The Constitution Equals Freedom

Recently my daughter asked if I could change one thing in the world, what would it be and why.  I told her I would give all people in the world the right to vote and all countries a form of government that would allow this freedom to choose its leaders.  That got me thinking about Constitution Week, our Founding Fathers and how Jupiter practically had to align with Mars in the late 1770s to create our country. 

As an educator, I never take for granted the freedoms that students have.  We live in a country where not only are all children educated, but those children and their families have the opportunity to make educational choices.  In many developed nations with university systems, the ability to actually attend college is pre-ordained by the time a child is 13 or 14 years old.  For example, we have friends who live in France.  Both the husband and wife attended higher education institutions but their choices were very limited early on and they knew that whatever “track” was chosen for them, it would dictate their career, potentially life long.  Their daughter who is now 14 is “on the best track” and they hold that dear that she was selected to be on a university track. 

The British system is similar, and while I do not profess to be an expert on foreign educational systems, I also have friends who emigrated from Britain and still have family there.  Their stories are similar.  We recently shared thoughts about the flexibility and choice of higher education options in the United States.  In Britain, if you’re not in university track early on, chances are you’ll never get there.

Students at The College of Westchester come from all ages, stages and places in their lives.  They have the unique ability to choose a career and what they view as an appropriate path to obtaining security, job satisfaction etc.  Further, they can change course if needed.  We have many students who come to us after a change of heart or just seeking a desired change of career.  Some have even shown up later in life after retiring from a first career.  All is not lost in United States system of education; “all” can never be lost when a person has the desire to become better educated.  The multitude of choices and funding options that exist are vast.

Much of this freedom in higher education comes from the way we as United States citizens think about our freedoms and rights and the equality our Founding Fathers desired for us.

So, as we celebrate the signing of the Constitution, let us celebrate our freedoms and the ability to become educated how we choose, where we choose and in what discipline we choose.

The Moment We Wait For All Year

The moment we and our students work so hard for is here:  Commencement.  This year there are some differences with our commencement program.  The first difference is our commencement ceremonies now take place in June versus May.  But the other, very exciting, difference is that we just may see these same students walking across the stage again in a couple of years to accept their bachelor’s degree.  This is truly exciting! 

As our new BBA class will attest, our alumni are very happy to have the opportunity to come back to the college they love so much and obtain their bachelor’s degree.   And their excitement for CW is to be credited to each faculty and staff member, because it’s not only the education they receive here that make students so happy, it’s our faculty and staff and the personalized attention received.     

Over and over again, I hear from students that they so appreciate the personal and caring environment at CW.  We all know that succeeding has a lot to do with the environment you’re in – if you are happy with your environment, you are more likely to succeed.   I applaud each faculty and staff member for always remembering to put students first – whether it’s tracking down a student because he or she missed a few classes or just stopping someone in the hall to say hi -- it makes a difference.  When students feel connected with faculty and staff, it renews their sense of commitment to the college and to their goals, which is to walk across that stage in June.  So, thank you faculty and staff for making our students happy and successful.     

Ensuring that our students are continually happy and successful is one of the reasons we began planning the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) program nearly five years ago.  Our primary focus was a program that served both students and employers in order to stay true to our mission.   We knew that the BBA would equate to improved opportunities for success of our graduates.  Even more important, is that it also allows graduates to move into a new, higher-earning category.  As a college that believes education changes lives through economic stability, we were excited that offering a BBA to our graduates could add, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, an additional half million dollars to their lifetime earning potential.  Most of our graduates stay in New York and develop careers here, so this program is an economic driver for the state. 

We pride ourselves on our ability to continually evolve and to meet the ever-changing needs of students and employers, and the fact that we will not falter in our ability to provide high quality, practical, career-focused, collegiate education leading to exceptional graduate success and security is simply what we do.    

CW Achieves Two Milestones in One Day

It gives me great pleasure to announce that on March 17, the New York State Board of Regents approved our Bachelor’s of Business Administration Degree (BBA), officially making us a Bachelor Degree granting college.  This is a significant achievement for the College and one that has been in the making for many years.  Our ability to now grant the Bachelor’s degree will enhance the educational opportunities we provide students, all while remaining true to our mission to offer a curriculum that provides marketable skills and career-ready education.

March 17, 2008 is certainly a day that will make CW’s history book because not only did we receive approval from the New York State Board of Regents to offer the BBA, but we also received from The Middle States Commission on Higher Education official confirmation that our grant of accreditation has been renewed for another ten years with the inclusion of our BBA program.  

This is truly an exciting time for the college.  Such significant milestones are undeniable proof that we are committed to excellence.  Our commitment and ongoing pursuit to meet the ever-changing needs of students and employers is what has made CW a quality institution since 1915.  The College has served thousands of students, and these achievements will help us to serve thousands and thousands more on a whole new level.   

Thank you to Faculty and Staff for all your hard work and determination.  

For more information about our new BBA program, please click here