Vince and Linda Berdayes, married professors in the Communication Studies, Dance and Theatre Department at Saint Mary's, will say their final farewells to the College at the end of this semester.
"The most difficult aspect of leaving Saint Mary's for us is leaving the students. We know how fortunate we have been to work with such bright, focused and kind people as are our students," Vince and Linda Berdayes said in an email statement. "We also really appreciate the value of single-sex education and will miss teaching at a college for women."
Vince Berdayes accepted a position as department chair of the Communication Studies Department at Barry University in Miami Shores, Fl. Linda Berdayes retired from Saint Mary's and subsequently accepted a position at Barry University as the director of the Masters Program in Liberal Studies.
During their 16 years at Saint Mary's, both Vince and Linda Berdayes said they accomplished many goals they hoped to achieve.
"We feel good about both our contributions to the Department of Communication Studies, as well as the larger Saint Mary's community," Linda Berdayes said.
Students from around the College said the pair will be missed in the department and around campus.
"Vince is my advisor and Linda is the advisor for film studies, which is my minor, making me feel lost a tiny bit. I just hope that they can find professors to pick up where they left off, especially because the curriculum has been changed this year. I wish them the best in their new ventures, and they will be missed greatly," Sara Gray, a Communication Studies major, said.
Vince Berdayes served as chair of the Department of Communication Studies, Dance and Theatre the last four years and provided leadership to faculty in each of the three disciplines. He played a key role in overseeing the revision of the Communication Studies curriculum.
Vince Berdayes also helped establish the student-run campus television station SMC-TV and served on the advisory board for the interdisciplinary minor in Intercultural Studies for more than 10 years.
As an influential member of the Communication Studies program, Linda Berdayes taught the senior qualitative research sequence of courses the past four years, and her students presented their research at multiple conferences. Linda Berdayes also helped establish the Film Studies minor and served as a past chair for the Faculty Assembly and as a member of the General Education Curriculum Committee, among other positions.
"It will be a sad loss to the Communication Studies Department when the Berdayes' depart. However, I know that they will have success in the future wherever they go," Terri Russ, assistant professor of Communication Studies, said. "I wish the best of luck to both Linda and Vince as they venture to Miami."
