annual report - Tompkins Cortland Community College

Carl Haynes, Ph.D.
President of Tompkins Cortland Community College
For an expanded version of this report, visit TC3.edu/President
Cover illustration by: Stacy Sheppard, Class of 2015, Graphic Design
Photography by: Laura Kozlowski, Darl Zehr
Prior to arriving on campus, Tompkins Cortland Community College students take placement tests. Typically about 60%
of TC3 students and about 60% (and higher) of students nationwide are determined to need developmental coursework.
This often involves a pre-college writing class (ENGL 99 at TC3), remedial reading (RDNG99), and one or more Math
courses (beginning at MATH 90). The classes provide necessary development work, but typically do not count for official
college credits (and thus do not provide transfer credits to other colleges), and often are prerequisites to core courses
in students’ degree programs. Many students coming to college take primarily these developmental courses in their first
semester, leaving untapped the passion for their subject area that brought them to the College in the first place.
It is a complicated matter. The students are deemed to need the skills work in order to succeed, yet the very acquisition
of those skills can reduce their chances for success. Fail ENG 99 and the second semester is a virtual wash. Fail it twice
and success in the long run gets more difficult and more expensive.
An new, innovative
faculty-led approach
to curriculum is helping
TC3 students
In the past few years, a number of TC3 staff and faculty have begun to make strides in addressing this disparity.
One of the more successful has been the ENGL 98 curriculum developed by the College’s English department.
The 98 section essentially combines ENGL 99 and ENGL 100 into one longer class that covers all of the essential
skills-based material of ENGL 99 while expanding the application of those skills to the essay- and research-based
curriculum of ENGL 100. The sessions open with a full 100-level class (typically about 20 students). Then, about 10
students remain for the second hour, focused on 99.
NAVIGATING
DEVELOPMENTAL
CLASSES
Bruce Need
Professor of English
“It’s working,” says Need. “The success rate, and we define that
by a student passing English 100, is 75%. That’s a very good
success rate for an English class.”
Instructors are not held to the traditional 99 curriculum in the second hour, and can preview upcoming 100-level
assignments or address other needs specific to the 99 group. In short, it allows students to remain on track for their
overall academic plan while completing ENGL 100 and getting the tailored help they need – help they would have
gotten in a full semester of ENGL 99.
“The one thing I did not see coming,” says Need, “was the way
in which students are thriving. You don’t see this very much,
students jumping from doing C+ work to A- work. They’re
getting the support they need and they’re writing, writing,
writing. They’re absolutely thriving.”
SAVVY SOLUTIONS
For TC3 Biz,
it’s the local
connection that
really matters
Drive down Route 13 in Cortland past the new
Byrne Dairy Yoghurt production plant, past the
wonderfully lit windmills at night, and the College’s
connection to this example of regional economic
growth may not be evident. But Biz, through its
connection with expert trainers and other resources at the College and throughout the community,
has provided key training to Byrne employees.
And, perhaps even more importantly to any startup
initiative, the training was funded through SUNY
Workforce Grants secured by TC3 Biz.
“TC3’s ability to understand our business and
culture, rapid industry transformation, and design
and deliver educational programs specific to our
needs that truly provide returns is accelerating
our mission to be best-in-class,” says Phil
Mazza, Chief Human Resource Office at Byrne
Dairy. “We could not be more pleased with this
exciting partnership.”
The key for Byrne was training the employees
before production began at the plant and providing ongoing, staggered, training after the opening
(staggered in order to only remove small groups
of employees from the production operation).
Biz’s flexibility in offering customized training
makes it possible.
“We are really tuned into the needs of our local
business community,” says TC3’s Director of
Corporate and Community Partnerships Martha
Hubbard. “In this specific instance we were able to
partner with the Cornell Cooperative Extension and
access SUNY Workforce Grants to develop some
very technical programs for Byrne Dairy.”
That theme of customization has been the driving
force behind other Biz initiatives, including work
with Stork Turbo Blading of Ithaca and a long-time
relationship with BorgWarner. Biz’s approach
is nimble, offering hard skills such as CNC
machining; construction skills customized to
different environments; and yogurt science;
to “softer” skills, such as communication,
teambuilding, and leadership.
And customized training programs targeted at
specific needs are just one of the services Biz
offers. Biz provides professional development
workshops throughout the year, utilizing the
strengths of the College’s connections with
expert trainers who not only understand the
nuances of their topic areas, but are able to place
such expertise in the context of local employment
needs and offerings.
In 2014-15, Biz provided contract services to 18
organizations with 1,914 participants and served
753 people in professional development courses.
