Dear Ithaca College community,
The final meeting of Ithaca College Board of Trustees for the 2017–18 academic year took place on campus Thursday through Saturday, May 17–19, deliberately scheduled to give the members of our board the opportunity to fully participate in Commencement celebrations. Trustees enjoyed connecting with one another and with members of our campus community at the Senior Class Donor Luncheon, the Commencement Eve concert and fireworks, and of course, on Commencement day. The weekend was a spectacular way for us to cap off a productive series of meetings, and we felt tremendous pride in our community, our institution, and our graduating students.
The board’s meeting agenda was ambitious and robust, and you are invited to read about the business items we discussed and took action on in the news story below. In addition to the board’s business, on Friday we held an open session for faculty, staff, and students to connect with the leadership of our board. This is the second such session, and the board remains committed to regularly providing these opportunities.
It is our sincere pleasure to share that trustees unanimously voted to appoint current vice chair Dave Lissy ’87 as the next chair of the board and Jim Nolan ’77 as the next vice chair. Dave and Jim’s new leadership roles will begin on June 1 and each will serve a three-year term in that position. The college is in incredibly good hands with Dave and Jim, and we offer them our deepest congratulations. You can read more about the board’s leadership succession in this news story.
On a personal note, I, Tom, would like to give my deepest appreciation to the board and to the Ithaca College family for the privilege of serving as chair for the past six years. It was a true honor. Thank you.
We both want to offer our thanks to the college community and to the members of our board for their dedication, focus, time, and expertise throughout this academic year. Our May meeting concluded a productive, exciting year, and we look forward to seeing how our engaged, invested community of trustees, administrators, alumni, faculty, staff, and students can shape the future of this college that we love.
The next scheduled meeting for the board of trustees will be from Wednesday, October 17, to Friday, October 19, on campus. Please stay tuned, too, for the date and time of the corresponding open session for faculty, staff, and students.
Have a wonderful summer.
Sincerely,
Tom Grape ’80
Chair, Ithaca College Board of Trustees
Shirley M. Collado
President, Ithaca College