President's Yearly Address for the 2011-2012 Academic Year
This is my ninth State of the College message and it has been my honor to have the opportunity each year to share my thoughts with you. This year I would like to focus on what sets Northampton Community College apart and how we can sustain our success as an institution over time.
In preparation for my remarks this morning, I re-read my previous eight messages and I found that in 2003, I referenced Jim Collins book, Good to Great and wrote, you sustain greatness not by glitz, glitter and big splashes, but rather through diligence, hard work and commitment to our mission and purpose.
Having been president now for over eight years, I believe even more strongly than before that great organizations preserve their core values while constantly re-examining their operating strategies. Great companies, great colleges know who they are. They are not about slogans and quick fixes, they are built to endure, and they can withstand the many fluctuations in the economy that are inevitable. In our industry, we know there will be shifts in enrollment trends, in the availability of public dollars, or changes in the labor marketbut the strong college stays true to its mission and doesnt react by making knee-jerk short term decisions that may solve an immediate problem, but hurt an institution in the long runlike spending down an endowment or lowering academic standards.
Strong institutions have a collective spirit and are guided by what is best for the organizationand for the people the organization serves, and not what is necessarily best for an individual. There is a belief and commitment in institutional values, there is a high level of institutional trust, and an especially deep understanding for the need to adapt to an ever changing world.
Our core values have been tested over the past two years as public funding has been reduced, and families struggle to pay even our low tuition. But when we discussed the budget crisis last spring, the conversations centered not on how this might affect raises, but on how we can continue to provide a quality education for our students. Our core values have been and will always be dominated by our unwavering commitment to access, to our students, and to our community. We are a mission-driven institution and we never lose sight of our mission even when we have to make difficult business decisions.
The challenge before us is to make sure we are willing to reengineer ourselves in all phases of the college and to do so as an ongoing part of our culture. The great ones do just thatwhether as an individual, a married couple, a parent, or a businesssustained greatness results because you have the courage and the energy to constantly reflect and to find ways to improve. Settling in and being satisfied with the status quo is not an option if you want to continue to be successful.
At Northampton we have rarely been satisfied and we should never fall into the habit of doing things the same way simply because thats the way we have always done it. I cite our second president, Bob Kopecek, as a perfect example of someone who never allowed us to become too comfortable. For 26 years Bob was a master at positioning this institution. He was always ahead of the competition. Whether it came to technological changes, new regulations, or evolving student needs, Bob had the uncanny ability to anticipate the future.
Andy Grove, in his book Only the Paranoid Survive, wrote about the importance of strategic inflection pointsbeing able to anticipate when the rules will change and then having the people and the structure in place that permits you to effectively adjust to the new environment. Institutions the size of Northampton must always be prepared for unforeseen developments and have the ability to adapt to inflection points. So my question for you this morning is, as we enter our 44th year: will we be able to constantly improve and continue to thrive as a College? Are we willing to reengineer ourselves? To answer that question, I would suggest we start by examining what we do well, and what sets us apart.
First on my list is our culture. I have already commented on the very positive reactions our college community had last spring during the budget crisis and the proposed cuts we faced. Along the same lines, this summer we hired a consultant to help analyze our IT situation and throughout the course of gathering information, our consultant met with many staff members who quickly and appropriately identified some very real problems. Never once, however, did people call her aside to throw someone or some department under the bus. She reported to Jim Dunleavy that she has never seen colleagues show so much support for one another. Seven years ago the chair of the Middle States team that evaluated NCC made a similar observation about the mutual respect that exists at our college.
To remain a college that meets the emerging needs of our community and that reengineers itself to stay effective, we must first have a culture that is supportive, open, full of risk taking and where institutional trust is pervasive. We cannot have people functioning in silos. Academic Affairs and Student Affairs must recognize the contributions each makes as part of our student success agenda, the Finance Department must be viewed as a supportive operation that helps solve problems as opposed to hoarding money, and Human Resources must administer personnel policies in a sensitive, humane manner. The clerical, custodial, maintenance, and security staffs must be viewed as valued colleagues who are central to the feel of a campus. And because students are the reason we exist, our decisions, our programsall of our effortsneed to be guided by what is best for students. Students are not always right, but it is amazing what we can learn by listening to them.
