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MCC Daily Tribune Archive

Spring 2007 Update


The tragedy at Virginia Tech University stopped all of us in our tracks. As we wrestle with the senselessness of the act and grieve for that college community, it is natural to wonder if we could handle a crisis of that proportion. I have every confidence in our emergency management plan and our Public Safety team. The plan is detailed and well thought out. Our Public Safety officers are well-trained. Nevertheless, we are using the Virginia Tech tragedy as an opportunity to review our plan, to consider our readiness and to make improvements where necessary. You can use this opportunity to familiarize or re-familiarize yourself with our Employee Response Guides, an important part of our emergency plan. These guides outline what you should do in an emergency situation. You’ll find them – one for the Brighton Campus and one for the Damon City Campus – on our Public Safety Web page.

I began planning this update to you before Virginia Tech. While it feels somewhat mundane now, it is important and necessary that we continue on with the business of teaching and learning. So before we move into the final rush of exams and celebratory events, let me take a moment to update you on some key projects and important news.

ACADEMIC INITIATIVES          

Our new Damon City Campus at Renaissance Square is moving forward. To those not involved in the detailed planning, it may seem like the project has been quiet. Not true! Much is happening behind the scenes as the environmental review process moves forward and procedural protocols are finalized, per federal funding guidelines. There are many players, many funding streams and many hurdles! We anticipate that demolition at the site will begin later this year and that we will be moving to our new campus in four years, Fall 2011.

Ground will be broken on the Wolk Center for Excellence in Nursing this summer. Built on the west end of the Gleason Hall of Science and Technology (Building 9), the Wolk Center will expand and modernize our nursing education facilities. The project is a precursor to further classroom renovations in other parts of Gleason Hall. As you may recall, the project was made possible thanks to a $2 million grant from the Louis S. and Molly B. Wolk Foundation. Please consider joining us this summer, probably in July, for the ceremonial groundbreaking; your presence will help us once again thank the Wolk Foundation for its support of nursing education in Rochester.

We launched the
Agriculture and Life Sciences Institute (ALSI) in December and have welcomed Dr. Robert King, formerly of Cornell Cooperative Extension, as its first director. Internally and externally, the response has been enthusiastic. Bob is meeting with an internal advisory committee to identify ways to integrate agriculture into existing curriculums and explore opportunities to expand into agriculturally-related programs. I want to thank the various academic departments and faculty members for their positive response to the initiative. An external advisory committee of agribusiness leaders and legislators also is meeting to set priorities and direction.

This year we have upped our commitment to online learning with the establishment of the Office of Online Learning. If we are to grow enrollment in this area, we need an office dedicated to the effort – supporting training for faculty and orientation for students, assessing student performance, and moving the program forward in ways that attract more students and increase their chances for success. Peggy VanKirk coordinates the program; Terry Keys oversees it as director of Instructional Technologies.

Our
Gateway to College program, which offers 16- to 20-year-old high school dropouts a second chance at receiving their high school diplomas while attending college and earning college credits, is generating a lot of interest from prospective students and community partners. With three information sessions scheduled for May, inquiries from prospective students already exceed the number of students we’ll be able to accommodate this fall. A number of community-based organizations also have expressed an interest in partnering with us – Nazareth College, SUNY Brockport, Pathways to Peace, and Hillside Children’s Center, to name a few. This $4.3 million program, undertaken in partnership with the Rochester City School District, has the potential to change the lives of more than 350 young Rochester residents. Please join me in supporting DCC Academic Dean Barbara Connolly and Gateway to College Director Denise Prohaska as they launch this program.

The Rochester Area Colleges (RAC) consortium has established its Center for Excellence in Math and Science and hired its first leader, former Kodak executive Charles Brown. The Center will facilitate intercollegiate math and science programs; study the causes relating to the decline in the number of students interested in careers in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and in teaching within those fields; and work on programs to recruit and retain local math and science teachers at the K-12 level. I am excited by the opportunities for us to collaborate with our RAC peers and will keep you posted on ways you can be involved.

C0-CURRICULAR INITIATIVES

Canal Hall, our newest residence hall, joins Pioneer, Tribune and Alexander halls in the Alice Holloway Young Commons. Construction is on schedule and we anticipate dedicating Canal Hall in August. Despite the addition of 360 beds to the existing 410 beds, interest continues to outpace capacity. Nearly 675 students have applied and paid their application fee. Another 910 have indicated an interest and are in various stages of the application process. This overwhelming success is a testament to the quality of the facilities and the residential life program. My thanks go to all those involved in planning and managing the Alice Holloway Young Commons.

Planning and fundraising for the PAC Center is progressing well. The 56,000-square-foot center will give our students, faculty, staff and the Greater Rochester community an indoor, synthetic-turf, multi-purpose field, jogging track, weight training and fitness lab, locker rooms, coaches’ offices and a training room. Connected to the Stabins Physical Education Complex, it will expand the available space for physical education classes, sports teams, intramural and recreational leagues, and individual fitness use. The $12 million project has $10.4 million in commitments so far, thanks in large part to the
$1.5 million challenge issued by the Chesonis Family Foundation. We expect to break ground in September.

