Cleveland State Advisory Board
In an effort to build stronger relationships with the people and communities served by the college, Cleveland State has implemented a new Advisory Board and recently held the first meeting.
Last year, the college with assistance and input from students, community members, business leaders and other key stakeholders engaged in a strategic planning process. From that process, the Cleveland State 2020 Community First Plan was created. One of the items identified as a goal for the college was to be a significant community partner throughout the service area. Through this advisory board, CSCC seeks to gain greater knowledge about educational and workforce needs and partnership opportunities throughout the service area. The board will also serve as a vehicle for enhancing communication to community members about the CSCC mission, people, programs, needs, events and future plans.
“We are starting something that is a new vision for Cleveland State,” stated Dr. Bill Seymour, CSCC President. “In our strategic plan, we identified an initiative that we thought would be very helpful and that is to start an advisory board. CSCC has been serving our community for almost 50 years, and it is really important to us to be as engaged as possible and connect with the communities within the five counties that we serve; that’s why we started this advisory board.”
After Dr. Seymour provided the welcome and discussed the purpose and expectations of the Advisory Board, David Knopp, Director of Institutional Research, provided the group with the 2016 CSCC Fact Book and a presentation which included information on student demographics, finances, employee credentials, enrollment numbers, graduate information, job placement and transfers. Seymour and other vice presidents discussed the Cleveland State 2020 Community First Plan. A tour of the newly created welding lab was a highlight of the day for the board members.
The day ended with the board engaging in an activity that allowed the representatives from each county to discuss the top challenges facing their county that CSCC could help address. The next exercise allowed members the opportunity to brainstorm credit and non-credit courses the college can offer that might address the challenges and/or community needs. The next meeting will take place in November at which the college will provide information about the Pathways Project. Led by the American Association of Community Colleges, Cleveland State was one of only 30 colleges in the United States and the only one in Tennessee to be selected for the AACC’s Pathways Project.
Advisory Board Committee Chair Tracey Wright, said, “I am excited about the diversity of experiences of the members of our advisory board. The wide range of sectors of the community that they represent should aid the college in being better informed and connected throughout our five-county service area. While a majority of the time at this meeting was spent sharing data and information to better acquaint the members with the college, future meetings will allow more time for the board members to discuss and share information.”