Annual Report 2022-2023

Previous year committee membership, including year when each member’s term ends

  1. Taibu, Rex; Physics (2025)
  2. Friedman, Elaine; Speech Communication (2023)
  3. Armstrong, Daniel; Health and Physical Education (2025)
  4. Gibson, Deon; Social Sciences (2025)
  5. Shin, Jun; Chemistry (2024)
  6. Cimino, Alison; English (2024) 

Previous year liaisons, designees

  1. Dean Ellen Hartigan, Interim Dean of Continuing Education and Workforce Development, President's Liaison
  2. Dr. Zivah Katz, Steering Committee Designee 
  3. Dr. Clara Wajngurt, Mathematics and Computer Science, COC Liaison

Upcoming year committee membership, including year when each member’s term ends

Ms. Lori Conkling, (CEWD department), (2026)

Previous year committee officers

  1. Dr. Rex Taibu, Physics, Chairperson 
  2. Dr. Armstrong Daniel, Health and Physical Education, Secretary

Upcoming year committee officers

  1. Dr. Rex Taibu, Physics, Chairperson 
  2. Ms. Lori Conkling, CEWD, Secretary

Committee Meeting Dates and times

  1. September 21, 2022, Zoom Meeting, 12 noon to 1PM
  2. December 7th, 2022, Zoom Meeting, 12 noon to 1PM
  3. February 21, 2023, Zoom Meeting, 12 noon to 1PM
  4. April 26, 2023, In person Meeting (Room L118P): 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM 

List of Bylaws charges and notation of “completed” or “not completed”

(Note: The current charges are under revision. As such, this annual report does not indicate ‘completed’ or ‘not completed’.  Please see the next section regarding what the committee has done in the 2022 to 2023 academic year)
  1. Report and recommend to the Academic Senate on services and facilities available to the Continuing Education and Workforce Development (CEWD) programs.
  2. Serve as a mechanism for articulation alignment between the Continuing Education and Workforce Development instructional staff and students, with respective academic departmental chairs and the Academic Senate.
  3. Consider and evaluate proposals received from faculty, students, and the community regarding policies and practices pertaining to Continuing Education and Workforce Development in consultation with respective academic departmental chairs and Dean of Academic Affairs.
  4. Recommend proposals and policies that would enhance the operation of the Continuing Education and Workforce Development programs to the Dean of Continuing Education and Workforce Development.
  5. Serve as a consultative body for the development of the Continuing Education and Workforce Development.
  6. Provide feedback to proposed courses/programs and existing ones to ensure:
  • that they are presented to the related committees and/or academic departments to avoid any conflicts of interest
  • that they are in keeping with the mission and image of college subsequently reporting these new courses/programs and/or existing ones to the Academic Senate for its information.

List of Steering Committee charges and notation of “completed” or “not completed” with reasoning for incomplete items

  1. Dr. Taibu assumed the position of chairperson for CEWD in Fall 2022. Once Dr. Taibu became the chairperson, he inquired from the steering committee and the then dean of CEWD department (Dr. Hui Yin Hsu) what needed to be accomplished. Dr. Zivah Katz, from the steering committee responded to Dr. Taibu by sharing the CEWD committee charges. She also suggested that the CEWD should focus on revising the current charges to better reflect the needs of the CEWD committee. Dr. Katz also suggested that once the committee has finished revising the charges, the charges should be shared with the Bylaws committee for approval.
  2. Towards the end of the academic year, the steering committee (through Dr. Katz) also advised the CEWD committee to conduct an election to elect new leadership not through zoom meeting but in person.