Our year has been highlighted by some accomplished and intriguing guest speakers, including two Pulitzer Prize winning authors—Dr. Edward Wilson and poet Mary Oliver—and two Harvard professors – Dr. Wilson and Samantha Power. Their visits sparked important conversations and added to the intellectual dialogue. The internal partnerships that made these speakers possible is gratifying; please join me in thanking the Campus Activities Board (CAB), Creative Arts Committee, Phi Theta Kappa, Biology Club, Biology and English/Philosophy departments, Rochester Biomedical Experience, Academic Services and Science, Health and Business divisions, and the Holocaust Genocide Studies Project for bringing these notable academicians and artists to MCC.

Our views and perspectives also have been stretched this year by lecturers on diversity. The Diversity Council brought Dr. Steve L. Robbins to us as part of the Alice Holloway Young Diversity Series and CAB sponsored civil rights activist Dick Gregory. Examining issues of diversity, inclusion and tolerance is critically important to our college and society in general. Please join me in thanking the Diversity Council and CAB for ensuring the conversation is ongoing. Their efforts enrich our community.

ADMINISTRATIVE INITIATIVES

The Diversity Council also is exploring ways in which our vision for a diverse and inclusive college community can be advanced through the seven strategic directions of the 2007-2011 Strategic Plan — from ways we can more effectively recruit and retain diverse faculty, staff and administration to ways we can enhance the students experience of diversity. My thanks go to Diane Cecero, chief diversity officer, and Diversity Council Co-chairs Char Downing and Craig Rand for their leadership and vision. I have no doubt we will make significant strides in becoming a community even more respectful and appreciative of diversity and inclusion.

I spent a good portion of our time together at All College Day talking about the importance of advancing our college’s image. Many of you have embraced your role in advancing the College’s image – from the President’s Image Advancement Advisory Committee, which is brainstorming ways to involve faculty in strengthening our image, to everyone who has incorporated the weekly Did You Know facts into their classrooms and communications.
The New York Times’ focus on MCC last weekend advanced our image and resonated with many; I have received dozens of congratulatory calls and e-mails. Every time you – or The New York Times – tell the MCC story, you strengthen our college.

The pandemic flu threat has organizations across the country planning for a crisis whose depth and breadth we cannot predict. At MCC, there are many questions to consider: How do we close the college if we are required to do so? What are the implications for students’ academic progress and employees’ well-being? How do we manage the financial implications, from students’ financial aid to the college’s financial obligations? My deepest appreciation goes to all those who are tackling those questions and developing MCC’s plan – from co-chairs Donna Mueller, director of health services, and Dick Ryther, associate vice president for student services, to the members of the 13 subcommittees. First drafts are done and the revision and refinement process begins. We are on track to complete our plan this fall.

Our searches for a new vice president for administrative services and a new dean of liberal arts are going well. We expect to have selected our new vice president by mid-June and our new liberal arts dean in May. My thanks go to the administrative and SCAA search committees, led by Dr. Susan Salvador, vice president, Student Services (vice president, administrative services search), Carol Adams, dean, Interdisciplinary Programs (dean, liberal arts search) and Susan Forsyth, chair, SCAA (dean, liberal arts search).

FINANCES

As you know, our enrollment this year has not met our targets and we have adjusted our budgets accordingly. There are positive signs for next year. Applications for fall 2007 are up. We added our fifth extension center this spring, at Honeoye Falls/Lima Middle School, establishing what we hope will be a strong access point in southeast Monroe County. Further, we have incorporated e-mail and web-based communications into our marketing strategies, as we try to reach prospective students. Enrollment is critically important to our fiscal health and requires a college-wide commitment. Your active support and participation in recruitment and retention initiatives are appreciated.

The 2007-08 state budget included some good news for community colleges and some disappointment. The enacted budget included an increase of $150 per full-time equivalent student, helping us maintain quality and access, and bringing the state closer to its fair share. For MCC, that translates to about $2 million. Regrettably, the increased funding the State University of New York sought for high-needs programs was not included in the budget. These funds would provide additional financial support for expensive programs that are critically important to our community, such as our health-related programs. This year we turned away over 300 qualified applicants to the nursing program because we do not have the funds to accommodate their enrollment. The cost of educating a nurse is $21,200, approximately $10,000 more than revenues associated with the student. Many legislators recognize the importance of health-related programs to our economy and community; I am hopeful that we can increase the state’s investment next year.

STUDENT SUCCESS

As usual, our students are doing great things. I have recently returned from Albany where our best students were honored with Chancellor’s Awards and membership on the first and second Phi Theta Kappa All-New York teams. Celebrating our students’ successes is certainly one of the best parts of my job. Our graduates in health-related programs continue to outperform their peers on national licensure exams. Our HVAC students recently matched their successes, scoring 14 points higher than the state and national average on their industry competency exam. Students enrolled in our Model UN program earned an honorable mention from the 2007 National Model United Nations Conference, the largest conference of its kind in the world. And six athletic teams earned the right to compete in their national championship tournaments. Yes, watching our students succeed is probably the highlight of all of our jobs.

I look forward to seeing you at our traditional academic celebrations – Employee Recognition, 3 p.m., May 30; Honors Convocation, 3 p.m., June 5; and Commencement, 7 p.m., June 5.  I may be moving a little more slowly than usual; I will be having back surgery on May 3 and will need to spend a few weeks at home resting. I had wanted to have the surgery in June, following Commencement, but the back said we need to go earlier. My executive team will step in and keep us moving forward during this busy time of year. I regret that I will miss some events.

Please accept my very best wishes for a successful conclusion to the academic year. I look forward to celebrating our successes – our students – with you in June.

R. Thomas Flynn
President
04/25/2007