Trying to understand how we can make the world a better place through education and finding better ways to do it (no....really...I'm not being corny here).
Everyone should be reading
@HC_Richardson
and her daily Letters From An American. Today she points out that the ports logjam is being quickly cleared up, unemployment claims are at a 52 year low, real wages are up 13%, we now have a massive and long needed infrastructure bill.
In light of today's SCOTUS decision to deprive women of their most basic civil rights, SNHU will cover travel expenses for any SNHU employee who must travel to access reproductive healthcare not available in their home state.
#lifeinatheocracy
Announcing today the creation of a $1m emergency fund for all SNHU students and employees adversely impacted by the federal govt shutdown and furlough. Emails have gone out to the SNHU community. No should be facing hunger or seeing their housing at risk because of broken govt.
Was happy to announce today that SNHU will provide 5000 meals to kids in Manchester each of the next five weekends. Worked with the City (they have the week days covered). Will extend if we have to. No kids should go to bed hungry.
#InItTogether
My first look at the actual book. So many people to thank, thrill at holding the physical object finally, and some (maybe a lot) nervousness about its reception.
Checking into my hotel. Front desk person asks if I want my room tended to each day.
Me: “If I say no, will someone have fewer hours that they otherwise want?”
She: “Yes, that’s exactly what will happen.”
Me: “I would like my room tended to each day.”
Her: “We all thank you.”
We believe that the scope and severity of the recession will make traditional, residential education out of the reach of too many. We've made a decision to move to a $10k annual tuition rate for campus-based programs and re-imagine their delivery:
SNHU is partnering with the City of Manchester, Catholic Medical Center and the Elliot Hospital, the National Guard, and the State of NH to stand up an alternative care site for when our hospitals become overcrowded. It's ready to go when they need it.
#inthistogether
SNHU listed as the
#1
best employer in the state of NH. Take good care of your people and they will take good care of your students. I've always been proud of our people, but in the pandemic they have stepped up in countless ways.
We said our final good bye to Annie today, our sweet old Labrador Retriever. She found us when we needed her and taught us important lessons: savor food, get good rest, greet every stranger like an old friend, love your family.
We just donated 2000 bottles of hand sanitizer to City departments in need, especially fire and police departments. Shift to remote work gave us an over supply.
#togetherwewin
ay, here’s a first. Delivered a diploma to Emily Walton, a cast member in Come From Away (amazing!!!), who finished her degree with us during the Broadway shutdown. We delivered her degree during the curtain call tonight. What a thrill. My Broadway debut!!
Our daughter got dirty looks and comments for wearing a mask to the grocery store. Aggressive women in line ignores distancing and mumbles, “Everyone knows you can’t catch it in the air.” Two-thirds of people in the store maskless. It’s a medieval level of ignorance.
@IlhanMN
@SusannaDW
Refugees -- they get the job done! This is so cool. SNHU is bringing American college degrees to refugees in Kenya, Malawi, S. Africa, Rwanda, and Lebanon. Our students in each place are remarkable human beings. You're an inspiration to them and to us.
In the two hours after our letter to prospective students went out, we received more deposits than we did all of last week. Our team is reporting tearfully appreciative calls.
What’s everyone doing today? How about graduating? In just a couple of hours we begin Commencement Weekend! 40,000 people descending on Manchester, 4 ceremonies over two days, and a LOT of handshakes. 21,000 graduates, 21,000 great stories — that’s impact.
Commencement impact -- 43,000 graduates, 50 states, 89 countries, 4100 military graduates. Proud to see 59 SNHU employees also earning their degrees today.
I have always loved NH’s”live free or die” approach to staying out of people’s personal lives. Live your best life. Now the NH GOP has introduced 30 bills infringing on the rights of LGBTQ+ people. That is NOT the NH way. It is also mean spirited and cruel.
Now I know I’ve made it. I appear in a children’s book! It was so nice for Debbie Cavalier to include me in her new books for kids whose parents are going back to college. A highlight every graduation is the cheering of kids for their parents as they walk across the stage.
