October 16, 2026

Harvard

Before we get to the main content of this letter, a few reminders:

• Reserved Parking

  Per the Campus Advisory Council’s recommendation and past data reports, we now have 10 Reserved Employee Parking spaces on a level with elevator accessibility in the North Garage. When you are coming to campus, please ONLY use those spaces if there are no other spaces available. That means, please go down to level 4 before parking in those spaces on level 3. That will hopefully assure that those late-arriving faculty and staff, especially those with mobility issues, can find a space without having to go to the West Garage. Thank you!

• DIA and Baked Goods

  Don’t forget, we begin DIA next Wednesday with baked goods and coffee in CC2-261 at 8:00 AM. Many thanks to our bakers: Abbi G., Alexandria A., Angela P., Desiree E., Eric M., Ginny J., Jennifer O., Kristina K., Megan L., Mike P., Sadie R., Shandy S., Teya V., Tim M.

And now…

In 2016, I applied for and was accepted into the Harvard Seminar for Experienced Presidents. To qualify, I had to have served at least 5 years in the President’s role and write an application. This seminar lasted for a week on the Harvard campus in Boston with a cohort of 10 Presidents. This summer, I stumbled upon my application cover letter and I wanted to reprint it for you to review. I hope that the last 10 years have demonstrated the implementation of what you are about to read.

Attendance at any of the large conferences for higher ed institutions is somewhat akin to going to Home Depot or Costco. There are a number of seminars, small-interest groups, networking opportunities, and options. A huge number of people attend to reacquaint themselves with colleagues, hear best practices, and maybe skim an idea or two that will benefit their institution. There is something for everyone and it is tailored to the masses.

This approach to professional development is not well-suited for all. I believe, as a college president, I owe my campus more in the way of leadership. I owe them hand-crafted solutions to our problems that are right for our size and demographic. I owe them realistic, creative, and individualized opportunities rather than an adaptation of that “thing” that was successful down the road. Above all, our college considers itself to be a vanguard of new and innovative approaches that require dynamic leadership.

I would hope, or expect, that the Harvard Seminar for Experienced Presidents would offer a unique opportunity to spend a significant amount of time with seasoned colleagues identifying the most critical issues that form the basis of our leadership. This time, in my imagination, would be spent more on critical analysis of leadership techniques rather than the current Program de jour. Good and effective leadership will help any president effectively lead a campus in current trends, evolve them to new trends, and focus them on student success.

My challenge has been to take the myriad of passions by my small faculty and focus them on the fundamentals of our college. We value things like equity, sustainability, global awareness, integrated education, and community-based learning. Every faculty (and/or staff member) has a passion. Ultimately, there is not enough capacity on the part of administration to support all of these ideas to a minimum level of excellence. The challenge comes in trying to focus the campus on institutional capacity and specific fundamentals, like program review and outcomes.

Accomplishing this focus leads to a second challenge: solidifying buy-in to the cause (whatever that fundamental cause is). Shared governance works well on our campus. However, many campus constituencies try to please every member. How do we continue to assure buy-in to the team goal when it is not the passion of the individual?

The seminar will be valuable if I can explore ideas, hear from others, and absorb techniques used by other presidents. While I don’t discount current trends, like on-line education, accreditation, or political directions, my goal is to focus my energy on ideas that will help me be a better steward of our campus.

Shoutouts

From the IN Box:

I would love to give a shoutout to Freweyni, the most fantastic custodian who passionately takes care of building CC3. I've only been in this building for four weeks, and every time we see each other, she has the biggest smile, greets me with excitement, remembers my name, and leaves me feeling happier than I was before I saw her. So often custodial positions are thankless ones, so I want to publicly thank Freweyni for not only caring for our building but caring for her colleagues as well.

AND

A shoutout today for Dr. Victor Begay and a successful Indigenous Peoples Day event on Monday. The room was packed, the sessions thoughtful and well-attended.

Remember, shoutouts can be sent to FLShoutout@cascadia.edu.