President Miles spoke to journalist Soledad O’Brien about the state’s new free college tuition program (Excelsior Scholarship) on the nationally broadcast “Matter of Fact” program that aired April 16, 2017. The scholarship makes higher education more affordable by providing tuition-free college at New York’s public colleges and universities to families making up to $100,000 a year. At Westchester Community College, 90 percent of students who apply for financial aid fall in this eligibility category.

Westchester Community College welcomes a diverse student body attending part-time and full-time in more than sixty degree and certificate programs. Graduates pursue a wide range of careers and some take advantage of one of the more than 300 transfer agreements into bachelor’s degree programs. Westchester students are eligible for federal Pell Grants and the state’s Tuition Assistance Program, which for some students already covers the full cost of tuition. Additionally, the Westchester Community College Foundation provides about $2 million a year in scholarships. For more information on the Excelsior Scholarship and other financial aid programs, click on http://www.sunywcc.edu/student-services/finaid/excelsior-scholarship/ or https://www.suny.edu/smarttrack/types-of-financial-aid/scholarships/excelsior/. Or email the college at finaid@sunywcc.edu.

Here are two excerpts from the interview:

http://matteroffact.tv/price-tuition-versus-cost-education-3/

http://matteroffact.tv/price-tuition-versus-cost-education/

The college has a new rideshare program. Check it out today and make new friends, open up additional parking spaces, and help the environment. Save money, too!

http://www.sunywcc.edu/student-services/getinvolved/clubs/ride-share-services-511ny-rideshare-program/

Statement by Dr. Belinda S. Miles, President, Westchester Community College:

As Westchester County’s largest educational institution, we support the plan to make college more affordable for those seeking relevant 21^st Century skills to support themselves and their families. This proposal would help increase access to higher education throughout New York State and help students improve their lives in the future. As more students enter community colleges and complete their studies, they will be positioned to transition to four-year institutions and the workplace where there is a need to fill openings in growing fields such as healthcare, analytics, and information technology.

Removing the affordability barrier is one of the fundamental aspects of the community college “open door” access mission. Some people believe that since community colleges are priced affordably, there is no need for financial aid and other support for incoming students. This is not always the case. Many of our students need scholarships and state and federal financial aid in addition to loans. Directing new financial resources to talent development in New York is a necessary investment that will reap benefits locally, regionally, and nationally.

http://westfaironline.com/84581/cuomo-calls-for-free-suny-tuition-for-families-making-under-125k/

http://patch.com/new-york/pleasantville/free-college-tuition-good-idea-westchester-community-college-president​

Westchester Community College and Lincoln University of Pennsylvania signed an articulation agreement whereby students from the community college would be admitted with junior status and graduate from the nation’s first degree-granting Historically Black College and University within two years. The articulation signing ceremony was held on Lincoln University’s main campus on November 7.

Under this new partnership, a number of Westchester Community College Associate of Arts (A.A.), Associate of Science (A.S.), and Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degrees are now acceptable for transfer articulation to Bachelor degree programs at Lincoln University. This includes five majors in the College of Science and Technology and four in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

Belinda S. Miles, president of Westchester Community College, says “We have created exciting new pathways for our graduates with this signing. The college has expanded our articulation agreement to include this HBCU (Historically Black Universities and Colleges) and our graduates will now be placed in the pipeline to a range of professional careers many of which are seeking qualified individuals to address the issue of underrepresented minorities.”

“This partnership provides a pathway to making a living,” says Richard Green, interim president of Lincoln University. “Lincoln provides a historic and cultural experience which Westchester students will develop and thrive.”

The partnership was several weeks in the making when Westchester Community College called upon Lincoln University to discuss a potential agreement. Lincoln University Provost Patricia Ramsey and a host of faculty and administrators traveled to Westchester Community College in Valhalla, New York for a meeting, campus tour and an opportunity to learn first-hand about the SUNY school. What followed was a mutual desire to move quickly toward the articulation agreement. There is also opportunity for faculty of the community college to teach at Lincoln University. Discussions will continue to offer additional pathways between the institutions.

