cuny.edu/news • c u n y spotlight on alumni legislators new … · 2018-06-01 · alumni serve in...

but as yet I do not know whether I want toenter politics, but I would like to find out,"he says. "I'm doing the internship so I canwork close to politics."

For Kathlene Burke, the CUNY intern-ship with Assemblyman Towns representsyet another step in her involvement in pol-itics. Burke, a Baruch College student whois majoring in finance and who plans acareer in public-interest law, has taken anactive role in campus matters, participatingin a 2003 protest against planned tuitionhikes. “A concerned group of students and Iwent to Albany to participate in a rally,”she says. “In addition, we encouraged oth-ers to get involved by calling their repre-sentatives and mailing letters, explainingour opposition to the tuition hikes.”

The internship, she says, will give hervaluable insight into serving the needs ofthe community. “I will be able to experi-ence first-hand the ways in which policy-makers aim to serve their constituents,"she says. “The internship will also educateme on many of the problems faced bymembers of the minority community.Most of my adult life has been spent inthese communities, which has impassionedme toward a career defending civil rights."

Caucus/CUNY Scholars Program are:Senate Minority Leader David A. Paterson,Senator Kevin S. Parker, Senator MalcolmSmith; Senator Velmanette Montgomery,Assembly-man and Ways and MeansCommittee Chairman Herman D. FarrellJr., Assembly members Michael Benjamin,Espaillat, Towns, Jose Rivera, AdamClayton Powell IV and AssemblywomanMichele R. Titus.

Like Rosario, Roxanna Thomas, a politi-cal science and history major at YorkCollege, aspires to high goals: She wants toearn a doctorate in international relationsand feels that her CUNY internship withSenator Paterson will serve as a mini-course in the politics in everyday life. “Mylong-term personal career goals are quitesimple: I want to save the world,” she says."Now, here is the hard part: I want to havea family at the same time."

While Andre Harding, a history majorat Queens College, says that saving theworld may not be within his power, hedoes hope that his internship in the officeof Assemblyman Farrell helps him make acareer choice that will benefit the world,even if in a small way. "Faculty membershave told me they see me as a politician,

cuny.edu/news • C I T Y U N I V E R S I T Y O F N E W YO R K F O U N D E D 1 8 4 7 • Spring 2004

Stephanie Rosario is intrigued bywhat makes politics tick. There is,she says, the fascination of give and

take, the back and forth of things, the"manner in which individuals reach out totheir representatives and subsequentlythese representatives can discuss and lobbyfor their concerns on everything fromhealth and safety to justice and equality."The Brooklyn College student, who ismajoring in political science and minoringin sociology, is learning about the under-pinnings of politics first-hand by workingin the office of Assemblymember FelixOrtiz of Brooklyn, thanks to the Black,Puerto Rican & Hispanic LegislativeCaucus/CUNY Scholars Program, whichawards high-achieving students internshipswith members of the New York StateLegislature. Rosario, who wants to becomea public-interest attorney or a law clerk fora federal judge, says that the CUNYinternship is vital to her career plans. "Myaim is to improve the lives of working-class citizens," she says.

This year, a dozen students, includingRosario, are serving communities through-out New York City as interns in districtoffices of state legislators through the newprogram, created by AssemblymenAdriano Espaillat and Darryl Towns. Theinternship allows undergraduate studentsto earn 12 to 15 college credits andreceive a $5,000 stipend.

"Through the leadership and initiativeof Caucus Chairman Adriano Espaillat(alumnus, Queens College) and CaucusVice Chair Darryl Towns (alumnus,Medgar Evers College), the first-time pro-gram is providing high academic achieversat CUNY with the opportunity to learnfirst hand about the district office opera-tions of state legislators. The participatingstudent scholars will help research issues,work with constituents, and assist in thedelivery of services," said ChancellorMatthew Goldstein.

Legislators who are participating in theBlack, Puerto Rican & Hispanic Legislative

Continued on back page

Many CUNYalumni serve inthe state legisla-

ture. Here are some storiesabout them and about theUniversity's commitmentto training leaders.

1“Two-fer” LegislatorsTake a Second Helping of CUNY Learning

Senator Seymour

Lachman has a

long relationship

with two CUNY

colleges. Many of

his colleagues in

Albany have stud-

ied or taught at

more than one institution. See page 4.

2Senator Lavalle: StudentsNeed Help; FinancialAid is a Big Component

Senator Kenneth

LaValle, chair of

the Senate's higher

education commit-

tee, discusses the

needs of public

colleges and how

the Legislature can

and must help. See page 10.

3Assemblyman Canestrari:Enhance Quality ofFaculty and Programs

Assemblyman

Ronald Canestrari,

chairman of the

Assembly's

Committee on

Higher Education,

says state support

should be enhanced

to improve services on campus.

See page 12.

4Brooklyn College SendsMany Alumni to Servein Albany

What is it about Brooklyn? Why

have so many Brooklyn College

graduates gone on to serve with

distinction in the state Legislature?

For some answers, see page 8.

L E G I S L AT I V E

Special Edition

New Program Offers Politics 101

Extending theTenure Clock

Three CUNY students who'll be working as interns in legislators' district offices are, from left,Andre Harding (Queens College), Stephanie Rosario (Brooklyn College) and Kathlene Burke(Baruch College).

Section 6212 of the New York StateEducation Law governs tenure atCUNY. The section requires that

tenure become effective onthe first day of Septemberfollowing reappointment forthe sixth full year. As such,the decision to grant or denytenure must be made duringthe fifth year to be in compli-ance with the terms of thestatute. Since the deadline fornotification of reappointmentwith tenure is December 1stof the fifth year, the period ofassessment prior to considera-tion for tenure is in fact even shorter.

Over the past several years, CUNY fac-ulty have expressed many concerns aboutthe short tenure clock. The following com-ment from a CUNY department chair is acase in point:

"I have many times encountered the sit-uation in which the candidate simplyneeds more time than five years (four, in

actual practice) to complete sufficientresearch and writing leading to publicationworthy of tenure. Also, a seven-year span

appears to be the norm oncampuses around the nation.Therefore, I hope that CUNYwill extend its tenure period,so that we do not lose candi-dates who are good instructorsand who perform needed serv-ice to the department, collegeand university, and who, withsufficient time, would proveto be successful scholars intheir respective fields."

The University has pro-posed a modification to current statutorylanguage that would lengthen the tenureclock to seven years in response to facultyconcerns.

We have scheduled a town meeting toclarify and help shape implementation ofthe proposed new tenure clock, consistentwith proposed legislative reform. We wel-come the ideas and comments of all full-

time faculty at the meeting or by e-mail tothe Executive Vice Chancellor for AcademicAffairs, Louise Mirrer, [email protected].

In anticipation of some questions thatmay arise, we have prepared the followingquestions and answer.

Q. Why does CUNY want to change thetenure clock?

A. The issue is fundamentally about fair-ness—fairness to the candidate and fair-ness to his or her evaluators. The five-year tenure clock actually provides a fac-ulty member with only three-and-one-half to four years to develop a body ofwork to be evaluated.

In the sciences, this is a short period oftime to establish a lab and show promis-ing results. In the humanities, it is ashort period of time to publish a bookor articles in refereed journals. Theseproblems are underscored by external

S P O T L I G H T o n

ALUMNI Legislators

Chancellor Goldstein

leading roles in advancing progressiveagendas in New York State and lent strongsupport for public higher education andThe City University.

Shirley Chisholm (Brooklyn College,1946), the first African-American womanelected to Congress, served in the StateAssembly from 1964-68. She fought topass legislation that helped create CUNY’sSEEK Program (Search for Education,Elevation and Knowledge), which hasmade it possible for many disadvantagedyouths to attend college. In 1972 shebecame the first African-American to runfor President of the United States.

Baruch College has the distinction ofgraduating the youngest African-Americancurrently in the State Assembly: Carl E.Heastie, who is now working toward hisMBA at Baruch. In addition, former BronxBorough President Fernando Ferrer is cur-rently enrolled in Baruch’s School ofPublic Affairs’ MPA Program and, like CityCouncil Majority Leader Joel Rivera, is onhis way to becoming a CUNY alumnus.Of course, one cannot discuss BaruchCollege without noting that BernardBaruch (CCNY, 1889), after whom theCollege was named, served as an advisor toseveral Presidents of the United States.

Other CUNY graduates who havemade their marks at the state and city lev-els include Alton Waldon, Jr. (John JayCollege, 1968), who was an Assemblymanfrom 1983-86 and a Senator from 1991-

99, when Governor Pataki nominated himto the State Court of Claims. Waldon alsoserved in Congress.

Brooklyn Borough President MartyMarkowitz (Brooklyn, 1970) spent a totalof nine years earning his degree in politicalscience (while working full time), andserved as student government president inthe School of General Studies duringseven of those years. He was elected to theNew York State Senate in 1978 and to hisborough’s presidency in 2001.

Bronx Borough President AdolfoCarrion Jr. completed his graduate degreeat Hunter College.

Larry Seabrook is a “three-fer” – Kings-borough Community College, John JayCollege of Criminal Justice and theCUNY Law School – and is currently amember of the New York City Council.He served in both the State Assembly andSenate, and was chairman of the New YorkState Black, Puerto Rican and HispanicLegislative Caucus. The current head ofthe caucus is Assemblyman AdrianoEspaillat (Queens College), and the vicechair is Assemblyman Darryl C. Towns(Medgar Evers College). Seabrook has alsobeen an adjunct professor at John Jay.

Councilman Charles Barron, who chairsthe Higher Education Committee, gradu-ated from two CUNY colleges – New YorkCity Community College (now New YorkCity College of Technology) and HunterCollege.

One of the best measures of a uni-versity’s worth is the success ofits students after graduation. By

that yardstick, The City University has setthe standard as a democracy of excellenceand opportunity. CUNY’s graduates havemade enormous contributions to everyfield of endeavor, including medicine andthe sciences, engineering, the arts, architec-ture, business, law, teaching and publicservice. For example, eleven NobelLaureates are CUNY graduates, and theUniversity is also a leading source of topbusiness executives. CUNY is also thenational leader in producing minorityPh.D.’s, doctors, engineers and scientists.

It is not surprising, therefore, that CUNYhas been the training ground for so manyoutstanding leaders of New York City, NewYork State and the nation. From Secretaryof State Colin L. Powell (CCNY, 1958) toSenator Robert F. Wagner (CCNY, 1898),and U.S. Supreme Court Justice FelixFrankfurter (CCNY, 1902) to former NewYork Mayors Abraham Beame (CCNY,1928), Edward I. Koch (CCNY) and thecurrent State Comptroller Alan Hevesi(Queens College, 1962), CUNY’s graduateshave played prominent roles in the legisla-tive, executive and judicial branches.

For example, the University has pro-duced many distinguished members of theNew York State Legislature, includingthree Assembly Speakers: Stanley Fink,Saul Weprin and Mel Miller. They played

Education Yields Social and Economic RichesFROM THECHANCELLOR’S DESK

2 CUNY MATTERS — Spring 2004

Miguel Martinez (John Jay, 1995) is inhis second term on the City Council,where he serves on the Committee onHigher Education. He was student councilpresident as an undergraduate at John Jay.

Eliot Engel, congressman from NewYork’s 17th District, covering parts of theBronx, Westchester and RocklandCounties, hold two degrees from LehmanCollege: His bachelors in history and hismasters in guidance and counseling.

Congressmen Gary Ackerman andJoseph Crowley graduated from QueensCollege in 1965 and 1985, respectively.Representative Ackerman served in theState Senate from 1979-83, whileCongressman Crowley was anAssemblyman from 1986-98. In addition,Queens Borough President Helen Marshallis a 1972 alumna of Queens College.

Former Deputy Mayor Rudy

Of late I have had many opportuni-ties to talk about CUNY’s success-

es in improving its standards,enrollment, and retention. Our academicprograms are expanding, we are hiringmore faculty, and we have a highly success-ful Honors College now in its third year.

But I think it isimportant to placeCUNY in a broadercontext—one thatillustrates just howimportant CUNY iscity- and state-wide.Recently I testifiedbefore the New YorkState Assembly Wayand Means and SenateFinance Committeeson the upcoming capi-tal budget. It was achallenge to describethe full force of this university’s educa-tional, cultural and economic contribu-tions. Still, a few statistics can conveysome sense of CUNY’s impact.

In its roles as educator and employer,CUNY touches the lives of a great manyNew Yorkers. Last year CUNY enrolledabout 450,000 students in its degree, andadult and continuing education programs.In Fall 2003, 45 percent of all of the col-lege students in the City of New Yorkwere attending CUNY. That alone is a tes-tament to our vital role in helping stu-dents climb the educational and economicladder to success. The students we servecould not get a quality education, at thehours that suit them, in the boroughswhere they live, at a competitive price,

from any other educational entity.Since the mid-1960s, CUNY has pro-

duced over 800,000 graduates. CUNYawards almost 9,000 associate degrees,about 14,600 bachelors degrees, andabout 6,400 masters degrees each year. Aconservative estimate suggests that at least

one-third of college-educatedNew Yorkers are CUNY grad-uates. We know that the vastmajority of our alumni remainin the City of New York aftergraduation, contributing to thelocal economy and to theircommunities.

