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MCC Daily Tribune

President's Wednesday Message

At its Thursday, October 25, 2018, meeting, the MCC Faculty Senate was provided with a presentation that included a number of assertions regarding actions by members of the College's leadership team and me. While perspectives on any matter can and will differ, many of these assertions are unfounded. Others appear to be incomplete presentations of events.

Even though the Faculty Senate never officially informed me of this presentation nor shared it with me, I felt a response was needed.

On Monday, November 5, I shared with Faculty Senate President Amanda Colosimo my response to the assertions in that presentation (attached). At the same time, I indicated my interest in the Faculty Senate reinstating its former practice of regularly inviting me to its meetings to address questions and share information, a practice aimed at improving communication. To date, I have received no response, but I restate the offer and information here in hopes of moving forward our shared interest in open, honest communication. As I wrote to President Colosimo,

We are in a time of great and accelerating change in higher education in general and at our College in specific. Unfortunately, we also seem to be living in a cultural moment where the connection between fact and assertion is strained, all leading to greater conflict and strife. At MCC, our commitment to work with each other professionally and with respect is central to navigating the current landscape. Having open, transparent, informed, and direct communication--especially when and where opinions and ideas differ--is essential.

Additionally, on Monday, October 15, I reached out to President Colosimo with a proposal on how MCC faculty and administration could use the SUNY Faculty Council on Community Colleges' (FCCC) Shared Governance Self-Assessment Rubric to work together to build a common understanding of each other's concerns and to improve MCC's shared governance. This offer followed the FCCC's withdrawal from a planned visit to MCC, and it is in keeping with the FCCC's stated expectations for the self-assessment process, namely that "a president, faculty governance leaders, and other potential partners, such as students or trustees for example, would come together in a spirit of collegial cooperation to best apply this rubric to their campus setting" (Faculty Council of Community Colleges - Shared Governance Rubric, 9/17/18). This proposal still stands almost a month later, awaiting a response from our Faculty Senate partners.

In the fall Message to the College Community, I spoke of our responsibilities to one another: the need to talk with, not about each other and to reach across division and divisions in seeking solutions and paths forward. In this spirit, I welcome your questions, thoughts, ideas, and--most of all--conversation and collaboration as we work to fulfill our shared mission and assure our students' success. I invite you to share your thoughts on the blog or reach out to me directly.

Attached Files:
Response to FS PPT.pdf

Anne Kress
Office of the President
11/14/2018