About Lincoln University

Founded in 1854, Lincoln University (PA) is the nation’s first degree-granting Historically Black College and University (HBCU). The University combines the elements of a liberal arts and science-based undergraduate curriculum along with select graduate programs to meet the needs of those living in a highly technological and global society. Today Lincoln which enrolls a diverse student body of approximately 2,100 men and women, possesses an international  reputation for preparing and producing world-class leaders such as Thurgood Marshall, The first African American U.S. Supreme Court Justice; Lillian Fishburne, the first African American woman promoted to Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy; Langston Hughes, the noted poet; Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of Gahan; and Nnamdi Azikiwe, the first president of Nigeria. For more information call 484-365-8000 or visit www.lincoln.edu

President Miles wrote an editorial on the college’s recent report on middle skill jobs. Published by the Journal News/Lohud, it covered the need to expand educational opportunities for those seeking jobs requiring an education beyond a high school degree but less than a bachelors degree.

http://www.lohud.com/story/opinion/contributors/2016/11/21/prepare-people-middle-skill-jobs/93585260/

Westchester Community College is receiving $100,000 ($20,000 per year for  five years) as a partner institution for a new $4 million five-year National Science Foundation (NSF) grant designed to increase the number of underrepresented minority (UREP) students receiving undergraduate and graduate degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The grant coordinated by SUNY’s Stony Brook University supports the SUNY Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (SUNY LSAMP) program, a synergistic collaboration and alliance of fourteen SUNY schools with a diverse mix of academic strengths and capabilities.

Since 1996, SUNY LSAMP has been an instrumental program shaping STEM education and forging new opportunities for UREP students to pursue and succeed in STEM programs and degrees in New York State. Over the past twenty years, SUNY LSAMP has achieved an eleven-fold increase in STEM enrollment for minority students in comparison to the previous twenty years in the state. The program has also helped increase STEM bachelor’s degrees by almost 300 percent. During the past five years, the program has been a catalyst to helping to nearly double community college students transferring to four-year STEM undergraduate programs.

“Competition for talent in STEM occupations is high, and we offer a range of pathways into these fields. Our partnership with Stony Brook University expands the talent pipeline for underrepresented minorities sought by many employers,” says Belinda S. Miles, President, Westchester Community College.

As one of the partner schools in the SUNY LSAMP alliance, Westchester Community College will provide tutoring and mentorship resources to students, sponsor university visits to encourage transfer after graduation, and initiate various summer research projects. Stony Brook and the other SUNY schools will look to expand the alliance and create additional STEM curriculum opportunities for students. Over the next five years, the three primary goals of the project will be to meet the continuing challenge of preparing UREP students for a successful transition into STEM majors; provide experimental activities that lead to socialization into science; and promote systemic change by broadening participation in research.

“Our alliance will scale up programs that build our momentum to increase student recruitment and retention,” says David Ferguson, SUNY LSAMP Project Director. “We will also focus on improving STEM pathways from community colleges to four-year schools and creating a pipeline to produce global researchers and scholars.”

To date, SUNY LSAMP has taken leadership in STEM curricular reform on the SUNY campuses and has supported UREP STEM student needs. The effort has led to engagement among faculty, staff, administrators and heads of academic departments to create new infrastructures on campuses to enhance UREP students’ participation and pursuit of STEM higher education.

SUNY LSAMP has also received ten grants for NSF fellowships and support services for twelve LSAMP graduates through the LSAMP Bridge to the Doctorate program. The Bridge program has increased the UREP STEM doctoral pool by bringing in students from LSAMP programs around the country and supporting them in their first two years of SUNY graduate work and on to completion of their doctorates.

The NSF has supported the SUNY LSAMP program since its inception. This latest grant is the fifth stage of funding and will build upon and fine-tune the Fostering STEM Identity through Transitions (FIT) model that will conduct an in-depth theory driven examination of the pivotal experiences that lead to engagement, retention and over-all success of UREP STEM college students.

Westchester Community College and Delaware State University (DSU) have reached an agreement that will facilitate the transfer of associate degree graduates to DSU where they will be able complete a bachelor’s degrees in two years.