DeElva Harrell completes her degree while receiving chemotherapy for her breast cancer. Amazing grit. Cancer gets set aside today while we celebrate her accomplishment. Proud to be president at SNHU, and serving these students.
Pat and I had been together for 8 years before deciding to get married (33 years ago today). The question we asked about marriage was “Will we laugh as much as we do now?” The answer remains yes and here we are.
@RobertS45298013
We have told SNHU employees that staying home when ill or when caring for someone who is ill will not count against their PTO days. We have to work together to counter the epidemic.
SNHU has been named to the "Best Colleges To Work For" list for the 13th year in a row, the only university or college in the country to be listed every year since the inception of the list. Particularly proud to see our work on diversity and inclusion highlighted.
The questions I often mull over these days:
What does education look like for young people who love learning, but hate school?
How do we make learning a lifestyle?
How do we reinvent assessment so it is not about power, but about support?
A heartbreaking call and request came in this morning. SNHU is now donating iPads to a local hospital and a hospice care center so families can be with loved ones -- at least virtually -- in their final days and hours. The pandemic is robbing us of our rituals for leave taking.
Had a little medical procedure today (all routine and just fine) and the warm and welcoming woman at the desk is mother of one of our advisors, the nurse who brought me in is alum and now instructor, and the nurse who had me in recovery is an alum. I was feeling SNHU love today.
Getting a steady stream of emails protesting our vaccination requirement for campus students. Boilerplate stuff spouting bad science and bad law, asking what reason we have for such a requirement. We have 600,000 good reasons and students, employees, and community to keep safe.
Only good thing about having my flight from DC to NH cancelled was running into Joy Lowe, military spouse, mother of two, and recent SNHU graduate (bachelors and masters). I have 4 states to visit to hit 50 and her home state of OK is one -- I promised to bring her a diploma.
@IChotiner
@TriciaLockwood
This is beyond shameful. It is a national disgrace and will be remembered as a stain on our history. What has happened to our country?
We reassure ourselves that the country has been through harder times, but NO PRESIDENT has ever suggested moving the November election, NO PRESIDENT has ever suggested he might not accept the election result, and NO PRESIDENT has failed us so miserably. The democracy is at risk.
My Aspen Institute Ascend colleague Rev. Raphael Warnock has been elected to the US Senate, Georgia’s first Black Senator. History. And a good man is about to make DC a better place. What a way to start the day!
@ReverendWarnock
@AspenAscend
This is Hugh, now renamed Smokey. Not sure he was exactly authorized before, but now using my presidential powers and designating him a “service hamster” and allowing him to stay on campus.
For the 12th year in a row, SNHU was named to the Best Colleges to Work For list. There’s a strong link between our team’s sense of mission, good care of people, and best in class support of students. I work with the best colleagues.
SNHU makes the Best Colleges to Work For List for the 11th year in a row, every year since the list was launched and on the Honor Roll every year since its inception. Top categories? Embrace of the individual, pride in community work, commitment to mission. Love this place.
I have a new book coming out in September and just signed off on the cover, which makes it feel real. Yes, I've had no social life for the last two years....
Dear 2021. While I appreciate the 7 day trial period subscription, I can’t say I’m loving you yet. I was considering cancelling, but if you can extend to January 21, I’ll try to stay open minded.
Hey SNHU employees, remember that our EAP program can help with anxiety or stress and other needs. Look for an HR memo today. Also, we are adding $100,000 to the SNHU Cares emergency fund for employees facing unexpected financial hardship during this public health crisis.
A day full of gratitude and emotion for 20 years of working with amazing people in service of remarkable students. I'm so proud of both our people and our students.
I will be unavailable from 8:00 to 8:30 am every day for the next four weeks as I will be at morning mass. I made a deal with someone. Someone very powerful, though we have been out of touch for a while. A promise is a promise.
Was at a high end party here and feeling a bit out of place (though everyone was super nice) and then ran into Matt Damon and we talked Patriots for almost thirty minutes. Finally, a fellow Pats fan! Who also happened to be Matt Damon, who is about the nicest person imaginable.