Summary of actions not covered by above

  1. In response to the steering committee’s suggestions, the CEWD committee has been working on revising the charges. The committee reviewed the current charges and discussed whether they could be reworded to focus on the following points: (i) discussion of whether and how the committee can provide feedback to proposed courses/programs and existing ones within CEWD department, (ii) discussion on whether and how  the CEWD committee can help communicate opportunities for learning to potential students, (iii) discussion on how the CEWD committee can help communicate opportunities for employment for CEWD graduates, (iv) discussion on how best the CEWD committee can help students earn credit for prior learning. Through these discussions, across various meetings, members of the committee were at a point to formally revise the charges and share them with the Bylaws committee. Thus, the task of revising the charges has been partially completed.
  2. Throughout the meetings, new business arose. The committee discussed the role of the CEWD department in promoting non-degree credit options for adult learners. Dean Ellen Hartigan promised the committee to take the discussion to another level in the coming academic year. The committee agreed to come up with a write-up of the proposed plan that would help non-degree students to earn credit for the courses they take through CEWD training programs. Dean Michael Pullin shared a similar idea with the CEWD committee. His focus was on how best to help our students earn credit for prior learning.
  3. Regarding advertisement of the CEWD training programs, Dean Ellen Hartigan shared that the continuing education department is relatively unknown and is trying to determine the best way to increase CEWD’s visibility. There were suggestions such as advertising CEWD programs to students in classes and linking degree programs to CEWD training programs on our website.
  4. There was also a discussion on whether the CEWD committee can have access to descriptive statistics of CEWD enrollment and graduation rates to better help the CEWD department. This way the CEWD committee members can be in a better position to provide feedback on proposed courses/programs and existing ones within the CEWD department.
  5. Regarding elections, the steering committee advised that this time around the election should be in person as opposed to on zoom. On April 26, 2023, the committee elected Dr. Rex Taibu (From physics department) to continue serving as a chairperson and Ms. Lori Conkling (CEWD Department) to serve as secretary of CEWD committee.

Committee recommendations for upcoming year

As it stands, for the next academic year, the committee will prioritize refining the CEWD charges and sharing them with the Bylaws committee for approval. The committee will also continue discussing emerging issues and report these to the academic senate when necessary. The committee plans to put into writing the concept of credit options for non-degree adult learners so it can be reviewed by the necessary authorities and possibly put it into action. The committee also plans to pursue the idea of linking degree programs to CEWD training programs on our website.

Individual member contributions and thanks

  1. Dean Ellen Hartigan and the Committee thanks Prof. Elaine Friedman and Dean Hsu for their service to the committee. Dean Hsu resigned her job to pursue other activities, while Prof. Elaine Friedman, her term ended at the end of April. Thank you both for your service and commitment to Continuing Education and Workforce Development.
  2. Prof. Alison Cimino and former CEWD liaison, Dr. Agnieszka Tuszynska and the College Justice Program, won a grant to support system impacted students by offering seminars to QCC faculty and staff. Prof. Alison Cimino shared with the CEWD committee a grant that was awarded to QCC, for Thrive Technical Assistance Program, funded by the John Jay College Institute for Justice and Opportunity, with support from President Mangino. More information can be found here: https://www.collegeandcommunity.org/thrive-program.
  3. Congratulations and thanks to Ms. Lori Conkling for joining us on the CEWD committee and for agreeing to be our next CEWD secretary for 2023 to 2024 academic year.
  4. Special thanks to Prof. Daniel Armstrong for serving as secretary for CEWD in the 2022 to 2023 academic year. Thank you for your service and commitment to Continuing Education and Workforce Development.
  5. Many thanks to Dr. Steven Dahlke and Dr. Zivah Katz, from the Steering Committee for their pieces of advice to ensure that the committee heads in the right direction.

Respectfully Submitted,

Rex Taibu, Chairperson, Continuing Education & Workforce Development Committee.

Campus Cultural Centers

Kupferberg Holocaust Center exterior lit up at nightOpens in a new window
Kupferberg Holocaust Center Opens in a new window

The KHC uses the lessons of the Holocaust to educate current and future generations about the ramifications of unbridled prejudice, racism and stereotyping.

Russian Ballet performing at the Queensborough Performing Arts CenterOpens in a new window
QPAC: Performing Arts CenterOpens in a new window

QPAC is an invaluable entertainment company in this region with a growing national reputation. The arts at QPAC continues to play a vital role in transforming lives and building stronger communities.

Queensborough Art Gallery exterior in the afternoonOpens in a new window
QCC Art Gallery

The QCC Art Gallery of the City University of New York is a vital educational and cultural resource for Queensborough Community College, the Borough of Queens and the surrounding communities.