Since 1995, more than16,400 of our alumni earnedundergraduate degrees in com-puter-related fields and morethan 8,800 students graduatedfrom nursing programs (under-graduate and graduate). These

two fields alone represent essential areas ofcommerce and social service in New York.

Students entering the labor force withCUNY degree in hand earn much morethan high school graduates and are muchmore likely to remain employed. Mediansalaries for employees who have complet-ed an associate’s degree are $7,787 higherthan those of high school graduates. Forbachelor’s degree recipients the differen-tial is $16,322. Each graduating class(including all undergraduate and graduatedegree recipients) earns $618.5 millionmore in its first year after graduation thanit would have earned with just a highschool diploma. This increment in earningsis due both to the higher salaries and tothe lower unemployment rates associated

31,000 people, who pay taxes and use localgoods and services. Of that number, nearly63 percent are instructional staff. At a timewhen nationally there is a 5 percent declinein the number of tenured professors,CUNY is deeply committed to increasingthe number of full-time professors in theclassroom. Faculty tend to remain at thecollege at which they teach for many years,and all that time they are taxpayers and

consumers, in addition tothe cultural contributionthey make to our neighbor-hood communities.

All of these statistics fallshort of describing the per-sonal and powerful effectCUNY has on individuallives. One of the mostengaging demonstrations ofthat impact can be foundon CUNY TV’s program“Study With the Best,”which frequently featuressegments highlighting thedevelopment and outcomeof one-on-one relationshipsand mentoring between

professors and students (Sundays at 8 a.m.and 8 p.m. on Channel 75). It’s those kindsof relationships that are formed every dayat CUNY, and they make up the backboneof our special brand of education.

I know that the Legislature strongly sup-ports the very best education possible, asdo I. With your continued and enhancedsupport, CUNY will have the resources tomake an enormous difference in the livesof New Yorkers locally, statewide, and glob-ally for many years to come.

with educational attainment. Once again,this increased income contributes to thetax base of New York State.

The University also serves about 40,500high school students through the CollegeNow Program and another 8,000 in CUNY-affiliated high schools. About 62 percent ofCUNY first-time freshmen come fromNew York City public high schools. Thelong-term positive impact of early exposureto college on highschool students’future attendance iswell documented. Theincreased likelihood ofcollege attendance forthose high school stu-dents involved inCollege Now andother early interven-tion programs predictsgreater advancementand income for them.

As a majoremployer and pur-veyor, CUNY gener-ates a large amountof economic activitythrough its purchase of goods and services,construction activity and salaries paid. Forexample, every $100 million used in theconstruction of projects for the CityUniversity employs over one thousandconstruction-related personnel and pur-chases building materials from state andlocal vendors. In fiscal year 2002 thesedirect expenditures totaled $2.2 billion,which created another $1.7 billion in addi-tional indirect earnings.

Finally, the University currently employs

An Historic Training Ground for Leaders

The vast majority of

our alumni remain

in the City of

New York after

graduation,

contributing to the

local economy and

to their communities.

Colin Powell

CUNY MATTERS — Spring 2004 3

Washington is a graduate of the CUNYBaccalaureate Program, while HiramMonserrate (Queensboro CC, 1995) was apolice officer before being elected to theNew York City Council.

The contributions of CUNY’s graduatesat the city, state and national levels dateback many decades. For example, George B.DeLuca (CCNY, 1909) was New YorkState’s Lieutenant Governor, while HermanBadillo (CCNY, 1951), was the firstCongressman of Puerto Rican background.He also served as Bronx Borough President,New York City Deputy Mayor and chair-man of CUNY’s Board of Trustees.

Milton Helpern (CCNY, 1922) wasNew York City Medical Examiner for sev-eral decades and became a legendary fig-ure in forensic medicine. TheodoreKaragheuzoff (CCNY, 1955) was NewYork City’s Traffic Commissioner, whileMario Procaccino (CCNY, 1935) served asNew York City’s Comptroller.

Many CUNY alumni have made theirmarks on the State judiciary, includingStanley H. Fuld (CCNY, 1923), a memberof the Court of Appeals, the State’s highesttribunal, for 27 years. Theodore R.Kupferman (CCNY, 1940) was a leadingNew York State appellate judge who alsoserved in Congress and was a New YorkCity Councilman. Several hundred CUNYalumni have sat on the benches of NewYork State’s Supreme and City Courts, anumber too numerous to list in this article.

Many others have played prominentroles in the federal government. Theyinclude Stanley Surrey (CCNY, 1929),Assistant Secretary of the Treasury; PhilipElman (CCNY, 1936), who served on theFederal Trade Commission; Daniel S.Goldin (CCNY, 1962), who headed theNational Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration; and Herman J. Cohen(CCNY, 1953), who was AssistantSecretary of State for African Affairs andUnited States ambassador to Senegal.

A Tradition of Public ServiceThe success of the University’s alumni

in every area of government is a directoutgrowth of the vision of CUNY’sfounders. When he established The FreeAcademy–forerunner to The CityUniversity–in 1847, Townsend Harrisarticulated a democratic vision of academ-ic excellence,expanded oppor-tunity and publicservice that wasrevolutionary forits time.

The 1840’swere a period ofgreat social fer-ment in America.The spread of theIndustrial Revolu-tion, new inven-tions, scientificadvances, and thearrival of largenumbers of immi-grants were chang-ing the face ofNew York Cityand the nation. Aleading merchantand president ofthe Board ofEducation, Harriswas appalled thatthe city, with a population of over500,000, had only two private collegeswith fewer than 300 students. For all prac-tical purposes higher education was avail-able only to the children of the wealthy.

Aware that New York’s growth andprogress would depend on an educatedcitizenry, Townsend Harris called for thefounding of a new institution to educatethe children of the working class, immi-grants and the poor. He stated his visionthis way:

“Open the doors to all. Let thechildren of the rich and the poor taketheir seats together and know of no dis-tinction save that of industry, goodconduct, and intellect.”

The idea of extending higher education

to the masses was very controversial andfaced strong resistance. But Harris suc-ceeded in gaining the approval of a for-ward-looking New York State Legislature,which agreed to allow the City’s voters tomake the decision in a referendum. To

their eternal cred-it, New Yorkersvoted by an over-whelming 6 to 1margin toapprove The FreeAcademy.

In 1913President John H.Finley introducedthe Ephebic Oathas part ofCCNY’sCommencementexercises.Modeled on theoath of devotiontaken by theyoung people ofancient Athens,generations ofgraduates havepledged to trans-mit their city“greater, betterand more beauti-

ful than it was transmitted to us.” Whilethe oath speaks of the city, it is interpretedto include New York State, the nation andthe world. And while it began at CCNYits spirit has come to infuse the entire CityUniversity.

Today’s students and recent graduatesare adding to CUNY’s proud tradition.They are winning prestigious scholarshipsand fellowships, gaining admission to lead-ing graduate and professional schools, andmaking their marks in public service and ahost of other fields. These students arewriting new chapters in The CityUniversity’s inspiring story of access, aca-demic excellence and service to othersthat began with Townsend Harris’s visionover a century and a half ago.

A S S E M B L Y M A N

ADRIANO ESPAILLAT

In 1996, AdrianoEspaillat, a graduate of

Queens College, becamethe first Dominican-American elected to aState House in the UnitedStates. He represents the72nd Assembly District,which encompasses Washington Heights,Inwood and Marble Hill in UpperManhattan. He credits Queens Collegewith playing a major role in his subse-quent success.

“Queens College simplified the processand helped me a great deal in obtaininghigher education,” he said. “As a SEEK stu-dent I received the help and resources thatmade it possible for me to graduate.”

A graduate of Bishop Dubois HighSchool, he earned his B.S. degree in politi-cal science from Queens College in 1978,and later completed postgraduate coursesin public administration at New YorkUniversity and the Rutgers UniversityLeadership for Urban Executives Institute.

Support for CUNY and higher educa-tion are paramount in Espaillat’s legislativeagenda. A strong advocate of opportunityprograms such as HEOP, EOP and SEEK,as chair of the Commission on Science andTechnology he also championed restorationof funds for the STEP and C-STEP pro-grams which provide tuition assistance andacademic support for students.

Queens College and CUNY play a vitalrole for low-income groups, minorities andimmigrants, according to Espaillat, whonoted that the Borough of Queens hasone of the state’s most diverse immigrantpopulations.

“CUNY’s affordability makes it possiblefor these groups to obtain higher educa-tion,” he added.

A S S E M B LY W O M A N

DEBORAH J. GLICK

Assemblywoman Deborah J. Glick’syears at Queens College gave her the

opportunity “to explore a broad liberal artseducation at aquality institutionthat was afford-able.”

Two of herthree sisters alsoattended Queens.A lifelong resi-dent of New YorkCity who has lived in Greenwich Villagefor thirty years, she owned and managed asmall printing business in TriBeCa beforejoining the City Department of HousingPreservation and Development, where sheworked until 1990.

The first openly gay member of theState Legislature, Glick worked for passageof the sexual orientation non-discriminationbill, which was signed into law inDecember 2002, and for passage of astate-wide domestic partnership legisla-tion. Glick also played a key role inadvancing the Women’s Health andWellness law, enacted in 2003.

Glick said Queens College made herlife choices possible. Consequently, she is“thoroughly committed to seeing succes-sive waves of new students able to havethe same opportunity.”

The Universityhas produced many

distinguished membersof the New YorkState Legislature.

They playedleading roles in

advancingprogressive agendas in

New York State.

Prepared byThe City University

of New YorkOffice of University Relations

535 East 80th StreetNew York, NY 10021

(212) 794-5317

Published byThe Legislative Gazette

PO Box 7329Albany, NY 12225

518-473-9739www.legislativegazette.com


ALUMNI Legislators

Herman Badillo Marty Markowitz Shirley Chisolm Stanley Fink

Board of TrusteesThe City University of New York

Benno C. Schmidt Jr.Chairman

Valerie L. Beal Randy M. MastroJohn S. Bonnici Hugo M. MoralesJohn J. Calandra Kathleen M. PesileWellington Z. Chen Carol Robles-RománKenneth Cook Nilda Soto RuizRita DiMartino Marc V. ShawJoseph J. Lhota Jeffrey Wiesenfeld

ChancellorMatthew Goldstein

Vice Chancellor for UniversityRelations and Secretary of the

Board of Trustees Jay HershensonUniversity Director of

Media Relations Michael ArenaEditor: Gary Schmidgall

Writers: Drew Fetherston, Rita RodinPhotographer: André Beckles

Graphic Design: Gotham Design, NYCArticles in this and previous issues are availableat cuny.edu/news. Letters or suggestions for futurestories may be sent to the Editor by email [email protected]. Changes of addressshould be made through your campus personnel office.

Susan O’MalleyChairperson,Faculty Senate

Agnes M. AbrahamChairperson,Student Senate


Legislature’s “Two-fers” DrinkBaruch also drew Assemblyman J. Gary

Pretlow back to CUNY, after he hadearned an associate’s degree in businessadministration at QueensboroughCommunity College. “Baruch gave me agood business sense and taught me how toread, understand and prepare budgets andbusiness plans, all of which is essential inmy work in the Legislature.”

Pretlow, like many other CUNY stu-dents, turned to Queensborough becauseof its low cost. He had begun his studies ata private college, but it proved to be tooexpensive.

“I am one of the biggest touters of com-munity colleges,” Pretlow says, also notingthat “I would never have gone to Baruch ifit weren’t for Queensborough CommunityCollege.”

For Assemblyman Jeffrey Klein, CUNYprovided bookends to the Master of PublicAdministration degree he earned atColumbia University. His bachelor’sdegree, in history, came from QueensCollege; he went on to get his law degreefrom the CUNY School of Law.

“Our public higher education system isthe only route to improved opportunitiesfor people in our state who are notwealthy,” Klein says. “I paid a small tuition– my [CUNY] college education wasn’tfree – but that made a huge difference forme. That’s true for many people.”

Assemblyman Ruben Diaz Jr. also start-ed in a CUNY community college andmoved on to one of the senior colleges. Inenrolling at LaGuardia CommunityCollege, he was following the advice andexample of his father, State Sen. RubenDiaz Jr., a Lehman College alumnus whorecommended CUNY to his son.

The younger Diaz, whose assembly dis-trict in the South Bronx coincides in partwith his father’s senate district, now

Call them “two-fers” — legislatorswho, having sipped from the wellof knowledge at one campus of

the City University, returned to take thewaters of wisdom at another.

Assemblyman Dov Hikind is one: Heearned his bachelor’s degree in politicalscience from Queens College, then wenton achieve a master’s degree in urbanadministration from Brooklyn College.

Hikind’s father had a fruit and vegetablestore where he worked long hours and six-day weeks. The family struggled to makeends meet, and the low cost at Queens andBrooklyn Colleges made it possible for himto obtain a higher education.

The first member of his family toattend college, he credits CUNY withoffering him “the opportunity to get ahigh-quality education in an atmospherethat was conducive to learning.”

State Sen. Ada L. Smith is anothertwo-fer. She tried the world of work forsix years before entering college. “I sawmyself doing lots of work and not gettingpromoted,” she recalls.

Smith began taking evening courses atCUNY’s New York City Technical Collegeand, like many CUNY students, continuedworking full-time. “I took a full courseload at night and finished up in 1971,after two and a half years.”

