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By
JoAnn, Rolle, Ph.D., Dean School of Business at Medgar Evers College, City University of New York (CUNY)
This week was my birthday. I had not planned any special event. I had not given thought to what to do. I was returning from medical leave and did not think to schedule myself out on vacation for my birthday. As a result, I had several meetings scheduled with faculty and staff.
As I reflect on my life as a higher education administrator, I think of the true meaning of a birthday – the day we enter the universe to serve our purpose. When we look at our lives and the lives of those we touched a birthday has special meaning. During my birthday week, I continued in faculty and board meetings. There were a few special events. I attended the WonderWomen of Diversity Fall Discussion: How Bias in Economics Hurts us all. Today as in the past, there are few Black Ph.d. women economists like myself in spite of the efforts on both private and public sector stakeholders. Why? I am not sure but as we continue to seek to improve outcomes in the future, hopefully, more WonderWomen in economics will evolve to help create meaningful contributions to the dialogue.
Later during my birthday week, I attended the Economic Club of New York face-to-face session with the Department of Commerce Secretary. More on the session can be found in my Linkedin post.
ECNY December Session
On the last working day of my birthday week, I delivered the closing keynote address for the 10th Annual Conference on Restructuring the Global Economy (ROGE). The closing keynote focused on adapting teaching and learning for the needs of our stakeholders during Covid. The presentation included experiences from faculty, students, administrators, industry, and community leaders. What we found is that the pandemic helped us create an ecosystem that supported our common mission of community, professional and personal growth, and development.
Closing keynote to ROGE conference
On Saturday morning I listened to the graduation ceremony for Glasgow Caledonian New York (GCNYC )- for the Common Good, where I am a board member. I have always loved graduations – they are the beginning and ending transitions for many that we serve.
Its been a long week of reflection and celebration my way – the way of an educator who is passionate about the business of teaching and learning. I love change and look forward to the changes that new birthdays bring. Onward to 2022 and the future of work and entrepreneurship.
JoAnn, Rolle, Ph.D., Dean School of Business at Medgar Evers College, City University of New York (CUNY)
JoAnn Rolle, Ph.D., Dean of Business at Medgar Evers College, City University of New York (CUNY) has been featured by The Network Journal as one of the top 25 African American women in Business. Dean Rolle is a Honorary Fellow Center for Business & Economic Research and has posted more than 100 business and entrepreneurship related articles on Linkedin. Dean Rolle is also listed as a media source at WMC SHESOURCE Her most recent articles and keynotes are on The Future of Work & Entrepreneurship for the underserved. She collaborates with an international group of practitioners and academics, Dr. Jacqueline Kisato, Dr. Micah Crump, Dr. Alicia Reid, Dr. Roberto Acevedo, Dr. Byron Price, and Ms.Nia Rock.
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