Campus Compact of New York & Pennsylvania (CCNYPA) has named SUNY Broome President Kevin E. Drumm chairman of its board of trustees.
Dr. Laurie Worrall, the former executive director of New York Campus Compact, was appointed the executive director of CCNYPA on July 1.
“Kevin Drumm’s leadership exemplifies the public purposes of higher education in action. His experience as a community college president makes him especially suited for leadership in Campus Compact of New York and Pennsylvania as we focus on full participation for all students in our democracy,” said Campus Compact President Andrew Seligsohn.
“I am thrilled that Laurie Worrall will take on leadership of Campus Compact of New York and Pennsylvania. It’s a rare and fortunate situation to have an organization with two extraordinarily talented leaders working collaboratively to steward an organization into the next phase,” he continued. “Laurie’s experience as an executive director in the Campus Compact network and as a leader of campus based engagement efforts make her a perfect fit to build on the historic strength of Campus Compact of New York and Pennsylvania.”
Campus Compact is a national coalition of more than 1,000 colleges and universities committed to the public purposes of higher education. Based in Boston, the national organization strives to build democracy through civic education and community development. State and regional Campus Compacts, such as CCNYPA, provided place-based support for member institutions, including administrators, faculty, staff and students as they pursue community-based teaching, scholarship and action in the service of the public good.
CCNYPA has 101 members, including public and private institutions, community colleges, and four-year colleges and universities.
Enrolling nearly half of all students nationwide and especially first-generation students and those of marginalized backgrounds, community colleges are central to Campus Compact’s mission of ensuring that higher education contributes to the health and strength of our democracy. The organization believes that preparing students for democracy and for the workforce, careers and continuing education are mutually reinforcing.
The Truman Commission report, which spurred the creation of the community college system after the end of World War II, referred to them as “democracy’s college,” Dr. Drumm reflected.
“By making a higher education available to anyone for the first time in world history, community colleges have long played an historical role in advancing our democracy,” President Drumm said. “With that in mind, I deeply believe in Campus Compact’s essential work in community engagement and look forward to seeing it expand – educating students not only for their future careers, but as active and engaged community citizens.”
