'Town hall' meetings to focus on value of Skidmore education

Halfway through its 10-year Strategic Plan, the College will conduct a series of town-hall-style meetings locally and around the country this fall and winter. Called "Your Voice, Our Future," the series aims to engage alumni, parents, faculty and students in a far-reaching discussion of the value of a Skidmore education in the 21st century.

Meetings in October will take place in Boston, Hartford, Fairfield/Westchester, and New York City. In November a meeting will be held in Washington, D.C. Meetings in January will be in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Meetings also will be scheduled this year with faculty and students on campus and with alumni in the Saratoga/Albany metro region.

President Philip Glotzbach

"The global economic recession has directed much critical attention upon the cost, price, and value of the education offered by liberal arts colleges," said Glotzbach. "We must revisit, reconsider, and reaffirm the principles and beliefs at the core of our mission. We must think even more deeply about, and articulate more clearly, the continuing worth of a Skidmore education."

Glotzbach said he plans to "engage the entire Skidmore community, on campus and off, in this critical inquiry." The end product, he said, will be a "summary document that will become the basis of further work by the faculty, administration, and board of trustees in shaping Skidmore’s future."

	Sandy Baum and Sarah Goodwin, two panelists for the series

At each gathering, President Philip A. Glotzbach will lead a panel discussion with distinguished Skidmore alumni, faculty, and parents. Skidmore economist Sandy Baum, senior policy analyst at the College Board and one of the nation's leading experts on such issues as college access, college pricing, student aid, and the affordability of higher education, will be a presenter at most of the meetings, as will Sarah Goodwin, professor of English and faculty assessment coordinator.

Key background on issues to be discussed in these meetings is provided in the fall issue of Scope magazine, which you'll find online with other resources on the "Your Voice, Our Future" Web site.

Among alumni and parents who are participating as panelists in the series:

• Joshua A. Boyce, M.D. '81, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School (Boston);
• John William Poduska, Sr., Parent '09, a technological entrepreneur and independent business consultant who has launched several leading computer and technology companies (Boston);
• Judy Roberts Kunisch '69, president of the Skidmore Alumni Association, healthcare consultant and teacher of leadership at the Yale School of Nursing (Hartford);
• Craig Poler '84, an oil and energy trader for BP Integrated Supply and Trading (Hartford);
• Steve Cohen '72, founder of Maple Hill Advisors LLC, which advises clients on hedge fund trading (Fairfield/Westchester);
• Richard Harwood '82, president of The Harwood Group for Public Innovation (Washington, D.C.)
• Maxine Isaacs '69, Skidmore trustee and accomplished public policy practitioner and scholar (Washington, D.C.)

 

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