After receiving an associate degree inmarketing, she quit her job to continue herstudies in that field full-time at BaruchCollege, earning her bachelor’s degree in1973. “My college studies taught me howto put together a marketing plan and howto take stock of a situation realistically inorder to put that plan into effect,” she says.

Keeping tuition affordable, she adds, “isan investment. Every CUNY student whogoes on to become a taxpaying citizen cre-ates a more solid tax base within this state.”

The City College

salute

New York State Legislators

and CCNY Alumni

Joel M. Miller

Steven Sanders

President Gregory H. Williams

and

Immigrants Carmen E. Arroyo was born in the beautifulmountainous town of Corozal, Puerto Rico…

So begins the official biographicalsketch of the first PuertoRican/Hispanic woman elected to

the New York State Assembly.

Arroyo is also one of a distinguishedgroup of CUNY alumni in the Legislaturewho are immigrants or the children ofimmigrants. Educated in Puerto Rico as asecretary-bookkeeper, Arroyo came toNew York alone in 1964, worked in a fac-tory and brought all of her children over.

“I sought out opportunities to bettermyself,” she recalls. “I studied English at apublic school adult education center. Ialways urge people to learn as much aspossible.” In time, she began attendingHostos Community College – while work-ing full-time and raising her children. Shereceived her associate’s degree in 1978.“By the time I graduated from Hostos, Iwas fully bilingual,” Arroyo says.

Assemblyman Dov Hikind, the son ofsurvivors of Nazi concentration camps, hasthe distinction of being a dual graduate ofThe City University, with a bachelor’sdegree in political science from QueensCollege and a master’s in urban adminis-tration from Brooklyn College.

Hikind’s family struggled to make endsmeet and the low cost at Queens andBrooklyn Colleges made it possible for

Flags at LaGuardiaCC reflect student diversity.


Deep from CUNY’S Well of KnowledgeA S S E M B LY W O M A N

CARMEN ARROYO

It’s hard to imagine anytop-level executive jug-

gling the kind of scheduleAssemblywoman CarmenArroyo handled backwhen she supported —and raised — her sevenchildren on public assis-tance, attended CUNY’s HostosCommunity College and worked full-time.But she did it.

Arroyo, the first Puerto Rican womanelected to any state assembly in thenation, and the only PuertoRican/Hispanic woman in New YorkState’s Assembly, represents the 84th dis-trict in the South Bronx.

“I tell everyone in my community toget an education to make their lives bet-ter,” she said. “ I know a lot of people whostarted out in poverty and who are nowdoctors, nurses, teachers or hold otherkinds of good jobs.”

One of the most important thingsabout Hostos, she said, is that it’s “nearwhere the people who need it live. Peoplewho work long hours while raising familieswould find it very difficult to also go toschool if it weren’t nearby. That is true ofmost CUNY colleges. CUNY gives poorpeople an opportunity to get an educa-tion.”

She earned her associate degree in1978, and her bachelor’s degree in 1980,at age 44, from the College of NewRochelle. Hers is a three-generationHostos family. “My daughter, Omi, gradu-ated from Hostos and went to LehmanCollege. My grandson, Richard Izquierdo,is a Hostos student now.”


DANIEL J. O’DONNELL

Ever since I canremember, I was

drawn to public serv-ice,” saysAssemblyman DanielJ. O’Donnell, whorepresents the 69thAssembly District onManhattan’s UpperWest Side.

So CUNY Law School was perfect forO’Donnell, who earned his bachelor’s degreein public affairs at George WashingtonUniversity in Washington, D.C. in 1982. “Iworked all through college and law school,doing a variety of things,” he says.

Of his studies at CUNY Law School,O’Donnell recalled that, “They often usedrole playing and videotaped us as we pre-sented arguments in class and did ourwork. It’s amazing how much you learnwhen you actually see your own actions –the good things and the flaws.”

After he graduated in 1987, O’Donnellworked for Legal Aid until 1994. Heopened his own public interest law firmon the Upper West Side.

His district office regularly holds walk-in tenant-housing legal clinics for con-stituents. Over a dozen area lawyers lendtheir time to on a pro bono basis to offerlegal advice. O’Donnell serves on severalAssembly committees – Codes;Environmental Conservation; Judiciary;Local Governments; Tourism, Arts andSports Development.

attends his father’s almamater himself, and intendsto graduate next year.“When it comes to theCUNY budget, nobody inAlbany knows more thanme because I’m living it. Ihave the faces, the stories,right here in class withme,” he says of his experi-ences in Lehman. “Ninety-eight percent of my com-munity can’t afford to goto college elsewhere.”

CUNY is a family affairfor State Sen. MartyGolden, too: He and twoof his brothers all attend-ed John Jay College.

Golden started hisCUNY career at the College of StatenIsland, where his discovered a talent andliking for writing. “The essay-writingcourse opened doors for me and it’shelped me become a better speechwriter,”he says.

Like many CUNY students, Golden,the son of Irish immigrants, was the first inhis family to attend college. Cost was defi-nitely a factor in his choice of schools. “Ichose CUNY because, at the time, it wasless expensive, it was a good system and ithad high standards.” He continued hisstudies at John Jay after joining the NewYork City police force.

“The CUNY system is one of the finest inthe country,” he says. “It’s important to fundCUNY because it’s the future of the country.The students, these are the young men andwomen who will lead this country.”

With some members of the Legislature,the association with CUNY extends farthrough generations and family. State Sen.Toby Stavisky did graduate work at

Hunter and Queens Colleges, but herfamily’s contacts extend to City College,Kingsborough and QueensboroughCommunity Colleges through her hus-band, LeonardStavisky, whoserved in theState Assemblyand Senate from1966 until hisdeath in 1999.

LeonardStavisky, a CityCollege graduatewho taught inthe two commu-nity colleges, alsoearned advanceddegrees fromColumbiaUniversity. “Healways used tosay that City College gave him the foun-dation,” his widow recalls. “After City

College, Columbia was easy.”Toby Stavisky had to carry a heavy

credit load to finish her studies at Queensbefore the birth of her son, Evan, in 1968.Evan Stavisky has carried on the family’sCUNY tradition; he was student bodypresident at Queens College.

Not everyone returned to a CUNYschool as a student: State Sen. Seymour P.Lachman, a Brooklyn College graduate,returned to Baruch as a professor, and tothe university as a whole as its dean forcommunity development.

And although State Sen. Kevin S. Parkerhas only studied at one CUNY institution– the Graduate Center, where he is pursu-ing a doctorate in political science – fewcan match the breadth of his contact withthe university as a whole.

He was, in a sense, born into the CUNYfamily: His mother, Georgie E. Parker, wasassistant registrar at Brooklyn College for36 years before her retirement. Parkerhimself has taught African-American stud-

ies and politicalscience atBaruch,Brooklyn, JohnJay and MedgarEvers Collegesand CityCollege’s Centerfor WorkerEducation.

And, fittingly,his CUNY linkcarries over intohis work in theLegislature: Hisdistrict includesBrooklyn Collge.“In fact,” he

notes, “Brooklyn College is the largestinstitution in my district.”

Find Open Door Leads to Albanyhim to obtain a higher education. The firstmember of his family to attend college, hecredits CUNY with offering him “theopportunity to get a high quality educa-tion in an atmospherethat was conduciveto learning.”

In 1996,AssemblymanAdriano Espaillat, agraduate of QueensCollege, became thefirst Dominican-American elected to aState House in theUnited States. He cred-its Queens College withplaying a major role inhis subsequent success.

“Queens Collegesimplified the processand helped me a greatdeal in obtaining highereducation,” says Espaillat,who entered CUNYthrough the Search forEducation, Elevation andKnowledge (SEEK) pro-gram, which offers financial and academicassistance and career counseling. “As aSEEK student I received the help andresources that made it possible for me tograduate.”

He is “absolutely convinced” that with-

out these opportunity programs he wouldnot have been able to graduate andbecome a member of the Legislature. “I

am grateful that I nowhave the privilege toadvocate for these pro-grams in the New YorkState Legislature,” headded.

State Sen. MartyGolden is the son ofIrish immigrantswho settled in BayRidge, part of the22nd district thathe now represents.He and his sevensiblings were toopoor to thinkabout getting col-lege degrees.

“We had towork to stay inthe city,” he saysof his family,adding that his

was the first generation to go tocollege. “I chose CUNY because, at thetime, it was less expensive, it was a goodsystem and it had high standards.” Heattended the College of Staten Island andJohn Jay College.

“The CUNY system started me off inthe right direction,” Golden says. “The

CUNY system is one of the finest in thecountry. It is important to fund CUNYbecause it’s the future of the country.”

Assemblyman Jose R. Peralta’s parentscame to the U.S. from the DominicanRepublic in pursuit of the American dreamand a better life for their children. Theyworked hard to sustain their family onentry-level wages: his father as a bank tellerand his mother a seamstress in a sweat-shop. They also struggled to ensure thattheir children received a quality education.

Were it not for Queens’ low tuition hemight not have been able to afford college.“Queens allowed me to get a high qualityeducation for a bargain price and I willfight hard to ensure that those who comeafter me will have the same opportunity.”

Assemblyman Michael Benjamin’s par-ents came to the Morrisania section of theBronx from the US Virgin Islands in 1957.One reason he chose Hunter’s master ofscience program in urban affairs was thathis mother earned three degrees fromCUNY schools. She is an alumna of BronxCommunity College, Lehman College andThe City College of New York.

“I found it to be a good learning envi-ronment,” he says, adding that he hasexperienced CUNY from the other side ofthe desk, too: He has been a lecturer onrace and ethnicity at John Jay College. “Iencourage all of my constituents to attend

continued on page 6

Senator Seymour Lachman, shown with constituents, has a longrelationship with The City University and two of its colleges. Hiswife teaches at a third, Kingsborough Community College.

Senator Marty Golden attended the College ofStaten Island and John Jay College.


ALUMNI Legislators

Assemblyman N. Nick Perry


For State Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr. and hisson, Assemblyman Ruben Diaz Jr.,CUNY is as much a family tradition

as politics.The Senator graduated from Herbert H.

Lehman College in 1976 with a bachelor’sdegree in psychology and a minor in edu-cation. The Assemblyman graduated fromLaGuardia Community College in 1997and is taking classes at his father’s almamater. The father and son are Democratswhose South Bronx districts overlap.

The experiences of the two chroniclethe evolution of CUNY. Diaz Sr. had cometo New York from Puerto Rico, andbecame the first person in his family’s his-tory to earn a college degree. “We were allhigh school dropouts in my family, and Ijoined the Army,” he says. “Later, I got myGED, and when I was at Lehman, whichat that time was tuition-free, I saw heav-en’s doors open. Lehman’s reputation wastremendous. To be a student at Lehman inthe Seventies was like being a student atHarvard or Yale.”

Those were tumultuous years, not onlyfor CUNY but also for colleges across thecountry: Protesting against the VietnamWar was almost a required course on allU.S. campuses.

Diaz, a conservative Democrat amidstleftist activists, found himself thrust intothe middle of all the friction when stu-dents chained themselves inside ShusterHall to protest the policies of the collegeadministration.

“Those days were crazy,” Diaz says,adding that he never got involved in thedemonstrations. “I used to take them foodwhile they were chained up.” It was during

Senior and

Jennifer J. Raab, Presidentand

the Students, Faculty and Staffof

HUNTER COLLEGEThe City University of New York

Proudly Salute

Hunter’s Alumni in the New York State Legislature

Assemblyman Michael A. Benjamin-79th A.D.

Assemblyman Stephen B. Kaufman-82nd A.D.

Senator Toby A. Stavisky-16th S.D.

Best Wishes and Continued Success!

Hunter College of The City University of New York695 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10021 (212) 772-4400 www.hunter.cuny.edu

3 0 0 J AY S T R E E T • B R O O K LY N , N Y 1 1 2 0 1 • 7 1 8 . 2 6 0 . 5 7 6 0 • W W W. C I T Y T E C H . C U N Y. E D U

New York City College of Technology, of The City University of New York. Baccalaureate,associate and certificate programs that New York needs. At the foot of the BrooklynBridge. In the heart of New York City. High-tech careers for tomorrow.

The largest public college of technology in New York State with22,000 students: 11,300 degree students and 11,500 enrolled incontinuing education.

The most diverse comprehensive baccalaureate college in the North.

A leader in urban technological education, pioneer in integratingtechnology into teaching/ learning experience, and the designatedcollege of technology of the City University of New York (CUNY).

New York City College of Technology

We salute!The Honorable Diane Gordon

Class of 1985

Email: [email protected]

college, and at CUNY, it’s still a lot cheap-er than at any other school in the area,” hesays. “I call upon my CUNY educationevery day. It helps me better understandurban planning in my assembly district.”

The list of distinguished immigrantswho have passed through CUNY on theirway to the Legislature includesAssemblyman N. Nick Perry, who wasborn in Jamaica, where he completed hissecondary education before migrating tothe United States in the summer of 1971.Perry is a graduate of Brooklyn College,where he earned a B.A. in PoliticalScience, and later studied for an M.A. inPublic Policy and Administration. While atBrooklyn College, Assemblyman Perry co-founded the United Students League, andwas the graduate student delegate to theUniversity Student Senate.

