2017 GRC Foundation Distinguished Faculty

Posted on behalf of Green River Foundation

Announcing the 2017 Green River College Foundation
Distinguished Faculty Award Recipients

We are pleased to announce the following three recipients of the 2017 Green River College Foundation Distinguished Faculty Awards:

• Catherine Duva, ESOL, TSW Division
• Jamie Fitzgerald, English, English Division
• Dan Sorensen, Automotive Technology, Trades Division

On behalf of the Awards Review Committee, we commend all the 2017 nominees: Coleman Boettger, Dr. Neil Duldulao, Adriana Mendoza and Jody Segal.

The awards will be formally presented at commencement on Friday, June 16 at the Showare Center in Kent. We are sharing this information with the campus community now to give you a chance to congratulate the recipients and all nominees.

Thank you to the students, faculty and staff for submitting nominations and letters of support and to everyone for participating in the recognition process. Special thanks to Anthony White and Megan Evans for creating the faculty awards website.

 

Student Affairs and Success Center Update

Student Affairs construction and remodeling is wrapping up. The directory below will help you familiarize yourself with the layout of the Student Affairs and Success Center (SASC).

As noted below, please direct new and prospective students to the Welcome Desk in the first floor lobby area of the SASC.

Career and Advising Center (ext. 2641)	SA-104
Welcome Desk (ext. 6000)	SA-120
Running Start (ext. 2674)	SA-122
TRiO (ext. 2655)	SA-211
Disability Support Services (ext. 2631)	SA-210
Veteran’s Lounge (ext. 2277)	SA-224
The Current (ext. 2375) *Move date TBD	SA-218A
Completion Center (ext. 4959) *Move date TBD	SA-105
Assessment and Testing Center (ext. 2650)	SA-148
Campus Safety (ext. 3350) – Dispatch staying in current location (AD Building) until Phase 2	SA-156

Per David Larsen, Dean of Enrollment and Completion:

Building maps, signage, and publications are in the process of being updated, so please bear with us as we iron out the wrinkles in the new spaces.

A few items of note:

• Offices are still settling in… while we’d love to give you all tours, doing so while serving students can be challenging and disruptive. Our plan is to invite the campus community to an open house in the future.

• The Assessment and Testing Center now has lockers to be used by students for personal belongings while they test. The lockers, while great to have, are not large enough to accommodate every size bag students may have. If possible, students should leave large backpacks and bags in another secure location.

• In the past, you’ve all been so fantastic referring new/prospective students to the Welcome Center. Please continue to make these referrals to the Welcome Desk, now located in the Student Affairs and Success Center in the first floor lobby area.

• Special thanks to IT, Facilities, and the Business Office for helping with this much needed renovation and move. You all rock!

Suzanne Johnson named next Green River President

Posted on behalf of College Relations

Auburn, Wash. (April 25, 2017) – Dr. Suzanne Johnson will be the next president of Green River College.

The Green River Board of Trustees announced the decision during an April 25 board meeting. Johnson, Vice President for Academic Affairs at Suffolk County Community College in Long Island, New York, will start effective July 1. She will succeed Interim President Scott Morgan, who was appointed by the Board of Trustees on July 28, 2016.

“Dr. Johnson has the leadership qualities, professionalism, personal background and strength to lead Green River College into the future,” said Green River College Board of Trustees Chair Claudia Kauffman.

Johnson began her career in higher education in 1988 as a psychology instructor at Dowling College, and moved through the ranks to become the Dean of the College in 2012. Johnson also served as the Interim Campus President of the Sylvania Campus of Portland Community College in Portland, OR. Johnson has been instrumental in accreditation reviews, providing leadership over both instruction and student affairs, as well as having a deep commitment to the community college mission.

The Board of Trustees chose Johnson as the next Green River College president from a pool of 36 applicants. A 12-member Presidential Search Committee chaired by Interim President Morgan, included trustees, faculty, staff, students, and community members who volunteered their time to screen applications and recommend finalists to the Board of Trustees.

Allison Friedly
Executive Director of College Relations

2017 Summer Business Hours

Effective Monday, July 10, 2017, the hours of college business operations will be from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, with the campus closed on Fridays.

What does this mean to the public and our students? We will continue to provide support and services through the summer, but limited to a Monday to Thursday work week.

What does this mean to you as an employee? Although the college will be open to the public from 8am to 5pm, work days will consist of four, 10 hour days from Monday to Thursday.

*Note: The 30-minute meal and 15-minute rest breaks must still be taken in compliance with our respective collective bargaining agreements, and/or state and federal regulations. Please contact Barbara Iribarren or Chernenko Wheatley if you have any questions about the revised schedule or alternate work schedules.

Who should I contact if I have questions? Please reach out to your supervisor first. Supervisors should contact the appropriate Employee & Labor Relations Manager in the Human Resources office to make sure that any proposed schedule changes meet with federal, state, and local laws as well as negotiated agreements.

When will it end? Normal business hours will resume Monday, September 4, following the Labor Day holiday.

