Senior Class Gift Committee at the Bryant University - Personal Statement Example

Background Altering the selection process of the Young Alumni Trustee has left the Bryant faculty and body in disarray. The controversy, which spanned six months, centered on the nomination committee's commitment to increasing the opportunity for diversity in the process. Though their motives were laudable, the ways they took to bring about change have been criticized as unfair and inappropriate. The committee altered the process in April 2006, after they selected two qualified candidates for the prestigious position. They reopened the process for additional applicants and in doing so created more questions than they answered. Finally, in September 2006 the Young Alumni Trustee was named but the reorganization had left the members of the Senior Class Gift Committee with no clear responsibility The Young Alumni Trustee is a position on the Board of Trustees that is granted to a graduating senior each year. The successful program had been in effect since 1996 and each member that is awarded the position serves a three-year term. By April 2006, the selection committee had settled on two finalists, Cathleen Doan and Brian Levin. The winner was to be announced at commencement ceremonies on May 20. On April 25, 2006, students received an e-mail re-opening the application process and encouraging students to reapply. The selection committee justified their actions based on low student interest and lack of diversity among the applicants. Doan and Levin were still considered finalists, but Laurie Musgrove, Vice President of University Advancement, said they were seeing if "other students should be joining them as finalists". Robin Warde, Interim Director of Alumni Relations, said the concern was the small number of original student applicants. Warde noted that only 5 members of the class of 2006 had been interviewed and said, "something different needed to be done". It was apparent that the board had been remiss in addressing this problem sooner. According to Warde, they had been concerned over lack of participation in previous years. Musgrove and Warde, however, waited until the finalists had been selected to make the last minute changes. Musgrove had some misgivings and expressed the "wish that timing could be different". She continued to encourage Doan and Levin to stay in the process and viewed their withdrawal with "disappointment and dismay". Before commencement ceremonies, the Board of Trustees took control of the nominating process after overriding the previous decisions made by the nominating board. President Ronald Machtley and BOT Chairman Thomas Taylor headed the new selection committee. No winner was announced at that time. In September 2006, the Bryant University Board of Trustees (BOT) named Saddi Williams as the 2006 Young Alumnus Trustee at their annual meeting during Homecoming Weekend. The BOT also established the Bryant Senior Advisory Council (BSA), a 30 member committee comprised of students that will be the pool for next year's applicants. Warde has made a commitment to working with students all year and promoting a wide representation on the BSA. The controversy that began in April 2006 had not gone away by September. The creation of the BSA created another debate over the Senior Class Gift program. During the summer of 2006, Shannon Maldonando and I (Amr Zawawi) worked to develop a "comprehensive plan for the 2007 Senior Class Gift". However, on September 22, 2006 the President's office released a press statement that said, "The Bryant Senior Advisory Council shall also act as a core group to engage the senior class in developing a plan for their class gift". This resulted in confusion and further divisiveness surrounding the role of Moldanado and I in the gift selection process. The controversial changes that began in April 2006 had continued to linger and in attempting to correct past problems resulted in creating new controversies. Summer Plans The Senior Class Gift Committee had made a decision to begin working on the project at the earliest possible date. We all agreed that waiting until the commencement of the school year in September would delay our extensive plans for change. I had taken the position of chair of the committee and I was dedicated to being sure that the transition would be smooth and without controversy. I had been a committee member for the past three years and I had learned that thoughtful planning was a priority. Shannon's unique personality was an inspiration for the whole committee. She worked with an untiring dedication and challenged the other members to rise above the situation and always do your best. Thanks to Shannon's spirit of devotion to the Class Gift Committee, we were able to consider several new and innovative ideas for the coming year. Though none of our ideas were revolutionary, they did encompass a considerable change from the past and would require the approval of the department director. I enjoyed the interaction with the faculty and the directors who were more than generous with their time and energy. It gave me the opportunity to work with different management styles on aspects of a real world problem. Labor Day was a signal that school was about to convene and there was a sense of urgency to solidify our plans and take some initial action. Shannon and I spent several hours on the phone preparing to present the details of the Gift Committee's recommendations. With the new structure of the committee and changes in administration, Shannon and I were forced to appoint new members. The VP had left earlier in the summer and Shannon and I were left to finish our plans. By Labor Day, a new director took charge and left us not knowing what the new expectations would be. Fall 2006 When classes started in September 2006, Shannon and I began to implement some of the plans we had made over the summer. One of our biggest priorities was communication. We had taken a stance that success would be dependent on our ability to contact and reach the junior and senior class. We had hoped to involve them materially with the projects well as developing an awareness of the importance of the Senior Class Gift. This would be done through a series of events where we could talk to future graduates of Bryant and their need to leave an improvement behind after graduation. In past years, there had been very little recruiting done by the Senior Gift Committee, and the upcoming fair was one of our fundamental changes. Typically, the Senior Gift Committee would not participate in fairs and promotions. However, being able to get a table at the organizational fair was an excellent opportunity for us to contact and recruit juniors and sophomores that were interested in being a part of the committee. By generating this new awareness and interest, we hoped to bring the committee a new sense of importance and excitement. Shannon and I had worked to design several changes, but they would not come about without hard work and cooperation. Historically, the Senior Class Gift committee would 'kick off' the process at Bello Grand Hall. This was the only approved event for the year. The