State Sen. Senator Martin Malave Dilangrew up in the community of Bushwick,where his parents, Esther and Gilberto,had settled after migrating from PuertoRico in 1947. In1965, he first involvedhimself in electoral politics when heworked as a volunteer in a mayoral cam-paign before graduating from high school.He went on to Brooklyn College where heparticipated in the Special BaccalaureateDegree Program.

Assemblywoman Arroyo speaks of herown experience when she says that “ThePuerto Rican community had no voiceearly on. Now we have many outstandingpublic servants. That is the same route ear-lier groups took.” But her sentiments applyequally well to those immigrants and chil-dren of immigrants whom CUNY hashelped prepare for public service.

IMMIGRANTS continued from page 5


recent tuition hikes didn’t spawn anymajor campus demonstrations or bring

many students to lobby inAlbany.

“I also wish there were asmany programs to help payfor tuition,” he adds. “While Ican afford the tuition on mysalary, many of the folks sit-ting next to me in classescan’t. We need more activityas in the days of my father.When it comes to the CUNYbudget, nobody in Albanyknows more than me becauseI’m living it. I have the faces,the stories, right there in classwith me. Ninety-eight percentof my

community can’tafford to go to collegeelsewhere.”

At LaGuardia, hemet students from allwalks of life andimmersed himself inmany cultures. “It isprobably the mostdiverse college in thecountry,” he says.“There is a hall offlags from 150 differ-ent countries. Onceyou have all thesepeople studyingtogether, all in onebuilding, you get abetter understanding of people. I’ve evengotten a greater understanding of otherLatino cultures and realize that we are not

all monolithic.”But aside from all of this, it is the quality

of education and the dedication of the pro-fessors that impress the Assemblyman themost. “Two political science professors inparticular – Ira Bloom and Tomohisa Hattori– have an uncanny ability to know everysingle detail of their subject matter. I am, forlack of a better term, turned on by them. Iwish I could take them home with me.”

At home, his own sons, 11-year-oldRuben Diaz III and 8-year-old Ryan IsaiahDiaz, are getting a good look at CUNYthrough their father’s eyes, not to mentionthrough his homework. “They’re learningthat Daddy has a lot of things on his plateon weekends,” he says. “We’re at the sametable doing homework. I recently finished

a paper on World WarII and used them asmy audience when Iread it.”

All in all, hewouldn’t mind theboys carrying on theDiaz tradition atCUNY.

As the Senatorsays: “I would recom-mend to anyone – oldand young – to go toCUNY, especiallyLehman College, myalma mater.”

As the Assembly-man says: “CUNY isthe vehicle to allow

this city, in the words of former New YorkCity Mayor David Dinkins, to be ‘the gor-geous mosaic it is.’”

this time, under Lehman PresidentLeonard Lief, that Lehman set up its firstPuerto Rican StudiesDepartment.

Diaz points out thathis Lehman experiencenot only secured him adegree in psychologybut also honed hisdiplomatic skills, and hewent into politics imme-diately after graduation.“I kept thinking, ‘I’vegot to get involved, andI’ve got to get involvednow.’”

When it came timefor his son to attendcollege, the Senatorcould think of no better place to advisehim to enroll than CUNY.

Ruben Diaz Jr. started taking classes atLaGuardia Community College in 1991and plans to graduate from Lehman inspring 2005. “I started my family early, soI’ve only been taking a course here andthere,” he says. “I have 100 credits andneed 20 more.”

He chose CUNY because his father’scollege stories got him all fired up, he says,and he knew the diversity of the students,particularly those at LaGuardia, wouldhelp him better understand and serve hisconstituents.

The biggest difference in their experi-ences, the Assemblyman says, is the factthat he has to pay tuition and it’s a lotmore calm on campus. “I wish there was asmuch activity in the student body as therewas in my 1970s,” he says, noting that

It has been four decades since StateSen. Toby Ann Stavisky attendedevening graduate classes at CUNY’s

Hunter College, but she will never forgetthe impact Dr. Dorothy Ganfield Fowlerhad on her life.

“She was the chair of the history depart-ment,” Stavisky says, “And it was unusual tohave a woman on the faculty, much less insuch a position of power. I was working ona master’s degree inAmerican history, andshe was teaching 20thCentury American histo-ry. Her specialty was theProgressive Era. I canstill remember her face.She wore her hair in abun. She was interesting,she made me think, andshe helped me improvemy research and writingskills, which is handybecause I write my ownnewsletters. She alsotaught me how to prop-erly allocate my time,and I had never beenable to do that before.”

Budgeting her timewas important forStavisky, a graduate ofSyracuse University whohad worked in an insur-ance office and wasteaching full-time at aboys’ high school in Manhattan when shedecided to go to Hunter.

Although Fowler asked her to become

her graduate assistant, Stavisky interruptedher education in 1964 to marry universityprofessor Leonard Price Stavisky, a CityCollege grad who also taught atKingsborough and QueensboroughCommunity Colleges and at CCNY. Hewent on to serve in the New York StateAssembly and the New York State Senatefrom 1966 until his death in 1999.

“My husband was the real CUNY star,”Stavisky says,adding that healways wantedher to earn a doc-torate, too. “If itweren’t for thefree tuition atCUNY, he couldnot have gone tocollege.”

She remem-bers going to pickhim up theKingsboroughcampus. “In thosedays, the 1960s,they had Quonsethuts instead ofclassrooms,” shesays.

After earning abachelor’s degreein history at CityCollege, LeonardStavisky earned amaster’s and doc-

torate in history from ColumbiaUniversity. “He always used to say thatCity College gave him the foundation and

after City College, Columbia was easy,”the senator says.

As for her own education, Stavisky alsotook graduate courses at Queens Collegeuntil the birth of her son, Evan, in 1968. “Ihad a lot of political obligations becausemy husband was in Albany, and I wasgoing to school and teaching,” she says. “Tofinish graduate school, in the last semesterI was there, I took nine credits instead ofsix, which was unheard of. Then I foundout I was pregnant. We weren’t supposedto take more than six, but I figured thatnobody would notice, and nobody did.”

Evan Stavisky continued the family’sCUNY tradition at Queens College, wherehe was president of the student body.

Assistant Minority Whip Stavisky, whois the ranking minority member of theSenate Committee on Higher Educationand is chief of the minority task force NoChild Left Behind – from Pre-K to Ph.D,says that affordable education for all is apriority for her.

“I would like to see CUNY doing betterin terms of the higher education budget,”Stavisky says. “I’m vehemently againsttuition increases for CUNY. It is the obliga-tion of the government to fund colleges.When City College opened in 1847, itspurpose was to educate those who couldnot otherwise afford college. Now, studentsare bearing more and more of the costs.”

After all these years, Stavisky remainsproud of the fact that she was able to jug-gle her personal and professional life andstill earn an A average at Hunter andQueens Colleges. “CUNY provides a first-rate education,” she says.

Junior, Politics is Family Affair for the Diaz'A S S E M B L Y M A N

JEFFREY DINOWITZ

In 1971, whenAssemblyman. Jeffrey

Dinowitz enrolled atCUNY’s Herbert H.Lehman College towork on a bachelor’sdegree in history, therewas no talk abouttuition hikes.

There was, in fact, no tuition at anyCUNY school. “When I applied to col-leges, I only applied to CUNY schoolsbecause they were free,” said Dinowitz,who represents the 81st District in theBronx. “We didn’t have any money, andI’m not sure I would have even gone tocollege if I had had to pay tuition.”

Because those tuition-free days hadsuch an impact on his future, Dinowitzhas remained a champion and guardian ofCUNY in a mission to “keep it strong andto make it affordable for everyone.”

“Having gone to Lehman made it easierto get my law degree from Brooklyn LawSchool,” he said. “I did very well there andbecause there was no tuition at CUNY, Ididn’t have any debt. If I had had debt, itwould have been a terrible hardship.”

Dinowitz said he will never forget hisCUNY experience. “CUNY is aboutopportunity, and it gave me opportunityand it continues to give opportunities tothose who otherwise would not haveaccess to a good college education.”


SCOTT STRINGER

Long before heenrolled in John

Jay College, Assembly-man Scott Stringer wasimmersed in politics —being a tenant advo-cate and working inthe office of then-Assemblyman JerroldNadler.

As a member of the Assembly, he haschampioned public education. “I had beenimpressed with the social consciousness ofCUNY,” the Upper West Side Democratsaid. “The professors were mindful of thepublic education mission to do well and tofight for the kids.”

Stringer, who earned a bachelor’s degreein government studies from John Jay in1986, got to understand first-hand CUNY’scommitment to its students. The assembly-man says that CUNY works so wellbecause of its diversity. “CUNY representsthe best of New York City and hopefullycan continue this long tradition,” he says.

Through the years, the assemblymanhas remained committed to the CUNYmission: “I have fought hard to keepCUNY funding whole and tuition afford-able so generations to come may have thesame experience at college I was luckyenough to have and one day achieve theirgoals, as I have mine,” he says.

Stringer was elected to the Assembly in1992 after a decade of political and com-munity involvement in his Manhattanneighborhood and has been re-elected byoverwhelming majorities in every race.

Carrying On the Stavisky Tradition

Senator Toby Stavisky, right, with her sonEvan Stavisky, at Leonard Stavisky Placein Queens

Senator Ruben Diaz Sr.

Assemblyman Ruben Diaz Jr.


ALUMNI Legislators


What is it about BrooklynCollege and state politics? Dothe math: The college’s enroll-

ment of 14,000 represents about 3 percentof the CUNY total. Yet Brooklyn Collegehas a dozen alumni currently serving inthe Legislature – 28 percent of CUNY’stotal of 43.

As a group, they mirror the richness ofCUNY’s student body, with immigrants(Assemblyman N. Nicholas Perry), first-generation Americans (State Sen. MartinMalave Dilan and Assemblyman DovHikind), women (Assemblywomen AdeleCohen, Rhoda S. Jacobs and Joan L.Millman), lifelong Brooklyn residents(State Sens. Carl Kruger and JohnSampson and Assemblyman WilliamColton), one who left the borough to rep-resent part of Queens (Assemblyman IvanC. Lafayette), a former New York Citypoliceman (Assemblyman Frank R.Seddio) and even a former City Universityprofessor, State Sen. Seymour Lachman.

Though true Brooklynites are supposedto have an answer for everything, most ofthe dozen were stumped for a moment bythe simple question: Why is this so?

It’s a great school, all agreed.“I had many great professors who

helped me become a well-rounded per-son,” recalls State Sen. John L. Sampson.“Prof. David Abbott always had a sense ofhumor but made sure we understoodpolitical science and appreciated its value.Prof. Donald R. Reich, also in political sci-ence, held classes that made you feel likeyou were in law school.”

Yet while Sampson knew from age 15that he wanted to be a lawyer, he didn’tthink about running for office for yearsafter he graduated cum laude in 1987 andwent on to law school.

Back in Brooklyn, working for the LegalAid Society, he became involved with theRosetta Gaston Democratic Club in EastNew York and afterwards joined the lawfirm of the club’s attorney. In 1996, withencouragement from his father and his dis-trict leader, he ran for office and won.

Sampson is fierce in his determinationto provide others with the opportunitieshe had in college. “Institutions such asBrooklyn College are the bedrock and

foundation of ourcommunity,” hesays. “They allowus access to oppor-tunity.”

Several legisla-tors suggested thatBrooklynites tendto stay in theirhome borough forcollege and aftercollege, and thatthis helped accountfor the large num-ber of BrooklynCollege alumni instate government.

“I’m a bigBrooklyn booster,”saidAssemblywomanJoan L. Millman. “Ithink a lot of peo-ple who went toBrooklyn Collegestayed in Brooklyn.That includes peo-ple likeAssemblywomanAdele Cohen — who went to BrooklynCollege, who is from Brooklyn and whostill lives there.”

Millman, like many of her fellow stu-dents and legislators, chose BrooklynCollege because she didn’t need to lookfarther to find an excellent school.

“I’d like to tell you I did an extensivesearch and found out that BrooklynCollege had world-class teachers — whichit did — and that I found out it had aworld-class academic program — which itdid. But I didn’t. The fact is I lived withinwalking distance.”

Millman was the first female of her fam-ily to attend college, and cost was a realfactor in her choice of Brooklyn College.

“I’m one of those people whose parentsmade a sacrifice just to send me to col-lege,” she says. “I didn’t have to bringincome into the house – that was the sac-rifice; their commitment was that they’dpay for it. I worked part-time and in thesummers, of course.”

Brooklyn College definitely helped pre-

B rooklyn College’s impact on politicshasn’t been limited to New York

State.Barbara Boxer, (Class of 1962) stud-

ied economics and worked as a WallStreet stockbroker after graduation.Later she and her husband moved toCalifornia where she was elected to theU.S. Senate in 1992, after ten years inthe U.S. House of Representatives andearlier service on the Marin CountyBoard of Supervisors.

In 1976, voters in Portland, Oregonelected Vera (Weintraub) Katz (Class of1955) to the state legislature. Known as“Portland’s Bella Abzug" for herreformist views, she became housespeaker in 1985 – only the fifth womanin U.S. history to lead a state assembly.Katz, who has served a Portland’s mayorsince 1992, announced this year shewouldn’t seek a fourth term.

