29 DE ABRIL 2021 • 15
HIGHER ED TODAY
In the world of higher ed, May 1 is
National College Decision Day – the traditional
deadline for high school seniors
to commit to a school for the fall. Nowadays
many colleges have flexible calendars
that make it more of a symbolic
date. Still, for students and their families
this is a time of year that signals
propitious decisions and great expectations,
along with high hopes and the
inevitable degree of apprehension. The
moment in which we find ourselves this
year only heightens those emotions.
Throughout my career as a college
professor and president and now as
CUNY’s chancellor, I’ve always appreciated
the energy and sense of anticipation
that drives students’ transitions.
From the acceptance letter to the welcome
to-campus orientation to the first
day of classes, the journey holds great
promise, but it can also be fraught with
hesitation, especially for students who
will be the first in their families to attend
college. At CUNY, those first-generation
students make up nearly half
our students.
Having worked with many of these
incoming students and their parents
over the years, I’ve been inspired by
their commitment to get to college and
by their aspirations for completing their
education and pursuing their dreams.
But I’ve also been cognizant of how
daunting it all can be, and the reality
that so many factors can pose obstacles,
impede the progress and even prevent
many of those students from making it
to the first day.
That’s why we don’t take the time between
May and September for granted.
Over the past few years, CUNY has paid
increasingly closer attention to helping
admitted students navigate the transition
and to providing a range of support
so they’re ready, willing and able to begin
classes in September.
This year, as we consider the stillopen
questions of when, how and to
what extent we can safely return to our
campuses, incoming students will have
corresponding questions and concerns.
Will remote or hybrid classes in college,
for instance, be the same as they have
been in high school? So the initiatives
we’ve developed to connect with admitted
students will be more important
than ever.
Last summer, we expanded our innovative
College Bridge for All program
to offer every graduating senior in New
York City public high schools support in
their transition to college. The program,
a collaboration with the Department of
Education and supported by grants from
Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Carroll
and Milton Petrie Foundation, trained and
paid about 200 CUNY students to be “nearpeer”
coaches for graduating seniors. The
CUNY coaches offered help with all kinds
of things: Academic planning, FAFSA
filing, adapting to online classes, accessing
programs like CUNY Start and much
more. We found that the program had a
positive impact on enrollment in a year
when enrollment was down. The expansion
couldn’t have been better timed, and
we’re gearing up for another successful
summer for College Bridge.
This year we’re also launching the
CUNY Recovery Corps, a special summer
youth employment program in partnership
with the city that will hire thousands
of CUNY students, including 2,000
who will be part of what we’re calling the
CUNY Welcome Corps. They’ll lead orientation
activities and social events, some
virtual and some in person, for new students
on every CUNY campus.
It’s all part of our determination to
support this year’s incoming students
and welcome them with an even bigger
embrace.
Even in times of uncertainty, I try to
remember that higher education has the
power and potential to transform lives.
Perhaps that is truer now than ever, as we
emerge from this tumultuous year and a
half as a community, a city and a country.
And that’s why National College Decision
Day this year has even greater significance.
In fact, I see this time as an inflection
point in CUNY’s historical commitment
to advancing access and opportunity
for all New Yorkers. The high school seniors
who are making their decisions this
month, and anticipating their arrival on
CUNY campuses come August, have a lot
to look forward to.
To every student out there making
their decision and every parent and
grandparent, hermana and tía who helped
them get to this point and proudly share
in the excitement of seeing them take the
first steps to a brighter future, congratulations.
This, too, is your accomplishment.
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