding to talk about his road to Monmouth. The IGU symposium that kicks off later today and more with university president Patrick Lehe. This is faculty member, Matt Harmon time for episode 26. So Monmouth weekly. Thanks as always for listening, Matt Harmon: We Are looking forward to this conversation. It's a busy week on campus as always. We've got a great guest coming on. That is professor Randy abate, uh, to talk about all things involving the Institute for global understanding, including the symposium that kicks off today, we're gonna get to Randy in just a couple of minutes. Uh, but president Lehe, I say a very good morning to you, and I know we want to jump into, um, some of the, the latest news and updates in terms of the pandemic and what's taking place on campus. Patrick Leahy: Yeah. Good morning, Matt. Nice to be with you as always. I, I do look forward to our, the heart of our conversation with, uh, professor abate, but let me, uh, just give you a couple quick updates on campus, as you suggested rightly, uh, the place is buzzing, at least buzzing by sort of pandemic standards. It's still, uh, a lot less active than, uh, normal, but, uh, the activity is picking up. I'm really pleased that, uh, as I checked the dashboard just this morning that, uh, we only have 17 active COVID cases, uh, on campus. Uh, let me repeat what I always say, which is every single case causes us some concern, cuz you just don't know how an individual case, uh, can affect a person. But, um, the fact that we have 17, we can manage that caseload with the isolation and quarantine requirements, uh, feel very positive about, uh, the way in which we're controlling, uh, the caseload here on campus, despite the fact, uh, that activity is, is going up in fact, uh, just in a week or so, we're gonna bring back to campus the, uh, very popular outdoor tents that will give, uh, our students and our faculty and staff mentors, uh, additional opportunities to visit in a really safe environment, uh, with each other. But, uh, you know, you know, well Matt that, uh, the athletic activities kicking, kicking up here this spring, all of our spring sports are competing. Most of our fall sports, uh, have been moved here to this spring. If all goes as planned, knock on wood as a colleague of mine says, knock on a lumber yard somewhere. Uh, we'll have, have our first football game on Saturday in that short season. Uh, but baseball and softball are off to a great starts. Uh men's and women's lacrosse, no surprise are off to great starts. I was particularly pleased, uh, in the last few days, once again, uh, particularly pleased with our field hockey program, you know, they, they compete in the America east and the America east has this unique arrangement where a few west coast schools, uh, play in the America east. And that includes two of the great athletic programs in the country, Stanford and Cal Berkeley. So once a year, they come east to compete and they were here on campus, uh, over the last few days and we lost a heartbreaker to Stanford three to two, uh, and I always say there was no shame in, in losing a close game to Stanford. I mean, one of the great athletic programs in the country, and then just a few days later, uh, we took on Cal Berkeley and beat 'em three to nothing. Let me just tell you any time our university can go up against APAC 12 opponent and compete. And then the case of Berkeley win is just a great way to burnish the reputation of the, of the university. So, so proud of all of our athletic teams, the coaching staff and the support staff that are doing everything they can to make those competitive opportunities available for the students. So, uh, so starting to get back to a little bit more of a typical activity on campus, Matt Harmon: Certainly good to see I've noticed that as well. And, and, and regardless the, the warm weather usually brings people out of their shelter. Uh, a little bit as well, president Lehe among the topics that we talked about a couple of weeks ago, that you were still hoping for some clarity. And I would say the same thing kind of continues here today is, is what's going to take place, uh, with commencement come, may Patrick Leahy: We just don't have the clarity yet, Matt, you know, we are waiting anxiously for guidelines from the office or the secretary of higher education. They know well of our interest in getting that clarity. Uh, we've articulated it to them numerous times in the last few weeks. And I appreciate the, the challenge in which they find themselves, but, uh, we are committed to hosting in-person ceremonies. I mean, we did it last year when I'm proud to say we did it when a lot of other institutions just did not. They, uh, they just elected to go in a, in a, in a different, uh, manner. And we just felt strongly that our students and their parents, uh, deserved to have an in-person ceremony. And we're committed to that again, this year, we just don't have yet the parameters that we need to design a commencement week. Uh, so I wish I had more clarity, uh, for the campus community. Uh, I don't