About Hudson Valley Community College

Statement of Commitment

Hudson Valley Community College is committed to providing caring, personal, high-quality service at a reasonable cost to support students’ success in reaching and raising their goals.

Mission Statement

Hudson Valley Community College provides transformative, student-centered and high-quality educational opportunities that address the diverse needs of local and global communities.

Vision Statement

Deliver what the future demands. Hudson Valley Community College will meet the educational needs of a rapidly transforming world by leading today and anticipating tomorrow.

Core Values

Hudson Valley Community College is committed to:

LEADS – Leadership, Excellence, Accessibility, Diversity, Service

LEADERSHIP: Hudson Valley provides rigorous academic curricula and challenging co-curricular opportunities to promote the development of leadership qualities in students and to facilitate leadership development among faculty, staff, and students. Whether in our classrooms, labs, online environment, or throughout the Capital Region, Hudson Valley faculty, staff, and students lead the higher education landscape while developing the next generation of global citizens.

EXCELLENCE: Hudson Valley’s commitment to excellence impels faculty, staff, and students to consistently strive for outcomes that are exemplary rather than simply satisfactory. This striving for excellence touches on all aspects of life at our institution, from academic programs (oncampus, online, off-campus) to our environment, from student services to athletics, from publications to our daily activities. We celebrate our achievements and contributions to the greater society.

ACCESSIBILITY: Accessibility to high-quality education is vital to the growth and prosperity of the local, national, and international communities. Hudson Valley provides educational access to a diverse community of traditional and non-traditional learners in an environment that fosters lifelong learning and freedom of inquiry and expression.

DIVERSITY: Each individual must be able to work and learn in an atmosphere of respect, dignity, and acceptance. Our commitment to diversity requires each of us to continuously ensure that our interactions are respectful, protect free speech, and inspire academic freedom. Hudson Valley values equity, inclusion, and dignity for all. We recognize that our differences make us stronger. We take action when we observe someone being treated unfairly or in a demeaning manner.

SERVICE: Meaningful service to students is at the center of life at Hudson Valley, as is service by students, staff, and faculty to our greater community. We share skills and expertise to assist others through campus clinics, off-campus internships, service learning, and numerous volunteer opportunities to extend the culture of service well beyond our campus.

Historical Preamble

The college was created to respond to the needs of Rensselaer County and other nearby counties following World War II, and after the closing of the Veteran’s Vocational School in 1953. At first, the college’s programs were largely technical, but by 1960 the first science, business, and liberal arts programs were added. In the decades since, the college has steadily increased its offerings, both in degree and certificate programs, so that it is now comprehensive in its majors and mission.

Since its inception in 1953, Hudson Valley Community College has been sponsored by Rensselaer County under the supervision of the State University of New York. As one of the 30 community colleges in the state, all of its programs are registered and approved by the New York State Department of Education* with the authority to award certificates and associate’s degrees in arts, science, applied science, and occupational studies.

Hudson Valley Community College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Commission on Recognition of Postsecondary Accreditation. Many of the college’s academic programs are also accredited by specialized national professional accrediting associations.

In 1966, the college began administering the Capital District Educational Opportunity Center to better serve the needs of the community.

* New York State Education Department Office of Higher Education and the Profession’s Cultural Education Center, Room 5B28, Albany, NY 12230, (518) 474-5851

Goals and Objectives

1. Enhance and promote teaching excellence and academic success.

1.1 Provide faculty with a variety of resources and opportunities for professional development.
1.2 Provide a variety of resources and opportunities to meet the academic and technological needs of students.
1.3 Develop, encourage and support effective and innovative teaching and learning environments and approaches that will assist the college in adapting to changing student academic needs.    
1.4 Create opportunities for student engagement and learning outside the classroom.
1.5 Maintain and enhance an environment that supports student goal attainment, such as transfer, graduation, employment and    personal/professional enrichment.
1.6 Review, revise and/or develop effective and innovative academic courses and programs in response to identified needs.
1.7 Assess effectiveness in the teaching and learning environment, to ensure that the goals and standards of the college’s academic programs are achieved.

2. Develop and support a student-centered collegial environment.

2.1 Provide comprehensive academic and non-academic support services.
2.2 Maintain and enhance a systematic and integrated approach to retention, student persistence and success.
2.3 Maintain and enhance a comprehensive enrollment management system.
2.4 Provide effective academic advising for all students.
2.5 Maintain a comprehensive scheduling system and course schedule that is responsive to student needs.
2.6 Promote awareness of student support services, college policies and campus-sponsored events and activities.
2.7 Foster student responsibility and engagement in their education.

3. Promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within the college community.

3.1 Develop and promote institutional programs and processes that embrace diversity, equity and inclusion.
3.2 Promote an environment of diversity, equality and respect for all members of the campus community.
3.3 Increase the recruitment, retention and success of both students and employees from under-represented groups.

