THE FACTS - From the Medgar Evers College Coalition for Academic Excellence and Mission Integrity (aka The Coalition)

THE FACT

Fact Sheet

From the Medgar Evers College Coalition

for Academic Excellence and Mission Integrity (aka The Coalition)

In view of the actions listed below, the faculty of Medgar Evers College affirmed a VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE in the current Administration, and specifically, in the Office of the President, Dr. William Pollard and in the Office of the Provost, Dr. Howard Johnson.

At a meeting held by the Committee of the Faculty of the Whole, 89% of the faculty issued a vote of no confidence.

Under the Administration of President Pollard and Provost Johnson, the following have occurred.

1. Administration has violated CUNY Bylaws, union contracts and Medgar Evers Governance Plan in the non reappointment of faculty.

2. Administration has disseminated notices of non reappointment to faculty and staff via campus police, email, and visits to classrooms (in front of students), and offices.

3. Administration has removed the Chair of Education for spurious and unsubstantiated reasons. (Per PSC Contract, Chairs in CUNY elected by faculty not appointed by President and Provost). The Chair of Education had been elected by the faculty in her department for a 3 year term.

4. Administration has reduced support mechanisms and faculty resources which include:

• Elimination of Writing Center.
• Elimination of Center for Teaching and Learning
• Reduction of tutors in Learning Center budget
• Reduction of staff in College’s library
• Reduction of staff in Student Computer Lab
• Reduction of resources and research opportunities for Psych Lab.
• Blocking of funding supporting faculty/student research and the mission of the College.

5. Administration has issued an eviction notice to Center for NuLeadership despite its formal approval by the College’s governing body, the College Council.

6. Administration had not hired faculty positions in academic departments (yet has hired high level administrators and consultants).

7. Administration has not supported the Medgar Evers College’s Preparatory School. Despite awards and accolades from College Board, Department of Education and President Obama.

8. Administration has withdrawn support for the Medgar College Preparatory School’s Dual Enrollment Program.

9. Administration has no announced Master plan or direction for MEC, after an entire year.

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About Medgar Evers College, CUNY (MEC)

• MEC was founded four decades ago during a period of institution building by communities of color across this country and in Central Brooklyn specifically to address the need for access to higher education coupled with community engagement and development.
• MEC has a proud history of leadership and involvement in advocacy that advances and promotes the political, cultural, social, economic and academic power of people of color in Central Brooklyn
• MEC is rooted in the progressive history of Central Brooklyn through its academic, professional, advocacy and civic programs
• MEC has created a culture of academic excellence for students and faculty.
• The actions of the administration, as represented by the Offices of the President and Provost, demonstrate a lack of commitment to the “community–oriented” mission of Medgar Evers College and to Central Brooklyn

More About Medgar Evers College…

• Transforms the lives of individuals within their communities and the global world.
• Provides students with access to high quality professional degree programs
• Offers 17 baccalaureate and 8 associate level degree programs in the liberal arts, science, health, business, and education.
• Provides students who move from associate level to baccalaureate level degree programs with high academic standards.
• Maintains a national and international presence through its Centers
• Offer conferences, seminars, workshops that support academic programs and student success

About The Students

• Capture first place prizes in prestigious competitions like the Wharton Undergraduate Marketing Conference case competition
• Present their original research and scholarship at conferences across the globe
• Participate in student clubs that win national awards
• Participate in national and regional conferences that promote personal and career goals

About The Faculty

• Include distinguished scholars, researchers, legislators and congressmen
• Are involved in a range of research and grant activities in their disciplines
• Have received numerous awards within their disciplines
• Include Fulbright scholars and a Guggenheim Fellow
• Have collaborated with entities such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to conduct space science research which includes the launching of a satellite for government payloads.
• Have been awarded research grants by the U.S. Air Force’s Office of Scientific Research, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Education among others.
• MEC faculty and directors host national and international Conferences, including:
• National Black Writers Conference
• Environmental Science Conference
• Social Work Conference
• Diopian Inquiry and Research on Education as Culture Transmission Conference

About The Centers

• Strengthen, enrich and support the College’s academic degree programs

· Serve as vehicles for research, training, instruction and advocacy

• Fulfill the College’s mission of communicating the knowledge of tradition, the teaching of scholars and the beauty and profundity of students’ cultural heritage.
• Develop non degree and co-curricular cultural programs which serve students and a broad range of community residents.
• Fulfill the College’s mission through interaction with community representatives, cultural and public institutions

The Center for NuLeadership on Urban Solutions has operated at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York for the past six years. Through its programs it provides quality educational research, public policy and social services, increases retention and graduation rates with special emphasis on those students who were formerly incarcerated and is nationally recognized as providing leadership and innovation in the field of education for previously incarcerated populations.

The DuBois Bunche Center for Public Policy is a think tank dedicated to forging solutions to the challenges confronting people of color living within urban communities in the United States and throughout the African Diaspora. DBC produces research, formulates policies, sponsors conferences and produces public affairs media programming that advances economic and social justice.

The Center for Black Literature expands, broadens, and enriches the public’s knowledge and aesthetic appreciation of the value of black literature; continues the tradition and legacy of the National Black Writers Conference and serves as a voice and resource for black writers. It is the only Center devoted to this in the country.

The Center for Law and Social Justice (CLSJ) is a community-based legal organization that specializes in addressing racial justice issues. CLSJ provides quality legal advocacy, trainings, and research services in a personal manner to people of African descent and the disenfranchised.

About the Medgar Evers College Preparatory School

• The Medgar Evers College Preparatory School was created as a partnership with Medgar Evers College
• Was cited by Department of Education, College Board and President Obama as an exemplary model of high school college collaboration
• Was a College Board Inspiration Award Winner for helping underserved students achieve equitable access to higher education
• Ranked as one of the top best public high schools in Brooklyn
• Offers one of the largest Chinese language programs for students not from a Chinese background in the United States

For more information,

visit www.Facebook.com/MEfortheCommunity

Send an email to MECCoalition@gmail.com