On July 1, Daniel Guyette stepped into office as Western’s dean of the College of Fine and Performing Arts.

Guyette said this year, because of the current economic situation, the primary objective of the department is to preserve, strengthen and maintain the programs Western already has. 

However, he said that does not mean Western should stop planning for the future.

He said he has asked the faculty to start thinking about ideas for classes and programs for the future including glass blowing, musical theater and museum studies.  Other ideas the dean has are an arts administration program and an integrated arts department.

“He is a tremendous idea guy,” said Maureen O’Reilly, chair of the Theatre Arts Department.  “He offers a variety of solutions rather than just bullying into one option.”  

Guyette said the concept behind the Integrated Arts Department is it would allow fine and performing arts majors to engage in interdisciplinary work among other colleges, much like Fairhaven College. Students could design their own degrees that would still be focused on the arts, but could have classes and influences from other colleges, he said.  

 “It’s the arts plus,” Guyette said. “The greatest artists are those who have a broad understanding of other fields along with the arts.”

The idea with the most positive backing so far is the Arts Administration Program because there is supposed to be an excess amount of job opportunities in the next few years, he said.  The program would be focused primarily on the business aspects of the arts, Guyette said.  

Brian Burton, dean of the College of Business and Economics, said the Arts Administration Program is still a concept, but he is interested in helping Guyette put the program together and make it happen. 

Guyette said there are a number of things that need to happen before any programs can really start to develop, such as the economy picking up and the solidifying of the college as it is, but it is important to keep the future in mind. 

David Feingold, chair of the Music Department, said Guyette has also shown good initiative with fundraising for the college.  Guyette said he has been meeting with donors over the past three months and will continue to do so as the year progresses. 

“It is important to see what our donors are interested in,” Guyette said. 

Fundraising for the college has become important this year because of state budget cuts, Guyette said.  The cuts left the Arts College a 45 percent to 60 percent hole in their spending budget, which is money for phones, printers and basically anything that is not salary for staff.  However, Guyette said he was attracted to Western because of the open manner in which cuts were dealt with.

Guyette in Bellingham

Being new to Bellingham, Guyette said he is also enjoying the community outside of work.  He said Bellingham is number two on the list of artists per capita –– number one being Santa Fe, N.M. –– which makes the city a great place for an artist.

He said he likes to go to the Fairhaven Farmers Market every other week to buy fresh vegetables, and he is looking forward to skiing at Mount Baker this winter.  He said he does not mind the rain because it makes things green, and this winter it will mean it is snowing on the mountain.

Guyette said Bellingham has been great for his family as well.  His wife Charlotte is a professor in the theater department at Western—this will be her 13th year of teaching.  He said his son, who is 4, was excited about camping for the first six weeks when they arrived.  They were living out of their camper near Lynden while waiting to move into their home.  

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