Please mark Wednesday, June 6, on your calendar for the 2012 June Institute. The program is focused on intentionally developing MCC's college culture, and attendees will work with colleagues to build on our NEASC projections and improve campus-wide communication. The information gathered from this year's program will help lay the groundwork for improved communications, and support the work of various task forces and committee charges for the 2012-13 academic year. 

The program will include a series of brief reports on key initiatives related to college culture, one session for all attendees, and then a series of concurrent break-out sessions, followed by lunch.  An Outlook Invitation will be sent soon. Sessions include:

Project Management for Everyone - This Leadership Institute workshop will introduce participants to the fundamentals of project management and provide examples of how project management is used to turn a seemingly complex job into a manageable project that can be completed on time and within a budget.  This session seeks to enhance our college culture through creating more effective meetings and efficient projects.

Creating Value Through Effective Communication - The Communications Task Force will facilitate a discussion of MCC communication vehicles and their relative effectiveness.  This session seeks to enhance our college culture through participation in inclusive conversations about the ways our college community communicates.

Academic Advising: Building a Road to Student Success Campus-wide - The Academic Advising Self-Study committee will facilitate a discussion of student advising. The results will inform the committee's work as they develop recommendations during summer 2012.  This session seeks to enhance our college culture through this application of shared responsibility amongst Academic Affairs and Student Affairs.   

Governance & Change: Your Voice Does Matter - This discussion will seek to provide a foundation for upcoming work related to the NEASC self-study projection to revisit college governance in 2012-13.  This session seeks to enhance our college culture by providing an opportunity for all employees to have a voice in determining the goals and direction of the college by examining the aspects of our current governance system that are working or not working effectively. 

Enrollment Management - MCC's Enrollment Management Plan is focused on cross-divisional collaboration to improve recruitment, retention, completion and student success.  This session seeks to enhance our college culture by recognizing that all the college has responsibility for the goals and strategies in the plan, and by brainstorming additional ways we can meet our enrollment goals.

Connecticut Election Project 2012

The Connecticut Election Project is an effort led by Secretary Merrill in conjunction with teachers, partner organizations, and other individuals with an interest in bringing the 2012 election alive in the classroom. Through engaging young people in civic life as early as possible, we hope to instill a lifetime of participation in public life. With this in mind, ideas, tools and resources for teachers to spark their students' interest in the election process, from the national Presidential race to the statewide Senate race to local Connecticut General Assembly races, will be presented.

The curriculum will cover three main content areas: Election History, Election Literacy and Election Math. There will be four teacher webinars throughout the summer (one for each content area and one focused on elementary teachers) as well as additional content posted to the website. The curriculum will be implemented in the fall and four more webinars will be presented to students, concluding with a student conference in Hartford. Teachers and students may select the activities they would like to participate in.

Why comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)? Among the reasons are the following:

• It's the law
• To respect student record privacy
• To model appropriate behavior for students
• To comply with each College's agreement to comply with FERPA as a condition of the receipt of federal funds
• Colleges that have a policy and practice of violating FERPA risk the loss of all federal funds
• To avoid liability under Connecticut law

The law is clear that FERPA does not permit a student to bring a claim for money damages - the only penalty under FERPA is the College's loss of federal funding. However, a violation of FERPA still exposes the College and its employees to liability for a violation of Connecticut law, including negligence (carelessness; failing to exercise due care) and an invasion of privacy (disclosure of private facts).

For instance, the disclosure of personally identifiable student information via a Yahoo, G-mail, Hotmail or similar e-mail address without the prior valid consent of the student (such as contained on the Common Admissions Application) or without taking "reasonable measures" to assure that the disclosure is to the student and not to someone else may not only give rise to the college losing federal funds under FERPA, but it may also give rise to the college and the employee(s) involved being sued under Connecticut law for negligence and an invasion of the student's privacy.

By law, State employees are indemnified against liability for claims of personal injury or property damage that arise from their State employment. By "indemnified", it is meant that a legal defense for such claims will be provided by the Office of the Attorney General and any settlement or judgment will be paid from State funds. However, to qualify for indemnification, the claim must arise from actions that are deemed to be within the scope of State employment. Additionally, the claim also must not arise from an employee's actions that are determined to be "wanton, reckless or malicious." Claims that do not qualify in this regard will not be indemnified; that is, representation will not be provided by the Office of the Attorney General nor will any settlement or judgment be paid from State funds. Therefore, all employees are urged to be as vigilant as possible in complying with FERPA. 

Comments, suggestions, are invited and should be forwarded to Tom Clark, Academic and Student Affairs Associate.  

Creating a Vibrant Hartford: Adult Learning as a Pathway to Change

May 15, 2012, 5:30 PM (Refreshments & Music), 6:00 PM (Forum), Hartford Public Library

Join dozens of friends and neighbors for a Community Dialogue Action Forum. Come learn about the progress made and participate in developing an action plan for Adult Learning! Food, music, and fun for all! To sign up, email or call 860-695-6294.