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Meeting highlights of GCC Board of Trustees

By Billie Owens

Press Release

Recent GCC Board of Trustees meeting highlights

  • Trustees congratulated members of the men's and women's swimming teams who competed in the national NJCAA championship at Erie Community College. Trustees also congratulated coach Scott Hunsinger on his 10 years of service as swim coach.
  • Approved granting 585 degrees and certificates next month, subject to students' satisfactorily completing their academic requirements. Nine students will receive the Associate in Arts (A.A.) degree; 269 students will receive the Associate in Science (A.S.) degree; 267 students will receive the Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree; and 40 students will receive certificates.
  • Virginia Taylor, PhD, vice president for student and enrollment services, reported that 1,730 individuals applied for admission to GCC this spring. A nearly 13-percent increase over spring 2008. Of the 1,730 applicants, 1,005 applied for admission as full-time students and 486 of these applicants (48.4%) actually enrolled. Of the 725 people who applied for admission as part-time students, 465 actually enrolled. 
  • Overall spring enrollment of 5,716 was 7.8% higher than last year's spring enrollment of 5,304, President Stuart Steiner said.
  • Steiner said Joan E. Zummo, associate professor of biology, will retire at the end of the current academic year. She has been a faculty member since 1988.
  • Vice President for Finance and Operations Kevin Hamilton reported that the site survey work for this summer's athletic fields upgrade project has been completed.  In addition,  plans for the new lighted soccer/lacrosse field, to be located west of the Batavia Campus parking lot, are complete. Other summer projects include: replacement of the current bleachers in the Zambito Gymnasium to meet code requirements; installation of energy-efficient lighting in the gym and dehumidification technology in the pool area; and repairs and upgrades to the locker rooms. 
  • Hamilton said he anticipates that space will be available for the college's nursing program in the new Med Tech Park on Hawley Drive in October, and that plans for the new Lima Campus Center are progressing well.
  • Student Trustee Steven Schutt reported that "Books for Troops," an initiative of College Village resident Thomas Maniace, has stockpiled almost 4,000 paperback books for shipment to U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Because the books are being given to U.S. troops, students were able to obtain a discount shipping rate, according to Schutt.
  • Director of Institutional Research Carol Marriott reporedt that 2,219 students have transferred into Genesee Community College from other colleges and universities since the 2003-2004 academic year, or an average of 370 students a year. Fifty-one percent of those students transferred from a baccalaureate college. This means that about 3% of Genesee's enrollment in a typical fall semester is made up of students who previously attended a four-year college.  This "reverse transfer" trend is a growing phenomenon in community colleges, Ms. Marriott told trustees.  Many students transfer to community colleges because of academic difficulty or poor "fit" at a four-year baccalaureate college, she said. Others transfer because tuition is lower and/or they want to acquire job and career skills quickly.

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