APPRECIATING ACCREDITATION

Accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), STCC is now starting our ten year accreditation review. This process requires the college to create a narrative of our present state, appraise our strengths and challenges and explain where, as an organization, we are headed. In short, describe, appraise, and project.

Since we had a positive experience using the techniques and philosophy of Appreciative Inquiry (AI) to produce a new strategic plan, we decided to use AI in accreditation. The AI approach aligns well with the accreditation process. Listed below is the way I envision the correspondence:

1) AI begins with an affirmative topic which would correspond to the subjects in the various NEASC standards.

2) AI then moves to discovery which would correspond to creating a narrative about that topic based on analysis and information.

3) AI moves on next to dream and design which in accreditation would correspond to appraising the college against the accreditation standard.

4) AI ends with destiny – what will be – which corresponds to the projecting the future of the college in the accreditation report.

On September 1^st and 2^nd we begin our accreditation with a summit for all working on the self-study. Throughout the year the committees in charge of the each of the eleven standards will meet, deliberate and begin writing. I expect that AI will infuse our work and enable us to produce a much more relevant analysis of the state of the college.

STRATEGIC PLANNING - TOP 100 WORDS

The image above was produced after the first part of the STCC planning process. The area of each word represents the frequency that it was used. The top 100 words are listed. One can observe that students occurred most frequently followed by respect, accountability and community.

CREATING A STRATEGIC PLAN WITH AI

The title of this blog – Celebrating What’s Right with Public Higher Education – was inspired by my experience with Appreciative Inquiry. Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a method that can be used to improve organizations. In simple terms, AI directs us to increase the good stuff. This means that we focus on what is working in our organizations building to generate sustainable positive change. (If you want to know more about AI, go to the AI Commons hosted by Case-Western Reserve University at http://appreciativeinquiry.case.edu/.

This spring we used AI principles and techniques to draft a new Strategic Plan for STCC. In my twenty years as a college president and chief academic officer, I have been involved in numerous planning efforts both at three colleges and at several non-profits organizations. In the past these efforts were less than satisfactory. The process consumed significant organizational time but the value added was low. Moreover, in the non-profit sector, as Jim Collins points out CEOs have Legislative but not Executive leadership. Change occurs at a college when individuals are convinced, not compelled.

The strategic planning process must take that salient fact into account.

Using AI made this planning process different. Many voices inside and external to the college were heard both through the interviews and planning process. Participants enjoyed the AI inspired exercises and the planning process moved quickly and efficiently.Significantly, the AI process liberated creativity, enthusiasm and energy at the college. At the end, we felt better about ourselves and our organization. To get more information about our process and the use of AI go to http://stccsp.wordpress.com/

Teaching Mathematics

It’s been 18 years since I taught mathematics, so I jumped at the opportunity to guest lecture in an STCC algebra class. Professor Brewer told me that the topic was multiplying two binomials. This is akin to multiplying two two-digit numbers (such as 43 times 57) but here one doesn’t know the digits.

I had a great time as may be seen from the picture. There is something magical when a class goes well and students are absorbed in learning.

While the mathematics is the same, other things have changed since I last taught. Professor Brewer’s class is using software to do and record their homework. In this way the instructor can track the level of activity for each student and each student’s progress.

This technology addresses what I consider one of the biggest problems in mathematics instruction – making sure students are practicing. Learning mathematics is like learning to play an instrument. No matter how many times you see someone else do it, you won’t learn without your own diligent practice. It’s like the old witticism: How do you get to Carnegie Hall? The answer is practice, practice, practice.

STCC has a great mathematics department dedicated to help all students learn. This was clear from the way Professor Brewer structured her class and the way she engaged students. Her department is leading efforts - part of the college’s Achieving the Dream initiative - to improve student success in mathematics.

John Osborne Hoop City JAZZ @ STCC

JAZZ FESTIVAL IN HOOP CITY

STCC hosted this weekend, July 4th and 5th, the 3rd annual Hoop City Jazz Festival. The music was great, the weather fine, the crowds enthusiastic and the campus green lush. Kudos go to John Osborne, the festival organizer. With support this festival has a chance to grow and become one of the leading summer events in New England. (photo shows Curtis and Adrienne Smith at Festival)

The festival took place at the former Springfield Armory grounds, once the center of small arms development and production for the U.S. Army.


The closing of the Armory in 1968 by then Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, heralded the beginning of a rapid decline in metal manufacturing in Springfield and all of Western Massachusetts. While manufacturing continues to be an important industry locally, it has never regained its former prominence. Like older manufacturing communities, the City of Springfield is faced with the challenge of creating a new economy to provide decent paying jobs and taxes for City services. And the City needs to rethink its image and its direction.


All of this brings me back to the Hoop City Jazz festival. No other city can lay claim to having been the place where basketball was invented (in 1891 by James Naismith) nor does any other city host the Basketball Hall of Fame. Why not recast Springfield as Hoop City USA? With the growth of basketball internationally, this is a moniker that would be recognized around the world.

The Value of a College Degree

Having my teeth cleaned on Thursday, I asked the dental hygienist, a pleasant and very competent individual, where she received her education. She responded, “STCC and I love my job.” I was not surprised as our college has a great dental hygiene program providing graduates to dental offices in Western Massachusetts, Central Connecticut and beyond. Being a dental hygienist was cited recently by CNN.com as one the top associate degree careers with an annual salary of $64,749.

(for further information see http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/worklife/07/02/twoyear.degree/index )

Because of the stress on family finances, the economic value of a college degree has been a topic in the news. Typical of this debate was an article in the June 30 New York Times op ed blog where Liz Pulliam Weston, a personal finance columnist for MSN Money advises that ”students borrow no more for their educations, in total, than they expect to make the first year out of school.”
(http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/30/what-is-a-masters-degree-worth/)

By this criterion, an associate degree is a good investment with full-time student costs including books and transportation less than $5000 per year - $2500 with grants - according to the US News and World Report. Massachusetts Community College costs are than the national average, but still much less than four year colleges.

The economic meltdown may result in a fundamental realignment of American higher education. A college degree is one of the most expensive purchases that most Americans make. Consumers – students and their parents – will choose colleges based on the return on what they have to pay. Colleges will be judged not just on reputation and amenities, but on a cost- benefit analysis. A key question that consumers will ask is, “How much will this college degree cost and to what kind of job and career will it lead?”