Our climate must also be one in which new ideas are welcomed and these ideas are generated by faculty and staff who will push each other to improve. A perfect example of this is the birth of the Community Garden, created by Kelly Allen and other colleagues. Kelly has only been with us for three years, yet he believed so strongly in the benefit of the Community Garden that he was able to rally college-wide support, and created the garden in less than eight months.
We need more people willing to push the envelope, initiate and develop ideas and not be willing to just settle into a comfortable environment where nothing changes. Part of this will include being willing to, at times, accept rejection but having the drive and commitment to keep the ideas coming. Because something worked well five years ago does not mean it is effective today. Colleges are often criticized for not being part of the real world and for being overly protected from real competition. All of us need to treat our departments and our programs as if we own them and if we are not successful, we will not serve students well, and our business, our livelihood, will be eliminated.
So I ask you, does our environment help to set us apart? Is it to our competitive advantage? I would suggest for the most part yes, but I am concerned about two areas. One, is the temptation to use our size as an excuse not to continue to innovate or personalize students experiences. I hear way too often, We have gotten too big to know everyone or to treat students individually. I do not accept that argument and suggest we must work very hard to prevent falling into that trap. Part of the solution is to continue to invest in our systems so we can improve our efficiency and free up time.
I am pleased to report that we have hired two consultants, one to do an independent review of our IT infrastructure, hardware, software, security, and staffing and make recommendations on how over the next three to five years, we can improve our systems and support to users. A second individual has been hired to coordinate the implementation of the faculty and student Spartan net and to help roll out the portal known as My NCC. This portal will become our new internal communication tool. We are also formally investigating our options to replace the CARS systemwhich will be an expensive and time consuming project but one that may be necessary.
My second concern is related to the first in that I believe our greatest barrier to system improvement is the fact that we are very comfortable in the way we do things. A comfortable and secure environment is good and actually has been proven to be important to employee motivation, but for Northampton to stay a cutting-edge institution there must be a fire in our bellies to always get better. Like it or not, the world has changed and will continue to do so at a very fast pace. The way we deliver instruction, provide services, register students, schedule classes, raise money, and market our programs, will need to constantly be altered. Malcolm Gladwell, in his best selling book The Tipping Point wrote Look at the world around you. It may seem like an immovable, implacable place. It is not. With the slightest pushin just the right placeit can be tipped. Kelly pushed and now we have a community garden. Carolyn Brady and others pushed for the Smart Start Program and now we have a very successful pre-college experience for students. We need to continue to push.
Community colleges gained prominence in large part because we are ever changing, we are flexible, and we are responsive to environmental changes. We have to be willing to abandon long-standing practices when they are no longer effective and have the courage to try something new even though it may make us feel a little uncomfortable. Change should be the norm, not the exception.
To have and to sustain such an environment , we must continue to attract faculty and staff who appreciate a dynamic, caring and aggressive organization. This environment is not for everyone. You can train people in almost anything, but empathy, concern for others, curiosity, and a desire to make things better must be at the core of who you are to succeed herewhether you deliver mail, teach physics, or serve food in the Cafeteria. Everyone contributes to our culture and helps determine whether we are an effective and exciting place in which to learn and to work.
In their recent book, Brains on Fire, Robbin Phillips, Greg Cordell, and Geno Church, talk about the soul being the key ingredient to success. They write, soul cant be replaced by your technology platform, it cant be duped by your influential blogger outreach strategy, and it cant be duplicated by a hollow effort to build a community because thats really just another push mechanism with the illusion of engagement. Soul is immaterial, full of emotion, and comes from peoplenot platforms. Soul begins deep within the recesses of your chest. Its wrapped in what you stand for, and it permeates every aspect of what you do and say.
