At the October 7 meeting, President Lane Glenn reported that Haverhill business owner Sally Cerasuolo-O’Rorke will join the board at the November meeting which will be held on October 28.

Cerasuolo-O’Rorke was appointed to the trustees by Governor Charlie Baker, and will replace Peter Dulchinos, who has served on the trustees since October of 2006.

Glenn praised Dulchinos for his contributions to the college, calling him “one of the most dedicated trustees in my years here at NECC.”  In addition to chairing the trustees’ audit and finance committee, Dulchinos served as “one of the most important and effective members of the college’s Achieving the Dream Core Team, and he has made a world of difference to our students by driving to narrow student success gaps.”

Budget is Revised, Largely Due to Enrollment

Trustees unanimously approved a FY16 revised budget for the college of $44,003,734, which was a $137,555 increase over the initial budget of $43,866,179 that had been approved earlier at the May meeting.

The budget was adjusted primarily because the fall enrollment was higher than had been predicted.

“We predicted an enrollment decline of 5 percent and we ended up with a decline of 4 percent,” said President Lane Glenn. “As a result, we brought in additional revenue in tuition and fees.”

Public Health Degree is Approved

Northern Essex may be increasing the number of health care programs it offers.

Trustees unanimously approved the addition of an Associate of Science in Public Health and a Community Health Worker Certificate.  Both programs are designed to address growing employer need.

The associate degree will include foundational courses in the principles and practices of public health as well as general education and science courses.  Graduates will be prepared for entry level positions as front line health care workers in hospitals, doctors’ offices, health centers, and clinics, and for transfer to bachelor degree programs in public health education, health administration, or environmental health.

The 27-credit Community Health Worker Certificate will prepare students for transfer into the associate degree in public health.

The associate degree still needs to be approved by the Department of Higher Education (DHE).

All College Assembly Reports on Annual Progress

Amy Callahan, coordinator of the college’s communications/journalism program and new chair of the All College Assembly (ACA) Executive Committee, shared accomplishments of the past year, 2014/15, with trustees.

Stating that participatory government is “active, healthy, and productive at Northern Essex”, Callahan provided an overview of reports from each of the standing committees.

The Executive Committee has made a commitment to “improve communication among all sectors of the college,” which is a charge of the ACA stated in its charter, according to Callahan.

The Academic Affairs Committee reviewed 80 proposals for new or revised courses, programs, and certificates, recommending 70 for approval.  The committee also implemented the First Year Seminar course as a graduation requirement.

The Finance Committee supported the development of new initiatives to increase enrollment and bring more revenue to the college, including a winter intercession.

The Information Technology Committee, which is a new committee, focused on creating a process for reviewing and assessing requests for new technology on campus.

The Student Affairs Committee, which has a direct line of communication with the Student Senate, focused on student quality of life issues including the bookstore and the quality of food on campus.

Professor Focused on the Skills Gap during Sabbatical

Business Professor Bill Zannini spent his recent sabbatical researching three areas: skills in the workplace, project management, and technology.

He focused his research on the skills our students need after graduation to be successful in the workplace and in their careers.

Based on his research, Zannini concluded that employers are looking for employees that know how to think critically and have soft skills, such as working with a team, oral and written communications, and professionalism.

He is suggesting that Northern Essex offer business programming that contains one or more of the core academic skills; provide the necessary internships and training/awareness for business faculty in contextual teaching and learning practices; develop and offer an English for Business course; and join the National Business Education Association.

New Employees

Trustees voted on the following new full-time appointments: Vanessa Desani, academic counselor; Patricia Bradford, staff associate/human resources generalist; Lorena Holguin, special programs coordinator, Student Career Counselor Title V Grant (non-state appropriated); Kyle White, maintainer/janitor; and Adrianna Neefus, administrative assistant 1, Gallaudet University Regional Center (non-state appropriated).