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Contact: Liz Carroll
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E-mail: carroll@gcc.mass.edu

Media contact: Liz Carroll
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Release date: October 25, 2004

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

GCC names Boyce and Phillips to Community College Leadership Academy

President Robert L. Pura has named Terry Boyce and Karen Phillips as GCC Fellows for the 2004-2005 Community College Leadership Academy (CCLA). Now in its second year, the CCLA prepares future community college leaders through an intensive curriculum anchored by monthly seminars and independent, campus-based projects attuned to the crucial mission of open access to higher education.

One of the monthly seminars this year will take place at the State House, providing Fellows with a better understanding of how the state budget process affects education at all levels. "Some people might ask why should we be worried about what goes on in K-12?” says Terry Boyce, Interim Assistant Dean of Learning Resources. "But those are our future students, so we have a vested interest in not only how they are learning now, but in making connections with them so that they know we're an option for higher education.” Boyce looks forward to "increasing my knowledge base when it comes to leadership, and an overall understanding of the community college system.”

A requirement of the Academy is to take on a project at your college. "Mine will relate to diversity,” says Boyce. "I'm really excited to have this opportunity. I think it gives you the opportunity to learn and grow, and where you use that and where you go with it for me is a wide-open book.”

Karen Phillips , Director of Auxiliary Services/Assistant Comptroller, hopes to gain a broader perspective of higher education. "By attending the CCLA,” says Phillips, "I hope to learn more about all the types of leadership skills that are necessary to become a leader on my campus. I hope to be able to learn from and develop professional relationships with colleagues at other institutions. In addition, through my colleagues, I hope to learn more about the student populations that exist on our campuses that really rely on GCC and other community colleges as their only opportunity to post-secondary education.” At the College Bookstore, Phillips sees a lot of the "middle-class, working, poor” students who have to purchase their textbooks with credit card debt. "I hope I'll be able to advocate for them,” says Phillips. As her College-based project, Phillips will study risk