Wow, what a day. Incredibly grateful to the SNHU Board of Trustees for this honor. This award winning building — now Paul Hall I hope — is my favorite on campus. Love that Richard Whitney, the noted painter, did my portrait, as he did for my two predecessors.
Toured our newly renovated space at 55 S. Commercial Street yesterday. Will be nice to be located at the Mill now and love seeing the old neon sign restored and decorating a wall. The space is gorgeous and with so much WFH, we now have lot more creative and collaborative space.
Refusal to condemn white supremacists? "Stand back and stand by" to white supremacists? Can you support a racist president and not be a racist? Not buying it any more. Looking past racism is complicity.
We are assembling internal resources on how to do online education to make available to our colleague institutions. Want to help those making the transition and happy to share what we have learned. Time to pull together.
Vaccination site on campus, operated by the National Guard. Happy to be partnering with them to make this happen. Best part? Pat got her first shot today (I don’t qualify yet).
Just had my second vaccination (Team Moderna). Love seeing so many SNHU folks now vaccinated as well. It feels great to have protection against the virus. It also feels like an act of community support. How we keep each other safe.
#gettheshot
An amazing alum in Taiwan shipped 7000 masks to me, disposable and reusable. Now distributing them to those in need. Here’s a box ready for Manchester Community Health. She loved SNHU and wanted to help. Our alums are the best.
My little gift to the Class of 2020 (Hollywood won't be calling anytime soon). We hate not having regular Commencement, but are incredibly proud of you.
#SNHU2020
Heading off later today to.....wait for it........Australia. Yep, that amazing continent AND country, land of the kangaroo and koala! Never been, so excited to see it.
We today launched our new “Challenger” program: MS in Business Analytics, online, 12 months, $12k tuition. From Python to SQL to Tableau and more, prep for a booming field. The team did amazing work.
At the latest count, SNHU serves 135,558 learners across a wide variety of programs here and abroad. The goal is that every one of them feels a high level of personalized service and support. At our trustee mtg last week, the themes were access, equity, and social justice.
Don't often get to start the day by signing a $100m deal, but that's what we did on Friday! New 1700 spot garage in the Mill Yard and an expanded footprint there, where we can now accommodate 500 more employees. Cements our commitment to Manchester.
We announced today that we will extend remote study and work through the fall. The Task Force considered every detail and made its recommendation only after a lot of deliberation, though it disappoints us all to not bring everyone back.
SNHU is announcing the state's first collegiate e-sports team today. I'm pretty intrigued by the whole phenomenon and the meteoric growth of the industry. I need guidance on what system to order. Need to get into the game.
The little girl next door was giving away her art to any interested passerby. It’s now on our refrigerator, reminding us that happy days will be back and we’ll get beyond the pandemic if we are smart, socially distance, and give science time to develop anti-virals and a vaccine.
Me explaining the Pats 28-3 comeback over the Falcons, why The Sapranos is the best tv show ever, how trickle down economics is a GOP scam to screw working people, how Crocs are a fashion travesty, and…..well, so much to teach and to learn together.
My message to our students regarding our country: We have created a $5m Social Justice Fund to address inequities that impact college completion for students of color. Will also expand our network of partnerships to bring programs into those communities.
A 250 bed operation stood up in just 72 hours. The Elliot and CMC will use it when/if they need it. Hope we never have to open it up for use, but if we don't take stronger measures, I'm afraid we'll need it and more.
It's early Sat morning in Japan and woke up to learn that my friend of 38 years, Clay Christensen, has passed away. Clay's research deeply informed my work. His heart made me a better person. I'm so deeply grateful for both. This was our last time together.
WMUR story points out that our letting the fire department last year train on one of the old dorms before we tore it down proved to be very valuable experience in fighting last night's fire. Big thanks to both MFD and HFD.
By switching to OER in just 8 Gen Ed courses, we saved our students $4.7m in text book costs over the last two years. Great work by our Learning Resources team!
I’ve had the John Lewis memorial service on in the background and struggling to focus on work. Being reminded when our leaders called upon our ideals, our fellowship as Americans, our shared sacrifice for the good of all. It is almost unbearable and supremely inspiring at once.