yet, but we're working on it. Matt Harmon: And then I just wanted to finish in terms of our, our kind of biweekly updates that we do here, uh, on the podcast you had sent a, um, I, I would say faculty wide email on Monday, uh, directed to those that would be involved with, uh, summer classes, how those would be delivered. And then looking ahead to the fall with, with the hope obviously, uh, president Lehe, that when we get to the fall, things will be back to a little more normal, probably not a hundred percent, but a little more normal than they are here in the spring. Talking about things like how classes will be, uh, delivered in terms of online hybrid in person. Um, I I'm sure come the fall there'll be a mix of all three, but the goal would be to have some more in person. Patrick Leahy: Yeah. I mean, that message was aspirational. I mean, obviously we cannot set our fall plans until we get, again, more clarity from the state around what is allowable on college campuses, but it's certainly our hope that with the vaccine being rolled out and, uh, hopefully the, the way in which the nation is managing this, this pandemic that, uh, we will find ourselves in a lot more normal situation in the fall. I , I am stressing more normal and not entirely normal. It might take us some time to be back to pre pre pandemic, uh, uh, normalcy. But I do feel that we are headed in that direction. Uh, our summer activity will, much of that activity will remain online, but remember we were headed in that direction anyway, as a, as the best way to serve students in the summer. Uh, so our hope is that we can continue to progress as a campus and as a community, as a country, so that, uh, we might find ourselves in the fall, uh, restoring the energy and, and the vitality that is so typical of our campus. Patrick Leahy: We have to be careful though, and, and remain very vigilant because you're probably hearing, uh, that, you know, Monmouth county is sort of plateaued and is their caseloads going in the, in the wrong direction. And we need to make sure that this campus community does everything it can to, uh, continue to combat this, uh, terrible, uh, pandemic. I will repeat what I always do mask up at all times back up, keep that six feet of distancing, uh, wash up, keep your hands, uh, washed. Uh, and those three things alone, uh, can do a lot to, uh, help to protect, uh, not only yourself, but each other, which is so typical of the, of the Monmouth way. Matt Harmon: Let's welcome in our guest for today. He is professor Randy abate. He is the director, uh, of the, uh, Institute for global understanding among man, as I, as I went through your, your bio, uh, professor bat and kind of read through it, I, I am overly impressed with the titles that you have. You are professor department of political silence and the sociology, political science and sociology director of Institute for global understanding and the Renet family, uh, endowed chair and Marine and environmental law and policy. I mean, I, I thought I was usually pretty good in terms of all the things I'm involved with. I, I think, I think you might have me beat, I welcome you onto the podcast here, uh, this morning. I know we've got a, a lot to talk about, but just a, a, a quick check in, um, in terms of, of, of how your classes, how year year, and, and dealing with the pandemic has been, um, for you personally. Randall Abate: Well, thanks so much for having me on Matt and president Lee. It's great to be here. Uh, it's, it's been a, a, a surreal year, uh, for me as it has been for, for most. Um, but I, I was so committed to the, to the on-campus experience at Monmouth. I, I have taught, uh, both on campus and hybrid classes and, and I've been very pleased with, with the way they've, they've gone, the, the engagement of the students, they're, they, they seem more, more excited than ever to have that quality academic experience that Monmouth offers. And, and there were some, um, some positives I didn't expect so that some students are, are more engaged by zoom than they are in the classroom. And so it's, it's been nice to have that balance that you don't have in the traditional classroom where the silence students remain silent. So it's, it's been, uh, trying to find the silver linings, and it's been a very positive experience this year. Matt Harmon: You know, clearly it's a big day, uh, for you as a director for the Institute for global understanding as the IGU symposium kicks off later on today, we're recording, excuse me, on a Thursday morning at four o'clock today, the symposium over the course of the next three days will get up and going. I know a tremendous amount of work, uh, goes into events like this. This has been what probably a, a year of a full year planning to get this up and going. Randall Abate: Absolutely. I mean, the, the, the real on the ground, um, planning started in September, but I, I, uh, was excited to begin, uh, my role as director of the I, uh, a year ago, uh, this month. So that's essentially when things started. Um, so it's, it's been a true labor