The Tower Summer 2017 - 3

From The
President's Desk
I

Dr. William E. Griscom
President

n my last column I advocated for more disclosure
about the performance of programs in higher
education to prospective students and their
families. It would seem reasonable that individuals
can make better decisions if they have as much
information as possible regarding a purchase they
are about to make. This information or data is
available about the programs at Thaddeus Stevens
College in the form of dashboards on the College
website. I indicated the greatest challenge in regard
to dashboards is insuring that all schools provide
consistent information based on significant sample
sizes or complete census of the criteria being
reported. A recent example of this issue is a recent
article in Forbes about two-year trade schools and
the role they play in addressing the national skills
gap. Not only does the article rank schools based
on flawed or inadequate data that does not provide
an accurate description of performance, but also
contains an incomplete methodology that is can
be misleading. As a consequence the article, while
positively drawing attention to a serious problem,
misinforms prospective students and parents.
This article has subsequently been cited in media
across the country. This is just one more example
of the need for a national system to insure accurate,
complete, and consistent data regarding the
performance of programs in higher education for
prospective students and their families.
I will use the rest of my column to provide you
with a few updates about different initiatives and
activities at the College
Enrollment:
Over 2,500 individuals applied for admission to the
College for the fall. All programs are full and most
have waiting lists.
Greiner Advanced Manufacturing Campus:
All contractors have been selected and work should
being immediately.
Masonry Program Relocation:
The Masonry Program is currently in the process of
being moved into a 25,000 square foot facility at the
Greenfield Corporate Center.

Software Engineering Program:
The new Software Engineering program will begin
this fall. Faculty have been selected and employed.
The program is fully enrolled.
Faculty Searches:
Faculty searches have been completed or are in
process for architecture, business administration,
welding, automotive, and software engineering.
State Appropriation:
The College received an increase in its State
appropriation of 7.5 percent. This was the largest
increase that any higher education institution
received with the exception on Pennsylvania
College of Technology.
Guaranteed Energy Savings Act:
The College entered into a $1.4 million Guaranteed
Energy Savings Act (GESA) project in order to
decrease growing utility costs. This is accomplished
through a progressive contracting process that
enables mass upgrades of building components
such as lighting, HVAC, water, etc. to be replaced
through a budget neutral process. These upgrades
significantly reduce energy usage which result in
decreased utility spending.
Housing Project:
For the first time the College entered its housing
project in the Parade of Homes. The duplex house
won 7 awards:
* Best Kitchen - Townhome
* Best bath - Townhome
* Best Interior - Townhome
* Best Exterior - Townhome
* Best of Show - Townhome
* Alpha Award (New Parade builder award)
* Fulton Award (Top award regardless of price)
Grant Application:
The College submitted a proposal to the Gene Hass
Foundation in California for $1 million to support
the Greiner Advanced Manufacturing Center. The
application was very extensive and extremely welldone. We are optimistic that we will be invited to Los
Angeles to present our case for support in the fall.
The Tower * 2017 Summer 3

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Tower Summer 2017