The year was 1986. Community College of Vermont was located in a building called Wasson Hall in the Vermont State Office complex in Waterbury, Vermont. Ken Kalb was president of the college. This was when I was hired to become a full-time secretary in the External Degree Program. I spent a total of three years working with the program director and TOP coordinators as well. TOP (XXXX) sponsored real estate refresher courses, which involved producing flyers, having them printed, using bulk mail, then attending and supervising the seminar.
I did have someone from the staff to assist me.
At the time there were a total of eight CCV sites: Montpelier, Burlington, St. Johnsbury, Springfield, Brattleboro, White River Junction, Morrisville and St. Albans. Wasson Hall in Waterbury was the administrative office for all of them. This meant all grades from all of the sites’ courses at the end of the semester came into the registrar’s office where they were checked and transposed to the students’ records. I remember this because I eventually became assistant then full-time registrar.
When I came to CCV, I had been a RIF (reduction in force) from a junior college where I taught part time then full time. As a result of my background, I would teach computer courses for CCV in Montpelier and at the Barre Vocational Center in the evenings in addition to my regular work.
When I became the registrar of CCV, 1989-1999, I was a member of a standing committee for Assessment of Prior Learning, which reviewed portfolio evaluations in the area of Business/Secretarial Science. The committee recommended credit awards for prior learning to students attending CCV. This was accomplished through a course entitled Assessment of Prior Learning where students wrote a portfolio detailing life learning and obtaining documentary evidence of that learning from professionals in the field in which credit was being asked.
The staff at CCV planned a luncheon with different recipes from the group. It was very successful and everyone looked forward to them. (I don’t remember how often the committee was scheduled!) However, someone had the idea to collect recipes of favorites from staff and put out a Recipes Book by CCV staff. It happened. Talking about food, I received in the mail a clipping of the Burlington Free Press dated Thursday, November 27, 2003. On this clipping it suggested gifts for the twelve days of Christmas provided by readers. Unbeknownst to me, my colleague, Nancy Severance of Charlotte, sent in my beans recipe for the ninth day of Christmas! On the Burlington Free Press clipping there was JEANNINE’S BEANS recipe! What a surprise! Needless to say, Nancy had sent me the clipping at my home since I had retired from CCV. I still have that clipping. It sure brings back memories of a time of my life that I thoroughly enjoyed. We all worked hard, but we still found time to enjoy or lunches.
In my time as Registrar at CCV, the college underwent quite a few changes, especially in computer programs. As an example, we were finally able to print out computer-generated transcripts when transcripts were requested.
By this time Barbara Murphy, who was president after Ken Kalb, left CCV, and Tim Donovan became president. It was at this time that many of the changes came about in the college’s computer services. These changes improved our way of doing various procedures. We then became more efficient and faster overall. It was also about this time that CCV began to think of buying its own buildings rather than having sites renting space to carry on the college’s work.
I retired on the last day of December 1999, but I try to keep up with goings on at CCV. I am aware that the CCV administrative offices have now moved from Waterbury. They are now located in the building on Elm Street in Montpelier that used to be Woodbury College. This is across from the recreation field.
Currently Tim Donovan is now the Chancellor of the Vermont State Colleges system and Joyce Judy is the president of CCV.