4. Create and sustain a technological environment that is supportive of all academic and administrative needs.

4.1 Provide for continuous review and upgrading of technology as it serves academic and administrative applications.
4.2 Maintain secure, reliable and redundant administrative and academic information systems

5. Maintain and improve administrative services.

5.1 Promote communication, cooperation, collaboration and shared decision making.
5.2 Promote fiscal responsibility and accountability throughout the college.
5.3 Support the staff with the necessary resources and opportunities for professional and personal development.
5.4 Promote a respectful and collaborative approach to the bargaining process.
5.5 Provide a clean, safe and accessible environment that meets the needs of the campus community and is conducive to teaching  and learning.
5.6 Regularly assess the effectiveness of all administrative services.

6. Continue to develop and foster mutually beneficial relationships with the community.

6.1 Encourage and support administrative and academic partnerships with businesses, educational institutions and the community.
6.2 Promote the college as an exemplary educational institution by focusing on institution-wide marketing and the unique merits of    each program.
6.3 Promote and encourage community service by students, faculty, and staff.
6.4 Serve as a community, cultural and civic resource.
6.5 Promote and support college initiatives that generate external revenue.
6.6 Pursue external financial support for college programs and initiatives

Community Bill of Rights and Responsibilities

Hudson Valley Community College serves residents of the Capital Region and other areas in appropriate and diverse ways, striving always to improve their quality of life by offering affordable education, training and service. As a full-opportunity college dedicated to teaching and learning, Hudson Valley Community College makes it possible for every applicant to pursue an appropriate program of study. In the spirit of its mission, the Community Bill of Rights and Responsibilities states that:

All members of the college community have the right and responsibility to work and learn in a collegial setting:

• Where all members of the college community are treated with courtesy and respect;
• That has clear ethics and conduct codes with fair and consistently enforced consequences for noncompliance;
• That is safe, orderly and drug free;
• That has clearly stated, high academic standards and the instructional materials and equipment necessary to implement rigorous academic programs; and
• Where the college’s mission statement drives all academic and administrative operations and functions.

Campus Free Speech and Assembly

Below, please find the resolution outlining the guidelines regarding free speech and assembly on campus.

Resolution

WHEREAS, Hudson Valley Community College is a public college which shall make its facilities available for public discourse, subject to reasonable regulation as to the time, place and manner when its facilities may be used; and

WHEREAS the College wishes to identify a public area of the campus which will be the designated public forum to be used for the communication of ideas (“Designated Public Forum”); and

WHEREAS, the College maintains its right to designate and regulate the persons and activities permitted in areas of the campus that are deemed to be nonpublic (“Nonpublic Forum”) for the general well-being of academic, administrative and privacy purposes, it is

RESOLVED as follows:

Regulation of Time:

Black-out days: The College has “blacked-out” certain days on its calendar when the use of the campus and its facilities, including outdoor spaces are reserved exclusively for campus related activities that are at the core of its primary educational mission. During these black-out periods, no third party shall be allowed to use the Designated Public Forum for free speech purposes. The College defines the blackout periods to include the following:

1. During Spring break and the break between Summer sessions as set forth in the current academic calendar
2. During reading periods and examination periods as set forth on the then current academic calendar;
3. During graduation related activities and events, including commencements;
4. During major fall or spring campus-wide celebrations, such as speeches, concerts, weekend events, and Homecoming; and
5. During those days when the College is closed, including, but not limited to seven (7) calendar days prior to the start of the Fall and Spring semesters.

Regulation of Place:

The College designates the Student Pavilion bounded by the parking lot, Hudson Hall, the McDonough Sports Complex and Cross Road as its Designated Public Forum. The President or the Vice President for Administration and Finance may change the designation to another area of campus in order to meet the College’s operational needs and for the convenience, health, safety, and welfare of the campus community.

Regulation of Manner:

The College requires parties seeking to use the Designated Public Forum to submit an application for each use, three (3) or more business days before the use. The application shall be submitted to and the Vice President for Administration and Finance or his designee shall promulgate the form of application which shall not;

1. Inquire as to the content of the speech;
2. Charge an application fee or a fee for the use of the Designated Public Forum;
3. Impose insurance requirements;

Applicant shall be provided with, at the time of the application, a copy of the rules and regulations governing conduct on campus. Applicant shall be informed whether the application has been granted or denied on or before the morning of the requested use date. The application may be denied, for among others, either of the following reasons:

1. Space already reserved;
2. Request is for a black-out period.

If the application is denied, Applicant shall be informed of the next available date.

Applicant shall:

1. Park in the Grove lot or another area designated by the Vice President for Administration and Finance or his designee;
2. Pick up any brochures, leaflets, trash and any other debris brought onto Campus by Applicant or his/her volunteers, agents, servants or employees;
3. Not use amplification equipment, except that equipment supplied by the College and use it at a volume which will not disturb classes or business and administration functions,
4. Only occupy the Designated Public Forum between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.;
5. Be provided with a microphone/sound system, by the College, when requested for on the application, and upon approval of the Application.