Where is the President?

Tomorrow I will be off to Albany to take part in meetings over the next three days. The first is an orientation session that SUNY is putting on for new presidents. I’m not exactly “new” but each time I find there is a lot new to learn, so I’m looking forward to all ten presentations between noon Wednesday and mid-day Thursday. The presenters include SUNY’s best minds on topics such as legal issues, finance, academic program review and approval, and student life issues along with presentations by the Vice Chancellor for Community Colleges, Dennis Golladay and a dinner with System Leadership. The orientation program will conclude with visits to the State Capitol and meetings with Senate and Assembly higher education committee staff members.

At the conclusion of SUNY’s effort to orient us, I will be joining my presidential colleagues at the fall meeting of community college presidents. Like each of my colleagues, I’m looking forward to sharing some of the good news about Fall ’09 on this campus and hearing presentations on some of the key issues facing all of us. This meeting will also include a visit with Chancellor Zimpher where I’m confident we will hear more positive words about our favorite higher educational institutions, community colleges, and SUNY’s Strategic Plan.

As I head out for a couple of days, I also want to express my thanks to Chair Rossi and members of the College Council for the opportunity to share some thoughts yesterday about issues I feel are worthy of the Council’s attention and more importantly, to get from Council members some frank and valuable input regarding campus facilities’ issues important to our entire college community.

Please be on the lookout for an announcement from Kelli Ligeikis and team members who have agreed to take on a Fast Forward initiative designed to insure that this important partnership with area schools is the best that it can be – for BCC and the students we are serving!

And likewise, a thank you to Gregg Talley and his soon-to-be named team members for heading up a look at the Presidential Honors Program. Again, this is an effort to be sure another of Broome’s important programs is positioned to get a maximum return for students, the College and the BCC Foundation!

Lastly, I hope that as many of you as possible will help kick-off this year’s United Way campaign. Please stop by Wales 203B on Thursday, anytime between 11:00 am and 1:00 pm. Rhoda Neal is this year’s coordinator and she is enthusiastic and committed. Let’s give her lots of support, be as generous as possible to a great cause, and thank you Rhoda.

Sincerely, Dr. John Deans

A Brief Update

Yesterday, I met with members of the SUNY Board of Trustees at their September meeting in NYC and am pleased to report that they unanimously approved a resolution making my appointment as your Interim President official. Chancellor Zimpher, with whom I am more impressed each I time I hear her agenda for SUNY, made it a very pleasant experience. The Trustees’ meeting provided another occasion for me to say what an honor it is to be with all of you at BCC and to be part of the leadership team during this period of transition.

Not surprisingly, one of the items on the Trustee agenda was a report on SUNY’s work with campuses to prepare for the H1N1 flu virus. Reference was made to a meeting on “Facing a Public Health Challenge: H1N1” held in Syracuse on Monday which a team from BCC including Peggy Smith, Nancy LaBare, Marty Guzzi and John Ruck attended. As you may know, a number of steps are already underway to inform our campus community on recommended practices aimed at prevention as well as suggestions on what we should do if we suspect we may have contracted this flu. Beyond updates through campus e-mail messages and signage, I hope that many faculty will be willing to share highlights of the information contained in campus-wide communications regarding H1N1 with students in their classes. Getting the word out to students seems to be every campus’ major challenge, so please watch for updates outlining new information as it becomes available and spread the word. As always, if you have suggestions on how BCC can most effectively address the H1N1 challenge, please share your thoughts or concerns.

And yes, the geese are not only here but from what I understand, many will just decide to winter in the Binghamton area. Despite their beauty, there is no escaping their impact on what we regard as our space too! It may be a losing battle but campus maintenance is looking at how to address the worst messes on some of the walkways. In short, we will try to see if the situation can be improved.

Finally, as the new semester moves onward, I know that everyone’s plate always becomes ever more full. In addition to the normal load, Banner, a presidential search, Middle States and other issues important to all of us this academic year add to the challenge. Thanks to each of you for your continued contribution to making excellent education happen here at Broome. I hope we also find time to enjoy each other and these beautiful fall-like days.

John W. Deans

Interim President

Thank You Message From Dr. Deans

Thank you and Congratulations

The Fall 2009 semester is off and running. And for all the good work done by so many to make it as smooth a start as possible, I want to extend a most sincere thank you. Because of the commitment of individuals and offices and workgroups across the campus, many of the stresses and strains which often arise from increased enrollment appear to have been effectively managed.

It’s official; BCC has set a new record enrollment-wise! As of today, College Registrar Marty Guzzi reports that 6,307 full and part-time students are with us. And that figure makes history for Broome Community College. It is the highest enrollment achieved in the past decade, rising a full one thousand students from BCC’s enrollment total for Fall, 2000. Congratulations on a job well-done.

I also want to take this opportunity to say thank you for the many complimentary comments made about last Thursday’s Faculty/Staff Assembly. The work we do as community college educators is indeed special and there are few, if any, more important stories to be told. I enjoyed meeting and talking with many of you for the first time and dishing ice-cream was a great way to cap off a good day.

And while this Fall’s start-up is still fresh in everyone’s mind, it is probably a good time for “after-action reviews” by work-groups and departments involved with the myriad of college processes that brought over six thousand students to Broome’s campus and classrooms. 

Again, best wishes for the new semester to everyone in the campus community- faculty, staff and students.