Back here in the East, Brooklyn native

Bernie Saunders spent a year at BrooklynCollege, where he learned about socialismin the college’s Eugene V. Debs Club.After serving as mayor of Burlington,Vermont from 1981 to 1990, he becamethe third Socialist ever to serve in the U.S.Congress, where he has been reelected sixtimes as the Vermont’s sole congressman.

In December 1943, a young soldierwrote to his parents in Kansas about hisengineering studies at Brooklyn College. “Ispent more time in school this week herethan I did in a month at K.U.," he wrote.“They throw assignments at us so fast thatwe have to take our books to bed with usto keep up. I’ve already had seven testsand will probably have more this week…"

The writer? Robert Dole, Kansas con-gressman from 1960-68, senator from1968-96, candidate for U.S. Vice Presidentin 1976 and President in 1996. He spentseveral months at Brooklyn College as partof his officer’s training.

Brooklyn Scores Far from Flatbush

Brooklyn College Salutes Our Alumni!

Senator Martin Dilan, ’84

Senator Seymour P. Lachman, ’55; M.S., ’58

Senator John Sampson, ’87

Assemblywoman Adele Cohen, ’75

Assemblyman William Colton, ’71

Assemblyman Dov Hikind, ’81

Assemblywoman Rhoda S. Jacobs, ’62

Assemblyman Ivan C. Lafayette, ’51

Assemblywoman Joan L. Millman, ’62

Assemblyman N. Nicholas Perry, ’78

Assemblyman Frank R. Seddio, ’85

QUEENS COLLEGEproudly salutes

its graduates who now represent the people of New York State:

SENATEToby A. Stavisky

ASSEMBLYAdriano EspaillatDeborah J. Glick

Dov HikindJeffrey Klein

Netttie MayersohnJosé R. PeraltaAudrey Pheffer

William Scarborough

OUEENS

COLLEGE

CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK

James L. Muyskens, President

Brooklyn College:

ASSEMBLYMAN

N. NICKPERRY

ASSEMBLYWOMAN

JOAN L.MILLMAN

pare Millman for her service in state gov-ernment. “I took liberal arts,” she recalled.“What was so great was that this exposedme to a little bit about a lot of things. I hadsome chemistry, some earth science, a lotof things. I became a lifelong learner – anenormous asset in this job.”

She added that as state budget cutshave added to students’ college costs,attending City University has becomemore difficult, particularly because manystudents today must care for families.

State Sen. Seymour P. Lachman has along and deep relationship with both theCity University of New York and the col-lege and the borough of Brooklyn. Hereceived his bachelor’s and master’sdegrees from Brooklyn College.

He taught in Brooklyn’s Lafayette HighSchool, served as CUNY’s dean for com-munity development, and was a professorat Baruch College. While teaching at theCity University, he was tapped by theBrooklyn borough president to serve onthe New York City Board of Education.He and his wife, Dr. Susan Lachman (whoteaches sociology at KingsboroughCommunity College) live in Brooklyn

“Like all young Brooklynites, when itcame time for me to choose a college, Iwanted to attend a good school with asuperb educational reputation,” Lachmansaid. “In my mind, Brooklyn College stoodout because it stressed academic excellence.”

Was cost a factor in his choice? ”I wasoffered a scholarship to Barnard,”Lachman recalled. “However, my parentsand I could not even afford the livingaccommodations. Fortunately for me,CUNY offered the young men and womenof my era a free education. Absolutely free.So for all of us struggling, college-boundstudents, the choice was relatively simple.”

Asked why he thought Brooklyn Collegehad so large a contingent in the Legislature,Lachman noted that “For starters, Brooklynhas the largest population of any county inNew York State, [so] Brooklyn College hasa built-in pool of applicants…. As one ofthe oldest schools in the CUNY system,Brooklyn College has steadfastly represent-ed its primary goal of academic excellence,and the State Legislature is living proof ofthis achievement.”


Lachman retains fond memories of hiscollege days. “Meeting and learning fromsome of the best professors in the nationwas—hands down—the greatest experienceI had as a college student,” he said. “Noneof my later successes would have been pos-sible without this early, life-enhancingexperience at Brooklyn College.”

Assemblywoman Rhoda Jacobs hasmore than an alumna’s interest inBrooklyn College’s well-being: It’s thelargest institution in her Assembly district.“A public university system is incrediblyimportant,” she said. “Just knowing that it’sthere opens portals to a lot of people whomight otherwise have thought that theycouldn’t go to college.”

Asked about its importance to the com-munity and state, Jacobs responded with aquestion of her own: “What do we have tocreate economic development? We haveour brain power. In New York, that’s ourstrength, and we have to develop it.”

As to CUNY’s social benefit, Jacobs saidthat “It’s someplace that allows people fromdifferent cultures to come together and rec-ognize that we’re all in this together.”

All the Brooklyn College alumni werefirm in their belief that the education thathelped them achieve their goals must bemaintained for current and future genera-tions. “A college education today is anecessity for advancement in society,”Lachman noted. “Education is and mustalways be one of life’s priorities.”

Therefore, said Lachman, “The Legis-lature must recognize the importance ofpublic higher education and not cut itsbudget. Increasing the City University’s vitalneeds should be of paramount importance.”

Assemblyman Dov Hikind, whoreceived his master’s degree fromBrooklyn College after receiving his bache-lor’s degree from Queens College, agreed.“My education gave me the skills and toolsrequired for a successful career in politics,”he said. He is therefore commited to“making sure that CUNY receives thefunding it needs so that today’s studentscan have the same chance to receive ahigh-quality, affordable education.”

Brooklyn College alumni loyaltyextends to the entire CUNY system.“During my 27 years in the Assembly,


JOSE R. PERALTA

AssemblymanJose R. Peralta,

a first-generationDominican-American,credits his QueensCollege educationwith preparing himfor success.

“Queens Collegeis a microcosm of thereal world and it was a great trainingground for my future career in politics,” hesaid. “Queens opened its arms and let meachieve what I aspired to without settingany limitations.”

First elected to the New York StateLegislature at the age of 30, Peralta’s com-munity involvement began at QueensCollege, where he was an active partici-pant in student government. He becamethe first Latino elected student body vicepresident, and later the first Latino studentbody president.

He also represented over 200,000 stu-dents in the CUNY system as a memberof the University’s Student Senate, wherehe was vice chair of legislative affairs andfiscal affairs. Were it not for Queens’ lowtuition he might not have been able toafford college. “Queens allowed me to geta high quality education for a bargainprice and I will fight hard to ensure thatthose who come after me will have thesame opportunity.

“Queens and CUNY are the welcomingicons of higher education. What the Statueof Liberty is to America, CUNY is to low-income, minority and immigrant students.”


WILLIAM SCARBOROUGH

AssemblymanWilliam Scar-

borough knows hisdiverse 29th Districtin Southeast QueensCounty: He has spentmost of his life as aresident there.

A Queens Collegegraduate, Scarborough, a Democrat, isgrateful for the high quality, low cost edu-cation he obtained at there — an educa-tion he would not have been able to affordotherwise.

“My education expanded my horizonsand opened the door to opportunity,” hesaid. “Queens played a key role in makingpossible my subsequent career. The facultywas excellent and the courses and curricu-lum were challenging, They caused me tostretch myself intellectually and led me tobelieve that I could be successful.”

He considers CUNY’s role in educatinglow-income students, minorities and immi-grants to be vitally important. “Young peo-ple often don’t appreciate the opportuni-ties that exist in the larger world,” he said“CUNY is the great equalizer where theylearn they can be more than they everimagined, and receive the skills necessaryto succeed.”

He is a strong supporter of CUNY andSUNY.

“Support for low-cost, high quality pub-lic higher education is vital and must beone of the Legislature’s highest priorities,”he said. “It is certainly one of mine.”

there have been a lot of critical timeswhen CUNY was threatened,” saidAssemblyman Ivan C. Lafayette, whochose Brooklyn College so that he couldcontinue working in his father’s EastFlatbush auto business. “For me – and for alot of people who have been associatedwith a CUNY school – a top priority is tomaintain the excellence of all of the cam-puses in the CUNY system, to make sureeverybody gets a shot at higher education.”

Assemblyman Frank R. Seddio said,“Affordable college tuition is the key toallowing so many young people to achievethe American dream. I am convinced thatwe must do everything possible to createan environment where the inability to payfor college is not the obstacle which pre-vents a student from attending.”

Assemblyman William Colton echoed thesentiments of his colleagues. “Moneys invest-ed in higher education are the strongestinvestment the state can make in economicdevelopment,” he said. “Persons with collegedegrees earn substantially more money andtherefore pay much more in taxes and havegreater purchasing power. And a skilledworkforce draws business to the state.”

But it was left to Assemblyman NickPerry, an immigrant who heard aboutBrooklyn College and its quality longbefore he left his native Jamaica, to offerperhaps the best reason for its dominancein state government.

“Brooklyn College is like a little city initself, and student government politicsthere are no less intense and aggressiveand real than politics in the outsideworld,” he said. “I honed my skills andlearned about American electoral politicsthere. Everything I had to do after gradua-tion, I did in student politics: Petitions,challenges – people were sometimesknocked off the ballot. We had somethingsimilar to a Board of Elections, electioncommissioners, voters’ lists.”

He paused, then said with a chuckle,“Things sometimes got so intense therethat they might well have been advised toset up a campaign finance board. So youcan understand that when you get exposedto such things at Brooklyn College, youcome out with a real sense about whetheryou like politics or not.”

From Electives to Election

SENATOR

CARL KRUGERSENATOR

MARTIN MALAVEDILAN

ASSEMBLYMAN

WILLIAM COLTONSENATOR

SEYMOUR P.LACHMAN

ASSEMBLYWOMAN

RHODA JACOBS

ASSEMBLYMAN

IVAN C.LAFAYETTE

ASSEMBLYMAN

DOV HIKIND

SENATOR

JOHN L.SAMPSON


ALUMNI Legislators

ASSEMBLYMAN

FRANK R.SEDDIO

ASSEMBLYWOMAN

ADELE COHEN


CUNYQ&A

Q: How did politics and New York

State governance come into your life?

Senator Kenneth LaValle: I was born in Brooklyn. I lived in an Italian neighbor-

hood with relatives nearby, and my mother was probably one of the

strongest influences. We always talked politics at a very, very early age. I had

a teacher in the seventh grade that just set on fire for me this whole thing

about government and what government was all about. I believe that I’ve

been involved in political campaigns all the way from seventh or eighth

grade into my adult life.

Believe it or not, my parents wanted me to go to medical school so I entered

college as a premed student. And then I got into teaching. I met a boyhood

friend of my dad’s, Leon Giuffrida, who was Chairman of the Education

Committee in the Senate for many years, and became his education adviser.

I then became the Executive Director of the Senate Education Committee,

having left a job as a principal. … But there was really a burning desire to

serve people, serve my community, and try to make changes that would bet-

ter both the communities and the people that live in those communities.

Q: You are a professor of intergovernmental relations at Stony Brook. What

drew you to do that?

A: One of the things that’s important to me is to be relevant. And every day

when I wake up I say how can I be relevant? Well, by teaching and being

around young people.

Q: Teaching must help inform the good work that you do every day as

Chairman of the Senate Higher Education Committee. Talk about that.

A: We have a diverse group of thirteen people from all over the state: the sena-

tors come from New York City, from upstate, and from the Island, so it’s a

good representation of the state. Most everyone outside of the city has a

state university college, community college, or private university in his or

her district. So they know firsthand what it is that the needs are because it’s

part of their district responsibilities.

First, we deal with issues of institutional aid. How can we provide money

for the systems? For City University, for the State University, for the inde-

pendent colleges, how doe we provide what is needed?

The second component is the issue of how the students pay for their higher

education, and that’s through tuition. Many students need help and

support…. So student financial aid is a big, big component.

Q: Any sense of future challenges for financing public higher education in the

State of New York?

A: In order to comment on that you have to put it in the context of the high-

ticket items in the budget. Elementary and secondary education are real hot-

button issues. In a $90 billion budget, elementary and secondary education

accounts for approximately $15 billion. Higher education, believe it or not,

is also there. Sometimes we feel we don’t have enough money to do what

we need to do in higher education, but that has been identified throughout

the years as an important priority.

Q: I remember reading in the CUNY newsletter that there is still an issue of

tuition remittance for doctoral students. What are we doing to attract them

to stay within the CUNY system?

A: When we have budgetary problems, we do all that we can to maintain our

programs at the undergraduate level. I know when we’ve talked about

waivers or tuition assistance or other kinds of financial support for graduate

programs, we have, without any doubt, fallen short. We need, in times of

plenty, to address those problems for graduates. Because we want to make

sure that we’re getting people to go through, get their Ph.D.s, and become

leaders in the academic setting, in teaching, in research and so forth. So I

know we need to do more and there’s no doubt we’ve fallen short.

Interview withSenator Kenneth P. LaValleSenator Kenneth LaValle has been chairman of the New York State Higher

Education Committee since 1979 and has served in the New York StateSenate for over 27 years, representing PortJefferson in Suffolk County. SenatorLaValle is known especially for his workwith truth and testing and his support forthe disabled, and his initiatives on behalfof higher education opportunities. OnDecember 18, 2003, Senator LaVallespoke with Chancellor MatthewGoldstein and Honors College studentson the CUNY-TV show CUNY Honors.

