UPDATED: Oct. 8, 2018 at 12:08 a.m.

One of Brian Konkol’s goals when he first took over as dean of Hendricks Chapel in August 2017 was to make its programs more relevant to an increasingly non-denominational community.

Since then, his weekly interfaith program has won an award for promoting “spiritual and religious growth” on a college campus. Hendricks also hosted several forums in the wake of the Theta Tau videos controversy. This summer, the chapel received a $1 million donation.

“In short, most of my student leaders and I have witnessed a great support under Dean Konkol’s leadership, and overall, I think he is a blessing and gift not just for Hendricks Chapel, but for Syracuse University and (the) broader community as well,” said Amir Duric, Hendricks’ Muslim chaplain, in an email.

But some of the dean’s efforts to grow Hendricks Chapel have caused frustration among those already active at the chapel.

The Daily Orange interviewed 11 students and other people involved in Hendricks to gauge reactions to Konkol’s communication with students last semester and changes at the chapel, including what some view as the contentious covering of a mural.

Blessing Emole | Design Editor

Madeleine Buckley worked in the Dean’s Suite as a proctor before she graduated in spring 2018 and was a leader on SU’s Spiritual Life Council, the student-led campus interfaith dialogue group.

She said members of the council were concerned that changes last year were made without sufficient input from students or others at Hendricks. Five leaders from the campus group gave the dean a letter listing their concerns at the end of last semester.

The concerns from the council listed by Buckley included what the council felt were unconsulted changes such as hiring new faculty members, taking down bulletin boards and discussion of converting the Chaplains’ Suite from shared offices into a different layout.

“Any amount of change is going to be jarring for everyone involved because we had just gone two years with an interim dean,” Buckley said. “So when we had a dean who was there with some longevity and vision and ability to make change … , I think that was very jarring for a lot of people.”

Buckley said she was concerned to first hear about Hendricks’ hiring of Rebecca Reed Kantrowitz and Peg Northrup from an SU News release.

“One of my other good friends who was very involved in the chapel sent it to me and was like ‘Did you know about this?’ and I was like ‘I had no idea,’” Buckley said. “She and I are two of the most involved people at Hendricks at that point, and we were like, ‘If we didn’t know about this, who does?’”

In a second interview about three months later, Buckley said she feels that Konkol has implemented some of the council’s recommendations, such as holding open forums and meetings with the council.

“I think those open lines of communication are the most key thing, and the fact that he’s doing that is really great and I can only assume it’s making a really positive impact,” Buckley said.

Dina Eldawy, a senior international relations and citizenship and civic engagement double major, said she was one of the five students on the council who helped draft the letter.

“One of the concerns we raised up was that we saw a lot of changes being made without consulting students or even the chaplains themselves,” Eldawy said. “So there definitely has been change to make that increased communication.”

She noted that Konkol began to hold monthly meetings with the council and that part of Kantrowitz’s new position is to help facilitate communication between students on the council and the dean.

Duric, the Muslim chaplain, said he believes his students and people who work closely with Konkol trust his long-term vision for Hendricks.

Blessing Emole | Design Editor

But the decision to cover a mural in the chapel frustrated some people in Hendricks, including the mural’s artist.

Last spring, a curtain was hung along the wall of the Hasset Dean’s Suite that covered a 1960’s mural by an artist named Harry Freeman-Jones, who used to teach in SU’s Renée Crown Honors Program.

“I went up to the mural and just pulled aside the curtain, and I felt physically ill doing it,” said Freeman-Jones, describing the first time he saw the curtain, as he began to tear up. “Because this is so much a part of my ministry, my life’s ministry.”

The curtained mural is abstract with dark tones. It conveys themes like life, death, decay, hope and redemption, Freeman-Jones wrote on his Facebook page.

Konkol, in an interview with The D.O., said the curtain was the result of “a number of private conversations,” and later elaborated in an email that some people felt uncomfortable with the content of the mural.

“We explored more broadly the thoughts of students, chaplains, staff, faculty, and the mural’s artist,” Konkol said in an email. “We came up with a solution that we believe is respectful of Chapel visitors along with the tradition and artistry of the mural.”

The mural remains available for viewing and study during designated times and by request, Konkol said.

But other campus community members praised Konkol for what they called a collaborative and open-minded approach to leadership.

Junior Emily Simens, from Syracuse Hillel, said though she is primarily involved with campus spiritual life outside of Hendricks, she hasn’t observed problems with Konkol’s communication or leadership over the same period of time.

“He has these sessions where anyone can come talk to him,” said Simens, an information management and technology major. “I think that’s really impressive how as a dean, he’s so open with the community and willing to talk to anyone.”

Konkol said in the email that 2017 was “a year of consistent and collaborative meetings” with staff, chaplains, advisers, student leaders and board members.

“The frequent communications and conversations — which included members of the Spiritual Life Council — helped define new strategies and tactics to broaden campus engagement with the Chapel,” Konkol said.

One example of those strategies, Konkol said, are the monthly “All Hendricks Meetings” that offer opportunities to engage with speak with him and other Hendricks administrators.

Brian Konkol officially became Hendrick Chapel’s seventh dean in November 2017.
Alexandra Moreo | Senior Staff Photographer

He added that Hendricks Chapel is also working to fund council’s participation at the Parliament of the World’s Religions, which is an annual meeting to promote harmony among religions and spiritualities globally.

Cooper Young, a junior communication and rhetorical studies major and intern with the Baptist Campus Ministry, praised the dean’s weekly convocations, where people from all religions can gather in the chapel for music and reflection.

“Dean Konkol’s mission for Hendricks is just a very positive one and, even just in his convocation speeches, he just does such a great job speaking on topical and relevant (subjects) in college age to adult life,” Young said.

And Eldawy said she thinks continued communication is important to help students understand that the chapel serves them.

“I think the Spiritual Life Council, hopefully, this year will have a greater say in how to meet that objective,” Eldawy said.  

CORRECTION: In a previous version of this article, the date Harry Freeman-Jones painted the mural was misstated. He painted the mural in the 1960’s, but had not yet begun teaching at the Renée Crown Honors Program. The Daily Orange regrets this error. 

Published on October 7, 2018 at 9:50 pm

Contact Mary: mdcatalf@syr.edu | @mrycatalfamo