In addition to the opportunity to complete a bachelor’s degree in two years at DSU, the agreement also makes it possible for Westchester Community College’s Associate Degree in Accounting graduates to continue their academic pursuits at the University through a “2+2+1 Program.” Such students can earn a Bachelor of Science in Accounting Degree in two years and a Master of Business Administration Degree after one additional year.

Westchester Community College President Belinda S. Miles and DSU President Harry L. Williams  signed the agreement on the afternoon of Nov. 7, 2016 on the Del State campus.

Dr. Miles said this agreement establishes a partnership between two institutions that share a commitment to academic excellence and student success. She noted that achieving such collaborations that guarantee junior status for students transferring into those programs are a critical component of Westchester Community College’s college completion efforts.

“Today we expand our articulation agreement to include this HBCU (Historically Black Universities and Colleges) creating exciting new pathways for our graduates that will place them in the pipeline to a range of professional careers many of which are seeking qualified individuals to address the issue of underrepresented minorities,” Dr. Miles said.

Dr. Williams said that Westchester graduates will be welcomed at Delaware State University.

“DSU is proud to be able to take the baton of these Westchester students’ academic aspiration and help them reach the finish lines of bachelor’s degree and MBA completions,” the DSU president said. “They are getting a great start at Westchester Community College and we believe they will find that Delaware State University is an excellent place to fulfill their higher education goals.”

The smooth transfer of the Westchester Community College students to DSU is facilitated by 27 academic program alignments between the two institutions.  The agreement guarantees transfer admission for WCC graduates that have a minimum of a 2.0 GPA, with the exception of four undergraduate programs that require a 2.5 GPA (Management, Accounting, Social Work and Mathematics Education).

Degree Works is a web-based advising tool to help students, faculty and counselors track a student’s completion of academic program requirements, determine course selections, track progress toward graduation, and use “what-if” scenarios to see how courses already taken would apply to a different major. DegreeWorks is user-friendly, has helpful visual cues for completion and can even be accessed from smart phones.

The use of Degree Works is part of larger State University of New York initiative so that “every student will have fundamental degree planning services at every institution with the ability online for students considering transfer to assess degree progress at other SUNY institutions” (SUNY Degree Planning Initiative).  The college has been working on this implementation for almost one year is has held training sessions for Deans, Chairs, faculty, staff, student leaders, and students. Training sessions will be ongoing through the spring 2015 semester.

To access Degree Works go to www.sunywcc.edu/degreeworks; specific questions may be directed to degreeworks@sunywcc.edu. Please note that Degree Works will show full degree audits for students who matriculated into a Westchester Community College degree program plans from fall 2013 on.

Lowey Announces $696,572 Grant for Five-Year Mercy College Program to Support Hispanic & Low-Income Undergraduates in STEM Fields 

More than 2,500 unfilled positions in Lower Hudson Valley in health care and software engineering 

Funds will enable partnership between Mercy College and Westchester Community College

Dobbs Ferry, NY – Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D- Rockland/Westchester), the senior Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, today was joined at the Mercy College Wellness Initiative Fair by Mercy College President Timothy Hall, Westchester Community College Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Peggy Bradford, Mercy College senior and Biology major Christian Castillo, as well as administrators from Mercy College and Westchester Community College, to announce a $696,572 grant from the Department of Education (ED) Hispanic Serving Institution – Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (HSI STEM) and Articulation Program for Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry. This funding will help create Team STEM, a five-year joint program between Mercy College and Westchester Community College (WCC) to help Hispanic and low-income students complete studies in STEM fields.

“Educating more students in STEM fields is one of the most productive steps we can take to strengthen our economy,” said Lowey. “I’m pleased that Mercy College and Westchester Community College are using these federal dollars to address a growing need for STEM professionals in the Hudson Valley. As Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee, I will continue working to provide students of all backgrounds with the resources they need to succeed in a dynamic, globalized workforce.”

“We are grateful for this grant and for the support we receive from Congresswoman Lowey,” said Tim Hall, President of Mercy College. “We are a proud Hispanic serving institution, and these dollars will allow Mercy College to open the minds of so many of our students.  With knowledge and motivation, the possibilities are endless.”