BRONX COMMUNITY COLLEGE The Gateway to Success

West 181 Street & University Avenue Bronx, NY 10453 718.289.5888 www.bcc.cuny.edu

We are proud to

salute our alumna

New York State Senator

RUTH HASSELL-THOMPSON

One Year that Shaped My Life



J. GARY PRETLOW

The background Ireceived at Baruch

College helped me in allaspects of my life,” saidAssemblyman J. GaryPretlow, who representsthe 87th AssemblyDistrict, encompassingMount Vernon and parts of Yonkers.

“Baruch gave me a good business senseand taught me how to read, understandand prepare budgets and business plans, allof which is essential in my work in theLegislature,” he said, adding, “I wouldnever have gone to Baruch if it weren’t forQueensborough Community College,”where he earned an associate degree inbusiness administration.

“I am one of the biggest touters of com-munity colleges. They are very importantinstitutions and deserve our full support,”he said.

Advocating support for CUNY and forSUNY is an essential part of his mission asa legislator, Pretlow said. “Decent fundingis a must. Students can’t handle thetuition hikes. Strong support for TAP is amust. CUNY has been effective in offeringa quality education to students who wantto better their lives, achieve their profes-sional goals and contribute to our society. Idon’t see how we can afford not to.”


NETTIE MAYERSOHN

Nettie Mayersohn waselected to the New

York State Assembly fromthe 27th District inQueens in 1982, after serv-ing as a community activistfor over 30 years. She is a1979 graduate of Queens College.

“Queens gave me the opportunity tocomplete my education. I graduated fromhigh school during the Depression and, atthat time, college was not an option.”

The first member of her family toattend college, she noted that Queens’affordability made it possible for her toput two sons through college while shewas pursuing her degree.

Forced to combine her studies with afull-time job while also raising her family,it took her ten years to graduate. “But theywere a wonderful ten years and that wasthe advantage of being a ‘late returnee’ toacademia. I was determined to get asmuch out of them as possible.”

CUNY and Queens College are highpriorities for Mayersohn because shebelieves in the University’s mission. “Aslong as Queens College continues to main-tain its high standards, it will continue torepresent hope and opportunity for disad-vantaged students from all walks of life,”she said. That is why she has “consistentlysupported requests for reasonable increas-es in funding and for maintaining a cap ontuition,” she added.

Mayersohn has served as the New YorkState Delegate to the InternationalWomen’s Conference. Among her awardsand honors are the Builders ofBrotherhood Award of the NationalConference of Christians and Jews, andthe Legislator of the Year Award from theNew York State Chapter of the NationalOrganization for Women.

It seemed like a simple college assign-ment: Write a paper that discussesyour place in life.

It wasn’t until Darryl C. Towns, a fresh-man honors student at CUNY’s MedgarEvers College in the 1979-80 academicyear, began putting down his thoughts thathe realized that something was terribly,terribly wrong.

“I realized that I couldn’t do it, becauseI didn’t know my place in life,” he says. “Icame from a family where getting a degreewas considered something you wereexpected to do. Everyone in my family hadat least a master’s degree. I was at MedgarEvers because it was convenient to where Iwas working as a bank teller, but I neededto know why I was going to school. I was avery skilled writer, so I wrote a piece offluff to fulfill the assignment.”

But his teacher, Dr. Mary Umolu,wouldn’t accept that, and the fact that shemade him consider his role in life changedthe course of his life. “She talked to meabout it, and she made me rewrite thepaper a couple of times, but she kept say-ing, ‘It still doesn’t tell me anything.’ And I

realized that I needed tofind out what I wantedmy place in life to bebefore I could continueworking on a degree.That episode was theimpetus for my changingmy life.”

Since his first classesat Medgar Evers, Towns, aDemocrat who now isthe assemblyman forBrooklyn’s 54th districtin East New York, andwho is the son of U.S.Rep. Edolphus Towns,had been rethinking his life. “I was goingto school with people from countries likeBelize and Guyana that I had never heardof,” he says. “And I wanted to broaden mythinking and mindset about the world. Iwanted a more global mindset. I startedtalking to my professors and classmatesabout what I should do. This experiencewith Dr. Umolu at CUNY led me to jointhe military, and the military gave me thewherewithal to see the world.”

Although he never did get toBelize and Guyana during his 51/2-year tour of duty, he didvisit Asia, Germany, Korea,Egypt and the Philippines,among other places. He attainedthe rank of staff sergeant in theAir Force before returning toschool.

In 1990, Towns graduatedwith honors with a bachelor’sdegree in economics from NorthCarolina A&T State University,which was his parents’ almamater. (His family was veryfamiliar with the CUNY system:

His mother has a master’s degree in educa-tion from Brooklyn College, and his fathertaught at Medgar Evers but not at the timeTowns attended.)

In 1993, he was elected to theAssembly to represent the district wherehe had been raised.

“I attended classes at CUNY for onlyone year, but they shaped my life,” he says.“It was an extremely good situation forme. It was eye-opening.”

Long before Assemblyman Joel M.Miller began his career as a dentistin Poughkeepsie, in the Dutchess

County area (102nd AD) he has repre-sented since 1995, he lived in a low-costhousing project near Boston and Gun HillRoads in the Bronx.

Miller recalled that his father, a NewYork City firefighter, told him, “You can goto any college you want as long as it’s CityCollege.”

Needless to say, City College it was. Asa former ranking minority member of theHigher Education Committee, Miller iswell aware that many New Yorkers facevariants of that same “choice” he did forthe same reason—modest family income.

He started out at City as an engineeringstudent but switched along the way topre-dentistry. That meant he was requiredto take an extensive core of liberal artscourses, including public speaking, politicalscience, history and English.

Miller feels that these courses “gave mea well-rounded outlook. They gave me aset of ideas and of ideals and they taughtme to examine issues critically.” He waselected to Phi Beta Kappa and graduatedfrom CCNY with honors.

“In today’s complex world, a personcan’t advance without a college degree,”Miller observed. “With the cost of privatecolleges being what it is, it’s more impor-tant than ever before that we support ourpublic colleges.

“I believe the state has violated itsresponsibility to fund both CUNY andSUNY by having the colleges within thesesystems rely more and more on tuition.Keeping our public colleges affordablemakes the difference for many studentsbetween going to college and not going.That affects their entire future which inturn affects our communities.”

Responsibility and service to communi-ty have been key focuses of Miller’s life.He became active in politics when massivedownsizing at IBM had a devastating effecton his own community in the early 1990s.“At that time, during the Cuomo years, Ibelieve that the tax policies in effect weredriving many businesses and jobs out of

the state. I felt I had to get involved.”He began to actively work for State

Senator Stephen M. Saland and later decid-ed to run for the Assembly. Miller is partic-ularly proud of the comeback he sees inthe economy of the area he represents.

Miller served on active duty in theUnited States Air Force after his gradua-tion from Columbia University’s School ofDental and Oral Surgery. He remained inthe Air Force Reserve as a captain for

another eight years.Miller is a major in the New York State

Guard, serving as senior dentist at CampSmith. His interest in education and inhealth has at times overlapped, when, forinstance, he has actively supported legisla-tion to remedy the nursing shortagethrough education programs.

“Education is the solution to manyproblems. We have to support it in orderto build our future,” he said.

Any College (As Long As It’s CCNY)


ALUMNI Legislators

Assemblyman Joel Miller believes that “education is the solution to many problems.”

“

Assemblyman Darryl C.Towns


Interview withAssemblyman

Ronald CanestrariAssemblyman Ronald Canestrari is Chair of the

New York State Assembly Committee on HigherEducation. He is the Deputy Majority Leader of theNew York State Assembly, representing the 106thAssembly District, which consists of parts of Albany,Rensselaer, and Saratoga Counties, and serves on sev-eral other Assembly committees. Canestrari’s distin-guished career includes 13 years as Mayor of hishometown, Cohoes, New York. On September 11,2003, Assemblyman Canestrari spoke withChancellor Matthew Goldstein and Honors Collegestudents on the CUNY-TV show CUNY Honors.

Q: What is it about public service that drew you to do this work?

Assemblyman Canestrari: I can recall even in grammar school, being interested in

government, in politics, and it took a turn when I went to high school. And one

teacher in particular stood out in terms of energizing us on political issues of the

day. So early on I felt I wanted to change the world and make things better. It’s

something I always wanted to do.

Q: CUNY and SUNY at this point don’t have a capital budget. What is your sense of

why that still has not been resolved?

A: The outlines of the capital program were very good, but there was no detail. And

we, as legislators, insist upon having the information in front of us. We have a

constitutional duty as well. And do not want to write a blank check for the exec-

utive, for the Governor, for projects that we have no involvement in…. Not that

we want to micromanage, but certainly, there must be lined-out projects, with

some money held in abeyance for emergencies and other purposes. So the fight

and the dispute is over information, and our involvement, as legislators, to know

what the detail is in the plan.

Q: Are there thoughts at the Assembly level about a different way of approaching

future challenges with respect to tuition?

A: Yes, there are, and of course, they’re all over the ballpark as to what to do. And our

position has been to fight tuition increases, but also not deny the campuses the

operating money that they need. But let me just state first that as Chancellor,

you’ve done an excellent job with that tuition issue in how you’ve managed to

absorb some of that and to enable the students to pay a lot less than at SUNY.

We wish SUNY had followed your lead. But you have done an exceptional job in

that regard, and that’s been noticed, certainly, in the capital, in Albany, and that’s

to your credit.

… A very bad trend in the last ten years or so is having the campuses rely on the

tuition money more and more as a greater percent of operating money, and allot-

ting less operating dollars in the state budget. We should get to the point where

tuition plays a role in the operating revenues for campuses, but the state dollars

should be going up incrementally as opposed to placing so much of the burden

on the funds raised by tuition. It’s important to maintain quality and enhance

quality in terms of teaching faculty and an entire range of academic programs. We

want quality. That’s essential for the future generations of New Yorkers that we

are educating.

Q: What do you see as challenges ahead for the next fiscal year?

A: We know we face some serious fiscal problems with the deficit looming at six to

seven billion dollars. The difficulty, once again, is that last year we raised some

taxes income taxes, some sales taxes, some other fees, and tuition as well. We also

spent down some reserves that we had to bridge the $11 to 12 billion gap last

year. So we do not have those reserves. We certainly can’t do some of the things

that we did last year to bridge the gap financially.

Q: Two years after the devastating attacks on New York and in Washington, are we

moving in the right way in rebuilding downtown New York?

A: Yes. And I think we have to be. It’s too important, not only for this wonderful city,

but also really, to our country. And we cannot lose this opportunity to rebuild

something that’s magnificent, that symbolizes the freedom of this nation, the

diversity of its people, and the beacon that serves as hope for people around the

world. It was a devastating attack, but we must do it right. I think there can be

more involvement, as a matter of fact, by the legislature. I think we could be

doing even more. But we must have more direct help from the federal govern-

ment. This is not a city/state issue, as you well know. It affects all of us as a

nation, and our standing around the world. So it must be done right.

CUNYQ&A

Unlockthe Power

2800 Victory Boulevard•Staten Island, NY 10314•718.982.2010•Marlene Springer, PresidentCOLLEGE OF STATEN ISLAND

www.csi.cuny.edu


S E N A T O R

ADA L. SMITH

State Sen. Ada L. Smith’sfirst lessons in the work-

ings of government camewhen she was a member ofCUNY’s University StudentSenate as a Baruch Collegestudent.

“Baruch’s population is so diverse thatrepresenting it taught me how to workwith people who come from many ethnicbackgrounds and who have differing per-spectives,” she said.

Smith earned an associate degree inmarketing at CUNY’s New York CityTechnical College, then studied marketingand business at Baruch.

Born in Virginia and raised in theWilliamsburg-Greenpoint area ofBrooklyn, Smith now represents the 10thDistrict (Southeast Queens). She was firstelected in 1987 and is now serving hereighth term.

Smith worked full-time while attendingNew York City Technical College as anevening student. After earning her associ-ate degree, she quit her job to study full-time at Baruch, and received her bache-lor’s degree in 1973.

“You have a totally different value sys-tem when you come back to school afterspending some years in the world ofwork,” Smith said. “You understand thevalue of an education.”

Smith tells legislative colleagues whofavor increasing CUNY tuition that keep-ing public higher education affordable “isnot giving anything away to these stu-dents, it’s an investment. Every CUNYstudent who goes on to become a taxpay-ing citizen creates a more solid tax basewithin this state.”

In addition to battling for higher educa-tion, Smith has sought more equitablefunding for New York City’s publicschools. She has worked to ensure qualitypatient care and has been a strong advo-cate for senior citizens.


AUDREY I. PHEFFER

Queens College means agreat deal to me,” said

Assemblywoman Audrey I.Pheffer. “It gave me theopportunity, through theACE program, to completemy college education withthe flexibility I needed as a single parentof two children and a full-time employee.”

She graduate cum laude from QueensCollege in 1982.

The first member of her family toattend college, she wouldn’t have been ableto afford college were it not for Queens’low cost, “which was essential to my abilityto attend school and still meet my otherresponsibilities,” she noted. “I utilize theknowledge and resources I obtained atQueens College on a daily basis.”

Pheffer has lived in Queens for morethan 45 years, has represented the 23rdAssembly District for over 16 years and hasbeen overwhelmingly re-elected each term.

