I am delighted to welcome the entire CUNY community to the start of a new academic year—one that brings a number of promising developments across the University. In Manhattan, just across from Bryant Park, the first class of the New Community College is already hard at work, engaged in the college’s innovative new curriculum. Guided [...]
Attending commencement ceremonies is surely one of the best benefits of being part of a university community. The well-earned joy of our graduates and their families is contagious. I congratulate all of our 2012 graduates, along with the dedicated faculty and staff who have supported them throughout their studies. And I invite our new alumni [...]
Anyone who calls one of CUNY’s community colleges home knows that these campuses are some of the busiest places in the city. The six colleges—soon to be seven, with the opening of the New Community College in the fall—serve more than 96,000 students, an increase of almost 20,000 students in just the last five years. [...]
At CUNY’s first-ever “Thank You for Serving” event, I had the privilege of visiting with the many CUNY faculty, staff, and students who are veterans and to join with others at the University in thanking them for their distinguished service to our country. As I told the assembled group, listening to their stories and experiences [...]
As any CUNY graduate knows, the setting of tuition at CUNY and SUNY by the state has traditionally been done in a haphazard way. During economic downturns, students might experience very steep tuition increases, while in other years, tuition levels would hold steady. For the better part of a decade I have advocated for a [...]
At the many joyful commencement ceremonies across the CUNY campuses this spring, we celebrated the great strides made throughout the University, including record enrollments, the academic successes of our students, and the award-winning scholarship and teaching of our faculty. These accomplishments reflect a CUNY-wide determination to prioritize academic quality and to take bold steps to [...]
This year marks a significant milestone in CUNY’s history. Fifty years ago, New York City’s higher education landscape experienced a series of significant shifts that led to the birth of the modern-day City University of New York. On April 11, 1961, state legislation transforming the city’s seven-college municipal college system into an interconnected university system [...]
Across the country and here in New York, state support for public universities has been declining for the last two decades. As our recession has deepened, the situation has become more perilous. A recent study indicates that since 2008, at least 43 states have cut assistance to public colleges and universities and/or made large increases [...]
As the recession has deepened, the situation for public higher education has become more perilous. A recent report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities indicates that since 2008, at least 43 states have cut assistance to public colleges and universities and/or made large increases in tuition. That’s why CUNY hosted a summit in [...]
In June, U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor addressed graduates at Hostos Community College, her mother’s alma mater, saying that a Hostos education “gave me and my brother a powerful example of the value of education and of family. My family is a testament to the contributions that community colleges make to our society.” [...]
