• Received a planning grant from the Teagle Foundation to support ATLAS (Anchored in The Liberal ArtS), a structured program of transformative classes in General Education for transfer students enrolled in the traditional liberal arts and professional programs at Lehman. Associate Dean Karin Beck in the School of Arts and Humanities and Associate Provost Victor Brown are coordinating this initiative, with support from Vice President Susan Ebersole. The planning grant will allow Lehman to begin work in spring 2021 with a select group of faculty around redesign of LEH courses in General Education, grounded on transformative texts that expose students to the Characteristics of a Lehman Graduate as educated, empowered, and engaged. Implementation will begin in spring 2021, and Teagle anticipates a larger grant to Lehman to scale the program.

• Received funding from Here to Here to support the Bronx Recovery Corps (BRC), a blended program of applied/experiential learning opportunity for Lehman students through LEH courses and includes paid internships. Implementation of BRC will commence in spring 2021. This program is coordinated through multiple units in the division of Academic Affairs and Student Success (International Programs and Community Engagement, Academic Programs and Educational Effectiveness, and Student Affairs) in collaboration with a number of faculty.

• The CUNY Board of Trustees Committee on Academic Programs, Policy, and Research (CAPPR) has approved the proposal for an Ed.D. in Organizational Leadership, Development, and Change, sponsored by the School of Education through the department of Counseling, Leadership, Literacy, and Special Education (CLLSE). Both President Lemons and I spoke at the CAPPR meeting in support of the proposal and answered Committee members’ questions prior to the vote. CLLSE Chair Janet DeSimone; Associate Dean and Executive-in-Charge for School of Education, Serigne Gningue; and Associate Provost Victor Brown attended the meeting. With final approval of the full Board expected at its next meeting, as well as the approval of NYSED, we anticipate this program to begin in fall 2021. This 52-credit hour program will take three years to complete and will be the first such interdisciplinary online Ed.D. (with a residential component) to be offered by CUNY, thanks to the leadership of Dr. Janet DeSimone and former Interim Dean, Gaoyin Qian. The department has a decade-long history of successful leadership programs that include the Master of Science in Organizational Leadership (MSOL). The impetus for this program began in 2019 following my meeting with them to discuss the possibility of such program at Lehman to be housed in the School. I subsequently provided the seed funding to hire a consultant to explore the feasibility of this offering at Lehman. Within a period of one year, the proposal was completed and approved by the College Senate at its last meeting for AY19/20 in May 2020. The proposal was then submitted to CUNY Central and Academic Affairs worked with them over the summer to address questions and resolve any remaining issues, including a meeting with Baruch that had indicated interest in offering an Ed.D. I am proud of the work that has been done to move this proposal forward. I am confident that the program will serve Lehman well and address the need for leadership in the educational and non-profit sectors that is so desperately needed in the region and New York. We anticipate this program will begin to bring in additional revenue to the College in two years.

• We also submitted the proposal to CUNY Central for a Master of Science program in Mental Health Counseling to be offered through CLLSE in the School of Education. This is an area of huge need in our public schools, a need magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic. We anticipate this program to start in fall 2022 once all approvals are secured.

• The New York State Department of Education (NYSED) gave final approval to Lehman to offer the post-baccalaureate HealthBridge Program, which will help address the need for additional skilled professionals in the healthcare industry. Some of the program highlights include: students earning the certificate will receive preparation to guide them in applying to professional schools in medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, optometry, physical therapy, physician assistant studies, or veterinary medicine; students will learn how to effectively complete all aspects of the application process: including the personal statement, interview, extracurricular activities, and letters of recommendation; and, students earning the certificate will have completed all common prerequisite coursework for the profession of their choice. The program is sponsored by the School of Natural and Social Sciences. We anticipate this program will be self-sustaining and will bring in additional revenue to the College.

• Received NYSED’s approval to offer the Advanced Certificate in Human Rights Education and Transformative Justice. The program is sponsored by the Department of Middle and High school Education (MHSE) in the School of Education. 

• As you probably recall, there are 14 curriculum renewal proposals (listed in October 2020 Provost’s Monthly Report) that were approved for funding this year, at the certificate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate levels. This includes a proposal for a B.A. in Digital Music, proposals for a BA-MA in Speech Pathology, a BS-MS in Dietetics, Foods, and Nutrition, and a BS-MS in Health Education and Promotion, as well as a proposal to explore the feasibility of a doctorate in social work. I am confident that these proposals, when finalized and implemented, will bring enormously added value to the College and to the community. I want to thank President Lemons for his support of these initiatives, some of which have been funded through the savings from our Strategic Growth and Investment Strategy (SGIP) and the additional request of about $80k, which he approved.

