• Planning for fall 2021 commenced in earnest, requiring updates to the current campus Reopening Plan that was approved by CUNY in summer 2020. The current plan includes a goal of 25% in-person instruction and delivery of support services. The Fall 2021 Reopening Plan sets a goal of 50% space occupancy. As part of our planning, the two previous committees (Phase 1 and Phase 2 Committees) that coordinated the Fall 2020 Reopening Plan have now been merged into one super committee. This single committee comprising of faculty, staff, administration, and students, will coordinate the plan for fall 2021 reopening. A Return to Work committee of the President’s Cabinet has been charged by President Lemons to provide oversight for this plan. Throughout the month of February, divisional heads and school deans worked with unit directors, staff and department chairs and faculty, respectively, to develop unit plans and instructional schedules for fall 2021. Both the President and Provost participated in the F P&B, and the General Faculty meetings held on February 16^th and 24^th, respectively, and answered questions on fall 2021 reopening. Vice President for Information Technology Ronald Bergmann and Vice President for Diversity and Human Resources Dawn Ewing Morgan also participated in the F P&B meeting at the Provost’s invitation and answered questions on technology support and HR issues related to the reopening plan. Provost Nwosu also discussed the reopening plan individually with school deans and divisional heads in academic affairs and student success and at the Deans’ only meeting held on February 25^th. The College remains committed to our students’ and employees’ health and safety and will be guided in its planning by what we know about the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccine availability and distribution, and guidance from CUNY, NYC, and NYS. In the meantime, NYSED and MSCHE have extended approval for virtual learning as long as the pandemic is still in place. 

• On Thursday, February 18, 2021, the College took a significant step to unveil its draft strategic plan for the next five years to the campus community. More than 100 participants attended the zoom Town Hall hosted by President Lemons. The plan titled Lehman 2025: Roadmap for the Future has four goals, 14 objectives, and 33 strategies.  The five-year plan builds on the following: the successful work of faculty and staff in producing a diverse pipeline of leaders and change agents; the importance of both active and applied learning-centered in the liberal arts; and focuses on educational attainment in the Bronx, a commitment to social justice, and finding innovative solutions to the challenges and opportunities in the region and beyond. It also takes account of current realities (e.g., COVID-19) and the changing higher education landscape, aligns with ongoing College plans and initiatives, and CUNY Strategic goals, and sets Lehman apart as a catalytic institution and a national engine of inclusive excellence and upward mobility. Vice President for Diversity and Human Resources, Dawn Ewing Morgan, who served on the Strategic Plan Steering Committee, provided information on the background and process that guided the development of the draft strategic plan, which involved more than 104 members of the campus community serving on eight Task Forces that worked on various parts of the draft plan resulting in the initial draft of 46-pages. Both Provost Nwosu and Dr. Anne Rice, Chair, General Faculty Assembly, who co-chaired the Strategic Plan Steering Committee, presented an overview of the draft strategic plan in the context of its strategic positioning for the College, while President Lemons spoke to the mission, vision, and values statements, and the budget implications for the draft strategic plan. Final changes to the draft strategic plan were to be completed based on the feedback received at the Town Hall and those submitted to the strategic plan website by Thursday, February 25, 2021. As part of the next steps, divisional heads and school deans were tasked with developing implementation plans and budget estimates for their respective areas in collaboration with faculty and staff. 

• We continued to make steady progress in enhancing external grant and contract funding for the College. Among the accomplishments thus far, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP) completed a three-year analysis of proposal submissions, awards received, and research expenditures. ORSP worked with the Research Infrastructure Taskforce convened by the Provost to assess the successes, barriers, and opportunities within Lehman’s research enterprise; engaged with faculty regularly to identify research, scholarship, and funding opportunities; engaged with the Student Research Advisory Board (SRAB); and coordinated funding workshops and presented on the grant process in various faculty development forums across the campus. 
• Below are highlights of proposal submissions, dollar amount submitted, proposals awarded, and dollar amount awarded for the years 2018 through 2020. 

