As I mark the second anniversary of my appointment to the presidency of Queens College, I’m struck once again by the college’s extraordinary contributions to the community. It is a privilege to lead this remarkable institution and its faculty and staff. |
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I particularly enjoy meeting our alumni, many of whom remain grateful for their education and support their alma mater. One such alum is Colonel Irwin Gorman ’55. I was honored to visit him in Phoenix last month, to express appreciation for his generosity. To date, he has donated just over $25,000 to QC, including his recent gifts of $10,000 to Veteran Student Services and $10,000 to the Benjamin S. Rosenthal Library in memory of his late wife, Rhoda Edelman Gorman ’56, whom he met at QC. He also purchased a brick on campus to memorialize their union.
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I’m happy to share this video featuring Anastasia Koutsidis, who became director of Public Safety just over a year ago. Many of her tips for keeping safe—such as walking with friends, paying attention to your surroundings, and checking your car before getting inside it—are as useful off campus as on.
Through The CUNY Leadership Institute (TCLI)—a program designed to strengthen and diversify the managerial pipeline for higher education—Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Elizabeth Hendrey has been mentoring Hyunhee Park, associate professor of history at John Jay College and the CUNY Graduate Center, and I have been mentoring Michael Steiper, acting associate provost for Academic Success, Institutional Effectiveness, & Strategic Analytics at Hunter College. On Monday, March 28, Betsy and I enjoyed dinner with our respective mentees and QC’s participants in the Leadership Institute: Social Sciences Dean Kate Pechenkina and Acting Drama, Theatre and Dance Chair Edisa Weeks.
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From left: Edisa Weeks, Frank H. Wu, Elizabeth Hendrey, Kate Pechenkina, Hyunhee Park, and Michael Steiper. |
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Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) were the topics on Tuesday, March 29, when I visited Chief Diversity Officer and Dean of Diversity Jerima DeWese, bringing a box of donuts. Nearly 30 people—faculty, staff, students, and alums—have been named to the campus working groups DeWese established to address recognition, accessibility, and DEI issues, consistent with the 2021-26 Strategic Plan. The groups will be meeting regularly; I look forward to hearing their recommendations. |
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The same day, I had the pleasure of escorting distinguished visitors from Lucy Cavendish College—including President Dame Madeleine Atkins—around campus. The purpose of that college, part of the University of Cambridge in England, is to provide opportunities for underrepresented groups to study at Cambridge. We are exploring the establishment of a possible year-long residency at Lucy Cavendish. We are looking forward to further discussions as plans are developed.
On Wednesday, March 30, the Latin American and Latino Studies Program, led by Zadia Feliciano, presented Our Voices: Black, Latinx, and Caribbean Students’ Day: Overcoming COVID-19, a symposium that inaugurated an annual series focusing on the experiences of the Black, Latinx, and Caribbean communities in the United States. Two panels—one drawn from prominent higher education administrators, health care and community leaders, the other from QC faculty—discussed the pandemic’s impact from local, national, and global perspectives. Students had the chance to weigh in through a contest on the theme of overcoming COVID-19. The competition had art, literature, and media categories; winners were announced during the event. I very much enjoyed and appreciated speaking at the symposium and meeting the student awardees and their faculty mentors.
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Deborah Tulloch showed off her certificate. |
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The symposium concluded with refreshments in Thiele Atrium. |
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In other great news, I’m delighted to announce that Jeff Beeler (Psychology) has been appointed director of the Ira Spar Biosciences Laboratory being established on campus. A tenured professor since 2019, Beeler hopes to develop deeper, more impactful research, obtain more substantial funding, establish a postdoctoral core in his lab, and increase his productivity to at least three quality empirical research papers a year. Warmest congratulations, Jeff!
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I also congratulate Ricky Riccardi, director of Research Collections for the Louis Armstrong House Museum, on his Grammy win on Sunday night. He was recognized in the category of Best Album Notes for “The Complete Louis Armstrong Columbia And RCA Victor Studio Sessions 1946-1966.”
This week and the next will be eventful for the QC community.
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This popular operetta—fully staged, with period costuming—will be presented at Goldstein Theatre on evenings, April 7-10, and on the afternoon of April 11. Everyone can appreciate this fun musical confection.
The Center for Career Engagement and Internships has scheduled its next employment and recruitment panel for this Friday, March 8. From 11 to 11:40 am, employers from education, government, and nonprofit sectors will introduce themselves and discuss career opportunities for students and alumni. From 11:40 am to 12:30 pm, an employer breakout session will cover interview preparation, resume tips, and other aspects of professional development. The event will take place over Zoom; to attend, register here.
On April 11-14, CUNY will hold its 13th Annual Accessibility Conference; this year’s theme is the State of Accessibility: Are We Living Up to the Promise of Compliance and the Law? The college’s DEI efforts emphatically include people with disabilities, which is why I was thrilled to be asked to deliver the Wednesday, April 13, keynote speech. QC alumnus Chris Rosa, who had a long career with CUNY before becoming president and CEO of the Viscardi Center, will speak the following day. (I will present Chris with the President’s Medal, QC’s highest administrative honor, at Commencement.)
The pandemic may be ebbing, but it has caused tremendous devastation, leaving many of us to mourn family members and friends who died of coronavirus. On campus on April 13, from 9:30 to 10:30 am, we will commemorate them with the Yellow Heart Memorial Service at Cooperman Plaza. I am grateful to QC students Danielle and Jessica Alejandro, who lost their beloved grandfather, for organizing the Yellow Heart program on campus. Please join us at this service.
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Like the Alejandro sisters, Myrlie Evers-Williams turned grief into action. She and her first husband were civil rights advocates in segregated Mississippi; although they survived the firebombing of their home in 1962, Medgar Evers was murdered the next year. While campaigning for justice in that case—resolved in 1994 with the conviction of white supremacist Byron De La Beckwith—Myrlie held public office in Los Angeles and chaired the board of directors of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. It’s highly appropriate for the Office of Compliance and Diversity to launch its Campus Conversations series on Thursday, April 14, at 5:30 pm, with a program featuring Myrlie Evers-Williams. Register here.
Her talk will be followed by two breakout sessions. In one, Dean DeWese will facilitate conversation about racism, discrimination, and related issues then and now, and how to effect positive change. In the other session, anyone affected by the Delany Hall incident will have the opportunity to discuss how the college can prevent similar episodes and move forward.
With that goal in mind, I’d like to emphasize the values we have in common. This month, as many of you may have noticed, Ramadan, Passover, Easter—holidays observed by many on this campus and in the Borough of Queens—overlap. I like to think of this convergence as an indication that whether and whatever you celebrate, there is more to unite us than divide us. My very best wishes to all who observe these important occasions.
I hope everyone continues to have a successful and enjoyable semester. Stay safe and well.
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PS: The New York Blood Center will be holding a blood drive in the Patio Room of the Dining Hall on Thursday, April 14, from 11 am to 7 pm. Blood supplies dropped steeply during the pandemic; I hope faculty, staff, and students who are eligible to donate will consider participating in this drive. I also want to make a strong pitch for giving of another kind at the annual Queens College Gala, taking place on Wednesday, May 11, at Gustavino’s in Manhattan. To learn more about this year’s gala, and its honorees, alumni Paulette E. Mullings Bradnock ’84 and Matthew T. Higgins ’98. It promises to be a great celebration and I hope to see many members of the college community and our supporters in attendance.
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