Weekly Message from Dr. Belinda S. Miles – December 2, 2016
This week, campus administrators, faculty, staff, and two coaches from the Achieving the Dream network, Drs. Mary Fifield and Donna Jovanovich, participated in small group and open forum sessions on our student success initiatives. These student-centered conversations spanned topics such as
- a holistic student academic and career journey,
- data and analytics,
- first year experience and orientation,
- general education,
- Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP),
- developmental education,
- leading change, and
- equity and diversity.
Immediate action items emerged around reviewing charges of all college committees and refreshing those charges and even consolidating committees to reduce duplication of effort. We will have more to announce on that soon. Both coaches reaffirmed the good work happening at the college, particularly faculty and staff focus on building on the existing momentum fueling our transformative work. A current example of our achievements is the more than 600 students eligible to complete their degrees this fall. Mark your calendars for the Completion Ceremony on December 15 during common hour; come out and celebrate our students.
Our Offices of Disability Services and Student Involvement hosted a celebration for Disability Awareness Day. Congratulations to Sharon Massey, Renee Balotti, and the entire disability services team on an event that garnered more than 150 student participants! Congratulations also to Wellington Mackey, alumnus and Jack Kent Cooke scholarship recipient, and current Yale University student, who visited campus to share his story of grit and triumph. Thanks to the Philosophia Society and leadership from Professor Mira Sakrajda of the Honors Program for hosting Mackey’s talk “From Homelessness to Yale: Strategies for Success.”
The League of Innovation award deadline is fast approaching. Please consider submitting an application by the deadline, Monday, December 5, 2016. This national award is designed to recognize innovative programs, practices, partnerships, policies, and activities that improve the ability of community colleges to serve students and the community, and to honor the faculty, staff, and administrators who have created and implemented them. See the attached application.
Thanks for making it a great week!
Dr. Belinda S. Miles
President