A strong supporter of public highereducation and The City University, shesaid they are essential to giving today’sstudents, particularly members of low-income groups, minorities and immigrants,the opportunity to attend college.

CUNY because, at the time, it was lessexpensive, it was a good system and it hadhigh standards.” He may have liked math,but at Staten Island, it was writing thatgrabbed his attention. “I was not a greatwriter,” he admits, “but the essay-writingcourse opened doors for me, and it’shelped me become a better speechwriter.”Golden went straight from Staten Islandinto the police force, where his streetsmarts helped him “fight the good fight.”It was at this time that he had a secondopportunity to go to college: He enrolledin the New York School of Printing andtook summer courses at John Jay Collegeof Criminal Justice, where he earned a

dozen credits. Hisbrothers Patrick, a ser-geant on the citypolice force, andVinnie, also attendedJohn Jay. His collegeeducation, he says,stood him in goodstead. He earned 49medals in “the great-est job I’ve ever had,”before an injury suf-fered in a drug raidforced him to retire in1983 after a decadeon the police force. Itwas only then that hecompleted his collegeeducation by earning

an associate’s degree in

College: A Start in the Right Direction

Sen. Marty Golden says that he mighthave ended up as an accountant, butthat’s getting a little ahead of the

story.Golden, a Republican, was the son of

Irish immigrants who settled in Bay Ridge,which is part of the 22nd district that henow represents. He and his seven siblingswere too poor to think about getting col-lege degrees. So when he graduated fromhigh school in the 1970s, he consideredhimself lucky to get in a couple of semes-ters at CUNY’s College of Staten Island.“We had to work to stay in the city,” hesays of his family, adding that his was thefirst generation to go to college. “I chose

criminal justice from St. John’s University.“I got my degree late in life,” he says,adding that that helped him with hischange in careers – he and his familybought Bay Ridge Manor, a popular cater-ing hall in Brooklyn, when he left thepolice department.

In 1997, he was elected to the NewYork City Council, where as a member ofthe Higher Education Committee hechampioned funding for CUNY. He alsosecured funding for computers in everyclassroom in his council district.

As a council member, Golden estab-lished a model program, in conjunctionwith the Kings County district attorney’soffice, through which people sentenced tocommunity service maintained parks inthe district. He also worked to find solu-tions to school crowding and backed theidea of giving the mayor control of theschool system.

CUNY has been such a positive force inGolden’s life that he’s hoping his own chil-dren will follow in his footsteps when itcomes time for them to choose a college.

“The CUNY system started me off inthe right direction,” Golden says, addingthat at times his political work takes himto John Jay for receptions and meetingswith the president.

“The CUNY system is one of the finestin the country. It is important to fundCUNY because it’s the future of the coun-try. The students, these are the young menand women who will lead this country.”

Senator Looks to CUNY for Expertise

CUNY has been part of State Sen.

Kevin S. Parker’s life ever since

he can remember.His mother, Georgie E. Parker, was

assistant registrar at Brooklyn College for36 years before her retirement. The col-lege is in his neighborhood, Flatbush, partof the area he now represents, the 21stSenatorial district.

“In fact, Brooklyn College is the largestinstitution in my district,” he points out.

Parker, a member of the Higher Educa-tion Committee, believes that bringing moreresources to the higher education budget iscentral to his mission as a legislator.

“I often turn to CUNY faculty mem-bers as a resource for information on manyissues,” he notes. “They are an incrediblesource of expertise. I asked my staff totake a course Brooklyn College offered onimmigration law for that reason.”

The faculty is what drew him toCUNY’s Graduate Center when he decid-ed to pursue a Ph.D. in political science.Parker completed most of his doctoralcoursework before taking a leave when hewas elected in 2002, and intends to resumehis studies soon. “The Graduate Center’spolitical science faculty includes nationallyknown urban policy experts,” he explains.

Parker himself has been a CUNY facul-ty member in several settings. While hewas special assistant to former New YorkState Comptroller H. Carl McCall, Parkertaught African American Studies atBrooklyn College, City College’s Centerfor Worker Education, John Jay College ofCriminal Justice, Baruch College andMedgar Evers College at various times. Hehas served as advisor to student groups atBrooklyn College and taught a graduatecourse on “Blacks in the Labor Movement”at Brooklyn’s Center for Worker

Education. He has also taught at SUNY-Old Westbury and at Long IslandUniversity.

“I was only 26 when I started teaching,”he recalls. “I was the youngest professorand in many cases the first black professorthe students had seen. I think it wasimportant for the students to realize thatif I could do it they could.” He hopes toreturn to college teaching.

Parker lets his constituents know thathis earliest schoolingtook place at PS 193,JHS 240 and MidwoodHS in his district.“There are many immi-grants living in thenearby neighborhoods.It’s good for people toknow I’ve grown upthere and that it’s pos-sible to build lifelongroots in the area.”

He also mentions hisschooling because hebelieves education isthe key to individuals’improving their lives.Several CUNY studentshave served as internsin Parker’s office.

“Economic develop-ment and immigrationissues are major interests of mine,” he says,“And economic development and educa-tion go together. Education is the key toestablishing our state as a world-classeconomy. It is unfortunate that tuition wasraised last year but we did raise TAP funds.We have to think about creating jobs ingrowing areas like biotechnology andallowing our students to acquire the skillsfor those jobs.”

He earned his bachelor’s degree in pub-lic service at Pennsylvania State Universityand a master’s degree in urban policy atthe New School of Social Research inNew York City. Parker decided to earn hisPh.D. because he felt it would “give methe skills to think more broadly about theissues I would face in a career in publicservice. I decided to run for the StateSenate to put into practice many things Ilearned in the graduate program.”

Parker has servedon the staffs of for-mer ManhattanBorough PresidentRuth Messinger,Assemblyman NickPerry, former NewYork City CouncilMember UnaClarke, the NewYork State UrbanDevelopmentCorporation and ingovernment affairsfor UBS PaineWebber.

He is proud ofhis ties to the labormovement, notingthat his father wasa union organizerand that he and his

parents have been union members.All of which brings him back to the

topic of economic development, one of hispassions. “I’m working with BrooklynCollege to establish a business develop-ment center there to serve students andlocal businesses.”

For Parker, “It all comes back to provid-ing opportunities for education. That’s ourresponsibility and our future.”


ALUMNI Legislators

Senator Marty Golden grew up poor, but CUNY offered him aquality education at a cost he could afford.

Senator Kevin S. Parker


CUNY and SUNY students cut and theTuition Assistance Program (TAP) wellsupported. I paid a small tuition – my col-lege education wasn’t free – but that madea huge difference for me. That’s true formany people.”

S E N A T O RRUTH HASSELL-THOMPSON

State Sen. RuthHassell-Thompson,

an alumna of BronxCommunity College,was elected in 2000 torepresent the 36thSenatorial District,comprising parts ofWestchester and theBronx.

She was active in both business andcommunity service before being elected tothe Mount Vernon City Council in 1993,where she served as council president andacting mayor. She was also chair of thecity’s Capital Projects Board, vice chair ofits Urban Renewal and Real Estate Boards,and a member of the Board of Estimate.

A retired nurse-counselor who special-ized in helping women with substance-abuse issues, she was also president andCEO of Whart Development Company, areal-estate development company and aconsultant to small and developing busi-nesses before entering politics.

In 1980, Hassell-Thompson becameexecutive director of the WestchesterMinority Contractors Association, andserved in that capacity until June 1987.She became well-versed in economicdevelopment issues that impact womenand people of color, and became a strongadvocate of their cause, persuading mem-bers of both the public and private sectorsto increase economic participation withminority and women-owned businesses.

Before leading the WMCA, she workedfor the Westchester CommunityOpportunity Program for 10 years in anumber of management positions, fromdirector of a day-care center to executiveassistant to the executive director.


STEVEN SANDERS

Looking back,Assemblyman

Steven Sanders com-mented, “In a way, CityCollege led to my entirecareer.”

In 1973, when he wasa senior majoring in gov-ernment, the collegeplaced him in an internship in then-Assemblyman Andrew Stein’s office. Asthings turned out, Sanders became Stein’ssuccessor in representing Manhattan’s 74thAssembly district.

At CCNY, which is also his fatherMurray’s alma mater (class of 1938),Sanders fondly recalled “the excellent pro-fessors in the social sciences.” He said thatgreat faculty members and hands-on workexperience in one’s field of interest is whatpublic higher education should be all about.

“I think we have a moral imperative tomake certain that higher education is apossibility for everyone who has the desireto acquire it,” he said. “I think that whenyou have a public education you tend tobe exposed to more things, You learn towork with and to relate to all kinds ofpeople from many backgrounds and manywalks of life. You deal with the real worldevery day. It can prepare you socially far


CARL E. HEASTIE

Once he decided hewanted to earn an

M.B.A., AssemblymanCarl E. Heastie of theBronx set about doingwhat any smart busi-nessperson would do –a bit of comparisonshopping.

“I checked a web site which evaluateduniversity schools of business and saw thatBaruch College had a very good rating. Ilooked into NYU and found that it costthree times more and wasn’t offering any-thing better. Not being a rich man, I foundBaruch’s credentials together with theprice made it the right choice.”

“When the tuition hike came up for ourconsideration, it affected me personallyand I knew how it affected other students.That was true of several of my colleaguesin the legislature as well. I believe thatAssemblyman Diaz is a student at LehmanCollege, for instance.”

Heastie, who was elected in 2000, hadworked for the New York City DeputyComptroller as a budget analyst, in whichpost he prepared reports on city spending.His initial training in budget analysis camefrom another public institution of highereducation, SUNY-Stony Brook, where hemajored in applied mathematics and sta-tistics.

“I find that my studies at Baruch, incombination with my work experience,have prepared me for really reading andunderstanding a budget,” he said.

How does Heastie manage to combinehis busy schedule as a legislator with hisgraduate work? “Baruch is a businessschool for working people. I find that ingeneral the faculty is flexible,” he said.


STEPHEN KAUFMAN

When AssemblymanStephen B.

Kaufman tosses off areference to Chaucer orTennyson in one of hisspeeches, it’s an homageto Prof. Nicholas Lyons,who taught English atHunter College.

Although he graduated with a bache-lor’s degree in political science, Kaufmanrecalls his English classes with great affec-tion. In those days – he graduated in 1965– Hunter College was small. “There wereonly five buildings, it was a country-stylecampus and everyone knew each other,”Kaufman said.

Classes had an average of only 20 stu-dents, so “there was much interactionbetween students and professors,”Kaufman said. “It was a nurturing environ-ment. Professor Lyons loved the subject ofEnglish, he loved the students and he wasan excellent teacher.”

It was this first taste of academic life thatspurred Kaufman to go on to earn twoother degrees: a juris doctor from AmericanUniversity Washington College of Law,where he was assistant editor of the LawReview and editor-in-chief of the law schoolnewspaper; and a master of law degree fromNew York University. A practicing attorney,he has law offices in the Bronx.

Kaufman has been supportive of his

better than a rarified atmosphere can --and that can be an educational advantagein many ways.”

Sanders is proud of major increases instate school funding during his years aschairman of the Education Committee,especially the revision of state educationaid formulas to make them more equitablefor districts with higher needs. “I think ourpublic higher education systems are one ofour most vital resources.” he said.

A S S E M B L Y M A NMICHAEL A. BENJAMIN

Although Assembly-man Michael A.

Benjamin attendedHunter College nearlytwo decades ago, thelessons he learned therehave stayed with himevery day of his career.

It was three instruc-tors in the graduate pro-gram in urban affairs in the 1987-89 aca-demic years – Stanley Moses, Peter Salins,who is now provost of the SUNY system,and Hans Speigel, the chairman ofHunter’s urban affairs planning department– who really made him think, not onlyabout the assignment at hand but alsoabout his role in effecting political change.

“Moses had a real affinity and love forpublic policy and government’s providingservices when the private sector could orwould not,” Benjamin said. “Speigel, whowas very liberal, had a wonderful way ofengaging students in thinking about theissues. And Salins, with whom I still keepin touch, was perhaps the most conserva-tive member of the faculty. He wasopposed to rent control. At that time, Idisagreed with him, but now I realize thatit has been a factor in distorting the rental-housing market in New York.”

In addition to the excellent and engag-ing faculty members, Benjamin said that itwas the diversity of the student populationat Hunter that he found most helpful. “Wehad the chance to learn from the com-bined experiences and cultures of all thesedifferent ethnic perspectives,” saidBenjamin, who represents the 79th

Assembly District in the Bronx, where hehas always lived. “Because of that, Ilearned that there is not just one way oflooking at an issue or policy. This has beena great help in politics, because I representa district that is predominantly black andHispanic, but there also are other groups,and I’m always trying to bring diversegroups together.”

The list of issues that Benjamin, thefirst African-American to head the BronxBoard of Elections, is involved with is,indeed, varied. In addition to working withcommunity groups to improve education,he has focused on political redistricting,restoring banking services, fighting envi-ronmental racism and making neighbor-hoods safer.

Benjamin, who has a bachelor of artsdegree in political science from SyracuseUniversity, said that one of the reasons hechose to enroll in Hunter’s master of sci-ence program in urban affairs, aside fromthe fact that the program is “well respect-ed,” was because his mother earned threedegrees from CUNY schools. She is analumna of Bronx Community College,Lehman College and The City College ofNew York.

