Qui

Quiñones,
Dudziak enthusiastically take reins as Baker masters
…………………………………………………………………

BY
JENNIFER EVANS
Rice News Staff

As the spring
semester gets under way, Mickey Quiñones, associate
professor of psychology, and his wife, graduate student
Karin Dudziak, are settling into their new roles as Baker
College masters.

The Baker masters
search committee announced its selection of Quiñones
and Dudziak in late November, and the two, along with their
two dogs, moved into the Baker House during the winter break.

Quiñones
said they are excited about their new post. “I’ve
been a faculty associate at Baker since I got here in ’93
and have really enjoyed it. I like the interaction with
the students. My wife and I thought this would be an exciting
and fun experience at this time in our lives.”

Kevin Askew,
a Baker junior and chair of the 12-member search committee,
said the committee is equally enthusiastic. “We’re
very excited about the new masters. We wanted people who
showed an interest in the students and student activities.
Since Quiñones and Dudziak have been Baker associates
for the past several years, we knew them pretty well. We
knew how they interact with the students and knew where
their interests lie.”

College masters
have responsibility for all aspects of student life in their
respective colleges. These unique positions are designed
to help nurture the students’ interests in cultural
and intellectual pursuits as well as to promote self-discipline
and self-governement within the college, tasks that Quiñones
said he and his wife are ready to take on.

“We’re
here to support the students, be a resource for them, act
as a liaison between the students and the administration,”
Quiñones said. “We’re looking forward to
getting to know the students and being influential in their
lives.”

The previous
Baker masters, Jim Copeland and his wife, Chris, left the
position last June before they completed their five-year
term because of health concerns. Arthur and Joan Few, Baker
masters from 1994 to 1999 and current Martel masters, stepped
in as interim masters with the understanding that new masters
would be in place by the spring.

Quiñones
said they are ready to take over the responsibility of the
mastership, provide stability to the college for years to
come, experience the fun of college life with the students
and even help them through the difficult times.

“That’s
part of life,” Quiñones said. “We’re
here to live with them and cry with them.”