of love and, and just a, a fabulous team, uh, working with me on, on planning the event, uh, itself and all of the IGS activities this year. It's, it's been really, really fantastic. We're very excited about the event. Um, we're, we're, we're featuring, uh, distinguished expert speakers from 10 countries, and, uh, really looking to engage the, the, the Monmouth, uh, community as, as well as the global community Matt Harmon: Human rights and the environment, the, uh, topic for the next couple of days, you can register up until the event starts today. Uh, at four o'clock among the keynote speakers at 4:00 PM is our other co-host that's of course, university president Patrick Lehe, uh, president Lehe. How important is, is the Institute here to campus overall, and kind of the, the reemergence of some of these things that have taken place over the last year? Patrick Leahy: Well, keynote keynote address is a bit of a stretch. I, I hope it's a little bit more of a welcome, uh, Matt there, you know, we have opening, uh, remarks, not, not just from me and mine will be brief, uh, professorate, I promise. But, uh, we also hear from our, uh, interim senior vice president and provost, Dr. Daah, whose life's work has been committed to, uh, issues of global understanding. So we'll, we'll get a chance I believe to hear from her. And then, and then the real highlight of the opening session, I think is comments from our, our Congressman Frank Poone who's, uh, agreed to offer some opening remarks, and nobody, uh, has been more supportive of this university down in Washington, DC than, than he has. And, uh, what a, what a great thing to, uh, to have him involved in our opening, uh, session. Patrick Leahy: This is such an important topic, uh, today. I mean, if there's ever been a time where we need to do our part to enhance global understanding, it is right now. And, uh, I'm so proud that, uh, that the Institute, which I, you would know better maybe than I, Randy, you know, it was established and had some real energy. And then for some variety of reasons, it sort of that energy died down for a little bit, and it's been restored, uh, over the last, uh, year. And of course took, took on real added enthusiasm with your appointment as the director. So, um, it's, you know, we here at mamma tout that among our seven academic schools, we also have, you know, four or five, six institutes and centers that contribute. So, uh, importantly to our academic effort and, uh, you know, you know, those well that urban coast Institute, the polling Institute, the center for the arts, the Springsteen archives, the KLA real estate Institute. And now we can add to that, uh, robust mix the Institute for global understanding. And it's a such an important topic today. And I'm so glad that Monmouth will play admittedly it's small role, but nonetheless, uh, its role in, uh, advancing, uh, cultural literacy and global understanding. Matt Harmon: Randy, if I, if I could, I want to go right to the, the topic of, uh, the symposium over the course of the next couple days, you say human rights and the environment. I, I think anyone would be able to say these are human rights, and then you'd have other people say, these are issues that involve the environment. Tell me how over the course of the next three days they come together. So it's human rights and the environment, not two separate things. Randall Abate: Certainly it's, it's an, an issue that is more relevant than ever. Uh, these days as president Lee noted that the issue of global understanding is, is critical and, and nested within that is this notion of the need to understand the intersectionality of environmental problems. So we used to live in this siloed world where human rights issues, where human rights issues and environmental issues, where for the scientists and tree huggers. Now we understand that these are truly intersectional issues and our approach to challenges like climate change, embrace that intersectionality of these challenges. So for instance, the black lives matter, uh, black, black lives matter movement, uh, matters a lot. When we think about environmental challenges, the whole field of environmental justice is something the, the symposium is going to address. And that's one of many examples of the intersection of human rights and environmental problems. The notion that, uh, marginalized communities, uh, like, like, uh, black communities, indigenous communities are bearing a disproportionate burden of our environmental problems. And that's a, that's a, a platform for this notion of human rights and the environment, Matt Harmon: You know, president Lehe, we we've talked over the course of the last year, year plus now is we're a year into the pandemic. We've brought up some of the societal issues, some of the social justice issues that have taken place over the course of the last year, you know, and unfortunately within the span of the last couple of weeks, we've, we've had more, the, the situation in Atlanta, another shooting taking place in Colorado, um, you know, dare I say, that