Presidential Finalists Announced

We are one step closer to having a new College President! The search committee’s hours of painstaking deliberation have paid off, and the Board of Trustees now has four outstanding candidates from which to choose:

Utpal K. Goswami, Ph.D. currently serves as president of Metropolitan Community College- Maple Woods, in Kansas City, MO. Dr. Goswami has more than 33 years of higher education experience, divided between classroom and administration at colleges and universities in Arizona, California, Missouri and Texas. He is experienced in advocating for community college funding, fostering shared governance, enhancing student success, programming for workforce development, launching and completing capital projects, and revamping and integrating technology platforms. Goswami is actively involved in statewide and local community organizations related to education, community service and economic development.

Suzanne M. Johnson, Ph.D. is the current Vice President of Academic Affairs at Suffolk County Community College in Long Island, NY. Dr. Johnson began her career in higher education in 1988 as a psychology instructor at Dowling College, and moved through the ranks to become the Dean of the College in 2012. Johnson also served as the Interim Campus President of the Sylvania Campus of Portland Community College in Portland, OR. Johnson has been instrumental in accreditation reviews, providing leadership over both instruction and student affairs, as well as having a deep commitment to the community college mission.

Kenneth G. Lawson, Ph.D. is currently the Vice President for Instruction at Skagit Valley College in Mount Vernon, WA. He has a doctorate in Political Science from the University of Washington.  Dr. Lawson served as Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences at Seattle Central College and Dean of Equity and Social Justice/Social Sciences at Shoreline Community College.  Dr. Lawson started teaching International Studies and Political Science at Shoreline in 2001. He has a passion for teaching and learning, and he is committed to ensuring underserved students have an equitable opportunity to succeed.

Dr. Elliot Stern serves as the Vice President of Instruction at Lake Washington Institute of Technology in Kirkland, WA. Prior to his career in higher education, Dr. Stern earned both a Juris Doctor and Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, and had a successful career as a physician-attorney and medical malpractice litigator. Stern changed career paths in 2003, and joined the ranks of Biology faculty at Everett Community College, where he later became Dean of Allied Health. Stern also served as the Dean of S.T.E.M. at Edmonds Community College.

The candidates will each have a full day on campus packed with multiple interviews and campus forums. The schedule has been posted on the presidential search page at greenriver.edu/president.

**During the interview week, members of the campus community will have the opportunity to provide feedback via an online survey, the results of which will be passed on to the board for consideration. **

If you wish to learn more about the candidates prior to their visit, candidate resumes are available to Green River College faculty and staff on the shared N Drive (N:\human resources\Presidential Search). This link is only accessible from campus computers or via remote desktop.

All-College Emails

Recently the restrictions on the All-College Community Mail list serve were lifted as a result of successful mediation between the United Faculty Coalition and Green River College. All members of the campus community now have access to send through the “All-College Community” list.

The College Council and relevant bargaining units will work together to develop a long-term solution while this agreement is in place.

Please keep in mind the following guidelines for use:

• All-College Community email use must follow the Green River Board of Trustees’ Civility Policy.
• Out of respect for others and their time, please use “Reply All” with extreme discretion. If you are the only person to whom replies should be directed, please use the BCC line to include this group.
• Remember, we are communicating with human beings. Although email may feel impersonal, there is another person at the other end of your message. Try to exercise kindness and patience, and refrain from personal attacks.
• Think before you hit SEND.
• Any disputes or issues that arise over faculty use of the “All-College Community” email list will be addressed first through consultation between the Vice President of Human Resources and Legal Affairs and your Appointing Authority (with the exception of Faculty where it will be with the President of the United Faculty Coalition).

If you have any questions about this change or wish to receive further information, please contact your supervisor.

Doughnut Fundraiser for Court Reporting

Posted on behalf of Lori Rapozo, Computer Reporting Technologies Faculty

Hello all Krispy Kreme fans!

It’s time for the Court Reporting Student Association Annual Krispy Kreme Doughnut sale Monday, January 23, 2017. The students thank you very much for all of your past support. It has enabled students to attend both the National Court Reporting/Captioning Conference and the Washington State Court Reporting Conference. In years past, our program has had national award recipients, and thanks to your support of CRSA, they were able to attend and receive the award in person. They truly learn so much at these events and are able to share this information with the whole Court Reporting/Captioning student body.

The sale takes place in the Student Union lobby beginning at 7:00 a.m., but you can preorder your doughnuts now by placing an email to me.  I will confirm your order.
lrapozo@greenriver.edu

Here are the details:

One box (doz.) of doughnuts is selling for $12 this year – same price as last year.  Just let me know how many boxes you’d like and then what time and where you’d like them delivered.  You can then either send me a check in campus mail (Mailstop: SH2) or have payment ready upon delivery.  If paying by check, please make it out to:  CRSA.
If paying by cash, please have the exact amount. 

So get your orders in, and spread the word. Treat yourself, your colleagues, your students, and family.  The students are waiting to sweeten your day!