Chandler Gilbert's President Hesse: Translating Constituency Group Input Into Action | ||||
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During the 2004-2005 year, President Maria Hesse of Chandler-Gilbert Community College decided to meet with each of the constituency groups to ask the advice of the employees about what the college was doing and what could be done better, on behalf of both students and employees. Many good ideas were shared. President Hesse asked each group to prioritize their top two requests for immediate action. African American employees wanted a reception to welcome new and returning African American students to the college. The purpose of the reception was to orient the students to the many support services and to introduce them to faculty and staff. The highly successful event was held on September 7, 2005. The employee group wanted to also reach out to the African American community at large, where we are not as well known and to try to raise their level of knowledge about the college and its programs. A community leaders' reception was held on October 13, 2005. Attendees were also invited to tour the campus. The Asian and Pacific Islander employees suggested that a letter be sent to students who self-identified as Asian or Pacific Islander to welcome them and to share with them things that would be useful to their success, such as employees who could be resources for them including help with language translation. The employee group also wanted assistance in reconvening over lunch in the coming year. Hispanic employees wanted to host a College Night for Hispanic families done primarily in Spanish. This event was held in concert with the Chandler Hispanic Coalition and the City of Chandler Hispanic Heritage Commission on September 16. This major undertaking was coordinated by Jesus Chaidez and Diana Muniz from the college advisement department. The CGCC members of the United Tribal Employee Committee asked that a letter be sent to Native American students welcoming them to the college, congratulating them on attending college and identifying resources. In addition, it was decided to hold a luncheon for students. At this event, students described their goals and college staff shared information about resources and support services. President Hesse hopes these events will continue in the coming semesters and plans to meet with each constituency group again to determine how successful the events were and to discuss future plans. The performance included the accompaniment of a live jazz quartet and video images of the Harlem Renaissance by African American artists and photographers, including Gordon Parks, Jacob Lawrence and Romare Bearden. The poem "Ask Your Mama" is an 800 line, 12-part poetic suite written by Hughes in 1961. It creates his vision of the global struggle for artistic and social freedom in the turbulent decade of the 60s.
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