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It is truly remarkable how quickly time goes by - especially when one is having fun! I like to think that how quickly things pass in one's life is a "barometer of good times" - the faster they pass, the better they are!
As I reflect, I remember arriving on campus in June of 2000 in my little white Toyota Tacoma pickup truck. I also remember getting my first tickets (yes, plural) shortly thereafter. The first was for double parking (being here for only a short time I had not yet mastered that "art") and the second for driving an "unauthorized commercial vehicle." It seems I needed a name on the side of my pickup! So early on, I started contributing to the NY City coffers. I recall living for a month in Overlook because our daughter, Amy, was getting married in July, and Molly was not about to move out of our house in Rochester before that wedding.
One of my first acquaintances was Bill Tramontano, then Chair of the Biology Department and now Dean of the School of Natural and Social Sciences at Lehman College. Bill, as it turns out, has remained a close friend and trusted advisor over the years. It fact, it was he who first told me in 2000 that I had to "lose that truck!" Bill and Nick Delilllo also introduced Molly and I to Arthur Avenue.
I remember that horrendous day in September of 2001 quite clearly. Molly and I had settled in White Plains (a GREAT little community!), and I was driving to work at 6:30 am on the Deegan cresting the hill at the reservoir in Yonkers when I noticed how clear the morning was and that I could even make out the windows in the WTC. Little did I realize that I would never see them again! It was a remarkable day in many ways, but I am proud of how all the folks at the College handled themselves that day and over the days and weeks that followed. I am particularly proud of how our many alumni, who were involved with the recovery, did their jobs and how they represented the College.
I remember well my first ABET accreditation visit as Dean of the School in 2002. Much effort by the Chairs and faculty went into preparing for that visit, and I was so very pleased and proud that all six programs in Engineering passed with flying colors. Everyone did a great job. One of the benefits of those visits is that you get to meet other folks. For example, the leader of that accrediting team is now the President of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.
I am particularly proud of the accomplishments that the School has achieved over the past seven years. Our undergraduate enrollment increased from 450 to about 625 and, I believe just as importantly, we doubled our graduate FTE (full-time equivalent) enrollment to roughly 120. This is a significant revenue stream for the College and one I hope will continue to be taken advantage of. Graduate education in engineering is now tightly linked with undergraduate education and this has to be understood, appreciated, and pursued.
We have also reached deeply and effectively into the professional community. The School has established a continuing education program for professional engineers that services a real need for the City and provides a nice revenue stream to the School. Further, the School has responded to the needs of the professional community with a Certificate program, concentrations at the Master's level in Construction Management, Nuclear Engineering, and Power Engineering; all designed to meet the needs of the engineering community in the NY metro area. And, with these and our other efforts, our reputation in this part of the Country as a solid (premier!) engineering school has grown tremendously.
It seems appropriate to close by reflecting on relationships. After all, it is all about relationships. I am pleased and proud to say that I have benefited from many outstanding relationships while here at the College. Certainly, the many individuals I have had the privilege to know in the NY metro area professional community have had a significant impact on my professional life. The folks at the College that I have come to know well over the years, however, are special and will never be forgotten. Of course, I am closest to the Chairs and the Academic Advisor in the Engineering School, and I cherish these relationships; but, I have also come to know and value the friendship and counsel of many of the Engineering faculty. I have had the privilege of having friends and advisors in other departments of the College - Religious Studies, Biology, Math, and Education come immediately to mind. I shall never forget these folks. Particularly, all those College folks who reached out and helped me get through our daughter's health challenges. Finally, the many fine students I have also been privileged to know have added much luster to my experiences here at the College. I shall never forget the students.
So, at the end of the day, one hopes to be able to look back and be comfortable in the knowledge that you made a difference; that you leave a place in better shape than when you arrived. I like to think that is true for me.
As I reflect, I remember arriving on campus in June of 2000 in my little white Toyota Tacoma pickup truck. I also remember getting my first tickets (yes, plural) shortly thereafter. The first was for double parking (being here for only a short time I had not yet mastered that "art") and the second for driving an "unauthorized commercial vehicle." It seems I needed a name on the side of my pickup! So early on, I started contributing to the NY City coffers. I recall living for a month in Overlook because our daughter, Amy, was getting married in July, and Molly was not about to move out of our house in Rochester before that wedding.
One of my first acquaintances was Bill Tramontano, then Chair of the Biology Department and now Dean of the School of Natural and Social Sciences at Lehman College. Bill, as it turns out, has remained a close friend and trusted advisor over the years. It fact, it was he who first told me in 2000 that I had to "lose that truck!" Bill and Nick Delilllo also introduced Molly and I to Arthur Avenue.
I remember that horrendous day in September of 2001 quite clearly. Molly and I had settled in White Plains (a GREAT little community!), and I was driving to work at 6:30 am on the Deegan cresting the hill at the reservoir in Yonkers when I noticed how clear the morning was and that I could even make out the windows in the WTC. Little did I realize that I would never see them again! It was a remarkable day in many ways, but I am proud of how all the folks at the College handled themselves that day and over the days and weeks that followed. I am particularly proud of how our many alumni, who were involved with the recovery, did their jobs and how they represented the College.
I remember well my first ABET accreditation visit as Dean of the School in 2002. Much effort by the Chairs and faculty went into preparing for that visit, and I was so very pleased and proud that all six programs in Engineering passed with flying colors. Everyone did a great job. One of the benefits of those visits is that you get to meet other folks. For example, the leader of that accrediting team is now the President of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.
I am particularly proud of the accomplishments that the School has achieved over the past seven years. Our undergraduate enrollment increased from 450 to about 625 and, I believe just as importantly, we doubled our graduate FTE (full-time equivalent) enrollment to roughly 120. This is a significant revenue stream for the College and one I hope will continue to be taken advantage of. Graduate education in engineering is now tightly linked with undergraduate education and this has to be understood, appreciated, and pursued.
We have also reached deeply and effectively into the professional community. The School has established a continuing education program for professional engineers that services a real need for the City and provides a nice revenue stream to the School. Further, the School has responded to the needs of the professional community with a Certificate program, concentrations at the Master's level in Construction Management, Nuclear Engineering, and Power Engineering; all designed to meet the needs of the engineering community in the NY metro area. And, with these and our other efforts, our reputation in this part of the Country as a solid (premier!) engineering school has grown tremendously.
It seems appropriate to close by reflecting on relationships. After all, it is all about relationships. I am pleased and proud to say that I have benefited from many outstanding relationships while here at the College. Certainly, the many individuals I have had the privilege to know in the NY metro area professional community have had a significant impact on my professional life. The folks at the College that I have come to know well over the years, however, are special and will never be forgotten. Of course, I am closest to the Chairs and the Academic Advisor in the Engineering School, and I cherish these relationships; but, I have also come to know and value the friendship and counsel of many of the Engineering faculty. I have had the privilege of having friends and advisors in other departments of the College - Religious Studies, Biology, Math, and Education come immediately to mind. I shall never forget these folks. Particularly, all those College folks who reached out and helped me get through our daughter's health challenges. Finally, the many fine students I have also been privileged to know have added much luster to my experiences here at the College. I shall never forget the students.
So, at the end of the day, one hopes to be able to look back and be comfortable in the knowledge that you made a difference; that you leave a place in better shape than when you arrived. I like to think that is true for me.
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