How Do We Create a Community That is Welcoming and Diverse?

Among the special qualities that define Bay Path is our ability to adapt and innovate. We have always looked to the future and the needs of our students and community, and responded by developing cutting-edge academic programs, building new facilities and renovating spaces, and daring to launch new learning platforms—like SOUL at our American Women’s College—that redefine how students will be educated. While we are truly proud of these accomplishments, we are now undertaking an important initiative that will have a lasting impact on our community. With deliberation and much thought, through workshops, dialogue, and events, our faculty, staff, students, and Board of Trustees have been engaged in a deep examination of the culture of diversity and inclusion at Bay Path.

The question we are addressing is this: “How do we create a community that is welcoming and diverse?” This issue of the Bay Pathway is a response to that question, and reports on Bay Path’s commitment to fostering an environment in which diversity is welcomed and all individuals feel they belong. From the classroom to the Boardroom we seek to strengthen the diversity and inclusion of our community to ensure we are best serving our increasingly diverse student population, a population that reflects the shifting demographics of America.  The impact will be profound on businesses, organizations, schools, government, and higher education. The world is shifting, and Bay Path is shifting with it.

This issue also includes highlights from the previous months, including our incredibly successful 23rd Annual Women’s Leadership Conference, “Be Curious,” which featured the talented writer and producer Lena Waithe, and our 121st Commencement celebration which had over 1,000 graduates—a record number. And the campus was buzzing with excitement as our Bay Path Wildcats softball team won the NECC Championship. Winning the championship resulted in an automatic invitation to the NCAA Division III softball tournament—the first time ever in our University’s athletic history. Early in the morning, as the team prepared to board the bus to Ithaca, New York, for the tournament, students, faculty and staff gathered to cheer them on and celebrate their accomplishment.

We have been making strides in the classroom as well with several new academic degrees that further deepen our programs in the health sciences. Recruitment has already begun for fall enrollment for our Doctor of Nursing Practice and the Master of Public Health.

In closing, I look forward to greeting you at any of the many events that are held throughout the fall—visit the Bay Path website for the most up-to-date schedule, and, of course, follow us on Facebook and join us on Twitter.

Noel and I wish to extend to you a restful and joyful summer!

Carpe Diem!

Carol A. Leary