By J.D. Rottweiler, Ph.D.
Cochise College recently hosted its annual convocation marking the start of the fall semester. Convocation is a day when employees come together to share information, participate in training opportunities, and get on the same page prior to the start of classes.
As we reviewed the list of individuals who would receive recognition for years of service, we discovered that a quarter of the college workforce has been employed here for less than two years, and half of it has been with us for less than five years.
The college saw this coming prior to my arrival in 2009, when a wave of retirements was expected. I believe we’ve weathered this workforce transition pretty well and that we also have a healthy balance in terms of more experienced employees. Nearly a quarter have worked here between five and 10 years, and another quarter have been here for 10 or more years. Hopefully future retirements will occur more as a drizzle than as a storm, and in the meantime all of these seasoned and less experienced perspectives will continue to shape the dynamic and exciting college you know today.
But on convocation day, there was still a quarter of the workforce that had never experienced a traditional convocation (due to the pandemic), many employees who had never met, and others who were more familiar with where we’re going than where we’ve been.
So we spent a little time on the college history, reviewed highlights of the last few months (there are enough for a future column), recognized service and introduced new employees, and turned our attention to the college’s recently revised mission, vision and values.
Development of these guiding statements took place during the last academic year in a way I had little hope would work – Zoom. But the technology’s capabilities combined with our talent and creativity proved to be extremely effective. The college was able to focus smaller groups on drafts and then invite collegewide participation, which might have been more difficult without Zoom.
A basic step was to identify why we are here: To inspire passion and purpose through the education of individuals so that we enhance our community.
From that came our collective vision: Cochise College is a leading and responsive college which transforms and empowers our community by fostering collaborative relationships and providing innovative educational pathways.
And our mission: Cochise College provides inclusive and accessible educational opportunities that support social responsibility, community engagement, meaningful careers, and lifelong learning.
And our “how” (our beliefs, convictions, behaviors and actions): In all we do, we exhibit collaboration, encouragement, respect, innovation, and service.
These statements have been approved by the Governing Board. They reflect who we are and will guide our activities for years to come.
The college is thrilled to welcome back faculty, staff, students and community members as it enters the new school year. Having said that, it’s our responsibility to maintain a safe learning environment. Our spaces now include ionizers, we are hosting vaccination pods, and we encourage all to do what they feel is necessary to protect themselves.
See you on campus!
J.D. ROTTWEILER, Ph.D., is president of Cochise College. Contact him at jdr@cochise.edu.