• A final piece of good news on the curriculum front is linked to the School of Health Sciences, Human Services, and Nursing (HS2N). The School houses the Speech and Hearing Clinic in the department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences. The Clinic provides services to the community as well as internship opportunities for our students. Over the years, there have been discussions on expanding the Clinic’s services to the broader community in a way that further strengthens the department’s curriculum, providing opportunities for clinical practice for students, while allowing the clinic to become self-sustaining. Last year, I provided $52k from our SGIP funds to the department to explore this process and the Executive Counsel Bridget Barbera worked with CUNY Central to approve our request. I am pleased to report that the Clinic has now received approval from CUNY to bill for services (becoming the first to be granted such approval), and in November we began work with a third-party billing insurance agency to finalize the remaining internal protocols to implement this initiative. We anticipate service delivery under this arrangement to commence in spring 2021. The program is expected to generate additional revenue to the College.

• Assessment Management System (AMS): After completing its review of Improve by Nuventive’s (Essential version), the New York State’s Comptroller Office placed the AMS system out for competitive bidding through December 8th. 

• Assessment: 64% of Administrative and Educational Support (AES), 73% of academic, and 100% of General Education (Gen Ed) units submitted assessment plans for the 2020-2021 academic year. Efforts are under way to ensure 100% compliance. 

• November 13 – CCNE held an Appeal Hearing requested by Lehman for the reaffirmation of accreditation for the Master of Science Family Nurse Practitioner Program in Nursing. On November 20, the Commission notified the College of its decision to withdraw accreditation, a decision solely based on one metric-student pass rate (78% instead of 80%) on the credentialing examination. Click on this link for FAQs on this issue. The College continues to explore all options in support of our students.

• November 21 – Office of Assessment and Educational Effectiveness (OAEE) hosted an assessment workshop focused on developing assessment measures and metrics and was attended by 21 assessment liaisons, faculty and staff.

• November 26 – Student Evaluation of Teaching and Learning (SETL) survey was opened on November 26th and will close on December 14th.

• November 2 – Participated in a Strategic Partnership Meeting with Montefiore Hospital for a proposed government-funded Center of Excellence in Nursing at Lehman to produce a pipeline of nursing professionals for the healthcare industry.

• November 2, 10, 12, and 19 – Held planning meetings on the implementation of The CUNY Leadership Institute (TCLI) for urban-serving institutions funded by the Mellon Foundation. 

• November 4 – Participated in the Board of Directors monthly meeting of the national Association of Chief Academic Officers (ACAO).

• November 6 – Participated in the American Council of Education (ACE) Council of Fellows Professional Development Committee meeting.

• November 6 –Participated in the CUNY Academic Council Sub-Committee on Academic and Resource Planning Meeting, which focused on transfer and related issues.

• November 6 and 20 – Participated in two convenings of the American Academic Leadership Institute (AALI), and the Executive Leadership Academy (ELA) of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU).

• November 10 – Attended the Braven-Lehman Virtual Site Team Visit, an initiative to advance career opportunity for students.

• November 11 – Attended the CUNY Academic Council Meeting of Chief Academic Officers.

• November 13 – Attended the Appeal Hearing by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing (CCNE) for the renewal of accreditation of Lehman’s Master of Science Family Nurse Practitioners (FNP) program.

• November 16 – Appointed to the Board of Directors of The Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP), a Washington, D.C.-based nonpartisan, nonprofit organization committed to promoting access to and success in higher education for all students. IHEP focuses on developing innovative policy-and practice-oriented research that guide policymakers and education leaders in addressing our nation’s most pressing education challenges.

• November 16 – Participated in the Virtual Alumni Engagement event of the School of Health Sciences, Human Services, and Nursing (HS2N) and provided opening remarks.

• November 16 – 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.

• November 18 – Participated in the CUNY Committee on Academic Policy (CAP) Meeting.

• November 18 – Convened the Bronx Transfer Affinity Group (BTAG) Leadership Meeting, which includes Chief Academic Officers, Chief Enrollment Officers and Chief Student Affairs Officers of the five participating colleges (Lehman, BCC, BMCC, Gutman, and Hostos).

• November 19 – Attended the CUNY 2020 Virtual New Faculty Gathering, with Chancellor Felix Matos Rodriguez and University Provost José Luis Cruz provided opening remarks, while AASCU President Mildred García gave the keynote address.

