And so we, academic leaders of arts and sciences colleges, celebrate our professional com- munity, on the 50th anniversary of the Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences. Serving as Chair of CCAS’s 50th-anniversary Steering Committee, I have taken joy in plan- ning, with my colleagues, a Washington meeting, where we can acknowledge the value of CCAS: its longevity as our professional organization, its ex- treme usefulness to us in the work we do, and the emotional and professional satisfaction we all gain from learning and debating with each other. It is my experience that, at the annual meeting, because of our shared lexicon, many conversations appear to start “in the middle”: no prologue is needed for immediate understanding. This sense of belonging and of a shared world view is one of the greatest benefits of membership in this organization. And, of course, no CCAS meeting would be complete without fabulous food and drink, and for this occasion, we move out of our conference hotel on Friday evening, to enjoy the elegant ambiance and history of the National Press Club. An important, if quiet, subtext of this celebration is the genesis of CCAS as a professional organiza- tion: a move—some may call it revolutionary—in which a number of risk-taking deans, walked out of a NASULGC meeting in the mid-1960’s, in protest over a structural move that would limit the role and quiet the voice of those advocating for arts and sciences in higher education. This foundation- al event is part of the DNA of our organization and provides us an ongoing common polemic in our dialogue with each other, with students and parents, and with internal and external publics. So, in addition to our Friday evening party, the celebration of CCAS’s 50th anniversary includes a variety of events focusing on our history, our current state, and possible futures we might encounter. This commemorative book offers a look at our past, with a timeline and with some pithy reminiscences of past presidents; it also includes two longer recollections from one of the founding deans and from a long-serv- ing executive director. But in addition to the past, we look to the future: the meeting includes a presidential address on reimaging the liberal disciplines in the 21st century; a plenary by David Skorton, Secretary of the Smithsonian, on our colleges as the core of conti- nuity and change; and a preview of a book of essays, to be published in 2016, on the history and future of leading colleges of arts and sciences. Many thanks to the Gala sponsor, Academic Analytics, and to our contributor, Southwest Airlines, and also to the many colleges and universities, noted in this book, who have offered congratulations to CCAS on the occasion of our golden jubilee celebration. The festive epigraph for this letter, as any Shake- spearean knows, is a comment offered tongue-in- cheek to tease a love-struck girl. And yet, its un- bounded exuberance seems to me—not in spite of, but perhaps because of, its whimsical undertone— an invitation to begin our revels. Happy Anniversary, CCAS! O wonderful, wonderful, and most wonderful wonderful! and yet again wonderful, and after that, out of all hooping! —William Shakespeare, As You Like It, III, ii, 201-03 50th ANNIVERSARY PLANNING COMMITTEE Nancy A. Gutierrez, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Chair Mary Anne Fitzpatrick (through 2014), University of South Carolina Timothy D. Johnston, University of North Carolina at Greensboro Paula M. Lutz, University of Wyoming Elizabeth A. Say, California State University, Northridge Patricia Witherspoon, University of Texas at El Paso Elizabeth Cole, 50th Anniversary Event Manager