New Employees

Please help me welcome new employees approved at the October 26 Governing Board Meeting: Sophie Kerlin, Center for Learning; Michael Lynn, Academic Advisement; Sondra Peterson, Employee Resources; Marco Pineda, Library Media Center; and Rebecca Schweitzer, Athletics.

Update on Committee Reviewing E-mail, Web Policies

Several months ago Chancellor Rufus Glasper formed a committee to review district administrative regulations on the use of electronic messages (e-mail) and district computing resources (computers, internet, e-mail servers). The committee, which includes faculty, staff, and students (including GCC student Jim Lugo), has drafted proposed changes to the existing policy. They reflect related best practices from colleges and universities nationally. One of the proposals is the use of a dual system for e-mail memos sent district-wide. After initial input from employee groups, the proposals will be submitted for open comment, and then to the chancellor for formal adoption. Upon approval, memos that employees wish to send to the entire district will be routed in two ways, either "dl-maricopa-business" or "dl-maricopa-announcements." The business list is designed solely for Maricopa business and the announcement list is designed for general announcements. Language has also been drafted pertaining to personal web pages, external links, and enforcement of violations. It is anticipated that the amended regulations will be adopted by the end of the year, for implementation the beginning of 2005.

United Way

Today is the last day to make a gift or pledge to the United Way through our campus drive. I thank those of you who have already done so, and urge others to consider supporting this worthy cause. I am told our pledge level is far below this year's goal and even below what we achieved each year for the last five years.

Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust

On October 27 I was pleased to meet with representatives of the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, a philanthropic foundation that has generously supported many community efforts and the Maricopa Community Colleges. The representatives were here to learn more about the GCC ACE-Plus program. GCC put on a wonderful program, including information about ACE-Plus, a tour of the program, and discussions with current and alumni ACE students. My thanks to Judy Blake, whose work was critical to the production of this event. I also want to thank Dr. Ibrahim Naim and his assistants Joseph Ivy, Paula Mitchell and Harry Singh for producing a wonderful program. Steve Schenk and Stella Torres also attended from the District Office. The Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust is one of the largest foundations in the nation and is the largest in Arizona. It makes grants that continue Virginia Piper's commitment to improving the quality of life in Maricopa County through programs that support children, older adults, arts and culture, healthcare and medical research, education and religious organizations.

Introducing Mike Lynn

Mike Lynn was recently hired and approved as Coordinator of Enrollment and Academic Advising. He has taught at GCC for more than three years as an adjunct instructor and worked in the Career Express office in the Enrollment Center. He served in the U.S. Navy and held several different administrative and faculty positions at a private junior college. His office is EC-136; he can be reached at 623.845.3097.

Recent Campus Events

My thanks to the many folks responsible for producing recent successful campus events: Fernando Camou and all the people in the Chemistry Department for Chemistry Day; Deb Palok, Trish Vogel, Doug DeSanti and his department for Auto Safety Day; Ibrahim Naim and his staff for hosting the state-wide "No Child Left Behind" Roundtable, and of course, Randy Kimmens and all the folks named in the Special Edition President's Newsletter last week for Career Expo 2004. These kinds of events are marvelous community-builders and require massive amounts of time and planning. I greatly appreciate all your efforts.

CONGRATULATIONS TO…

…Dr. Jim Reed, Chair of the GCC Communication and Foreign Language Department, named "Educator of the Year" at the Arizona Communication Association conference on October 23.

…Senior Associate Dean Chuck Jeffery and the College-Wide Academic Achievement Committee (CWAAC) for completing their Report to the Faculty on the testing results of 209 GCC students using The Academic Profile, a nationally normed tool that assesses student achievement in general education programs at the sophomore level.

…Laura Watkins of the GCC Mathematics Department, who was recently named a Fellow of Project ACCESS (Advancing Community College Careers: Education, Scholarship and Service) by the American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges (AMATYC) and the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).

…José Mendoza who has been selected to be a primary presenter at TechEd 2005, to be held in Pasadena, California, April 4-6, 2005. His topic is "The Utilization of High Technology to Assure Minority Student Success in Higher Education."

Dr. Phillip Randolph
President
Glendale Community College