February 19, 2025
Reporter: Gail Lyman
Wednesday, March 5th meeting:Liz Kreitinger, Executive Director
Cayuga Lake Watershed Network
MOAKLEY HOUSE and on Zoom
WELCOME & TRADITIONS
NOTE: you can watch previous meetings by going to our YouTube channel!
After President Angela Sullivan called the meeting to order and greeted those on Zoom, she invited all to join her in the Four-Way Test—which was followed by Angela’s fifth element, “Will it be fun?”
Angela introduced our guests from the podium:
- Pat Boulogne, guest of Chris Alexander and Jeremiah Craig
- Elizabeth Brando, guest of Angela Sullivan
- Ivan Yalanzhi, Business Administrator, Finger Lakes ReUse
And we had two visiting Rotarians:
- Jim Wood, Troy Rotary Club (transferring to our club)
- Bob Balk, Moravia Rotary Club
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Todd Nau reminded us that our partnership with Finger Lakes ReUse is back up and running for 2025. We will meet every other Thursday from 5 to 8 PM, beginning on February 20
th. There will be goodies, music and fun at each sorting! After most sorts, there is a gathering for drink and good burgers at Longshots located next door. Sign up online
HERE.
The next Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) learning event will be held on Saturday, March 1
st at the Johnson City Senior High School, 666 Reynolds Rd. in Johnson City (8:30 AM–3:30PM), with breakfast and lunch provided by the Owego Kitchen. Our club has some scholarship funds available to help members attend. Come and improve your Rotary IQ! Register for the event
here.
Registration for the CNY Rotary Conference of Champions is open! It is a wonderful and uplifting event to be held April 4–6 at the Hilton Downtown Albany. Come and see what is happening around our district and the world. Info can be found
here.
NEW MEETING LOCATION! Starting with our March 5th meeting, the Ithaca Rotary Club will convene at Moakley House (215 Warren Rd.) in Ithaca. The cost for lunch will be $25 per person, which includes all the real costs of an event each week. This includes the meal, space costs, technology, gratuity, and tax. There will be a coffee and dessert option for $5 per person—and parking is free.
Angela announced that we have a new “Rotarian in the Wild!” Aly Evans is the winner for being spotted wearing Rotary gear, and Gilbert Hammer won for spotting a “Rotarian in the Wild.”
NEW MEMBER INTRODUCTION
Aly Evans introduced new member Paul Debbie, who is Director of Research at the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI). Paul looks forward to telling us more about BTI’s research at the June 18th meeting.
INTERNATIONAL SERVICE COMMITTEE
Amplifying Peace Building through Youth Training and Action: African Harmony Collective (formerly Harmony for Families & Communities), Malawi ($2500)
David Kay has been a member of Mediators Beyond Borders International (MBBI) for the last decade during which time Rotary International became a partner with MBBI in people-centered peace building. This Rotary/MBBI partnership enabled “Rotary members to train with MBBI to sharpen their mediation dialogue and other conflict transformation skills.” Also as Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Senior Associate, he has taken the lead for extension programming in the areas of climate change and sustainable energy. These connections allowed him to offer professional assistance when a tropical storm hit Malawi in February 2024.
David’s professional experiences have made him a good fit as the contact for our International Service grant, “Amplifying Peace Building through Youth Training and Action.”
LAST WEEK'S PRESENTATION
“TC3: Your Community’s College for 50 Years and Beyond”
Jean McPheeters introduced Amy D. Kremenek, the fifth president of the Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3). She received a B.S. from the Newhouse School of Public Communications and an M.P.A. from the Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs, both at Syracuse University—and later a Doctor of Management in Community College Policy & Administration from the University of Maryland Global Campus.
Before starting her talk, Amy thanked Rotarians Beverly Baker and Jean McPheeters for serving on the TC3’s Board of Trustees.
Amy began her presentation with fast facts and a description of the makeup of TC3’s student body. As a public two-year community college, its student enrollment looks quite different from that of a four-year college. Of TC3’s 5,009 student enrollment for 2024–5, 65% are concurrent (students earning both high school and college credits from a class taught by a high school instructor and approved by TC3), 51% of the non-concurrent students are over 21 years old, 4 out of 10 are part-time students, and 83% of the student body comes from Tompkins, Cortland, and surrounding counties.
Amy identified national trends that have impacted TC3: an increased scrutiny of higher education, an increased demand for workforce programs, a crowded higher education marketplace, post-COVID challenges still remaining, and decreased confidence in a four-year education.