If you were asked to describe the soul of this institution, or your division or your department, how would you describe it? Sue Kubik would prefer to substitute the word passion for soul, feeling that you can teach somebody the skills to help them be successful but that any real sustained success comes from a passion deep within each of us. Passion cannot be taught, it can only be nurtured. How do we nurture the passion in our students, in our colleagues, in ourselves? If our passion for our work helps to define us, what else sets us apart?
I would point to the comprehensive approach we collectively have taken in fulfilling our mission. Significant community colleges put resources into programs that enhance the out of classroom experience and put our students on a more level playing field with their four-year college peers. We do that in many ways. For example, can you imagine Northampton without our international students? Last year we welcomed 149 students from 42 countries and sponsored trips to Denmark, Moscow, Costa Rica, France, and Turkey for American students, many of whom had never traveled abroad. Those students now have a broader view of the world, as do the students who host and befriend their international classmates.
None of us will ever forget the 9/11 attacks and where we were at the time. One of my most vivid memories is of the forum we conducted in the residence hall to help our students through that horrible day. Page, Mardi and others were there and one of our international students was telling us that in her country, bombings were a weekly occurrence. Her statements, which were carefully worded, caused our students to think a little more globally. We have begun to explore the possibility of adding an additional residence hall and one of our motivating factors is to have more housing opportunities for international students.
The academic experience of our students is also enhanced by service learning. Service learning can take many different forms, but the constant is gaining experience in real life situations and applying the theoretical knowledge gained in the classroom to those experiences. Just talk to students who have worked collaboratively on a project and you will quickly feel their excitement about service and about learning. I urge the faculty who have not embraced service learning to do so.
One of the most visible programs that will set Northampton apart forever is the successful completion of the NEH Challenge grant. In January of 2009, when we were awarded the grant, it was the largest in the country for all sectors, not just community colleges. Now three short years later we have raised more than $1.4 million dollars. We are now within $200,000 of our goal, one year ahead of timeremarkable! I congratulate Sue and the IA team for their outstanding efforts and I thank all of you who donated to the cause. Now the fun stuff begins, and I know Elizabeth Bugaighis and Sol Levy have been hard at work planning a year full of activities. There is no better example of academic enhancement than the NEH grant and the forever programming that will result.
NEH is just one of many initiatives spearheaded by our Foundation that makes Northampton unique. According to the most recent national statistics, our endowment ranks 13th among the nations 1,200 community colleges. The money raised by the Foundation has enabled us to complete the Fowler Center, build the Spartan Center, and provide over $1 million last year for scholarships. In addition, it is the Foundation that supports the Staff Appreciation dinner, the Summer Institute, faculty travel, and numerous lecture series. It also gave us the Tribute Garden as a beautiful oasis in which to reflect, and to honor and memorialize colleagues, alumni, and friends.
It is fortunate for all of us that Bob Kopecek, Sue Kubik, and the Foundation Board had the wisdom to build the endowment while other colleges adopted a policy of money inmoney out. Because they established and held true to a policy of putting 50% of everything raised into an endowment, today we are reaping the benefits. As an aside, dont you wish more of todays politicians took the same approach when considering state and federal budgets. My good friend Jane Ervin, president of Community Services for Children recently wrote an op-ed piece pleading with legislators to stop worrying about the next election and make decisions that will benefit the region and the country over the long haulwhich for Jane meant the need to invest in early childhood education. Like Jane, we can continue to hope that someday our political climate will change and we will have systemic improvements that result from true bipartisan debates and compromise.
Look around the room and you will see that most of us have a long tenure at Northampton. We care deeply about the success of this college and we have a Board of Trustees that shares this commitment and does not make reactionary decisions. Our work with Achieving the Dream is a perfect example. Even as funding has dried up, we continued to push on and find ways to improve student success. Results will come, but it will try our patience along the way.
Part of the student success effort involves pre-admission assessment, and I am pleased to report that the School District Task Force, under the direction of Jeff Focht, Mardi Closson, and Elizabeth Bugaighis, that was formed last fall has been working hard to improve the placement process. One goal that I would like to see achieved is that we get out of the placement testing business and rely more on the Commonwealths standardized tests and the high school transcripts. Two years ago I asked that we look hard at our developmental education program and make the bold moves necessary to truly improve the success rate of our developmental students. Now through the work of the task force, the faculty, the summits that are being conducted, and an acknowledgement that we can do better, we are finally poised to make some noteworthy changes.
