by browkaa | Nov 8, 2017 | Faculty, Staff
The first Makerspace event was wonderful fun! Students, faculty and staff participated in a rock painting event.
Makerspace is a place where students can create physical and digital items in a common workspace using shared resources and equipment. Makerspaces are meant to be a mechanism for encouraging students to explore and learn outside the classroom.
Once the rocks are sealed, keep an eye out for them on campus and across the city. Many thanks to those who participated, the library staff for their help and the Fine Arts Department for its sponsorship. There will be many more to come!
Submitted by: Yvonne K. Widenor visiting assistant professor and program director, art history
by etuk | Nov 8, 2017 | Faculty, Staff
Peter J. Galie, PhD, professor emeritus of political science, discussed the pros and cons of a Constitutional Convention with WIVB-TV Channel 4.
Watch the story here.
Submitted by: College Communications
by etuk | Nov 8, 2017 | Faculty, Staff
If you were unable to attend President Hurley’s Town Hall Meeting on Monday, you can read the recap below.
President John J. Hurley hosted his third Town Hall meeting of the fall semester on Monday, November 6. He began his campus update on a high note reporting that Sunday’s open house attendance was 248 – a 25 percent increase from last year’s turnout. He said that Excellence Within Reach continues to be well known and well received and noted that many parents seemed hopeful that the tuition reset initiative will enable them to send their children to Canisius.
President Hurley announced that the college will embark on a Mission Examen Priority process as directed by the Superior General of the Society of Jesus, the Provincials of the USA and the Presidents of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU). This is a self-study and peer review process based on the document Some Characteristics of Jesuit Colleges and Universities: A Self-evaluation Instrument, which the provincials and the presidents developed and approved to assure the Catholic and Jesuit identity of the colleges and universities in the United States. The effort will be led by Sandra Estanek, PhD, chair and professor of graduate education and leadership. Preliminary work will begin in spring 2018.
President Hurley reported that the college is in the process of developing a new campus master plan. Marco Benedetti, vice president for business and finance, is leading the effort with the services of Cannon Design, and has recently held information sessions for faculty about the process. There will be several more opportunities for the campus community to provide input to the planning process over the next two months. The campus master plan will be used to identify and prioritize capital improvements to the campus based on a set of guiding principles and goals that lay out a vision for the campus for the near and long-term future.
Following his talk, President Hurley answered questions from the audience.
Regarding the New York State Excelsior program, President Hurley said that the impacts are not fully known but he expects to have a clearer picture after he attends a Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU) meeting later this week. Larger schools that draw from outside New York State, such as Cornell and Columbia, are not as affected as much as smaller schools such as Canisius. He reiterated that 22,000 students received Excelsior scholarships. He mentioned that a transfer student from Niagara County Community College to Canisius shared her experience with the Excelsior Program. She received several conflicting letters, including one that said she would receive the scholarship. In the end, she didn’t receive the scholarship because she changed majors.
One staff member asked how current students have reacted to their tuition reset letters. While the Office of Student Records and Financial Services fielded many phone calls to clarify the itemized breakdown of student financial aid packages, President Hurley emphasized that in every case students will pay less beginning in fall 2018 under Excellence Within Reach.
Regarding an update on the retirement incentive, he noted that 34 professors applied and the college reached its financial goal. How that translates into salary savings can’t be calculated until it is determined how many faculty members will need to be replaced.
President Hurley added that he continues to urge Marco Benedetti to prioritize the restoration of the eight percent contribution to the employee retirement plan as circumstances allow.
President Hurley outlined plans for new programs including a new master’s program in data analytics, which he is confident will draw interest and funnel jobs into the financial services and health care industries. Academic Affairs began the lengthy process of developing a physician’s assistant program, which will help the college break into the allied health fields where there is great demand and opportunity. The college continues to work with Hanover, a market research firm, to determine additional new programs that would be feasible.
After the Town Hall, the group continued the conversation over donuts and cider.
Submitted by: College Communications
by browkaa | Nov 8, 2017 | Faculty, Staff
The college will close at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 22. All but essential personnel are included in this early dismissal. Please note that the college is also closed on Thanksgiving Day, November 23 and Friday, November 24. The college will reopen on Monday, November 27.
Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!
Submitted by: Linda M. Walleshauser, associate vice president, human resources & compliance
by etuk | Nov 8, 2017 | Faculty, Staff
Pictured from L-R: Mark Kopenski, CEO, Global Student Recruitment Advisors; Gerald C. Zaboski, vice provost for enrollment management and external affairs, University of Scranton; Harvey Werner, associate director, Loyola New Orleans; Abdelkareem Khasawneh, assistant director international & graduate admissions, University of Dayton and Kathleen B. Davis, vice president for enrollment management.
Canisius is stepping up its international recruitment in an effort to diversify its campus.
“Approximately three percent of the current student body is comprised of international students,” says Nate Cronk, associate director of international admissions. “We want to see that number rise to five percent in the next two to three years, with the ultimate goal of 10 percent of our student body being non- U.S. citizens.”
He explains the college utilizes a multi-tiered strategy, which includes marketing, outreach and travel. Canisius collaborates with agencies across the globe to assist with recruitment. This fall, Cronk traveled to five cities in India, while Kathleen Davis, vice president for enrollment management, visited three cities in Vietnam.
Additional international target countries include Saudi Arabia, China and Canada.
Nate Cronk, associate director of international admissions, was India for several weeks this fall to recruit and explore partnership opportunities for Canisius. Pictured to the left, he spoke with the media in Hyderabad about Canisius as a welcoming place to study.
“These countries send a lot of students abroad,” says Cronk. “Vietnam has a growing middle-class and a strong Catholic connection. Saudi Arabia’s government will pay for a citizen’s education if they come to study in the United States. Canisius is approved to receive these students. ”
In addition to the close proximity to the United States, Cronk adds that there is much affinity for the college. For example, there are more than 1,700 Canisius alumni in the Canadian province of Ontario alone.
Cronk help put Canisius front and center as a panelist at the U.S. College Expo Canada in Toronto. He spoke on the U.S. admissions process and the NCAA eligibility process.
“Toronto is an extremely diverse city,” says Cronk. “We want to find students who are native to Canada and also those who are currently residing in Toronto looking for higher education in the US.”
Submitted by: College Communications