“Westchester Community College is uniquely positioned to help our many talented Hispanic and underrepresented students pursue STEM careers. The college’s partnership with Mercy College and our seven StepUP high schools will provide rigorous academic preparation for successful transition into college and transfer into baccalaureate degree programs. We are proud to work with Mercy College to increase access and success to STEM careers for all of those who seek relevant education, including Hispanic and low-income students,” said Dr. Belinda. S. Miles, President of Westchester Community College.

In the United States, more than half of the five million currently open jobs involve information technology. In the Lower Hudson Valley, there are more than 2,500 unfilled positions in fields that require a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, such as health care and software engineering.

Team STEM will focus on two- and four-year Hispanic and/or low-income undergraduates seeking to complete a bachelor’s degree within six years in one of six STEM disciplines offered at Mercy College: Biology, Psychology, Mathematics, Computer Science, Computer Information Science, and Cybersecurity.  Team STEM will offer three all-new student-centered initiatives designed to improve the persistence, retention and graduations rates of Hispanic and low-income STEM students.

In addition, Team STEM will capitalize on the long-standing articulation agreements between Mercy College and WCC by jointly sponsoring new activities designed to facilitate the seamless transfer of Hispanic and low-income two-year students into Mercy College’s STEM baccalaureate programs. Highlights of these new, student–centered activities include personalized advising; Mercy-WCC peer mentoring; summer bridge programs focused on acclimating to college; and undergraduate research and internship opportunities. Once enrolled at Mercy, Team STEM students will also have full access to traditional student support services.

Westchester Community College is SUNY’s first Hispanic Serving Institution and the county’s largest college. The Mercy College/Westchester Community College Transfer Pipeline will increase the number of WCC students who successfully transition from our StepUP high school partners to WCC, and then on to Mercy College to earn a dual degree AS/BS in a STEM major.

The HSI STEM and Articulation Programs are run through the U.S. Department of Education. The goals of these programs are to increase the number of Hispanic and  low-income students attaining degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics; and  to develop model transfer and articulation agreements between two-year and four-year institutions in such fields.

A unique new tool has been added to the list of resources for students studying at Westchester Community College; a 29-foot Remote Power Unit (RPU) now graces the front entrance of the institution’s Technology Building on the main campus in Valhalla. On September 21, the college hosted a dedication ceremony to commemorate this donation from Aris Wind, LLC.

This new equipment will help instructors in a variety of different academic programs demonstrate the uses of renewable energy to college students. The unit, which generates both solar and wind power, includes a lighting system and a USB charging station. This new energy technology will help supplement course lessons on energy efficiency, energy conservation, wind power, solar power, energy storage, and Internet/computer control of the RPU device.

At the ceremony, Dr. Belinda S. Miles, President, Westchester Community College, noted that the donation of the new equipment fits in perfectly with the college’s five focus areas. “This new equipment supports our student success theme since it will help them further engage in applied learning experiences. The tie-in to workforce development is strong as students will be able to use cutting edge technology provided by a local firm to learn about their chosen field, and they will be able to leverage this experience to help them secure employment after graduation. Our community engagement focus area is supported by the involvement of a new corporate partner: Aris Wind. Our next focus area, improving college culture, is relevant since students will be encouraged to try this new technology (the culture of innovation). And finally, there are several tie-ins with our stewardship focus area as we celebrate a generous donation by Aris, which helps our bottom line, and also acknowledge that this new equipment will improve our ability to save natural resources,” she said.

Also during the dedication, Professor Richard Vaninwegen introduced the members of the college’s Energy Club including Peter Singh, who introduced the idea of housing an RPU on campus to the college administration.

Aris President Dan Connors spoke to the attendees, noting that this was “a win-win.” He told the crowd that “we all succeed with this project since our company is very interested in sharing new technology with interested students, some of whom may work for Aris in the future!” The company (www.ariswind.com) is a metropolitan New York City based renewable energy firm with advanced and unique wind/solar products for off-grid and grid-tied power applications. 

William M. Mooney III, Director, Westchester County Office of Economic Development, also spoke at the event, hailing the public/private partnership. The county office helped facilitate the donation.