“We offer classes at three locations – our Dryden
campus and our extension centers in Ithaca and
Cortland – making it easy to fit the work into busy
schedules,” says Hubbard. “What we really offer
are programs that build human capital. Whether
it is customized training or professional development workshops, what really differentiates us is our
local commitment and connection to local, expert
trainers.”
For more information and to explore
customized training, professional
development workshops, and online
learning opportunities, visit TC3.edu/biz.
Biz Director honored by
national organization
In addition to the success and growth of TC3 Biz,
Director Martha Hubbard also was recognized this year
as the “Outstanding Experienced Continuing Education
Professional” by the Continuing Education Association
of New York (CEANY). The award is designed to honor
leaders who strive toward the highest levels of personal
and professional accomplishment and who excel in
continuing education. Hubbard certainly qualifies, with
nearly 20 years of experience in the field at Tompkins
Cortland Community College.
“CEANY has meant so much to me over my career.
Members from both SUNY and CUNY two and four-year
campuses have always generously shared ideas,
approaches, and contacts for providing quality continuing
education programming,” said Hubbard. “I was honored
to be given this award from my colleagues from across
the state.”
Hubbard has been on the CEANY executive board for
more than ten years, including two years as vice present
and a year as president. Statewide, CEANY includes
more than 500 members representing all public higher
education across the state, including both SUNY and
CUNY two and four-year institutions.
“What we really offer are programs
that build human capital.”
Martha Hubbard
Director, Corporate
and Community Partnerships
International students bring
unique perspective to campus
STUDENT SUCCESS
BY THE NUMBERS
With groups of Tompkins Cortland Community College students returning
from trips to Cambodia and Nicaragua this January, the College’s wealth
of study abroad opportunities has gotten recent, deserved attention.
Peers Make for Successful Mentors
The Network Peer Mentors program
has 16 mentors and 60 mentees.
More than half earned a 3.0 or better GPA.
But, in addition to bringing TC3 students out into the world, the College also
has a long history of bringing the world to TC3. Long before community
colleges were interested in recruiting students beyond their county borders,
TC3 was developing residence halls and cultivating a robust global program.
As of Spring 2015, the College welcomed about 60 students from countries
including Jamaica, Honduras, Iran, China, Serbia, Vietnam, France,
Afghanistan, and more.
“The student body is diverse, I know about 20 to 30 students presently
representing international countries,” says Jamaica native Olu Roberts, the
College’s student trustee, as well as president of the campus Intercultural
Club. “These international students share their heritage and culture with us
for free. They also represent diversity and change in the demographics of
the student body. This is important to the local and citizens of this country as
many of our students have never traveled abroad to these unique countries
that the international students represent.”
THE
GLOBAL
CAMPUS.
The College administers a number of programs that specifically serve
international students, and is always developing more. The longest-running
campus program, the Summer Global Connections Program, has invited
more than 2,700 students to campus since its inception in 1993. The
program has offered students from Spain, Dominican Republic, Honduras,
Ecuador, Venezuela, Mexico, and many other countries the opportunity to
earn an associate degree over the course of two summers of intensive work.
In addition to Global Connections, also operates a Summer Intensive
English Institute for international university professors and instructors.
Accomplishments | 2014-15
Welcomed 33 faculty and staff from
seven universities in Colombia, Peru, and
the Dominican Republic to participate in
our five-week Summer Intensive English
Institute.
Hosted 88 college students from all around
the Dominican Republic who are top
graduates of a national intensive English
program in their country.
Olu Roberts, TC3 student trustee
STUDENTS AT TC3 ARE ENGAGED
AND SUCCEEDING DUE TO A
NUMBER OF CAMPUS INITIATIVES,
BUT ALSO DUE TO THEIR OWN
ENTHUSIASM AND DESIRE.
Panthers Succeed In Class and On the Field
19 Panther student-athletes were on the Dean’s List.
Two Panthers were named NJCAA Academic All Americans
for graduating with a GPA above a 3.6.
The overall student athlete GPA was an impressive 2.70
compared to TC3’s general student population GPA of 2.60.
TC3 also boasted three NJCAA All Americans
(women’s soccer, men’s soccer, and a TC3 first in baseball).
Our Students Support the Community
In 2014-15 student groups:
Raised more than $2,000 at the annual Big Pink See Saw
marathon and Big Blue Dodgeball Tournament. This event is in its
sixth year and it has collectively raised more than $42,000 for the
Cancer Services Program of Tompkins and Cortland Counties.
Hosted the second annual Oxfam Hunger Banquet.
Through the Service Road Trip program – more than 20 students
volunteered at the Cancer Resource Center annual Walkathon
and the Ithaca Chili Cook Off.