• I am pleased to announce that Lehman College and the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health (SPH) are in the final stages of establishing an agreement to pilot a Bachelor of Science/Master of Public Health Pipeline Program beginning fall 2021. The Lehman/SPH 4+1 Program permits eligible Lehman students to take graduate-level courses at SPH during their junior and senior years at Lehman, with such courses counting towards their undergraduate and graduate degrees. The agreement secures the student’s early admission to SPH’s Master of Public Health programs and enables them to complete both the undergraduate and MPH degrees in five years rather than six. The pilot cohort will apply to the program in spring 2021 for admission in the fall 2021 cohort. The anticipated maximum enrollment in the first year is approximately ten (10) students, drawn mainly from the Health Services Administration program or related majors. Planning for this program began last summer with an initial meeting between Provost Nwosu and SPH Provost Ashish Joshi. Associate Provost Brown worked with multiple stakeholders, including HS2N Dean, Elgloria Harrison, Enrollment Management, and the Division of Administration and Finance, to finalize the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Dean Harrison will serve as the lead coordinator for Lehman on this important initiative. 
• Discussions have also begun with Guttman Community College, Hostos Community College, and the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) to establish 2+2 and 2+2+1 Articulation Programs with Lehman in specific majors such as Business and Dietetics. The articulation programs are designed to create seamless transfer pathways for community college transfers to Lehman College, whereby a student who begins at the community college and earns an Associate of Arts diploma within two years can complete the Bachelor’s degree at Lehman in another two years (2+2) with a clear knowledge of transfer expectations and requirements resulting from the articulation agreement, and the student may continue for another one year at Lehman to earn a Master’s degree, hence the 2+2 (+1). We believe the articulation programs will foster greater collaboration among BTAG (Bronx Transfer Affinity Group) institutions to expand postsecondary opportunities for underserved population groups, strengthen academic rigor, and increase student success. We expect to expand these articulation agreements to permit BTAG Community Colleges and Lehman to engage in conversations that would strengthen alignment in specific academic programs, further improve the transfer process, introduce students to new careers and opportunities at Lehman, and increase overall enrollment and completion rates for both institutions. I have tasked Associate Provost Victor Brown to coordinate these efforts with Enrollment Management, our school deans, and the respective departments’ chairs.

• February 1 and 26 – Participated in a webinar for members of the Board, Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP), to discuss the Value Commission Report, a national initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The report examines the value of post-secondary education and offers recommendations about defining and measuring value across the higher education sector. IHEP is partnering with the Gates Foundation and other national stakeholders on this significant work.  Also participated in the February 1 and 26 meetings of the Board’s Committee on Management, Development, and Compensation in my role as Secretary to the Board.

• February 3 – Participated in the Association of Chief Academic Officers (ACAO) Monthly Board Meeting. 

• February 3 – Held the monthly NYC-CUNY-LSAMP update meeting with program coordinator Laura Oliveira. 

• February 8 – Met with program officers from the Gray Foundation (with VP Susan Ebersole, VP Sarmiento, and Dean MacKillop) to discuss potential funding opportunities for Lehman. 

• February 8 – Participated in the American Council on Education (ACE) Council of Fellows (COF) Planning Meeting regarding the 2021 ACE-COF Annual Conference. 

• February 10 – Participated in the Presidents’ Student Success Roundtable of four CUNY Colleges: Lehman, John Jay, Queens, and City Tech. 

• February 10 – Participated in the CUNY Academic Council meeting of chief academic officers. 

• February 11 – Served as a panelist on “Equity-minded Approaches to Student Success” at the Provosts’ Student Success Institute-Design Cohort convening sponsored by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) and funded by the Gates Foundation.

• February 18 – Held meeting with Dr. Tammy Evetovich, Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, University of Wisconsin, Platteville, as part of AASCU’s Academy for New Provosts. 

• February 19 – Participated in the Monthly Meeting of six provosts from CUNY’s Senior Colleges (Lehman, City, Queens, Brooklyn, Baruch, and CSI).

• February 23 – Joined President Lemons and VP Susan Ebersole in a meeting with Abby Jo Sigal, CEO, HERE to HERE, to discuss the proposed School of Business. 

• February 23 – Participated in a meeting with President Lemons and Dr. Linda Bleicken, President, American Academic Leadership Institute (AALI).

• February 23 – Participated in the CUNY Leadership Institute meeting (with CUNY’s University Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs Annemarie Nicols-Grinenko, Harvard’s Joseph Zolner, and Maria Camaj) to continue planning for program launch scheduled for late summer 2021. 

• February 25 – Participated in the Spring 2021 Sara Little Turnbull Design Speaker Series and introduced the keynote speaker, Ms. Meghan Preiss, Design Research and Strategist at the Ford Motor Company in Detroit. Dr. Alyshia Galvez, Department of Latin American and Latino Studies, facilitated the day’s event, which focused on “Designing Migration: Serving Human Mobility and Justice.”