A demand for more workforce programs has led our NYS governor’s proposal for free tuition, an emphasis on course study aligning with high demand fields such as Advanced Manufacturing, Artificial Intelligence, Construction, Cyber security, Engineering, and Green/Renewables—plus growth in vocational fields such as Construction/Trades, Mechanics and Repair, Precision Production, and Computer Science. The demand for these high technology areas usually involves greater investment in infrastructure and professorial development, which mean greater economic challenges to the community college.
A crowded higher education marketplace, Amy asserts, also offers its own challenges of relentless competition for enrolled students since high school graduating class sizes are decreasing, the crowding of traditional community college space, demographical shifts in the student body and a strong job market. Demographical shifts are showing the potential for increasing adult enrollment at a time of decrease in demand from recent high school graduates. Also, Amy stated that as the job market improves, enrollment at TC3 decreases. But the converse is also true that when the job market becomes tight, enrollment increases.
To increase enrollment to pre-COVID levels (Amy calls this TC3’s “North Star”), Amy described TC3’s initiatives and priorities: 1) investment in new website with a focus on careers, 2) add two licensed mental health counselors and a case manager, 3) offer more online courses, 4) align students with state and regional employers through direct-to-work programs, 5) work towards a right-size college footprint for today’s needs and resources, and 6) grow grants and private philanthropy.
Amy also explained TC3’s difficult decision to close Coltivare. She stated that Colivare has been significantly relying on college resources from the TC3 Foundation to make up the shortfall between greater expenses to revenue generation. Amy further explains that the purpose of the TC3 Foundation has been to support the community college and students as its core objective—and not to run a restaurant.
The Culinary Center, including the teaching labs, will continue to provide state-of-the art learning space for TC3’s culinary arts students. For the designated restaurant and event space, TC3 is pursuing options for a possible partnership or subleasing arrangement with the stipulation that it will cause no negative impact to the academic operations in the Culinary Center.
Speaking of Coltivare, President Angela asked for Joyce, a super dedicated and sole remaining employee, to come forward. Angela acknowledged Joyce with a token of our appreciation for all the work she has done to make our Rotary meetings run smoothly.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Acknowledging our fast changing world environment, Susan Salton’s Thought for the Day shared quotes from two individuals that she respected as creative thinkers and change makers:
- “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t live the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.” ~ Steve Jobs
- “The world as we have created it is a process of thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” ~ Albert Einstein
Susan left us with this personal insight: “Transitions of any kind can create uncertainty,” but she believes that they “are often a means of achieving a new outlook.”
COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT
As part of the Community Health Improvement Process, Tompkins County Whole Health (TCWH) launched the
Community Health Survey. This survey is an opportunity for the community to share ideas and perspectives about health in Tompkins County.
CHI Tompkins is a process that includes the Community Health Assessment and Improvement Plan, which sets priority health goals for Tompkins County. This round will inform health planning for the period 2025–2030. This survey and the process are organized by TCWH, along with Cayuga Health and community partners. The survey will close at the end of February 2025 and is for people who live in Tompkins County and are 18+.
NEW MEMBER APPLICATIONS
Membership Type: Corporate Affiliate
Employer: Ithaca Downtown Conference Center
Primary Member: Suzanne Smith Jablonski
Position: Executive Director, Downtown Ithaca Local Development Corp.
Affiliate Member: Katherine Taylor
Position: General Manager
Affiliate Member: Taryn Mullenix
Position: Director of Sales
Sponsor: Frank Towner
Welcome to our new club member Jim Wood. Jim was previously a member of the Troy (PA) Rotary Club and has recently moved to the Ithaca area. Welcome Jim!
UPCOMING MEETINGS
02/26 No formal meeting
03/05 Liz Kreitinger, Executive Director, Cayuga Lake Watershed Network
03/12 HANWASH, Haiti National Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Initiative, “How
Rotary partners with the government and people of Haiti to address critical
needs” (via Zoom)
03/19 Dr. La Jerne “Terry” Cornish, President, Ithaca College, “Leading in Turbulent
Times”
03/26 No formal meeting
06/18 Paul Debbie, Director of Research, Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI)
THANK YOU ROTARIANS
Newsletter Reporter: Gail Lyman
Program Chair: Beverly Baker (February)
Photographer: Mike Brown
Greeter: Aly Evans
Newsletter Editor: Loralyn Light
Setup/Teardown: Richard Kops, Susan Salton
Cashier/Kettle Watcher: Kati Flynn
Audio/Visual Setup: Bez Thomas, Mike Brown
Recording Archive: Paul Martin; click
hereClub Service Facilitator: June Losurdo
