James W Sanders

Jim Sanders will be missed by so many faculty and staff at the College of Staten Island. Professor Deborah DeSimone composed the following tribute to Jim and she read it today at the final meeting of the CSI Faculty Senate: The words I present to you today are a compilation of thoughts and sentiments expressed by the Faculty of the School of Education in Remembrance of Jim Sanders: Professor, scholar, sailor, who passed away in December, though we just learned of his death on Monday. I like to welcome and acknowledge Jim’s daughters, Rachel and Sarah, who have joined us today via Zoom. Jim truly was a kind, wonderful, authentic gentleman, with an animating presence and real twinkle in his eye. Jim started off as a Jesuit priest and left that calling for the love of his life, Joan Sanders, and continued his service to others as a Professor of Educational History at the CSI. Jim was a scholar of Irish Catholic education, writing books and articles about the Irish in Chicago and in Boston. He was dedicated to improving the educational experience of public school children. "Sanders' Law" rests on the observation that "The farther from the classroom a NYCDoE employee, the less concern on that employee's part for the well-being of students." This "law" inspired Jim to work to make the system more humane, root and branch. A more humane system needed stronger human connections – connections between the teachers in a particular grade -- and between the students and their classroom teachers. Through these connections, instruction could improve as faculty shared links between their content as well as concerns for individual students. Jim and his great friend, Len Ciaccio, started the Discovery Center, based on this idea that the best instruction is instruction given by teachers who know each other and know their students. Together, Jim with Len (and later with Irina Lyublinskaya) won multiple federal, state, public and private grants to fund their vision of educational change. They expanded that vision into the Discovery Institute of the City University of New York, which brought CSI millions of dollars and made teacher education a flagship in CUNY. Jim was the soul and moral compass of the Department of Education. No wrong doing was left unnoticed or unspoken – be it the exploitation of adjuncts or issues of parking (OMG he detested those grass medians in Parking Lot 2A). Jim was always willing to speak out against obvious and not-so-obvious wrongs in the Department and at the College. He was an incredibly humble, patient, thoughtful and generous mentor to all who joined the Education Department. His contribution to our professional careers and achievements is invaluable. He taught us how to be professors…how to write simply, cleanly and logically. Jim opened his mind and his heart to people around him. He loved people! Jim was so adept at distilling the essence of ideas so all could understand. He communicated in a way that inspired all to join in the conversations…be they brainstorming ideas for grants to improve education, to learning how to support collaborative and productive environments, from getting feedback on writing proposals, to co-presenting at meetings in Washington DC. Every minute spent with Jim was a learning experience that opened our minds to new visions and ideas and helped us become better educators. Jim modeled the importance of collegiality and civility. Born in Illinois, about 2 hours SW of Chicago, Jim fell in love with the sea when he came east. Jim and I shared a love of the ocean, sailing, and a penchant for nautical metaphors. To this day I use his retort whenever asked how I am, “Never better.” Simply put, James Sanders was our gold standard. He remains a present force that still moves, motivates, and stimulates his colleagues. Rachel and Sarah, trust me when I say, he is and will continue to be sorely missed. There will be a memorial luncheon on August 28th here on Staten Island. If anyone wishes to attend, I will put the link in the chat. https://www.mykeeper.com/event/memorial-luncheon/