It's time again to greet students (and even a few stray peacocks) as they make their way through our campus. As we all know, pedestrian and vehicular traffic ramps up quickly on our campus, so please remember to be careful as we navigate the campus. I hope you have a great semester and academic year.

Convocation Summary

It was great to see more than 400 faculty and staff in two sessions of our annual All-Employee Convocation on Aug. 15. We were fortunate to have a corporate partner, Arizona State Savings & Credit Union, underwrite Convocation expenses for the second year. Convocation featured updates about opportunities facing GCC, including an update regarding Higher Learning Commission/North Central Association (HLC-NCA) monitoring reports; the anticipated launch of the new Student Information System; status of the Presidential Search; college-wide, program-level and course-level assessment; and overviews of the new Technology Task Force, bond/capital development projects, and scholarships. These topics represent some of GCC's highest priorities for the new year, and will be addressed in future communications. Many thanks to the Convocation Committee for the hard work behind the scenes and to the Office of Information Technology (OIT) staff, who volunteered to distribute Convocation packets. If you did not get a Convocation packet, or want to request additional packets, contact College Advancement Services at ext. 5-3483.

HLC-NCA Update

One of many important topics covered at Convocation was the status of reporting to the Higher Learning Commission/North Central Association (HLC-NCA). As a follow up to GCC's most recent accreditation visit in March 2002, HLC-NCA required that we submit three institutional progress reports on various topics. HLC-NCA has officially approved two institutional progress reports (on Strategic Planning in September 2004; and Climate in July 2005), plus two Institutional Change Requests for GCC North and the University-College Center that were initiated by GCC. A Monitoring Report on Assessment is due Dec. 1, 2005. Under the steady hand of Chuck Jeffery, we plan to send to all residential faculty an internal draft of this document by Oct. 1; it will be posted online as well. We will be asking for insights and input at this stage of the process, and ask that you return the draft no later than Oct. 31. Our work this fall will be important to maintain the momentum we have experienced recently with HLC-NCA report deadlines.

Presidential Search Update

The search for a new GCC president continues. The national search firm renewed its efforts during the summer, resulting in further development of a candidate pool. The Search Committee met on Aug. 18 with Dr. Rufus Glasper. Interviews and forums for finalists are scheduled to be held on campus in September, with a new president potentially assuming office as early as January 2006. For updates about this ongoing process, visit http://www.gc.maricopa.edu/presidentsearch and watch your e-mail for updates from Dr. Glasper's office.

GCC North Traffic Conditions

Faculty and staff who travel to GCC North should be aware that major road construction may cause traffic congestion in front of both entrances. Only the west entrance is open currently. The City of Phoenix and contractors are aware of the semester start date as they install turn lanes in both directions. For the start of the semester, police officers are directing traffic into GCC North.

New Employee Group Leaders for 2005-2006

The following individuals will serve as employee group leaders in 2005-06, and I look forward to working with them:

Crafts - Harry Baker

Faculty - Carmela Arnoldt

MAT - Karen Russo (through December); Judy Sánchez (starting in January)

M&O - Robert Mendoza

PSA - Mary Sindel

Safety - Deb Palok

Fall Enrollment Update

As of Aug. 19, total Fall 2005 headcount for all GCC sites stood at 19,084, with FTSE at 9,908, compared to 19,676 headcount and 10,146 in FTSE at this same time last year. I'll have updates for you in future issues of the newsletter.

United Way Holds Promise for 2005 Campaign

This year's United Way campaign is scheduled to kick off October 1. Our GCC co-chairs are Scott Kozak and George Martinez. My thanks to them for lending their expertise. Interesting activities will be featured again this year, with the goal of increasing our giving as a college. Like many of you who support various worthy charities, I include United Way in my giving each year because I am convinced of the powerful ways it helps people every day. I invite you to consider giving to United Way as well. Scott and George have some good ideas that will make giving easy and even fun, and I urge your participation as you are able. Please contact either of our new co-chairs with your ideas and willingness to assist.

Student-Centered Project Builds GCC's Own Computers

Many examples of student-centered activities surround us at GCC, and I want to take a moment to recognize one such point of pride. For the first time, the Office of Information Technology (formerly Network Services) has built computers for students rather than relying on purchases from vendors. This approach allows GCC to stretch our technology dollars, provide more computers to more students, control quality, and enhance service response times. There are many other details behind this project, of course. This "computer build project" is one of many stellar innovations at GCC that demonstrates our student focus, our stewardship of public funds, and our creativity.

Phil Randolph Wins the "Comet" Award

We always knew Phil Randolph was a "star" and Midwestern University (MWU) agrees. Dr. Randolph was selected by MWU President Dr. Kathleen Goeppinger and Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs to receive this, the highest of the University's annual community awards, for his legacy of service and excellence. The award recognizes his leadership in education not just at GCC, but throughout the Valley. Dr. Randolph will receive the award at MWU's annual "Bright Lights/Shining Stars" awards banquet on Oct. 8. As President Emeritus, he will remain active in the community with various outreach projects benefiting GCC.

Jean Ann Abel
Interim President
Glendale Community College