From a public policy standpoint, if we really want to serve students well, they should move seamlessly from high school to us and from us to a four-year university. Good academic work at this level should be honored and not subject to the whims of individual faculty members, department chairs or deans. And if our students are not served well at the next level or if a market need is not being met, we should explore offering bachelor degrees in specialized fields. It is being done successfully by community colleges across the country and should be on the table for our consideration.
During the year you will hear a great deal about assessment. The vice presidents will meet monthly to monitor our progress; an assessment template will be created and available on the intranet, and we will continue to ask all departments at the College to get involved with our assessment efforts. There is no more important work than for us to continually monitor and improve what we do inside the classroom and out.
What else sets us apart? We have been described as a very stable organizationentrepreneurial but focused and not distracted by all the noise that is out there. Stable, consistent, and persistent are good qualities as long as they are paired with encouragement to take risks and to dream. I believe our stability starts with our trustees. Our chairman, Karl Stackhouse, has been with us for 25 years, our vice chairman, Bob Fehnel, is an alumnus who has also been with us for 25 years, and three other trustees have over 15 years of service. They understand the community college business, they encourage all of us to think big but at the same time to be accountable, and they do not shy away from making the difficult decisions. But most importantly and as evidenced by their length of service, they are guided by what is best for the long-term welfare of this college. Many of us have benefited from their belief that it is often a strength if you can promote from within, and that is why we support programs such as the Presidents Leadership Institute and a liberal education assistance policy. When Jim Collins studied the companies that went from good to great, over 90% promoted from within. All recognized the importance in getting the right people in the right seats on the bus.
Let me further illustrate my point by telling you a story of two people in this room. The first started at the College in 1974, 20 years later she got her degree from Northampton, followed by a bachelors degree and then a masters degree from Capella University. Along the way she has been promoted to positions of greater responsibility eight times, and was recognized as administrator of the year in 1994. Today she is our director of human resources and I cannot imagine anyone being more dedicated to this College or more effective in their position than Kathy Siegfried.
The second individual is a faculty member who started here as a student in 1971, went on to receive a bachelors degree from Gannon University and a masters degree from Lehigh University. She joined our faculty in 1999, was honored for her teaching excellence in 2007 and was promoted to full professor in 2009. Annie Laurie Meyers represents what you look for in every faculty membera deep commitment to her students, to her profession, and to this College. Every spring around graduation, we get to see the emotional expression of thanks that students give to Annie Laurie. Kathy and Annie Laurie are just two examples of talented faculty and staff who have grown up with Northampton, who found ways to stay challenged, and who have devoted their professional careers to this College.
Great organizations also find the right balance in how they spend their resources. Last spring we pledged that even in a budget crisis, we would continue to invest in our facilities. The College that doesnt make these investments on an ongoing basis will never get out of a capital improvement hole. Our students deserve to have the best equipment and to study in a clean, safe environment. In these economic times, it will be a challenge for us, but we will find a way to keep our buildings and our equipment up to date.
As you go through the year, I ask, that you ask yourself, What is next? What are your plans for your programs, your department, and your profession? Then share your ideas with your colleagues.
As part of the Northampton Way presentation, we talk about having BHAGsbig hairy audacious goals. Lets stay true to our words and make sure we continue to think big. An organization is stronger if credit and opportunities are appropriately spread throughout. Over the past eight years we have tried to recognize people for innovative ideas and for extraordinary efforts and/or performancethus the Spartan Awards. We have also tried to be transparent with issues we faced and plans that are evolving. In that vein I would like to share some initiatives that are on the horizon and pass along some special kudos.
