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MCC Daily Tribune Archive

President's Wednesday Message


Given the significance that the Academies Model and MCC Schools will have on the College going forward and MCC’s selection as one of the first Pathways Project colleges by the American Association of Community Colleges, it seemed only fitting to select “pathways” as the focus for this year’s Essential Discussion. On February 23, MCC will welcome nationally recognized leaders to discuss “Student Success at Scale: Guided Pathways.” The topic seems to have struck a chord; in just the first few days of registration, almost 80 have responded.

On that Tuesday, we will be joined by two of the leading and most respected voices in higher education research, both of whom have played foundational roles in elevating the significance of pathways to student success.

Our morning keynote will be provided by Thomas Bailey, Ph.D. Dr. Bailey is the George and Abby O'Neill Professor of Economics and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He is the director of the Community College Research Center (CCRC) and two national centers funded by grants from the Institute for Education Sciences (the Center for Analysis of Postsecondary Education and Employment [CAPSEE], established in 2011, and the Center for the Analysis of Postsecondary Readiness [CAPR], established in 2014). Most important for the Essential Discussion, Dr. Bailey is one of the authors of Redesigning America’s Community Colleges: A Clearer Path to Student Success, a current common read for many on campus.

In the afternoon, Tia Brown McNair, Ed.D. will offer a look at the role that pathways play in assuring the value and impact of liberal education. Dr. McNair is the associate vice president of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Student Success at the Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U). She directs AAC&U’s “Developing a Community College Student Roadmap Project,” and is the principal investigator on a LEAP project “Advancing Roadmaps for Community College Leadership to Improve Student Learning and Success.” You may recall that MCC was one of the community colleges selected several years back for the Roadmap Project, and it was that engagement that initially spurred our faculty’s interest in developing pathways.

Each keynote will be followed by a response panel; these will be composed of speakers from community colleges with fully developed pathways models as well as faculty and students from MCC. My thanks to Dean Kate Smith, Academic Foundations, and Assistant to the President Sheila Strong for their work on organizing the impressive list of speakers and facilitating the event.

As with each Essential Discussion, we have extended the registration invitation to our internal community; colleagues from local school districts, regional colleges, and SUNY community colleges; and local leaders with a specific interest in student success. All similar events have drawn a full house, so if you have interest, I encourage you to register soon. To learn more, please visit the Essential Discussions website. I look forward to seeing you on the 23rd!

Please feel free to add your own thoughts on the subject of pathways for our students here.

Anne M. Kress
President's Office
02/03/2016