issues like that usually bring human rights issues, uh, to light. And clearly we would rather not have those issues, but the, the timing of the symposium over the course of the last year, and now starting today almost seems like it couldn't be any better in, in some strange way. Patrick Leahy: Well, what I love is the fact that, uh, this community here at Monmouth university is, has an enduring commitment to, uh, you know, racial and social issues. I mean, as Randy pointed out, I mean, they've been, we've been planning this symposium for months and months and months. Now. It just so happens as you suggest Matt, that, you know, we had yet another incident in our country, uh, last week where, um, people of Asian, uh, uh, backgrounds were targeted. And, and that is part of, uh, the, the impetus behind creating greater global understanding. And, uh, so it, it, I guess in a funny kind of way, uh, yeah, the, the timing is, is unique here, but, uh, I'm so proud of this university that, uh, it is, uh, committed to these issues in a very real way. And, uh, again, the, the biennial symposium is evidence of that because of all of the planning that goes into it. But as Randy pointed out too, that's, that's maybe the, I, I suspect Randy, the marquee event of the IGU, but that's only one of a whole series of events that, uh, are sponsored by the IG over the course of a given a given year. So, um, really proud of the way again, Monmouth is doing its part, uh, to, uh, advance, uh, greater understanding in our, on our campus and in our community. And then as Randy said, with, with speakers from 10 countries around the world, we wanna play our, our, uh, our part in that global discussion as well. Matt Harmon: You know, professor Abe, if, if, if you can, right now as president LA, he just talked about, um, the way that the Institute has changed since coming back, uh, under your leadership and, you know, the symposium obviously kind of the big event, but all of the other things that take place during the course of the year. And I'm sure, probably even looking forward to 20 21, 22, that academic year, um, things that, that are kind of on your mind in terms of different, different events and ways that Monmouth kind of stays in touch. Randall Abate: Yeah. Well, one, one thing that's really important about where we are with the IGU is that we're building on a rich legacy of engagement and success. So, uh, the, uh, Dr. Daah founded the, the I G uh, way back in 2002, and it had many, um, opportunities and, and, and just a great evidence of success in so many ways. And we have, we have built on that tradition and, and essentially our mantra is honoring that past and looking forward to our future. So, so those pillars that, that, uh, reflected the IGS mission in its original inception are embraced on our website, and we continue to move forward with those objectives. So that is, uh, including UN relationships, um, promoting faculty and student placements in Fulbright, uh, scholarships, um, community engagement on these issues of global, uh, affairs and cross-cultural understanding, um, intra campus synergies. So, so the IGU is uniquely positioned in a way that is very much, um, interstitial across departments and schools on campus to, to bring people together around these issues. They are, they are intersectional in so many way and, and ways, and we are, we are a, a, a clearing house for a lot of, of that, uh, connection and engagement across campus. Um, and, and certainly we, uh, we, we have some new objectives that, that were part of my charge as the, as the new director. And that is to, to more fully integrate the IG into the academic life on campus. So we have, we have instituted new programs and new speaker series that have, have brought awareness of these issues, uh, into a more formal academic fabric on, on campus and were, and the symposium is one of, of several of those initiatives, Matt Harmon: Professor Randy abate, joining us here, episode number 26 of Monmouth weekly, your normal co-host university, president Patrick Lehe faculty member, Matt Harmon, the IGU symposium kicking off at four o'clock today, registration information can be found on the Monmouth website. Um, you know, professor beta, I, I want to talk to you about something that I, I think is really important, and it's been a theme that president Lehe and I have talked about on so many of our shows, and that is how something like the IGU or any of these institutes, but specifically since that's your, that's your forte, how they involve students, how they get students to think a little bit more critically and crucially towards these events, you mentioned, um, earlier in one of your answers, you know, trying to pull things out of, of the quiet, silent students, which I do in my classes as well. Um, sometimes this mode of delivery, the hybrid, the online, maybe it does that, but, but this is an opportunity for this generation that we've got on campus to really Institute some change in the world, moving forward. Randall Abate: And as, as both of, you know, very