New Employees

Please join me in welcoming the following three new GCC employees, approved by the Maricopa Governing Board on April 22: Rosemary Cooke, Financial Aid; Mark Edgar, Innovation Center; and Elizabeth Luper, Enrollment Services.

Master Planning and GCC's Future

As mentioned in my April 27 newsletter, I presented a 35-minute overview of GCC past, present and future--with a sharp focus on master planning--at a retreat of the Maricopa Governing Board and Chancellor's Executive Committee (CEC) on April 29. All other Maricopa presidents made presentations about their respective colleges in this two-day retreat. The GCC presentation was well received. My deep appreciation for a team effort in creating this presentation goes to Chuck Jeffery, George Martinez and his staff, Linda Hawbaker and her staff, and especially to Bobby Sample, who again went well beyond the call of duty.

The colleges' facilities needs and requests will now be weighed by the Governing Board as it contemplates a possible bond election in 2004. I plan to repeat this presentation for the entire GCC community at our Fall Convocation in August. Significantly, a development stemming from the Board/CEC retreat appears to be renewed interest in comprehensive master planning for GCC North.

GCC North Update

Speaking of GCC North, I continue to hear very positive reports about that site's activity level, energy, and efficiency. With its new record high enrollment exceeding 1,500 this semester, we remain on a trajectory of positive growth. Summer and fall registration is taking place now on-site for both GCC North and the University-College Center at ASU West. The Deer Valley High School graduating class benefiting from the GCC North partnerships totals about 60 students. We hope that a large number of these students will transition directly into classes at GCC North and/or GCC Main.

Search for New Dean of Administrative Services

A new high priority for this summer will be launching a search committee for the Dean of Administrative Services position, held most recently by Joyce Elsner. The committee will be chaired by Regis Della-Calce, Director of College Business Services. The Dean of Administrative Services plays a very important leadership role for GCC, making it especially important that we give this search our very best effort. Among the committee's first tasks will be setting dates and timelines, and determining strategies for a highly engaged national search. I'll keep you updated with more details as they become available.

Budget Deliberations Continue

About 55 department chairs, faculty and staff members, and others attended a meeting on May 2 to discuss improving and streamlining GCC's budget process. I was pleased that so many expressed their points of view and offered so many constructive perspectives and suggestions. Much of the conversation focused on composition, representation and tenure of a proposed President's Budget Advisory Committee (PBAC), and how information would be filtered up to that committee. Related issues concern how the information flow would be coordinated and how it could be linked and driven more than ever by College-wide planning and priorities.

I believe we will arrive at mutually agreed upon initial processes that will help all of us in what has historically been a cumbersome decision-making process. The meeting resulted in general consensus about the information flow and that the new PBAC could proceed to the next steps of development. Additional meetings will continue to be held as we work through this important group effort.

Summer Hours

Reminder: summer hours for GCC and the Maricopa District will begin on Mon., May 19. Work schedules of most departments on campus will be 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., with Fridays off. The regular work week schedule resumes on Mon., August 11.

Awards and Honors

GCC awards, honors and successes keep coming to my attention, especially as the academic year draws to a close. Covering all of them of course is beyond the scope of this newsletter, so check for a lot more online in the May "Gaucho Gazette." Here is just a small sampling of recent GCC successes:

• I was delighted with the results from the GCC Alumni Association's first "Evening with the Arts" reception and silent auction, May 2. Many alumni, faculty, staff, and others attended, raising $2,505 for student scholarships.
• A fine example of faculty initiative supported by GCC Training and Development has been the work of Social Science faculty member Dr. Linda Smith. She coordinated the "Lunch and Learn" series of eight informal noontime presentations with diverse topics ranging from Kafka's Prague to Watergate to Field Ecology in Ecuador. The series showcased GCC expertise. Look for this intellectually stimulating series to continue next fall. And thanks, Linda.
• Kudos to Sally Hervey, Martha Gail Richmond, and BJ Jacobs for appearing live on KTVK-TV's "Good Morning Arizona" (Channel 3), promoting GCC and Operation Provide Comfort supporting U.S. military personnel overseas. We love to have live TV coverage for positive stories like this!
• A $1,000 scholarship to a MCCD student will be presented in the name of Psychology faculty member Sue Oliver. She received one of this year's five Maricopa Foundation Employee Recognition Awards. She is continuing the research of the late Dr. Irwin Westenberg.
• Two highlights on my calendar last week were the annual Honors Program end-of-year banquet, and a GCC annual tradition--the all-employee picnic generously sponsored by GCC Faculty Senate. Both events were well-attended. I had the pleasure of meeting some of our highest achieving students and their families, and to thank Dr. Mary Leskovsky for her fine work in offering Honors-related activities to GCC students who choose them. The picnic was held in Sahuaro Ranch Park during the lunch break and was a welcome respite for many faculty and staff at the end of a very busy week. My thanks to Faculty Senate President Carmela Arnoldt, incoming Senate President John Griggs and others for their leadership in creating this simple, fun forum where so many of us could gather and celebrate another academic year coming to a close.
• Finally, I want to express appreciation to John Jones and the entire staff of Aramark Food Services at GCC for keeping us well fed throughout another busy semester. This time of year is especially challenging in meeting campus needs for so many special events -- mornings, evenings, and weekends! Yet the Food Services crew meets those challenges with efficiency, a great attitude, and always a fine product.

Dr. Phil D. Randolph
President
Glendale Community College