August 2005 — Vol. 2, No. 1

Dear Faculty and Staff Members of the Baruch College Community,

The outside world assumes (quite incorrectly) that little goes on at a university in the summertime. Nothing could be further from the truth. As you know, various committees are hard at work on the first draft of the 2005-2010 strategic plan—not to mention all the preparation for courses and welcoming the new freshman class. Since May there have been enough events, awards, staff changes, and gifts to justify a short pre-term newsletter.

Dedication of the William and Anita Newman Vertical Campus

On June 22, the College celebrated the dedication of our hub building, the magnificent Vertical Campus, hereafter known as the William and Anita Newman Vertical Campus. One hundred fifty attendees, including members of the New York State real estate community, officials and trustees of The City University of New York, members of the Baruch College community, and the Newmans’ friends and family, celebrated the dedication. Speaking at the dinner, held in the festively decorated 14th-floor conference room, were Chancellor Matthew Goldstein and architect Henry Wollman, director of the Newman Real Estate Institute. The Newmans, whose family connection to Baruch can be traced back to the Roaring Twenties, to Bill’s father and mother, have been devoted benefactors of the College. The Newmans’ gift in 1993 of $5 million launched a new era of giving at Baruch. Since then, they have given an additional $35 million. They have changed the face of Baruch, and we sincerely thank them.

Recent and Notable Gifts

We have many other benefactors to thank in addition to the Newmans. Through the Office of College Advancement, the College has raised many notable gifts since the spring.

Moneys for a variety of scholarships have been received. The Golden Jubilee Class of ’55 raised over $186,000 (a gift that included a $55,000 challenge grant from Baruch College Fund President Irwin Engelman and a gift from members of the Saxe House Plan). The Financial Women’s Association (FWA), a leading executive organization committed to shaping leaders in business and finance, donated $200,000 to Baruch to set up an endowed scholarship. (These funds came to FWA from Harris Nesbitt, a division of the Bank of Montreal, through its Equity Through Education Program.) Monroe College President Stephen Jerome (MSEd ’01) made a $125,000 gift to establish a scholarship in higher education administration in honor of Professor John McGarraghy. With a gift of $25,000, Paul A. Douglas (’57), lifetime director of the Baruch College Alumni Association, honored his parents by creating the Joseph (’30) and Vivian F. Douglas Scholarship for freshmen. Retired Professor Lewis Friedman created an endowed scholarship for graduate students in public affairs. From John Herzog, founder and chairman of the Museum of American Financial History, and his wife, Diana, the School of Public Affairs also raised support for its oral history project documenting the New York City fiscal crisis in the 1970s.

One of the most exciting new fundraising initiatives from The Baruch College Fund (BCF) is the Class Act Campaign, launched to raise gifts of $100,000 and more. Class Act gifts are recognized with naming opportunities in the Newman Vertical Campus. Several Class Act gifts have already been made: Edwin Kanner (’43) and Barbara Kanner (’45, PhD ’72) made a $200,000 gift to support the new Women’s Studies Program; Melvin F. Lazar (’60) and Leona Weiss Lazar (’62) made a $300,000 gift, recognized by a lecture hall dedicated in their name to their favorite Baruch professor, John J.W. Neuner; and BCF Trustee JoAnn Ryan (’79, MS ’83) and Professor Samuel Ryan (MBA ’67, PhD ’77) made a $100,000 gift.

Twelve new members, representing graduates of the Classes of 1935 through ’96, have joined the College’s Baruch Benchmark Society, which is a legacy society for alumni and friends who include Baruch in their estate plans. So far the society has over 120 members.

Awards and Grants

In addition to individual gifts, the College has success with foundation grants. The Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation, which chose Baruch as a recipient of Fellows Program support in Spring 2002, extended its support for four more years. Through the foundation, the College receives $150,000 a year to support the research and scholarly writing of excellent teachers among junior, tenure-track faculty in the humanities. This funding helps the College recruit exciting, top-tier candidates in the humanities.

The Judy and Fred Wilpon Family Foundation and the Marshall Rose Family Foundation each made their third $10,000 gift to support the Peter Vallone, Sr. Lecture Series in the School of Public Affairs.

“Educational Institution of the Year”

INROADS, a nationwide program that annually places hundreds of minority college students in prestigious, salaried, career-building internships, bestowed a special Educational Institution of the Year award on Baruch last June. I accepted the award on behalf of the College at the organization’s 20th annual awards ceremony. Also attending were several members of the College’s Career Development Center. Currently, 32 Baruch students hold INROADS Internships (that’s 11 percent of their 2005 New York City intern pool). This summer, students from Baruch worked at KPMG, Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Goldman, L’Oreal, Marriott, the Federal Reserve, AIG, and McGraw-Hill. Last year, two Baruch students won top INROADS awards: Priya Shah won INROADER of the Year, and Xenia Abonia won Junior of the Year.

