Standing in front of the Dillingham Fountains, Ithaca College President Shirley M. Collado announced Oct. 23 the co-chairs for the nine working groups that coincide with the nine goals outlined in the college’s five–year strategic plan, now called Ithaca Forever.
The Student Success working group will be chaired by Elizabeth Bleicher, associate professor and interim chair of the Department of Education and director of the Exploratory Program, and Jacqueline Winslow, director of New Student and Transition Programs.
Bleicher said she volunteered because she has been involved in the strategic plan process already and wanted to see it through.
“I’m the co-author of the student success report and the strategic student success and retention plan, and I would like to see those initiatives come to light,” Bleicher said.
The Year-Round Campus working group will be chaired by Jason Freitag, associate professor in the Department of History, and Sybil Conrad, director of the Campus Center.
The Collaboration working group will be chaired by Jeane Copenhaver-Johnson, associate provost for academic programs, and Registrar Vikki Levine.
The Community Resources working group will be chaired by David Harker, director of the Center for Civic Engagement, and Paula Younger, executive director for government and community relations.
The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion working group will be chaired by Hierald Osorto, director of religious and spiritual life, and Judith Pena-Shaff, associate professor in the Office of the Provost.
Pena-Shaff said she volunteered because the group covers an issue she cares about.
“First of all, I’m interested in the goals that relate to diversity and inclusion,” Pena-Shaff said. “I’m a member of this community, and I want to be a complete part of it, and that kind of involvement is part of being a member of this community.”
The Sustainable Size working group will be chaired by Brad Hougham, associate provost for faculty affairs, and David Weil, associate vice president of Information Technology.
The Employer of Choice working group will be chaired by Delphia Howze, director of employee relations and development, and Christine Bataille, assistant professor in the Department of Management.
The Master Plan working group will be chaired by Tim Carey, associate vice president in the Office of Facilities, and Marc Israel, assistant provost for finance and administrative operations.
The Ithaca Forever working group will be chaired by Gretchen Van Valen, associate director of Constituent Relations, and IC Affiliate Schelley Michell-Nunn ’81.
To become a co-chair, the staff and faculty members had to volunteer for the position. Levine said she believes there were over 200 people that volunteered for all of the different working groups.
Every working group has several goals it hopes to accomplish. According to the college’s website, a goal like being a year-round campus currently has one objective: “Develop and pilot programs for winter and summer academic terms and immersion experiences.”
Freitag said all of the objectives for the different working groups will be in place before Fall 2020. The co-chairs will have their first meeting Nov. 5, and they will discuss what every group will be doing and how they will go about achieving all nine goals.
