October 2004

Dear Faculty and Staff Members of the Baruch College Community:

My first two months at Baruch College have been enjoyable and exciting, and I thank you for such a warm welcome. I've met hundreds of new people and their belief in Baruch and its mission is invigorating. Even those civic leaders who have never studied or taught at Baruch recognize what an asset Baruch is to our City.

Being president of a college like Baruch is a privilege, and I find that my interactions with students are among the most gratifying part of my day. When I talk with students, I am reminded that many are pioneers —some are new to this country, others are the first in their families to attend college, all are being challenged intellectually and acquiring skills that will help them succeed in their lives. I realize that you share a commitment to these students and I appreciate the effort you make each day on their behalf.

I strongly believe that our most significant challenge at Baruch College is to continue to improve the student experience across the continuum of college life—from student activities and services to teaching and career placement. It will require us to do more as individuals, as well as to do more as a college. I begin my presidency with a commitment to increase communication to the Baruch College campus community and expect that this monthly newsletter will bring you current information about the state of your College.

The Class of 2009

This year's freshman class of slightly more than 1,700 students is the strongest ever. Entering students, including those joining our SEEK program for economically and educationally disadvantaged students, had average SAT scores of 1104. In high school they took courses heavily weighted toward college preparation and most achieved a B+ average overall. This is the most accomplished freshman class we have welcomed in years. In addition, we enrolled over 1, 300 transfer students who bring rich experiences to the college.

The rising quality of our student body, as well as the strength of our faculty, is a key to Baruch College's high ranking in higher education surveys. In September, for instance, U.S. News and World Report ranked our undergraduate business program 48 th in the nation, our part-time MBA program 14 th , and our MPA 52 nd . For the fifth year in a row, the magazine ranked Baruch the nation's most diverse college.

New Major Gifts to the College

Baruch College recently received six major gifts totaling $53.5 million, bringing the Baruch Capital Campaign to $160 million raised over the last seven years, which is ten million above its most recent goal. I had the pleasure of announcing these gifts recently at our Annual Presidents' Dinner, which was held in the Vertical Campus.

In the coming years, these gifts will enhance the education of our students by helping us recruit outstanding teachers and researchers, improve our instructional spaces, support the arts and entrepreneurship, and create opportunities to influence public policy in New York City and the nation.

William ('47) and Anita Newman contributed $25 million. The gift—the largest in the College's history—is the latest of a series of major gifts the couple has made to Baruch. In recognition of their generosity, the award-winning Vertical Campus will be named in their honor. A dedication ceremony is planned for spring 2005.

Lawrence N. Field ('52) and Eris Field have donated $12 million—$10 million to support the planned renovation of the 17 Lexington Avenue building, which will be named in their honor, and $2 million to fund a chair that will be named for their family in the Field Center for Entrepreneurship.

Marvin Antonowsky ('47, '52 MBA) has donated $2.5 million in support of the Performing Arts Center, which will now bear his name. A dedication ceremony is planned for later this month.

Lawrence ('57) and Carol Zicklin have donated $2 million to create an endowment for the Center for Corporate Integrity, which will now be named for Mr. Zicklin's cousin, Robert.

William F. Aldinger III ('69) has donated $2 million to support a chair in banking and finance that will be named for him.

Lastly, an anonymous donor made an unrestricted bequest of $10 million.

While some of the gifts are already received, most of the funds will not become available for many years. A discussion of how to best utilize some of the available funds will take place at the President's Cabinet, which meets monthly and consists of the vice presidents, the three academic deans and the president of the Faculty Senate. These gifts testify to the profound impact Baruch College has had on its alumni and their commitment to ensuring that the opportunities they were given are also available for future generations of students. We are enormously grateful to our alumni and donors and thank them.

New Faculty and Staff

Nearly 60 new faculty and staff members joined Baruch College as the new academic year got underway. I hope that their welcome was as warm and enjoyable as the one I received. These new members of the faculty and staff will help us build a brighter future for our students.

Joining the faculty of the Weissman School this semester are Julie Desjarndins, Jessica Lang, Rados Radoicic, Robin Root, Dov Waxman, Ansar Fayyazuddin, Minjung Sung, Vasiliki Nicolopoulos, Zoe Sheehan, and, as this semester's Harman Writer-in-Residence, William Finnegan.

New faculty members in the School of Public Affairs are Dahlia Remler, Robert Smith, Judith Kafka, Linda Bailey, James Krauskopf, and Sonia Renee Jarvis.

New faculty members in the Zicklin School of Business are Allan Wernick, Sonali Hazarika, Dobrin Marchev, Rajarishi Nahata, David Opderbeck, Michael Carew, Susan Hume, Victor Martinez, Kevin Sachs, Debra Dookerman, Shoshana Altschuller, Manidipa Kapas, Renee Weiss, Irena Yegorova, Robert Laud, and Hadas Gelander.

Joining our Division of Administration and Finance are Toby Winer, Jevonne Dixon, Sukesh Gill, Lois Scancarello, Dennis Faulcon, James Smith, Clarence White, Edwin Jean, and Fintan Reynolds.

Other new administrators and staff include in the Zicklin School Monica Dean and Rafael Nunez; in SPA Joan Esperance and Melissa Sultana; in BCTC Bruce Little; in Admissions Believe Adetor and Hortense Ricketts; in Disabled Students Services Velentina Amusina; and in the President's Office Kenya Lee.

I also want to let you know that in order to better coordinate our community relations efforts with our marketing, advancement, and development strategies, Brian Kell will join the Office of College Advancement to continue his work as executive director of government and community relations. He has been a valuable advisor to me in my first months as president and I'm looking forward to the new opportunities and new resources he will create for the College as he works in tandem with the college advancement and communications and marketing teams in this area.

Our Future

In recent years, the reputation of Baruch College has risen steadily. Every member of the campus community—faculty, students, alumni, administrators—has been part of our notable success. Everyone has a stake and a role to play in creating our future, and this year I will ask many of you to help me.

Will it be easy? No. Will there be tough decisions? Absolutely. However, there is a spirit of optimism here at the College that I hope to foster. I sense that the campus community believes that more is possible and that we can make meaningful progress toward our shared goal of offering students the best education we can.

Again, I want you to know how privileged I feel to lead this remarkable college and how much I appreciate your support

Sincerely,

Kathleen Waldron
President