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Reminder Assistant Editor WESTFIELD The search to replace former President of Westfield State College (WSC) Vicki Carwein has been an arduous process since her resignation in 2006. The Board of Trustees dismissed the first round of semifinalists earlier this year, citing that there was not a firm consensus amongst the campus community for any particular candidate. Narrowed from a field of 60 applicants, the second round of semifinalists includes Michael Gargano Jr., current vice chancellor for Student Affairs and Campus Life at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst, Maureen Powers, former dean of students at Stanford University and Evan Dobelle, president and CEO of the New England Board of Higher Education. Gargano was the first to participate in the daylong interview process with administrators, faculty, staff and students last Thursday. His final meeting with members of the WSC Student Government Association (SGA) Thursday night granted him the opportunity for general remarks and a lengthy question and answer session by students. Gargano called WSC "one of the hidden gems in the state's public higher education system" and voiced his desire to elevate its status within the system. He noted his educational and professional qualifications, which will aid him in his efforts as president an Ed.D. in higher education from George Washington University (GWU), a bachelor's degree in marketing from the University of Hartford and former associate vice president for Student and Academic Support Services at GWU. Gargano said he has been preparing for this position for the past 28 years. While answering a series of questions posed by members of the WSC SGA, Gargano briefly outlined his standards and policies for change. He said he would like to expand opportunities for experiential learning such as study abroad and internships, which he added "helps [one] to identify a career path." Having begun his career in athletics as the former administrator of athletic fundraising at GWU, the University of Rhode Island and the University of Hartford, Gargano said he is strongly in favor of collegiate athletics. When asked about how he will increase diversity on the WSC campus, Gargano noted his success at UMass Amherst over the past five years through high school recruitment and pairing with national organizations such as A Better Chance (ABC) to increase applicant diversity. He noted that over the past five years diversity amongst the campus population has increased six percent. Gargano was also called upon by a student representative to explain his actions which led to a vote of no confidence by the UMass (SGA) Senate in November 2004. Gargano explained that the SGA felt he did not respond quickly enough to an on-campus incident in which members of the SGA wrote derogatory comments and Ku Klux Klan symbols on a blackboard in the Student Center. "If I actually did something wrong I wouldn't be standing in front of you today," he said. Throughout the forum Gargano also explained his support and dedicated efforts to obtain additional state and grant funding for the college, more sustainability efforts throughout the campus and greater involvement with the Westfield community at large. Celeste Evans, legislative secretary for the WSC SGA, said she is pleased with the presidential selection process, adding that the forum allows students the opportunity to know the candidates and what they are aiming to accomplish at their college. Evans and Joseph Constantine, WSC SGA representative of the class of 2009, both said that time was the largest drawback in the proceedings as they are only granted one hour with each candidate. "We really just skimmed the surface with him," Evans said of the forum with Gargano. Students were asked to e-mail their impressions of Gargano by Friday morning, as a full recommendation would be written on bahalf of the SGA by Student Trustee Bruce Jackson, for review by the Board of Trustees. | ||||||