well, the, uh, that the students are really the engine of the, of the life on, on, on mamos campus, um, virtual or physical, and the I G is very much a vehicle to enhance that engagement. So, so we first, uh, engage many students directly in our efforts. We have outstanding graduate assistants and interns who have been actively engaged in our activities throughout the entire year, including the symposium. They've been indispensable resources. And as I mentioned previously, the, the I G's in intercampus synergies, uh, effort has a group of three faculty members on our advisory council, who, who work with students and student organizations to have a dialogue about how the IGU can best serve their interests in these issues. So many of the student orgs are very much focused on that. Cross-cultural understanding global affairs, um, awareness raising and others are interested to learn more about it and see how it, how it connects to their, to their mission. So, for, for instance, a group like the, the youth activists is, is very well positioned to be actively engaged in the IG and, and we're helping them understand how that's relevant for their, for their mission Matt Harmon: President Lehe, when you hear that answer. And, and I feel like it's so easy to kind of cue this one up for you. Um, the, the, as, as Randy just said, the students are the engine on campus. And when you have an opportunity for them to be involved in something like this, you know, clearly you could go to so many different symposiums and events. Um, and, and there's not a whole lot of student activity for Monmouth to be able to highlight students and have this opportunity and chance it is you can't understate the value in it. Patrick Leahy: It's, you know, it's what makes us unique as a, as an institution. I mean, we, we have at once people like, uh, professorate engaged in the life of this university advancing, uh, social justice issues and the law all, all around the world, as, as he has done, I mean, that kind of expertise on our campus, the way you wouldn't be surprised if you saw that kind of expertise at a big research university, right. But here at this university, Randy just talked about how he personally engages with students and how he gets undergraduates involved in the, the, the work that he does. And so many other of our professors do their scholarship and their research and their active work with our undergraduate students. I mean, and that's the kind of experience that you think of as part and parcel of a liberal arts college. right. We put those two together here in a way that I think really does make moms, uh, unique. I mean, I, I, I say often as I will, again, at our ex our next accepted students stay on Saturday, that, uh, we bring all of the opportunities, uh, possibilities activities of a large research university, but we offer it in the caring, mentoring culture of a small liberal arts college. It's the combination of those two things that's really, uh, unique. And it sounds to me like the IGU is just the latest example of the way in which we're trying to create that, that really high value educational experience for our students, Randall Abate: Matt, if I can just chime in on and piggyback on that excellent comment that president Lee made the, the symposium itself is a platform for, for this in this kind of engagement, because we're, we're featuring not only global experts on these issues, but we're also showcasing our students both undergraduate and graduate students. We have an open mic event where our students are going to be performing music and dance and, and poetry readings that relate to this theme to really fully engage in an interdisciplinary way with the event. And we're also featuring a student panel, uh, both graduate and undergraduate students who have, uh, uh, conducted research on these human rights and environment issues. Uh, so it's, it's really exciting to be able to, to show off our, our outstanding students in this way, in, in this, in this global event, Matt Harmon: Randy, if you don't mind me asking, um, be because you mentioned you're about a year into the position here at Monmouth, what, what was it that led you here to west long branch, again, looking at your bio, which is so impressive, you know, spending time, uh, teaching it at different, more law school orientated schools in Florida, Florida, state, Florida, a and M uh, here at Rutgers in Camden, um, Vermont in Pennsylvania at Widener, what was it that kind of led you here to Monmouth? Because it almost seems like in a way it's, it's a, it's a bit of a different challenge for you than you've had in your years in academia. Randall Abate: I've heard that question a lot. Um, uh, uh, a, as someone who's an interdisciplinary scholar and teacher, it, it was very lonely in, in the law school silo. Um, so I, I had 24 years of full-time teaching and, and writing in that, in that law school environment, one building typically, um, exclusive engagement with law professors and law students. And, and I was the kind of person when entering the legal