First, have you heard that we are going to be building a campus in Monroe County? I checked in 2005 in my address to you, I talked about building the campus and I was even so bold in some of the following years to predict that that was the year we would get to put a shovel in the ground. Well, this year we are going to use that shovel at a formal groundbreaking on October 18. I thank everyone who has stayed the course on this very important projectespecially Matt Connell, Helene Whitaker and Jim Dunleavy and the faculty, staff, and students who work and study at the current site. Finally this BHAG is becoming a reality.
You should also know that St. Lukes Hospital and Health Network has moved into the Fowler Family Southside Center and opened two community clinics this month. The most exciting part of this development is that by this time next year, our dental program will be on the Southside sharing space with St. Lukes and working collaboratively with their dental students in what is likely to become a national model. I salute Terry Sigal Greene, Carolyn Bortz, and the entire dental department for seizing this incredible opportunity.
If you wander over to Hartzell Hall you will find very different occupants. The LVIP move to Hartzell has been completed and now our electrical technology, indoor environmental control, and welding programs are on the main campus. Other programs that have relocated to Hartzell Hall are the solar workshop, the national electrical code certification workshops, and the HVAC certification testing. Brian Post, Jack Schreiber, Colin Phelps, Dan Philipps, Ed Csongradi, Keith Hartranft, Karen Parker, Skip Todaro, and Will Reinhard did some great work to make the move happen.
If youve been upstairs in the College Center, you know that theres a new location for the bookstore. The non-book portion of the operation is now located off of Laub Lounge ,and I believe it will result in even more Northampton sweatshirts on campus and throughout the community.
I am told that the conversion to Blackboard 9.1 is complete and I thank Doreen Fisher for taking this on so soon after she started working with us.
Document imaging is now being utilized in Institutional Advancement, Finance, and Human Resources.
And, I urge everyone to check out some of the new courses that are being offered by the Humanities and Social Sciences division, including two language courses in Chinese. And kudos go also to Michael Pogach for re-inventing the literary magazine.
Diana Holva and Carolyn Brady deserve recognition for their great work with our students who are veterans.
As many of you may know, Tina Frindt has been away for an extended period due to a medical issue, and Cindy Woodling jumped in and effectively ran the truck driving program in Tinas absence. Thank you Cindy.
Late in June when the State budget was passed, the legislators did a good thing by extending the application deadline for community college students applying for PHEAA grants to August 1 and allocated an additional $10 million. Our staff reacted very quickly to notify and market this new opportunity for aid for students and their efforts have helped our enrollment numbers, but more importantly helped many, many families.
In a few minutes you will be hearing about a new security system that will be another step to make sure our campuses are as safe as possible. Marv Gruber deserves credit for his efforts to bring this system to us.
In the next several weeks over 80 faculty and staff have volunteered to be parking lot greeters, to make phone calls to new students and to serve as mentors as part of the Spartan Pros program. And kudos go to Frank Pologruto and all club advisors. Last year over $170,000 was raised by our student clubsincredible. I would venture to say that volunteerism and the willingness to help others is another example of what makes Northampton special.
These are but a few examples of the extraordinary work all of you do each and every day. Your support of our students and belief in what we do at Northampton is so apparent and so importantthank you.
I will end my comments this morning by again saying what an honor it has been to serve as president of this college and to have all of you as colleagues. We should all feel very proud of what we have accomplished and we should continue to have great optimism and hope for the future. Eleanor Roosevelt once said that the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. I ask everyone to keep dreaming about what is possible, keep having high expectations for our students and for each other, and never lose that fire in your belly to get better each and every day. This college, this region, and our country need you to believe in the beauty of your dreams.
Thank you.
Works Cited
Collins, Jim. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Dont. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2001. Print.
Gladwell, Malcolm. The Tipping Point. Paperback ed. New York: Back Bay Books, 2002. Print.
Grove, Andrew S. Only the Paranoid Survive: How to Exploit the Crisis Points That Challenge Every Company and Career. New York: Doubleday, 1996. Print.
Phillips, Robbin, Greg Cordell, Geno Church, and Spike Jones. Brains on Fire: Igniting Powerful, Sustainable, Word of Mouth Movements. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2010. Print.