26 The QUEE NS Courier • business • april 18, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com business Goldstein ends tenure as CUNY chancellor s BY ROSA KIM editorial@queenscourier.com Matthew Goldstein is stepping down from his 14-year tenure as chancellor of the City University of New York (CUNY). Goldstein, the longest serving chancellor in the university’s history, expressed gratitude to members of the community for their support. “Serving this exceptional university alongside so many extraordinary colleagues has been the greatest privilege of my professional life,” he said. “It has been my honor to serve this incomparable institution.” During his tenure, Goldstein initiated drastic structural changes designed to make CUNY a more cohesive system and a more competitive university. Under his leadership, CUNY saw record enrollment, higher admissions standards, increased graduation rates, an addition of 2,000 full-time faculty positions and a stronger commitment to scientific research. CUNY also added new schools, including the William E. Macaulay Honors College, the School of Professional Studies, the Graduate School of Journalism and the School of Public Health. They expanded the system to 24 colleges and professional schools located throughout the city’s five boroughs. The chancellor led an unprecedented fundraising campaign during his tenure. CUNY Compact reached its $1.2 billion goal and is expected to reach $3 billion by the end of the second phase. However, not all changes implemented by Goldstein were well-received. Faculty members and students fiercely resisted his decisions to streamline the university curriculum, end open admissions and raise tuition. Goldstein, who received a doctorate in mathematical statistics from the University of Connecticut, was the first CUNY graduate to serve as chancellor. He graduated in 1963. In addition to holding faculty and administrative positions over 30 years, he previously served as president of Baruch College, the CUNY Research Foundation and Adelphi University. As chancellor, Goldstein continuously emphasized the need to better prepare students for college-level work upon enrolling at the university. He partnered with the city’s Department of Education and oversaw the university’s collaboration with the city’s K-12 school system with the goal of ensuring that college preparation begins as early as possible. According to Goldstein, plans are underway to appoint an interim chancellor later this spring. CONSTRUCTING EQUAL RIGHTS AWCWA honors equal pay, women in construction at conference BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA ctumola@queenscourier.com In 1963, the Equal Pay Act legally established that a woman should receive the same wages as a man doing the same work. The Association of Women Construction Workers of America (AWCWA), in partnership with the J-CAP Foundation, honored the 50th anniversary of this important legislation during its Know Your Rights Conference on Wednesday, April 17 at the Hilton New York JFK Hotel. “Women have come a long way in construction and we are hoping as we move forward in the future that we will be able to be move forward within the industry for woman and that we get a stronger hold in construction,” said Herlema Owens, president and founder of AWCWA, which deals in advocacy for workforce individuals, economic development through education, and workplace oversight of construction projects. Although when some people think of construction, they picture a man doing the work, “it’s a wonderful industry for women,” she said. All those who attended the conference were able to network and make connections with union educators, government and elected representatives and a number of organizations and businesses related to the industry. The conference also included an awards ceremony, which honored several of the women who have contributed and shown their dedication to the industry. Presented by Vicki Schneps-Yunis , publisher of The Queens Courier, the Joi Beard Award was given to Cassandra Hill, MWLBE program manager of the Delta JFK/IAT Redevelopment Program for her overall contribution to the industry; Lenore Janis, president of Professional Women in Construction received the Industry Empowerment for Women Award; Connie De Laigle, the affirmative action coordinator for the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, was honored with the Industry Workplace Diversity Award; and Tara Brooks-Smith, the Brooklyn/ Queens CSC Manager for the New York State Department of Labor’s Division of Employment & Workforce Solutions, was given the Industry Workforce Development Award. The conference also featured keynote speaker Shandeeyaky Shabazz, branch manager of the Brooklyn/Queens Dress for Success Worldwide and moderator Stephanie Burns, director of community affairs for Turner Construction Co. TEEN’S SPEECH TO CONGRESS: Ys ARE POWERFUL BY ANTHONY O’REILLY editorial@queenscourier.com As 14-year old Kayla Brathwaite sat on a train heading to the nation’s capital, she rehearsed the speech she would give in front of Congress. Brathwaite, a resident of Ozone Park and a student at Park East High School in Manhattan, spoke in front of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services on March 13, urging them to continue giving $1.15 billion in funding to the 21st Century Community Learning Centers. Brathwaite said she’s been going to her local YMCA afterschool program since she was eight and felt the need to give back to the program. “It’s been such a large influence on my life,” Brathwaite said. During her testimony, Brathwaite said the YMCA has influenced countless lives, including her own. “I am here today for all youth who need these programs to succeed and for all parents who need these programs to help keep their jobs and for the employers who employ those parents,” she said in her written testimony. “We should not forget that these programs or the lack of these programs will have an effect on our economy.” The teen has had experience in dealing with government officials in the past. Back in 2012, Brathwaite introduced First Lady Michelle Obama in Washington, D.C. at a Partnership for a Healthier America summit, an opportunity that was provided to her through the YMCA. Currently, Brathwaite participates in the Teens Take the City program, where teens imitate how local governments work, passing laws and ordinances. She hopes to become a counselor for the upcoming summer session. “I think the YMCA can help everybody,” she said. “If you didn’t have an opportunity to go, it’s never too late.”
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