From the Desk of the President

Greetings, colleagues!

As we begin our 58^th year of offering a quality education within Central Pennsylvania, I want to reassure you that HACC remains watchfully and vigilantly committed to the health, safety and well-being of our entire College community.

Multiple measures are in place to protect students and employees who will be interacting on our campuses. I encourage you to read this comprehensive Return to Campus this Fall 2021 Guidelines for important information and resources.

Additionally, we remain resolute on keeping you abreast of developments from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Pennsylvania Department of Health. On HACC’s website, Stay Up to Date on the Coronavirus, you will continue to find timely information and access resources to help you cope with uncertainty. The website is frequently updated to keep you as fully informed as possible.

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of collegiality, civility and goodwill, patience and kindness as we as a College community interact with each other and the greater Central Pennsylvania community. Many are apprehensive about the future as the pandemic continues to dominate our lives. Remember, we are all in this together, and together we will find strength to move forward. I am confident that our unified efforts will continue to give our students the superior educational experience for which HACC is known.

Finally, as a vital and highly-respected educational leader in the communities we serve, HACC continues to stand proud and strong in support of diversity, inclusion and belonging inside and outside of the classroom. We as a College support the fight to end systemic racial injustice.

As a reminder, please attend the weekly collegewide Zoom sessions on Thursdays at 3:30 p.m. for updates and information about the College. You can visit the “Greetings from the President” channel on myHACC to view sessions that you may have missed and access additional information and resources.

Please use the following online form if you have any questions, comments and/or suggestions:

www.hacc.edu/Feedback

#Biking4HACC

Throughout June and July, I visited 55 of our 65 public school districts to thank the superintendents for their support of our favorite community college, to learn what we could be doing better to serve their school districts and raise money for our C.A.R.E. Center. I accomplished all three goals. In fact, we raised more than $10,000 for the Center. The goal was $6,500.

During my 650+mile bike journey in July and early August, the superintendents were effusive in their praise for our institution. Some of the common strengths mentioned by those I met with included the following:

Strengths:

1. Complimented our College’s communication efforts

2. Recognized our responsiveness to their needs and the needs of their staff

3. Saluted our workforce development programs, including S.T.E.P.

4. Acknowledged our student support systems, including 24/7 counseling services

5. Celebrated our commitment to diversity, inclusion and belonging efforts

6. Highlighted our various instructional delivery methods

7. Complimented us on keeping our tuition reasonable

8. Praised our growing number of transfer agreements with four-year institutions

9. Noted the number of scholarships and giveaways throughout the academic year

10. Encouraged us to continue addressing the stigma of community colleges

As expected, I also learned ways we can enhance our operations to better serve their students and families in this ever-changing, competitive high educational environment. Some of the ways suggested we serve them better included the following:

Recommendations:

1. Increase college-in-the-high-school (CHS) offerings since HACC is losing ground to four-year college throughout Pennsylvania who are offering CHS courses through non-master degreed high school faculty

2. Expand dual enrollment class offerings, especially in the allied health care professions

3. Educate families about the value of HACC

4. Eliminate placement-related barriers. Find ways to help high schools align their student exit outcomes to academic expectations of HACC

5. Provide more workforce development program s(e.g., pre- and apprenticeship programs) culminating in an industry-based credential

6. Ensure flexibility in classes, programs, services (articulated credit for related programming)

7. Provide labor-market-aligned sequences of work-based learning culminating in a certificate or credential

8. Ensure advising is offered year-round since during the winter holidays and during the summer it can be hard to get a return call

9. Work towards a closer alignment between labor markets, high school faculty and HACC faculty

10. Accelerate disruptive educational conversations/actions (e.g., provide more mobile applications for registration purposes, engage more artificial intelligence in the student experience, etc.)

Finally, while riding throughout our 11-county service region, I reflected on how this ride influenced 10 leadership lessons.

Leadership Lessons:

1. Plan, prepare and stay focused

2. The hill ahead is never as steep as it seems

3. Be prepared to address the unexpected, as best you can

4. Be open to and welcome detours

5. Keep one hand on the handlebar and one on the brake

6. Shifting is necessary, regularly

7. Stay aware of your surroundings and signs

8. Know who to call if you run into a challenge

9. Stay hydrated and take breaks, regularly

10. Celebrate milestones along the way

“Everything we do at HACC should begin with how we address the needs of our most vulnerable students
and expand from there.” ~Chrissy Davis-Jones, Ed.D.