• February 25 – Participated (with VP Sarmiento) in a CUNY meeting of select institutions to provide input and feedback on supports for incoming High School Class of 2021 students.  Provosts and representatives from BCC, La Guardia, Kingsborough, Queens, and John Jay Colleges participated in the meeting hosted by University Associate Vice Chancellor Donna Linderman, Associate Dean for K-16 Initiatives Andrea Soonachan, and Vice Chancellor Denise Maybank. 

• February 1 – Convened the Fellowship Committee of the Faculty Budget and Personnel (FP&B) Committee and charged the committee with a review of the 2021-2022 fellowship applications. The committee, chaired by Daniel Fernandez (Languages and Literatures), comprises of the following department chairs: Cheryl Smith Gabig (Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences), Christopher Bonastia (Sociology), Teresita Levy (Latin American and Latino Studies), Ryan Raaum (Anthropology), and Terry Towery (Art).

• February 1, 8, 9, and 16 – Held individual 1:1 meetings with divisional Vice Presidents, Executive Counsel, and President’s Chief of Staff.

• February 2 – Participated in the Return to Work Committee meeting, a committee of the President’s Cabinet, which provides oversight for Fall 2021 Reopening. 

• February 2, 8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 24, 25, and 26 – Held individual 1:1 meetings with School Deans, Chief Librarian, and direct reports to the Provost from the Division of Academic Affairs and Student Success.

• February 2, 10, 17, and 25 – Held 1:1 meetings with President Lemons.

• February 3 - Attended the meeting of the College Senate.

• February 3 and 18 – Convened Provost’s and Deans’ Council (PDC) Meetings. Agenda items included Provost’s updates, enrollment updates, Fall 2021 Reopening Plan, among others. 

• February 9 – Convened the F P&B Committee on Tenure, Promotion, and Certificate of Continuous Employment (TPCCE) for Spring 2021 Promotion Candidates and formally charged the committee regarding applicable policies and considerations. The Committee is chaired by Julie Maybe, Chair, Philosophy Department. 

• February 9 – Held 1:1 meeting with SGA President Jada Quinland.

• February 10 and 17 – Participated in the President’s Cabinet meeting.

• February 16 – Participated in the F P&B meeting and provided the Provost’s Report; joined by VP Ronald Bergmann and VP Dawn Ewing Morgan to discuss technology support and HR issues related to Fall 2021 Reopening Plan. 

• February 16 – Held 1:1 meeting with Anne Rice, Chair, General Faculty Assembly, and co-chair, Strategic Plan Steering Committee to discuss planning for Lehman 2025 Town Hall.

• February 18 – Participated in the Lehman Vacancy Review Committee meeting.

• February 18 – Participated in the College Senate Governance Committee meeting.

• February 23 – Joined President Lemons in a meeting on class size with Senate Governance Chair Joe Fera, General Faculty Assembly Chair Anne Rice, Professor Wendell Cooper, and Professor Amy Larimer.

• February 24 – Participated in the Joint Senate Committee on Budget and Long-Range Planning meeting and presented on Lehman 2025 the College’s new Strategic Plan and implications for budget. 

• February 24 – Participated in the General Faculty Assembly meeting with President Lemons and answered questions from faculty facilitators and some participants. 

• February 24 – Participated in the President’s Advisory Board (PAB) Meeting. 

• February 28 – Convened the Deans’ Joint meeting with the Provost.

• February 2 – Met with Professor Nancy Dubetz (Chair, Early Childhood and Childhood Education) and Associate Provost Victor Brown, co-chairs, School of Education Dean Search, to discuss progress on the search. 

• February 2 – Participated in the School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS) Alumni Briefing and provided welcome remarks and introduced Dean Jane MacKillop.

• February 9 – Attended the BTAG Transfer Tuesdays Professional Development Series hosted by Enrollment Management.  

• February 10 – Hosted a virtual reception ceremony attended by President Lemons and several campus colleagues honoring Stanley Bazile, Dean of Students and Executive in Charge, Student Affairs for his services to the College. Stanley joined the staff of St. Francis University, New York, as chief student affairs officer. 

• February 11 – Interviewed by the Riverdale Press on Lehman’s Bronx Recovery Corps (BRC). 

• February 11 – Attended the President’s Briefing to the campus community.

• February 22 – Academic Affairs, in collaboration with Administration and Finance and Human Resources, hosted the Provost’s Professional Development Series for department chairs focused on Operational Issues: Budget, OTPS, and Adjuncts. Bethania Ortega, Director, Budget and Planning, and Jason Gaines, Manager, Human Resources, presented.

• February – Continued work with the search committee to hire a permanent Dean of the School of Education (SOE).