Faculty and Staff News

Newly Arrived

In addition to the 15 tenure-track faculty members hired to begin in Fall 2005 (four in the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, nine in the Zicklin School, and two in the Newman Library), the College is pleased to announce the following appointments:

Vice President for Student Development and Enrollment Management and Dean of Students: Ben M. Corpus

Dr. Corpus will join the staff on August 8. He is finishing his tenure as vice president for student development and enrollment management at Hostos Community College. Under his leadership there, Hostos experienced a 34 percent increase in enrollment and created a nationally recognized intercollegiate athletics program. His 16 years in higher education administration also include positions at NYU, the University at Albany, and SUNY at Plattsburgh.

Director of Alumni Relations: Lisa Poullard-Burton

Baruch’s Strategic Plan calls for creating and fostering an extensive alumni network, one that will help us extend the Baruch identity and establish a lasting partnership between current and past generations of Baruch students. At the forefront of this effort is alumna Lisa Poullard-Burton (BA ’90). She comes to us from the Brooklyn campus of Long Island University, where she served as director of development and alumni relations for the College of Pharmacy.

Director of Graduate Admissions and Student Services for the School of Public Affairs: Michael Lovaglio

Michael Lovaglio holds a BA in psychology/art history from NYU and is finishing an MA in experimental psychology at Brooklyn College. He has held management positions in admissions at Brooklyn College and City College as well as other administrative positions at Juilliard, Columbia, and Polytechnic University. Lovaglio embraces his dual role as director of admissions and student services: “The integration provides an excellent opportunity for sustained communication with the College’s most vital constituency—students.”

Assistant Director of Graduate Admissions for the School of Public Affairs: Aliza Kofman

Kofman comes to Baruch by way of the Office of Graduate Admissions of the Jewish Theological Seminary. She has also held positions at Goldman Sachs, Touro College, and the Gascon Institute. Kofman is a CUNY alumna, having earned a BA in political science from Queens College.

Director of Aquatics and Head Men’s and Women’s Swimming Coach: Charles J. Lampasso

For the past nine years, Coach Lampasso has been the aquatic director for the Flushing YMCA, overseeing a program with 7,000 members and two nationally ranked swim teams. He has also coached on the collegiate level at Queens College, St. John’s University, and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. In 2004 he was named the United States Swimming Age Group Coach of the Year.

New Dean Sought

As you all know, Stan Altman has decided to step down as dean of the School of Public Affairs after a six-year tenure. We are conducting a nationwide search for a new dean for the school. Longtime Professor of Public Affairs David Birdsell has accepted the role of acting dean during the transition.

Faculty Congratulations

English Professor Bridgett Davis’s debut novel, Shifting Through Neutral, was nominated for a Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Legacy Award in the category of contemporary fiction. The Hurston/Wright Foundation, which sponsors the award, focuses on developing, nurturing, and sustaining the world community of writers of African descent.

Eric Krebs, director of the Baruch Performing Arts Center and Marvin Antonowsky Fellow in Theatre, was the recipient of the Encore Award for Business Volunteer of the Year from the Arts and Business Council of New York. The award recognized his 10 years of activity on behalf of the Amas Musical Theater, a not-for-profit dedicated to the training of city kids in the performing arts and to the creation of new musicals that lend themselves to multiracial, multiethnic casts. Krebs has been the chairman of the board for nine years.

Student News

Congratulations go out to Baruch’s men’s tennis team and Coach Florin Giuglescu, winners of the 2005 CUNYAC championship. The men’s team defeated Hunter College in an exciting six-hour marathon match played at the U.S. National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows. The victory is Baruch’s fourth CUNYAC Men’s Tennis Championship in six years. Men’s tennis joins Baruch’s other CUNYAC 2004–2005 champions: the men’s soccer team and the cheerleading and dance team.

The winners of the 2004-2005 Baruch College Entrepreneurship Competition were determined at the end of last semester. First place ($10,000) went to Onshore Partners. Two teams tied for second place: JaLe Design House and Song Exchange Market. They split the combined second- and third-place prize money ($3,750 each). Honorable mention ($1,000) went to Changing Hands. In addition, Onshore Partners will be awarded a commitment of $50,000 in seed money, to be disbursed in increments based on a schedule of business accomplishments.

Academic Affairs

I submitted the College’s Periodic Review Report to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education on May 31. The report, which runs some 70 pages (including a seven-page executive summary) and an additional 70 pages of appendices, is available online at http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/facultyhandbook/PRR.htm/. The commission will issue its response on November 30. Thanks go to all of the members of the College community who contributed.

See You Soon

I hope you have been enjoying a rewarding summer, and I look forward to seeing all of you at Convocation and throughout the opening weeks of the Fall 2005 semester. I am eager to begin my second year as president of Baruch College. With all your help, I know it will be a great one.

Sincerely,
Kathleen Waldron