I hope this mid-month message finds you well as I write with information and updates that you might find useful.
The past few weeks have been busy as we prepare for the start of the 2024-2025 academic year. I have held meetings with a number of donors and supporters as we look to build our capacity to enhance our efforts around student success. This included a behind-the-scenes tour of the soon-to-be-completed Lucille and Jay Chazanoff School of Business, meetings with the Heckscher Foundation for Children to analyze student retention efforts, and with the family of beloved alum and former staff and faculty member Jennifer Straniere, to commemorate the establishment of an endowed scholarship in her name. Contributions, which are being generously matched by her family, can be made online.
I also hosted the new commissioner of the East Coast Conference for a tour of our facilities and a discussion about how we can leverage our role as a NCAA Division II member to support enrollment and student engagement. It was a wide-ranging and encouraging conversation, and I look forward to working with Commissioner Grasso and her team! Speaking of athletics, it was great to see so many folks turn out to participate in our inaugural Faculty and Staff Softball game (on the hottest day of the year, no less)! Many thanks to the CSI Spirit Committee for making this event happen: my physical therapist thanks you, too, for the added business since I pulled muscles I haven’t used in many, many years.
This week, I attended the monthly CUNY Council of Presidents meeting (we had a reprieve in July) where we discussed important matters related to enrollment (systemwide we are seeing an uptick in both summer and fall), legal affairs (including important changes to Title IX and Title VI requirements), academic affairs (including updates on technology improvements and connections to careers), and student life (where we discussed plans for the fall term and a systemwide campus climate initiative).
The coming weeks will see important meetings with the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to assess their willingness to increase service to the campus, either through new lines or the expansion of existing ones. The goal is to backfill the now-discontinued CSI Ferry Shuttle, a decision made by Student Government via referenda in Spring 2024. The annual cost of maintaining that contract (inclusive of the still-operating on-campus accessibility shuttle) precluded campus assumption of that bill: the annual cost ran north of $900,000 for a service that duplicates existing public transportation networks and had limited ridership. I know that this is a change and a disappointment, but it was simply not fiscally prudent to maintain such a service.
As we prepare for the return of students in less than two weeks, we must, as always, keep our mission in mind. Providing access to transformational educational experience is paramount: such learning can take place in many locales on a college campus—in a classroom, lab, or studio; via athletic teams and student clubs and organizations; and in candid, but sometimes uncomfortable, conversations about sensitive topics. We are deeply committed to protecting the well-being of all our stakeholders while upholding the principles of freedom of speech and expression. As we anticipate a range of rallies, gatherings, and assemblies this fall, it is essential that these activities align with our values, policies, and procedures. To ensure a safe, coordinated, and supportive environment for all, Student Affairs is developing clear guidelines and expectations for students who wish to organize campus events, which will be published and widely disseminated. As always, while we support open discourse on campus as an essential part of our academic learning environment, we expect these interactions to be conducted with respect.
I wish you well in these waning days of the summer and hope to see you all at the Welcome Back BBQ on August 27.
Until next time,
Timothy G. Lynch, Ph.D. (he/him/his)
