NYSHEI News

Until now, the state government has been anything but transparent. Today, the Empire Center for New York State Policy (full disclosure – I used to work there) unveiled a new website that delivers an unprecedented level of information, and in one location.

Visit SeethroughNY and browse the information. Look for new data to be added on a regular basis.

On July 29, 2008 Adelphi University Library Director Charles Simpson hosted a regional NYSHEI meeting at the Swirbul library on the Garden City campus.

Joining Simpson and NYSHEI Executive Director Jason Kramer were Bob Martin of Molloy College, Ilona Middleton of Suffolk Community College, Deborah Dolan of Hofstra University, Herb Biblio of LILRC, Ann Minutella, Sarah Pomerantz, Elayne Gardstein, and Debbi Smith of Adelphi.

Following a brief presentation that highlighted the NYSHEI advocacy successes of the past year, Kramer stressed the difficulty of the coming state fiscal year.

“Later today Governor Paterson will announce a growing financial problem and call for new levels of austerity from state government. Funding for new programs, like ARIA, will be virtually nonexistent in the coming months. If we hope to be successful NYSHEI must experience dramatic growth in the participation of librarians in the advocacy process. Frankly, we cannot hope to be success if more librarians join our growing chorus of NYSHEI supporters,” said Kramer.

Beverly Marcoline, Assistant Vice President for Library and Information Technology Services at Utica College, has joined the Governing Board of NYSHEI to represent the Small / Medium Category of private institutions and to fill the seat vacated by Gary Thompson.

Originally from Whitesboro, NY, Beverly graduated from Utica College in 1970 with a bachelor’s of art degree in psychology and a minor in sociology and earned her master of library science degree from the School of Information Studies at Syracuse University. She worked for more than 11 years at the Hamilton College Science Library before joining Utica College in 1999 to begin her professional career as Science Reference Librarian. With additional duties as the library’s web coordinator, she created and launched Utica College Library’s first interactive web site.

In 2004, Beverly was named Director of the Library, where she considered it her main goal to create a more visible library, integrating library research services into the daily lives of the members of the college community. Working to strengthen the library’s educational offerings by recruiting dynamic new staff and spearheading projects to improve campus awareness all library resources, services, and access, has proven effective in more than doubling usage statistics over the past four years.

In June 2008, Beverly assumed additional responsibilities as Assistant Vice President, being charged with creating and leading a vision for library and information technology services that are linked to the college’s strategic plan and responsive to its present and future needs.

Beverly served for several years on the CLRC advisory committee for the Hospital Library Service Program, and chaired the Middle States Review Planning, Resource Allocation, and Institutional Renewal Sub-Committee during the past 3 years. Her professional and personal activities and interests include mentoring library leadership, assessment of library services, and spending quality time with her four children, two grandchildren, and with family and friends on the golf course.

Governor David Paterson issued the following release upon receipt of the final report by the Commission on Higher Education.

GOVERNOR PATERSON ANNOUNCES COMMITMENT TO LOW-INTEREST STUDENT LOANS AND REGULATORY REFORM; RECEIVES FINAL REPORT OF COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Embraces Other Recommendations of Higher Education Commission

Commends Commission Members for Dedication to Improving Higher Education in New York

Governor David A. Paterson today announced his administration’s commitment to creating a low-cost student loan program – one of the key recommendations in the New York State Commission on Higher Education’s Final Report. New York is one of the few remaining states without a state-financed student loan program. Governor Paterson met with members of the commission to discuss their recent recommendations to improve the State’s education programs.

“I want to thank the members of this Commission for their commitment and dedication to improving higher education in the State of New York,” said Governor Paterson. “Their extensive work and research has resulted in a comprehensive list of exciting recommendations for our consideration. My administration is committed to ensuring that we provide the best education services to our citizens. Given the State’s fiscal situation, we will first seek to implement those recommendations which achieve high impact at little or no cost and at the same time pursue innovative ways to finance some of the recommendations which require State funding.”

Hunter Rawlings, Chairman of the New York State Commission on Higher Education said: “The Higher Education Commission report outlines a strategy for making New York competitive in the 21st century global economy. New York can and should be the national and international leader in higher education. With this report and Governor Paterson’s leadership, that can be a reality.”

“One of the major recommendations in the report is the creation of a low-cost student loan program,” said Governor Paterson. “As credit markets tighten and fewer financial institutions participate in student lending, students and their families are faced with the prospect of paying higher and higher interest rates. New York is one of the only states in the nation without a state-financed student loan program; it is time for that to change, which is why my administration will introduce legislation to include this critical program in next year’s budget.”

Governor Paterson has proposed the establishment of a low-interest loan program to be financed through the issuance of revenue-backed bonds. Resident students enrolled in a degree program at a college or university in New York State would be eligible to apply. The proposal is cost neutral to the State over the long term since the costs of debt service and administration can be passed on to the borrower while still achieving a lower interest rate for students than that which they find in the private market.

In addition to announcing his support for a low-cost student loan program, Governor Paterson informed members of the commission that he will support their recommendation to provide regulatory relief for SUNY and CUNY. “We need to give SUNY and CUNY the flexibility to act nimbly and respond quickly to change,” said Governor Paterson. The Commission recommended regulatory reform in three key areas: the sale or lease of property, procurement, and construction. Governor Paterson’s administration will work to include these changes as part of a larger effort for statewide regulatory reform.

Several other recommendations from the Commission’s Preliminary Report issued in December 2007 have already begun to be implemented. They include:

* Critical maintenance: The 2008-09 Enacted Budget included $834 million for critical maintenance at SUNY and CUNY as the first year in a five-year plan which would provide $4.17 billion total.
* Transfer of Course Credits: SUNY has created a task-force of community college and four-year college faculty which is dedicated to executing the commission’s articulation recommendation.
* Research Focus at SUNY: The SUNY Board of Trustees was restructured to provide more targeted focus on research and university centers.
* P-16 collaboration: Efforts are underway state-wide on Early College High Schools, College Access Challenge Grants and the Regents’ P-16 agenda.

The New York State Commission on Higher Education was established by Executive Order in May 2007 and is chaired by Hunter Rawlings, President Emeritus, Cornell University. The members of the Commission include presidents’ of numerous public and private colleges throughout the State of New York as well as stakeholders in the higher education community. The Commission issued a preliminary report to the Governor in December 2007.

The Commission on Higher Education today quietly released it’s final report, which looks little different from the preliminary report released months earlier.

Significantly, the Commission report includes all prior endorsements of increased library connectivity and state support for state-wide licenses of electronic information resources – as NYSHEI successfully argued.

While the fate of the report, now in the hands of a Governor who did not ask for the report, is uncertain. It is certain that this report marks the arrival of NYSHEI as a successful advocate for public and private academic and research libraries.