Hudson Valley Community College

Infobox_University
name = Hudson Valley Community College


motto = The Community's College
established = 1953
type = Public
faculty =
president = Dr. Andrew J. Matonak
students = 12,000
undergrad =
postgrad =
doctoral =
city = Troy
state = NY
country = USA
campus =
colors =
mascot =
nickname = Vikings
affiliations = State University of New York
website = http://www.hvcc.edu

Hudson Valley Community College, a SUNY associated two-year college, is located in Troy in Rensselaer County, New York. Although about eighty percent of the students are from the local area, the remainder are from other parts of New York, other states and from some 30 countries around the world.

Locally referred to as HVCC, the school has over 50 active clubs and organizations for students. Recent campus improvements included renovations to the Siek Campus Center and the creation of a new Administration/Classroom Building.

Hudson Valley Community College currently ranks as the largest undergraduate college in terms of enrollment in the Capital District. In 2008, 1,824 students received diplomas, making the Class of 2008 the largest in the history of the college.

Hudson Valley also has a growing [https://www.hvcc.edu/dl/index.html Distance Learning Program] , and many degrees can be completed fully online.

Two popular locations on campus are The Writing Center (on the upper level of the Library) and The Learning Assistance Center (on the lower level of the Library). The Writing Center offers assistance to students at any stage of the writing process, and The Learning Assistance Center offers help in math, study strategies, and other subjects such as biology, accounting, history, and sociology, among others.

The school's theatre was named after Troy native Maureen Stapleton in 1981.

The school currently has an enrollment of over 12,000 students, and is currently suffering from a severe lack of parking, especially in the fall, when one can find most of the lawns covered with the vehicles of late-comers to class. To deal with the need for increased student parking, the college announced in 2007 that it would take down two buildings behind the McDonough Sports Complex and expand student parking by at least 300 parking spots.

Academic Programs

The college offers more than 70 academic degree and certificate programs in four schools - The School of Business; The School of Engineering and Industrial Technologies; The School of Health Sciences; and The School of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The college also oversees the [https://www.hvcc.edu/eoc Capital District Educational Opportunity

History

Growing out of the Veteran’s Vocational School in downtown Troy, New York, the college was founded in 1953 as the Hudson Valley Technical Institute. Initially, the role of the college was to provide practical hands-on vocational training for veterans returning from World War II. Dwight Marvin, editor of the Troy Record, was one of several community leaders who pressed to create a broader mission for the college, which in 1959 would be officially known as Hudson Valley Community College. Marvin served as the first chairman of the college’s Board of Trustees. The college initially was housed in the former Earl and Williams shirt collar factory building at Broadway and Seventh Avenue, but by 1955, the board of trustees was already looking for a larger location to site a campus. The trustees surveyed likely sites for a new campus and in 1956 announced that the Williams farm, which straddled the Troy-North Greenbush border, would be the chosen site.

The new campus was initially opposed by a group of Rensselaer County taxpayers, who argued that the county should not have to pay for half the cost of the campus construction if fewer than half the students were county residents. What would became a landmark case for community colleges in New York State eventually was heard by the state’s Court of Appeals. On June 25, 1958, the court upheld the county’s right to fund half of the cost of construction and paved the way for capital construction at community colleges around the state. The new campus, with five Indiana limestone buildings, was completed in 1961 and the former factory building was abandoned and eventually torn down.

Presidents

Otto V. Guenther, 1953 - 1965 Otto Guenther was selected in 1953 to be the first president of the newly established Hudson Valley Technical Institute. In 1957, President Guenther received approval from the Rensselaer County Board of Supervisors to begin construction of a new campus on the border of Troy and the town of North Greenbush. That transition to a newly created suburban campus and the growth of the student body were Guenther’s legacy as president.

James J. Fitzgibbons, 1965 - 1979 James Fitzgibbons presided over impressive growth in the college’s student body and in the number of academic programs offered. During his tenure, Hudson Valley’s curricula grew from 18 to 38 academic programs. Five new buildings on campus also were completed during the Fitzgibbons presidency. The Fitzgibbons Health Technologies Center was dedicated to the president in 1982.

Joseph J. Bulmer, 1979 - 1996The longest-tenured president of the college, Joseph J. Bulmer served Hudson Valley for 17 years. A nuclear engineer with a distinguished career at General Electric, Dr. Bulmer was responsible for increasing the college’s image in the Capital Region. The establishment of distance learning, a Center for Effective Teaching, expanded services for disabled students and the addition of the McDonough Sports Complex, Cogan Hall, Fitzgibbons Health Technologies Center, the Hy Rosenblum Administration Center and the Bulmer Telecommunications Center were accomplished during Bulmer’s presidency.

Stephen M. Curtis, 1996 - 1998Dr. Stephen Curtis came to Hudson Valley Community College after serving as interim president of Borough of Manhattan Community College. While at Hudson Valley, Dr. Curtis led improvements to the college’s distance learning program and helped link the college to several high schools around the region through interactive television. Dr. Curtis currently serves as president of the Community College of Philadelphia.

John L. Buono, 1998 - 2003The only alumnus to serve as president of Hudson Valley Community College, John Buono had a lengthy career in public service before accepting the offer to serve as interim president of his alma mater. Buono served as Rensselaer County Executive from 1986 to 1995 and was then tapped by Governor George Pataki to head the New York State Dormitory Authority, where he served as director for three years. Buono’s tenure as president of the college saw the creation of the Viking Child Care Center, Guenther Enrollment Services Center and the Joseph L. Bruno Stadium. He also established the college’s Workforce Development Institute, which provides non-credit, customized training for business and industry. He currently serves as chairman of the NYS Thruway Board of Directors.

Marco J. Silverstri, Interim President, 2004 - 2005 Prior to serving as interim president, Dr. Silvestri served as the college’s vice president for administration since 1984. During Dr. Silvestri’s tenure, the college received reaffirmation of its accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Universities.

Andrew J. Matonak, 2005 – Present“Drew” Matonak assumed the presidency on April 18, 2005. Prior to arriving at Hudson Valley, he served as president of Northwest Iowa Community College in Sheldon, Iowa, for three years. Dr. Matonak has led the college to record enrollment over the past three years.

External links

* [http://www.hvcc.edu/ Hudson Valley Community College]
* [http://www.suny.edu/ The State University of New York]
* [http://www.msche.org/ Middle States Commission on Higher Education]