profession who was on the fence between a JD and a PhD. And I didn't wanna spend half my life getting both. So I, I went the JD route, but always had that regret maybe too heavy a term, but curiosity about the other side. And so, so this opportunity when it came, um, to my attention was just irresistible, that, that I had this legacy of teaching law to law students, and always wanted to teach law and policy issues to a non-legal audience in a more meaningful and expansive way. Um, without turning my back on my training and my focus on law policy, it just seemed like the perfect opportunity. And it's in my three years here, it's, it's certainly, uh, proved to be true that, that the, the interdisciplinary opportunities to, to work across schools and departments with my colleagues on issues like climate change, which are so fundamentally intersectional, and to convey that excitement and, and understanding to, to students, uh, uh, charting their career paths is, is really exciting. I find it more engaging to, to work with students about considering law school, uh, than I do helping students through it. Matt Harmon: Some of the, some of the, um, issues that I'm sure be talked about during the course of the symposium in your classes, classes that are taught in this, uh, area in discipline, not, not just all over the country. Um, but again, I I'm looking at some of the places that you have either taught classes, done lectures. I mean, places all over the world. There's there's countries listed that I don't even, I didn't even know quite honestly existed before I, I looked last night to, to get prepared for this, um, is the human right climate change, environmental, the, the stuff that is really in your wheelhouse, Randy, is it as important all across the world as it is here in the United States? Randall Abate: I probably would've had a different answer 10 years ago, but I'm seeing that that is becoming more and more true today, um, that other than climate change, we're, we're seeing a lot of challenges, um, whether it be access to, to drinking water or food insecurity issues, much of it is at least exacerbated by climate change. But a lot of the, the social and political dynamics around the world are very much, uh, leading to this collective awareness of, of the intersections between human rights and environment and it's, and it's a bit of a revolution, uh, with, without overstating it, um, whether we're looking in the global north or the global south, this, this dialogue that really was inspired 30 years ago when the, the climate change negotiations started, um, has, has splinter into many different subfields of, of, uh, intersections between human rights and environment issues, such that it's, it's almost impossible in inappropriate to talk about them separately anymore. Matt Harmon: President Lehe, you mentioned all of the different institutes and kind of the, the next level, um, that, that Monmouth is at is the IGU. Is that another example of trying to position Monmouth to be a force of factor in, in some of these fields moving forward? Patrick Leahy: Yes. I mean, we, you know, we wanna pick our spots carefully, you know, we wanna make sure that centers and institutes that we start and support. And in this case, you know, continue to, to support at higher levels are areas that at once can enhance the experience here on campus and give us a chance to shine a spotlight on the work that we do here at Monmouth. And I, I think the IG is just, like I said, the, the, the, the, the, the latest addition to that portfolio that we have, which is, I I'd like to think the envy of a lot of other colleges and universities that we have a portfolio, uh, of centers and institutes like that, that we can support, you know, in our own unique Monmouth way. I mean, we are not a, an R one research university, so we don't have those kind of resources to support our centers and institutes. Uh, but we're trying, you know, given our, our, you know, sort of medium size, uh, on the verge of becoming a doctoral university status, we're trying to do what we can to support those, those important topics. I I'll just say one last thing about, uh, 30 years ago reminded me, Randy, when you said that, you know, 30 years ago when these conversations, uh, seem seemingly really started in earnest. And I always think back to my time as an undergraduate, which was about 30 years ago, and, uh, as an undergraduate at Georgetown, I had the great privilege of, uh, interning on Capitol hill. Uh, and my internship my senior year was with then Senator Al gore. And I always say that look, regardless of what one's politics is, I'm not making the case for Al gore versus anybody else, but I will say, and I, I, I hope you would agree, Randy, that Al gore played a really important role in making global climate change issues mainstream. I mean, he was alone. It seems to me in the Senate 30, 35 years ago, talking about the, the challenges of, of global climate change. And, uh, I've always respected a great deal. The fact that he was out front on that issue and really made