• November 19 – Attended the Board Meeting of the School of Education Professional Education Advisory Council (PEAC) and gave welcome remarks.

• November 20 – Participated in the monthly CUNY Senior College Provosts’ Meeting.

• November 23 – Participated in the inaugural meeting of the CUNY Spring 2021 Semester Enrollment Strike Force led by Enrollment and Student Affairs Vice Chancellor Denise Maybank to explore strategies for increasing spring enrollment across the system.

• November 23 – Attended the CUNY Board of Trustees Committee on Academic Policy, Programs, and Research (CAPPR) Meeting.

• November 23 – Held meeting with Dr. Lester Sandres Rápalo, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Bronx Community College.

• November 24 – Participated in Committee on Academic Policy Sub- Committee meeting to discuss Student Evaluation of Teaching (SET) across the University.

• November 4 – Attended the meeting of the College Senate.

• November 5 –Held 1:1 meeting with Professor Anne Rice, Co-Chair, College Strategic Plan Steering Committee.

• November 2, 4, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 23 – Held individual 1:1 meetings with divisional Vice Presidents, Executive Counsel, and President’s Chief of Staff.

• November 2, 5, 9, 11, 12, 17, 19, 23, and 24 – 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.

• November 3 and 17 – Participated in the FP&B meeting and provided Provost’s Report, which included a report on the Lehman Extension presented by Dean Jane MacKillop, School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS).

• November 5 and 19 – Convened Provost’s and Deans’ Council (PDC) Meetings. Agenda items included Provost’s Updates, Enrollment update, Bell Schedule, IRB updates, Strategic Plan updates, Spring 2020 Undergraduate Student and Faculty Academic Experiences, Information Technology Roadmap, among others.

• November 5 and 19 – Participated in the President’s Budget Working Group (BWG) meeting. 

• November 6 – Convened meeting of the 2020-2025 Strategic Plan Steering Committee.

• November 9 and 23 – Convened Academic Affairs and Student Success (A2S2) Executive Leadership Team meeting.

• November 10 – Participated in the Lehman’s Vacancy Review Committee meeting.

• November 10 and 16 – Participated in the President’s Cabinet meeting.

• November 10 and 17 – Held 1:1 meetings with President Lemons.

• November 11, 16, and 24 – Held meetings to review and refine the draft Guiding Statements (Mission, Vision, and Values) developed by the President’s Advisory Board for the 2020-2025 draft Strategic Plan.

• November 12 – Convened the Deans’ Joint meeting with the Provost.

• November 16 – Participated in the College Senate Governance Committee meeting.

• November 18 – Attended the General Faculty Assembly meeting and joined President Lemons in addressing faculty questions.

• November 18 – Participated in the Senate Joint Committee on Budget and Long-Range Planning meeting, and had Brandon Begarly, Director, Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, present a report on grants and contracts.

• November 24 – Met with SGA President Jada Quinland and Vice President Sumana Ali.

• November 2, 4, 5, and 18 – Held individual 1:1 meetings with the following Department Chairs: Thomas O’Hanlon (Journalism and Media Studies), Alicia Georges (Nursing), Elhum Haghighat (Political Science), and Haiping Cheng (Biology).

• November 5 – Participated in a meeting with Vice President Rotolo and Vice President Sarmiento that was convened by President Lemons to discuss 90x30 Model considerations.

• November 5 – Joined President Lemons in meeting with faculty recipients of the Sloan Foundation grant on climate to celebrate the accomplishment.

• November 11 – Academic Affairs hosted the Provost Professional Development Series (PPDS) Fall 2020 Workshop for department chairs, directors, deans, and associate deans focused on FERPA and FOIL. Executive Counsel Bridget Barbera facilitated the workshop.

• November 11 – Met with Professor Dene Hurley, Chair, Department of Economics and Business; Vice President for Advancement Susan Ebersole; Vice President for Administration and Finance; and Interim Dean Pam Mills, School of Natural and Social Sciences (NSS), to further discussions on the proposed School of Business at Lehman.

• November 12 – Participated in the Weekly Enrollment meeting with Academic Affairs, Enrollment Management, and Administration and Finance.

• November 19 – Participated in the President’s Briefing to the campus community.

• November 24 – Chaired the Lehman College Pre-Health Advisory Board meeting.

• November 5 – Jermaine Wright was appointed Interim Vice President for Student Affairs.