New University President Marc Parlange settles in as new semester starts. PHOTO CREDIT: University of Rhode Island
After just a few short weeks as the 12th president of the University of Rhode Island, Marc Parlange has already ingrained himself in the community in learning the importance of the Providence College and URI rivalry firsthand.
In the stands at the URI Soccer Complex alongside his wife Mary Parlange, he realized he was in the wrong team’s section, but made sure to heckle the PC fans before heading over to sit with the crowd decked in Keaney blue.
Parlange has been busy: He hosted 500 community members his first day in office, interacted with hundreds of student organizations at RhodyFest and weathered Tropical Storm Henri, all after an international move from Australia to Rhode Island. Despite his packed schedule and new position, he has managed to attend six soccer games— three women’s and three men’s— and is looking forward to supporting all the other University teams as sports roar back to life in Kingston.
After being appointed president by the URI Board of Trustees in April after a competitive months-long search, Parlange is excited to be settling down in Rhode Island again. Born in Providence, he lived in the state for a few months as an infant before living around the world with his Air Force family, making him a technical Rhode Island native. He recalls returning periodically to see family friends throughout his life, and he has fond memories of swimming, sailing and camping in the Ocean State growing up.
Academically, Parlange is a world-renowned expert in environmental fluid mechanics. His studies address topics such as hydrology, climate change and water resource challenges. After getting his undergraduate degree at Griffith University in Australia and his Ph.D. at Cornell University, Parlange has lived and worked at universities in Switzerland, California, Maryland, Canada and Australia, among others, throughout his career.
“I’d just really like to get to know Rhode Island [now],” Parlange said. “Stay put and become part of the community and build those connections with people. And everybody’s just been so welcoming and nice.”
Before he arrived at the University on Aug. 2, ready to start his first term as president, Parlange and Mary spent a month hiking the Colorado Trail. It wasn’t the first time they made the trek, completing it six years ago for their 25th wedding anniversary, but missed celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary trip due to COVID-19 in 2020.
“I thought it was like the four best weeks; it was perfect to separate thinking about the job of provost of Australia’s largest research university to thinking about being president of URI,” Parlange said. “Most of it is on the Continental Divide, and so you don’t worry about too much except where the next river is to filter water.”
In addition to their passion for hiking, the Parlanges are also avid runners. One thing they’re looking forward to starting at URI is a Saturday morning running club, inspired by a run he went on with the Cross Country team in Arcadia Park. While they have no official start date yet, Parlange plans to invite all interested community members to congregate at their house at 8 a.m. Saturday mornings to go on a group run and enjoy baked goods together afterward.
“People are welcome to just come, they don’t have to run, they can go for a walk, and then just meet up afterward,” Parlange said. “We all regather here, and I can bake zucchini bread.”
As he settles into his new role as URI president, Parlange is also working on developing his strategic plan and outlined goals for the University. Some critical areas he’s hoping to develop and strengthen at the University include community, equity and diversity efforts, making URI a “destination school” for prospective students, faculty and staff and developing sustainability efforts throughout campus.
With Parlange’s personal research tying directly to environmental concerns, he hopes to improve some of the community’s sustainability efforts. In his previous position at Monash University in Australia, the focus on sustainability was critical and ultimately led the University to purchase a wind farm, according to Parlange. He looks forward to considering URI’s coastal position and other on-campus factors in an effort to make it a greener campus.
“We’re going to have questions around transportation, how do we get to campus?” Parlange said of URI’s efforts to be more environmentally conscious. “We’re thinking about our buildings— already a lot of work is done. We obviously have some older buildings that are beautiful. We’ve already transformed some buildings, and how do we do that on a timeline?”
Parlange is additionally working on developing a new Presidential Supper Series in collaboration with local farmer’s markets and community farmers. According to Parlange, the series will allow for students, faculty, staff, alumni and other members of the local community to gather at the President’s House on campus, share a fresh meal together, listen to guest speakers and “discuss important issues around sustainable development.”
Since his arrival last month, Parlange began in connection with the 10 different academic colleges, as well as the various core departments that help sustain the University. This has meant working closely with the Senior Leadership Team at URI, a group of the vice presidents, provosts and the highest-ranking leadership officials that make critical decisions and developments for the University.
Current Provost Donald DeHayes is preparing to step down from his 13-year tenure but has spent the past few weeks aiding Parlange’s initial transition to Rhode Island.
“He brings an understanding of higher education and the academic core mission that is very very deep and from some of the best universities in the world,” DeHayes said. “And the opportunity to learn from him, to tap into his expertise and experiences at other places has really been a thrill. And also the opportunity to inform him or provide to him some of the experiences of URI and the culture of URI.”
For Parlange, the biggest adjustment to Rhode Island from his previous university has been the commute.
“I had to take the train about, say, six miles. And then I would run to the campus. And that was five miles. And then at the end of the day, when you’re kind of tired, I’d have to force myself to get dressed back up in my running clothes, run to the train, catch the train, get on the train,” Parlange said. “So now it’s really nice to be 40 meters from the office.”
Despite calling Rhode Island home for under two short months so far, Parlange sees a concrete future for the University, with a strong foundation laid by previous leaders.
“What kind of university do we want to become? We’re in a great place at the moment,” Parlange said. “The University is in great shape. [Former President] Dave Dooley did a wonderful job I think as president and the University’s [in a] very, very good position.”
Teasing Providence College fans, discovering the bike path to Narragansett and cheering on the Rams at more home sporting events than he has time for: Parlange is going to fit in at Rhody just fine.