And They Stay Local
80 percent of employed students graduating from career
programs are employed in jobs related to their field of study.
67 percent remain in the Central New York area.
A new entrance and
improved service
THINKAGAIN
Program lets students know what’s
really going on … with them
The first Think Again poster of 2014 might have raised a few eyebrows.
“*&#@faced. loaded. hammered. wasted. plastered. tipsy. %&#@#$ up.
THINK AGAIN. Most TC3 students drink fewer than four drinks when
they party.”
And that was the point. The Think Again campaign, initiated by the College’s
Health Center, uses the “social norming” approach to let students know
what other students actually do in terms of social, academic, and personal
behavior.
“There is a perception, often even among the students themselves, that every
other student but me is drinking all the time, smoking pot all the time, and
engaging in other risky behavior,” says Assistant Director for Health Education
Matt Kiechle. “Social norming lets students know, by presenting them with
actual data, what their fellow students are really doing.”
Prior to the launch of the campaign, the Health Center conducted extensive
surveys with the student body, covering topics such as drinking, drug use,
academic behaviors, sleep habits, sexual behavior, and more. And while all
of the data is anonymous, it presents a picture of college life that conflicts with
the societal narrative of wild debauchery on college campuses. Hence the
message about drinking and others regarding the relative lack of marijuana
on campus and the largely mundane romantic lives of students. There is,
however, one area in which perception meets reality. Turns out college
students don’t sleep enough. Must be all that sober studying.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Staff and faculty at the College have a reputation for being helpful,
enough so that one of the most common campus parables is that of
the lost student led to their destination by a concerned employee.
And those concerned employees have many memories of describing,
then guiding the trip to the old second-floor Enrollment Services
Center (go up the big staircase, take a right, etc.). The Center is the
administrative heart of the campus, especially in the eyes of our
students; and so it makes sense that now, after a recent capital project,
the heart of campus is where it belongs: at the College’s entrance.
It is polished up and re-located, shining with new coats of paint and
a brushed steel sign spelling out our formal name – Tompkins Cortland
Community College – and newly welcoming to returning students and
students just beginning their academic journey. But it is more than a
superficial change.
The new Center allows students to access the full array of services
and personnel they need to meet in order to complete admission and
complete a successful academic career. “By relocating the Enrollment
Services Center in the newly improved building entrance, we have
reduced some of the confusion of finding the office, but also created
a more attractive and more spacious waiting area to better serve our
students,” says President Carl Haynes, Ph.D. “We’ve also been able to
bring together numerous services related to student success, which is
especially crucial in those beginning stages of a student’s time here.
The location and layout are more intuitive, and we believe our students
will truly benefit.”
Accomplishments | 2014-15
Transferred students at a rate of 30 percent, which
is 76 percent higher than the 18 percent average of
our 25-campus comparison group.
Provided 147 customized training programs TC3 Biz
for 18 businesses, manufacturers, and community
agencies, serving more than 2,667 participants.
Met a little more than 97 percent of the College’s
electrical needs with the new campus solar farm.
For an expanded version of these and more
accomplishments, visit TC3.edu/President
CHILD CARE
EQUALS
OPPORTUNITY
TC3 Foundation supports
development of new
childcare center
Accomplishments
2014-15
Solicited 414 gifts from 368 donors to the
2014-15 annual campaign, raising more than
$349,400 for the annual campaign and administering another gift of one million dollars.
Administered scholarships or grants-in-aid
funds totaling $649,000 through the
Foundation to more than 168 students –
including the creation of four new scholarships: the Andy Partis Memorial Scholarship,
the CAS Scholarship, the Yang/Chase Scholarship, and the City Federation of Women
Building Community Scholarship.
For an expanded version of these
and more accomplishments,
visit TC3.edu/President
At 9 a.m. on a Monday morning, the kids are cleaning up after breakfast in TC3’s
on-campus child care center. Most of their parents – a mix of TC3 students, staff, and
faculty – have already made the drop off and signed their children in for the day; coats
have been hung in cubbies; pillows returned after the weekend trip home; and hugs
exchanged as old acquaintances are renewed after the two-day separation one can only
imagine is interminable to a three-year-old.
Had the Grinch ever spent a morning in the center, Cindy Lou Who might never have
watched her tree disappear up the chimbley – it’s a sweet, heartwarming scene. But,
unfortunately, it is a scene that is not common enough through the College’s service area.
Affordable child care has long been an issue not only for our students, but also our
surrounding communities. With that in mind, the TC3 Foundation has begun a fundraising
effort aimed at building a new childcare facility on campus that would expand capacity
and strengthen academic programs.