“I found it to be a good learning envi-ronment,” he said, adding that he hasexperienced CUNY from the other side ofthe desk, too: He has been a lecturer on

alma mater, even sponsoring legislation tokeep the John D. Calandra ItalianAmerican Institute in Manhattan at TheGraduate Center of CUNY.

He chose to attend Hunter Collegebecause his brother went there andbecause it was in the Bronx, where he haslived his entire life. “It was a magnificentschool,” he said. “And I got an excellenteducation.”


DOV HIKIND

Assemblyman DovHikind earned his

bachelor’s degree inPolitical Science fromQueens College and hismaster’s in UrbanAdministration fromBrooklyn College. Herecently marked his22nd year in the New York StateLegislature as the representative for the48th Assembly District, an area thatencompasses Borough Park, DykerHeights, Kensington and sectionsof Flatbush.

The first member of his family toattend college, he credits CUNY withoffering him “the opportunity to get a highquality education in an atmosphere thatwas conducive to learning.”

In 1996, Hikind founded the UnitedNew York Democratic Club, a politicalaction group dedicated to bipartisan sup-port of candidates in major city and stateraces who are committed to quality of lifeconcerns and promoting greater unity andunderstanding within New York’s diversecommunities.

Hikind believes “education is the foun-dation of life and the lifeline of society. Ihad great teachers and a wonderful experi-ence at The City University,” he said, “andmy education gave me the skills and thetools required for a successful career inpublic service.”

That is why he is committed to “makingsure that CUNY receives the funding itneeds so that today’s students can havethe same chance to receive a high quality,affordable education that I did at Queensand Brooklyn Colleges.”


JEFFREY KLEIN

AssemblymanJeffrey Klein of

the 80th AssemblyDistrict in the Bronxgraduated from bothQueens College in1983 and from CUNYLaw School in 1994.

In between his twostints as a CUNY student, Klein earnedmaster of public administration degree in1985 at Columbia University’s School ofInternational and Public Affairs.

“I always had a strong interest in publicservice and CUNY Law School is the onlyschool completely dedicated to that goal,”he said.

Klein said that in today’s world acollege education is a must for many occu-pations, equivalent in terms of its entrylevel value to what a high school diplomaonce meant.

“Our public higher education system isthe only route to improved opportunitiesfor people in our state who are notwealthy,” he said. “I would like to see thetuition hikes which were imposed on


ALUMNI Legislators


race and ethnicity at John Jay College.Benjamin credits current Chancellor

Matthew Goldstein with increasing enroll-ment while raising academic standards.

“I encourage all of my constituents toattend college, and at CUNY, it’s still a lotcheaper than at any other school in thearea,” he said. “I call upon my CUNY educa-tion every day. It helps me better understandurban planning in my assembly district.”


DIANE GORDON

There is no suchthing as failure.

That is the life lessonthat AssemblywomanDiane Gordoncarried away with herwhen she earned herbusiness administrationdegree from CUNY’sNew York City Collegeof Technology in 1985.

“At CUNY, there was no such word as‘failure,’” she says. “It was not an option, andthere were no excuses for failure becausethe teachers were always there to help. Theywere there to walk you through everythingfrom coursework to financial aid.”

Gordon, the Democrat who representsBrooklyn’s 40th Assembly District,enrolled in the college because of itsadvanced business courses. “At that time,the college was offering word processingclasses, which were new,” she says. “It hadall the courses I was looking for.”

She also was attracted to the enrichmentclasses, specifically the drama course inblack theatre. “This also was a new idea atthe time,” she says. “We studied African-American poems to enhance our readingand writing skills. The class was well attend-ed, and we didn’t even get credit for it.”

She credits the teachers with makingher business courses not only easy tounderstand but also relevant to her life. “Inour writing and reading class, the professorwas really dynamic. She used newspapersto make her point, and she kept every-thing very simple. I was able to pass myclasses because of the extra time theteachers were willing to spend with me.For them, it wasn’t all about earning a lotof money, it was about making sure thatwe were learning. They were willing towork with the students, they were willingto go the extra mile.”

Then there were some other courses,particularly English, that Gordon wasn’tprepared to like. “I thought it was going tobe boring,” she says, “but the teacher chal-lenged my interest. I was pleased with allthe courses. Some were very difficult, andCUNY teachers really did outstandingwork on all of them.”

The fact that CUNY had affordabletuition when she attended also was a greathelp, she says, adding that that was a majorfactor in her decision to enroll at NewYork City College of Technology.

Gordon credits CUNY with expandingher horizons – she also is certified by theAmerican Business Institute in BusinessMathematics — by getting her interestedin a variety of subjects that have markedher political career.

She is on several standing committeesin the Assembly, including ones on alco-holism and drug abuse; social services; andcorporations, authorities and commissions.

“I would like everyone to pick oneCUNY college to attend,” Gordon says. “Itis the way to go. It gives you that extrastep, that extra plus to success.”

CUNY MATTERS

Office of University RelationsThe City University of New York535 East 80th St.New York, NY 10021

PresortedStandard MailU.S. Postage

PAIDNew Haven, CTPermit # 1411

cuny.edu is offering complete coverageand daily updates

on CUNY Budget and Financial Aid information

visit cuny.edu/news and click CUNY Budget Watch

evaluators who frequently convey sur-prise at the brevity of the CUNYtenure clock, commenting on how dif-ficult it is to properly evaluate scholar-ly potential at a three-and-one-half tofive-year juncture.

Q. The University has indicated that mod-ifying the tenure clock from five toseven years will bring CUNY into con-formity with other colleges and uni-versities across the nation. Pleaseexplain.

A. The tenure clock at CUNY is short incomparison with other colleges anduniversities. Across institutions ofhigher education, the tenure clockaverages seven years. For example, atSUNY the standard period is sevenyears. At the University of Michiganand Columbia, it is eight years. At Yaleit is ten years. The AAUP Guidelinesconsider a seven-year tenure clockacceptable.

Q. Does the new tenure clock have anyconsequences for the concept oftenure or academic freedom atCUNY?

A. Categorically “No.” The University isfirmly committed to both tenure andacademic freedom for its faculty. TheUniversity simply wishes to create amore reasonable time frame withinwhich candidates for tenure will beevaluated.

Q. Isn’t the University concerned that theproposal may cause the StateLegislature to rethink tenure moregenerally?

A. No. There is no evidence whatsoever ofsentiment in Albany favoring arethinking of tenure. Further, we havetaken extreme care in our proposal to

make the least possible change in thestatute regarding tenure; in fact, wepropose changing only one word.

Moreover, it should be noted thatSUNY’s system of tenure has neverbeen embodied in a statute, only inSUNY’s owninternal rules, andthere has neverbeen any move-ment to rethinktenure at SUNY.

Q. Will increasing thetime to tenureaffect the repre-sentation ofminorities andwomen on ourcampuses?

A. The CityUniversity of NewYork values excel-lence. Over thepast year, CUNYhas made a com-mitment torecruit and hireincreasing num-bers of full-timefaculty whodemonstrateexcellence inteaching andscholarship.

Further, we haverenewed ourefforts to ensure abroadly diversepool of candidates from which toselect new hires. Increasing the time totenure will provide sufficient time fornew faculty of all backgrounds todemonstrate solid performance andbuild a sufficient record of scholarship,

while having sufficient time to partici-pate fully in college life.

This additional time not only benefitsnew faculty but also results in a tenureclock that is more consistent with otherhigher education institutions. Increasingthe time to tenure will enhance ourability to recruit, as well as retain, adiverse faculty on our campuses.

Q.. The core mission of The CityUniversity ofNew York is toeducate thecitizens ofNew YorkCity. Howdoes thischange in thetenure lawbenefit ourstudents andenhance theireducationalexperience?

A. The CityUniversity ofNew York iscommitted toits core missionof providing anexcellent edu-cation to itsstudents. Weare workingdiligently todirect ourresources tosupport thatmission. Mostnotable amongour efforts isthe restorationof full-time fac-

ulty. As we increase the ranks of thefull-time faculty, lengthening the timeto tenure will provide these new hires asufficient opportunity to participate inthe life of the college, engage morefully with students, and have sufficient

time to focus on their research andscholarship, thus enhancing the learningenvironment and creating an atmos-phere of excellence for all students.

Q. What if a faculty member joins theUniversity after teaching elsewhere orquickly develops a substantial recordof scholarship? Will he/she have towait seven years to obtain tenure?

A. No. The option of seeking early tenurewill continue to be available and willbe encouraged in appropriate cases.The University plans to communicatethis to all of the college presidents andto submit an amendment to theBoard’s Bylaws to make clearer thatearly tenure consideration is particu-larly appropriate where faculty haveprior teaching experience and/or havedeveloped a substantial record ofscholarship in less than seven years.

Q. How will the change in the tenureclock affect the timing of promotionto associate professor (and the atten-dant salary increase)?

A. It has always been the case that facultymay be promoted to associate profes-sor prior to tenure. Indeed, sometimesuntenured faculty are recruited toCUNY as associate professors at theoutset. That will continue. In addition,the University will propose an amend-ment to the Board’s Bylaws makingpromotion to associate professor auto-matic upon the granting of tenure.

Q. Would the proposed modification ofthe tenure clock apply to any currentfaculty?

A. At the direction of the Chancellor andas a result of faculty comments, themodification has been made prospec-tive only. The seven-year tenure clockwill apply to faculty hired on or afterSeptember 1, 2004 and to facultyhired before that date only if they vol-untarily opt for the longer probation-ary period in writing by the end oftheir third year of employment.

TOWN MEETING ONEXTENDING THETENURE CLOCK

CUNY Full-time Faculty InvitedHosted by Chancellor Matthew GoldsteinTuesday, March 16, 2004, 5-7 pmBaruch Vertical Campus,55 Lexington Ave. (corner of E. 24th St.)14th Floor, Room 14-220

PROCEDURES FOR TOWN MEETING• Full-time faculty who wish to speak

should email Ms. Barbara Cura,Office of the Chancellor, [email protected] by the closeof business on Friday, March 12, 2004.

• The maximum time permitted for eachspeaker will be three minutes. Writtenstatements are welcome and appreciated.

• Faculty who cannot participate in theTown Meeting are encouraged to emailideas and comments to ExecutiveVice Chancellor Louise Mirrer [email protected]

• The Town Meeting will be videotapedand audio recorded so that there will bea public record of the proceedings.

continued from front

Extending the Tenure Clock

Student enrollment at The CityUniversity of New York's six com-munity colleges reached 72,473 for

the Spring semester, the highest level inhistory, boosted by a jump of more than10,000 degree-seeking students—or 16.5percent—in the last three years.

Borough of Manhattan, Bronx, Hostos,Kingsborough, LaGuardia, andQueensborough Community Colleges alsoserve an additional 100,000 continuingeducation students. The two-year collegessponsor programs for over 20,000 highschool students through “College Now,” theUniversity's highly successful enrichmentprogram offering college coursework topublic high school students. Six highschools are now on the community collegecampuses.

The University is making an unprece-dented investment through a $25 million

Community College Enrollment at Record HighCommunity College Investment Program.Through this initiative, the community col-leges are hiring 450 new staff, including 300full-time faculty members this year, as wellas substantially enhancing libraries and otheracademic and student support services.

“CUNY's six community colleges arecontributing mightily to New York City’srenaissance, providing training and re-train-ing opportunities for the City's workforceand a strong foundation for transfer stu-dents to continue their education at thebaccalaureate level,” stated ChancellorMatthew Goldstein. He further stated,“Our record student enrollment—the high-est in CUNY's history—is a testament tothe dedication and ambition of our studentbody and the devotion and expertise of theUniversity's faculty and staff. CUNY stu-dents will repay many times over theinvestments made in their education

through the taxes they will pay for decadesto come and their numerous contributionsto our City and State.”

Borough of Manhattan CommunityCollege is located in the heart of New YorkCity, and it reflects the best of downtownManhattan: the culture of Tribeca, thevibrancy of Wall Street, and the promiseof the Statue of Liberty.

Bronx Community College, situated ona 53-acre campus that is home to the pres-tigious Hall of Fame for Great Americans,offers Associate's degrees in the liberal artsand sciences, the health sciences, business,and public service occupations.

Hostos Community College, nationallyknown for its bilingual approach to educa-tion, offers a rich variety of career and lib-eral arts programs, ranging from account-ing, business, and data processing to nurs-ing, public administration and public inter-

est paralegal studies.Kingsborough Community College

enrolls more than 15,000 students, abouthalf of whom are working toward associatedegrees that will enable them to transfer tobaccalaureate institutions. The other halfare in career-oriented programs such asbusiness administration, fashion merchan-dising, mental health, journalism and printmedia, among others. LaGuardiaCommunity College joins Barnard Collegeand UCLA as the only three collegesnationwide to receive the prestigious 2004Theodore M. Hesburgh Award Certificateof Excellence, which recognizes innovativefaculty training programs that enhanceclassroom instruction and student learning.Queensborough Community College offersoutstanding programs in a broad range ofliberal arts and sciences, pre-professional,career, and technical subjects.

cuny.edu/news • c u n y spotlight on alumni legislators new … · 2018-06-01 · alumni serve in...

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