new events that Shannon and I had planned were still pending approval. This event was supposed to generate interest among the student body and promote an awareness of the committee's function. In recent years, the kick-off event had suffered from a lack of interest and a low attendance. It needed to generate more that the 10% of goal and more than the 100 students attending in the last few years. I recognized the need for some additional action to get the student body more involved. The actions that had been planned by the Senior Class Gift Committee would require the cooperation and approval of University officials and would later prove to be an overwhelming success at reaching and involving students, I had arranged a meeting with University President Machtley to discuss and plan the future of the Senior Gift Committee. It was during these discussions that I was presented with my biggest challenge as the committee chair. We came to an agreement that participation, and the lack of it, was a critical issue. In past years, participation had been around 30%. Mr. Machtley challenged the committee to double the student involvement and raise the figure to 60%. I personally felt that the 60% figure was far too optimistic to become reality. However, I was excited about the support that the administration had given us and looked forward to meeting our new goal. Advisor Problems During this period I have also had the opportunity to serve on the Student Senate. This has given me some exposure to the issues and concerns of the student body. Without my participation in the Student Senate, I would have remained unaware of many of these problems. One of these problems was the restructuring of the Senior Gift committee's authority under the new BSA which stated that they will, "... act as a core group to engage the senior class in developing a plan for their class gift and the dismantling of the current Senior Gift Committee". My personal obligation was to inform Shannon of the upcoming changes. The University had been remiss in informing the student body in respect to the formation of the committee and the subsequent changes to the SGC, Shannon, upon becoming aware of the existence of the BSA, felt that the issue needed to be addressed as soon as possible by University officials. Shannon arranged a meeting with the Director of University Advancement in an attempt to determine the effect that the BSA would have on the plans that we had previously worked on. The Director reassured Shannon that there were no plans to change the direction of the Senior Gift Committee. However, I felt that something was missing in their explanations and I tried to get further clarification on the issue. I met formally with additional administration officials and talked to others in casual conversation. I was surprised to learn that the BSA was in fact planning on taking over the responsibilities of the SGC. To further complicate my situation, Laurie Musgrove's departure had left me without any official contacts at the VP level. As I watched the disintegration of the SGC, and the re-appropriation of our responsibilities, I felt especially obligated to Shannon. We had invested a large amount of work and creative effort into our plans for the future of the committee. As chair of the SGC, I felt a duty to Shannon to reconcile any ill will or bad feelings about the new BSA. After all, I was the chair and if the members had a problem with the bureaucratic process it was my position to help them navigate the rough seas. I found myself in the uncomfortable position of being less than truthful with my teammates in an effort to keep up morale without bruising feelings. The SCG committee members still did not know the extent of the BSA's radical changes. We were only days away from being replaced. The story had spread through the campus grapevine and an article appeared in the Archway titled "Time to get your facts straight". In light of the rumors and the campus controversy, Shannon resigned her position. I was disappointed in my own actions at the loss of Shannon's confidence and her hasty exit. Shannon could not handle the pressure and felt that what she was going to be doing was against her ethical beliefs. I blamed myself for not being more forthcoming and a better conduit for her understanding of the situation. The University President met with me and assured me that the SGC would remain intact through the following year. Any changes would take place in the future. He apologized for the miscommunications in regards to the BSA's mission. I inquired who the University official in charge of the committee would be and who I would be reporting to. I made it clear that we need someone that can work with students and is interested in doing this type of work. He committed to appointing someone in the very near future. By the end of the week Pat Miernicki was appointed as our advisor. Initial Success While there were still several unresolved issues, it was important to move forward and plan our centerpiece event. I held numerous discussions with the President and other administration officials on the new direction that I had planned. To increase participation it would be necessary to take the committee to the students. We could not sit back and wait for the students to come to us. Working with the administration and trying to keep the committee together was contentious at times. However, we were able to stage an event that exceeded all previous events and met our ambitious expectations. We were able to raise nearly 50% of our goal with an attendance of 200 people. This broke all previous records maintained by the University Advancement office. Future The success of the SGC within the framework of the BSA has gained the appreciation of the students and the administration. The work and difficult decisions have made the experience worth the effort. It has been rewarding to see Shannon's energy and insight produce some positive results. There are still some communication problems with the BSA and particularly in resolving who is in charge. I am working to eliminate this issue and get some clarification from University officials. We have continued to stage smaller events and have followed up our initial success with additional momentum. We have set some lofty goals and are determined to meet them while maintaining our own high standards. Our mission is to preserve the commitment to Bryant philanthropy and serving as a historical milestone in class unity. More recently, Jim Dameron was appointed as the incoming Vice President of University Advancement. This has been an exciting addition to Bryant's leadership and I am looking forward to working with him. The SCG is still struggling to stay on track and meet the goals that Shannon and I set almost a year ago. We have 3 months left to affect any legacy that we might have. There is increased pressure from the University President to meet our goals. How will I finish the year and meet the goals set for me What is going to be the future of the senior class committee next year How can we plan events if we can't get approval from ill-defined authority and the ever-changing rules Read More