StreetScenes
2010
From the President
Elizabeth D. Dickey
July 20, 2010
Dear Bank Street College Colleagues,
Street Scenes is our online vehicle for news and information about the College. We aspire to keep you up to date through a series of letters which are initially intended for those who work at the College, and then slightly recast for broader distribution via the Web.
In 2010, we graduated 41 students in the School for Children, and 406 students in the Graduate School. At our two commencements (one in May, one in June), I wished our graduates years of fulfillment as they put their learning to work, and I thanked our faculty and staff for their commitment to our students.
While 2009/2010 presented challenges, we did not face the extraordinary difficulties caused by the previous year's economic recession. Still, the markets remain uncertain, our endowment has not recovered its value, U.S. unemployment remains high, and both New York City and State face severe budget problems. But enrollment in the Children's Programs and Graduate School was on target, an important point because the College is dependent upon tuition revenues to balance our budget. Fund raising, however, was adjusted downward as individual donors and other sources (corporate and foundation giving, etc.) restrained their giving because of the recession.
Now I would like to turn to some Summer 2010 information.
The Innova Fund
Our new venture to support and enhance educational innovation by providing seed money to faculty and staff for new projects and ideas has awarded its first five grants:
- Faculty and students' global educational initiatives: Roberta Altman, Bernadette Anand, Frank Jolliffe, and Bruce Morrow will expand existing contacts and programs in India and at Bank Street, establish a new graduate course, and set up an ongoing exchange program for students and faculty, thereby increasing Bank Street's participation in global education research efforts.
- Untold Losses of Urban School Reform: a book on the "alarming effects of score-driven school reform on early childhood and early grades practice in public schools," by Lesley Koplow. To be published by Teachers College Press, the book aligns with Bank Street's mission to understand the social context in which educational practice develops, and advocate for children when politics interfere with best practice in the classrooms.
- Development of a leadership preparation program evaluation capacity: Margaret "Terry" Orr, Kenneth Grover, Gil Schmerler, Rima Shore, and Ian Beckford will set up a process to track students' outcomes post-graduation and into their careers. This aligns with our strategic plan to situate our leadership preparation within the larger world by establishing a system to document graduates' work as NYC school and district leaders. It will help create a needed internal capacity for assessing BSC program models against actual graduate career and school leadership outcomes.
- A new Student Assessment and School Accountability System: Lynne Einbender and Linda Metnetsky will develop a student assessment system by linking four data sets -- student achievement, curriculum and instruction, teacher and principal learning and effectiveness, and family involvement -- to create an effective accountability system. This project addresses a serious failing in American public education: the lack of alignment of curriculum, instruction, and standards.
- Family - Child - Teacher Interaction: Toni Porter and Rena Rice will create a professional development model for early childhood and childhood education programs. Research shows families have the greatest influence on their children's development, so meaningful partnerships between programs and families result in children's improved outcomes. The project connects to a Bank Street course, Family, Child and Teacher Interaction in Diverse and Inclusive Settings (EDUC 604), one of the few in the nation focusing on teacher-provider relationships.
Personnel matters
The Board approved a new title for Frank Nuara, Chief Operating Officer, effective July 1, 2010. This more accurately reflects the many elements of College life that Frank supervises and is a proper recognition of his many contributions.
On July 1, Jon Snyder, Dean of the Graduate School, became Dean of the College, its chief academic officer. He will be directly involved in efforts to strengthen the college academically. All three education division leaders will report jointly to him and to me. Virginia Casper has become Interim Graduate School Dean.
Fern Khan, Dean of the Division of Continuing Education (DCE) will take a six-month sabbatical beginning March 1, 2011. On her return, she will become Special Advisor to me on Community Affairs. Khan already has been working closely with me and Dean Snyder to develop a new divisional "strategic plan." Farhad Asghar will become DCE Associate Dean on September 1, 2010; he will be the senior DCE person when Khan's sabbatical begins.
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Andrea "Penny" Spencer, has left to assume the Deanship of the School of Education at Pace University. We thank her for her exceptional service, and wish her well in her new position. Nancy Gropper has taken on the role of Interim Associate Dean.
BankStreetOnline
In June, Steve Goss, Director of BankStreetOnline, offered his first symposium for College faculty interested in teaching online. It was oversubscribed, and those on the waiting list are eager to sign up for the second session.
Among our challenges with online education are questions of strategy, mission, and purpose, and technology and back office fulfillment. We are working on how to move Bank Street online to capture the best of the medium and connect to our methods without trying to replicate the in-person classroom, and being clever and entrepreneurial about what markets we can serve.
Website Redesign
The College website redesign is underway and I thank the members of the College Community who participated in workshops led by our Information Architect and Designer, Mushon Zer-Aviv. The internal team, led by Arshad Ahmed, is working in the background. Our goal is to have the new site up and running by April, 2011. You will hear more about this in September/October as we make divisional presentations and discuss the project at All College. I cannot overstate the importance of our web presence, the need for clear and accessible information for all of our users and for the public, and its long-term value for the College.
Government Relations
The spring season was very busy with government relations work, all orchestrated by John Borden and our government relations team. We made a number of trips to Washington to argue the case for Bank Street and there were many visits with Congressional staff. It will be several months before we know if the earmarks for which we were listed will be funded.
Time and again during our visits, we heard about the importance of accountability and evidence. We need to develop evidence to support the assertions we make about our programs. For example, our Graduate School prepares very effective teachers and teacher leaders. Gathering the supporting data for this is critical. Jon Snyder and I have had many discussions about this; in September, we will be ready for a broader conversation on how to go ahead.
Facilities and Facilities Planning
It goes without saying that the College has postponed a range of facilities improvements. I am pleased to note that this summer we will make some changes to the Lobby, and we will redo the Lobby-area bathrooms. While the Facilities staff attempts to minimize disruptions, this year's Lobby Project is more far-reaching than usual. This "quality of life" improvement will benefit all members of the community and the many guests who come to events or who come to the College seeking information about our programs.
In closing, I hope you are having a productive and peaceful summer. And I thank you for your continued service to Bank Street.
Cordially,
Elizabeth D. Dickey
Elizabeth D. Dickey, President of Bank Street College of Education
"As we approach our centennial in 2016, I am committed to building a strong College for the 21st century."
- Elizabeth Dickey