these discussions mainstream, is that a fair assessment from, from an expert like you Randall Abate: Absolutely. And, and, and one, one interesting dimension of that, which I think ties in nicely to, to the IGS interdisciplinary reach here is that Al gore was a leader as a politician, for sure, throughout his career leading all the way up to the vice presidency, but his most impactful moment was the documentary and inconvenient truth. That is what catalyzed so much, uh, interest and focus on climate change in this country. And, and there were studies on this, how it, how it just skyrocketed in the wake of that documentary, more so than any time in the, in the previous two decades. And I think that's reflective of what we're trying to do with the IGU symposium. We are featuring an award-winning documentary filmmaker who put together a film about the Kivalina case, this, this tiny native Alaskan village in, in north Alaska that is, is facing, um, inundation from sea level rise and needs to, to migrate to a safe location. And in many ways, in my experience, whether it be environmental issues or, or animal rights issues, which are a focus in how I, uh, approach climate change, um, documentaries, even as a scholar have had in many ways more impact on me than, than reading about these issues and speaking about them in traditional academic, uh, for us. So I'm, I'm very excited to have that opportunity to, to use the arts and, and music in a, in a way that is going to, to deepen our message like, like gal Gore's documentary. Did Matt Harmon: Randy, let's just finish with this. I, I had spoke earlier, um, registration information open all the way up until when the symposium starts today at four o'clock, you can find it on the website. I'll give you the social media plug. The IGU is on Twitter as well. I'm sure there'll be information all during the course, uh, of the weekend. I'm sure you're really looking forward to, to not only getting this event up and going, but being able to take a breath after the weekend on, uh, Saturday, but a, any last words that you you'd you'd like to get in? Randall Abate: Well, I, I'm just really excited to, to have this opportunity, not only to, to, to lead the IG and its, and its relaunched year as we call it. But, but to, to, to be involved as planning chair for this, this exciting symposium and to just stress again, the outstanding team of, of the IGU faculty advisory council, our graduate assistants and interns, uh, and, and ultimately the, the participants that we've brought to together to, uh, to, uh, showcase in this, in this three day event. So we certainly have been doing everything to promote it and we'll be live tweeting throughout the event. Uh, and we're just very excited to, to see it come Matt Harmon: Together. I know it'll be a busy three days. I appreciate you carving out a little bit of time for us this morning. Um, again, four o'clock today, the IGU symposium gets up and going registration information can be, uh, founded mammoth.edu. Uh, Randy, thanks for coming on this morning and, and best of luck over the course of the weekend. Randall Abate: Thanks you so much, Matt. Thank you, president Lee, it's been a pleasure Matt Harmon: President Lehe. Great job is always lining up a, uh, another fantastic guest. Look forward to doing it again in two weeks with you. I'm sure we'll have some more updates in terms of, uh, commencement and graduation stuff. Um, look forward to getting some more guests on before the end of the semester as well, but you, you also, uh, enjoy another great weekend here at the shore, the IG, you mentioned the football game coming up this weekend, uh, and, and it is so great. Let let's finish where we started. It is really exciting to see the campus start to come back to life a little bit. Patrick Leahy: Yeah, I just, you know, this, this IG, uh, symposium is just the latest in a whole series of ways that as I mentioned, Monmouth, is, is adding value to our campus community and the academic, uh, pursuit pursuits here. Uh, but also, uh, ways in which, uh, through Randy's efforts, we're promoting Monmouth university to a wider audience. Uh, just so proud to have, uh, Randy as one of our, uh, members of our, of our community here at Monmouth. I, I wish you well over the next few days, uh, Randy, I'll try to tune in, uh, when I, when I can, but, um, really, really proud of, uh, IG the IGU and, and your work. And, uh, Matt always good to see you. And again, my thanks to you for your commitment to this podcast, which has expanded over the year to allow us to, to highlight and feature programs like the IGU. I think, uh, hopefully that's adding value to the campus community as well, Matt Harmon: Expected to be back in two weeks. We say a happy Thursday and great weekend coming up on campus around the Jersey shore and specifically in west long branch. Our thanks again to professor Randy abate IGU symposium open register. Now university president Patrick Lehe, I'm faculty member, Matt Horman episode 26 in the books. We'll see you in a couple weeks for 27.