A new center would also capitalize on the strengths of the College’s Early Childhood
Education and Human Services programs, and more than double ongoing childcare
internships. It would provide real-world training and even more graduates qualified to
work as childcare professionals in our area and do so continually to meet both current
and future staffing needs.
The New Center
The new childcare center at Tompkins
Cortland Community College will feature:
Preschool, toddler, and infant wings -the infant wing especially addresses a significant need
in the community for quality, affordable
infant care for children ages 6 weeks to 18 months.
Separate playgrounds for each wing, including a
sand water play area, age-appropriate climbers,
and an outdoor bicycle track.
The Center’s capacity would be 80 children -with a mix of part- and full-time students about 100
children would be serviced. This would more than
double the College’s current capacity.
The Center would be located west of the College’s
main entrance on the picturesque lawn between the
main campus building and the College’s pond.
To support the new Child Care Center initiative at the
College, contact Director of Advancement Paul Brenner
at 607.844.8222, Ext. 4217 or Brenner@TC3.edu.
THE TC3 FOUNDATION: A PARTNER IN
It might have made sense for the TC3 Foundation to dial back its efforts in
2015, a year after opening the TC3 farm and the Coltivare culinary center in
Ithaca – but it doesn’t work that way at the College.
The next idea is always in the works, and that requires resources,
ideas, and community connections.
So, the year after opening a new restaurant in Ithaca and opening a new
organic-practices farm next to campus, the Foundation once again finds
itself fully invested in the administration of the new Vector Scholars
program and in the development of a fundraising campaign to build a
new, expanded childcare center on campus. It is all part of the mission
of the Foundation – to secure resources to enhance the learning
opportunities for students of the College – a mission that has manifested
itself in creative and diverse ways throughout the organization’s history.
For instance, a quick look at the Foundation’s property holdings offers a
perspective on the College’s history. In addition to adding the farm and
Coltivare, the Foundation recently opened a new extension center on Main
Street in Cortland. That building is not only a significant part of an effort to
redevelop downtown Cortland, but also a location that plays a key role in
offering educational opportunities to Cortland residents in ways that fit their
busy schedules. It also serves as hub for local businesses who not only use
meeting space in the center but also utilize the services of TC3 Biz, whose
director, Martha Hubbard, spends much of her office time in the center.
“It’s an important location for the College and the community,” she says.
“Students and community members connect with the College in ways
they can’t in Dryden because of the closeness to downtown and all of
our Cortland service area.”
photo by: Revette Photography
“We truly offer the full campus
experience. From our programs,
to our commitment to safety, to
our expanded campus hours and
student life programming.
It’s something that really sets us
apart from other colleges, and the
Foundation has played a critical
role in that evolution.”
The new extension center replaced an existing center that had thrived in
Cortland for years, but did not have the centralized location and parking. It
follows with the College’s philosophy of bringing opportunities directly into
the heart of the cities it serves. The Nancy S. Lieberman Ithaca Extension
Center at TC3 Tioga Place also represented an evolution in the College’s
presence in Ithaca, upgraded from the old Center Ithaca location.
The Ithaca Extension Center provides similar services as in Cortland,
including TC3 Biz workshops and customized training, and serves an
audience that is diverse by age and ethnicity. And now, with the opening of
Coltivare, the Ithaca center also provides a home base of sorts for students
who are committed to time in the culinary center throughout the week.
– College President Carl Haynes, Ph.D.
The influence of Foundation property holdings winds its way back through
College history and back to the Dryden campus in the form of seven
residence halls that, for a time, made the College a true innovator in housing
among community colleges. And although the presence of residence halls
has become ubiquitous on community college campuses, the early start has
given TC3 a significant advantage in providing a safe, comprehensive
residence life community.
Accomplishments
2014-15
“We have arrived at a place where we offer an experience comparable to
four-year colleges,” says College President Carl Haynes, Ph.D. “We truly
offer the full campus experience. From our programs, to our commitment to
safety, to our expanded campus hours and student life programming.
Pathways scholars continue to succeed
at phenomenal rates. Many now belong
to Phi Theta Kappa and are active
in TC3 clubs.
Engaged leading marketing firm
SimpsonScarborough to inform our
strategic marketing efforts, which will
include a visual re-brand of the College.
“It’s something that really sets us apart from other colleges, and the
Foundation has played a critical role in that evolution.”fun
TC3 Tioga Place
TC3 Cortland Extension Center
TC3.edu
Tompkins Cortland Community College
170 North Street, P.O. Box 520
Dryden, NY 13053-0520