Westmoreland County Community College installed its sixth president, Dr. Daniel J. Obara, at an inauguration ceremony held Friday, October 16 at 2 p.m. in the Science Hall theater.
Gene P. Ciafre, chairman of the WCCC board of trustees, presided over the ceremony, while Judith Scheeren, associate professor of computer technology, served as grand marshal and delivered the welcome.
During the ceremony, Ciafre presented the presidential medallion to Obara who then delivered remarks.
In his inaugural address, Obara acknowledged his family – his wife Ann and his children, David, Daniel, Elizabeth and Andrew. He also recognized two individuals in attendance who played important roles in the college’s early history: S. Hartley Johnston, the institution’s first president, and Judge James Kelly, who as a Westmoreland County commissioner in 1970 pledged county sponsorship for the community college, thus allowing WCCC to be founded.
Obara also spoke on the core values of WCCC: accessibility, affordability, adaptability and its commitment to being a learning-centered college focused on student success.
“Access without success is a false hope – unrealized potential – and vanquished dreams,” Obara said.
He said this focus on student success propelled the college to become part of the national Achieving the Dream initiative and to develop learning intervention strategies throughout the developmental education program and the most highly enrolled “gatekeeper” courses “so that increasing numbers of students will successfully complete these courses and continue to the completion of their degrees,” Obara said.
“Being a learning-centered college focused on student success requires that faculty be committed to excellence in teaching, to their own continuing personal development and to active engagement with the students,” Obara said. “This faculty has such commitment,” Obara said.
Prior to the inauguration ceremony, Obara demonstrated his commitment to the college and helping students succeed by establishing a scholarship with the WCCC Education Foundation that he and his wife vowed to personally endow within five years. The scholarship will be for WCCC students majoring in education who pledge to complete their associate in arts degree or associate in applied science degree at WCCC.
“It is our hope that this scholarship will further encourage students to pursue careers in education and to complete their associate degrees at WCCC,” Obara said.
Representatives from local government, community college organizations and WCCC groups delivered greetings to the president, including: U.S. Congressman Tim Murphy; Pennsylvania Senator Kim Ward, 39th District; Pennsylvania Representative Ted Harhai, 58th district; Westmoreland County Commissioners Tom Balya, Tom Ceraso and Charles Anderson; Dr. Nicholas Neupauer, president, Butler County Community College; Michael J. Langer, vice chairman, WCCC board of trustees; William Scalise, member, WCCC Education Foundation board of directors; Ralph H. Padgett, Jr., president, WCCC Alumni Association; Michael Hricik, president, WCCC Professional Association; Carol Proud, president, WCCC Educational Support Professionals Association and Jessica Shively, president, WCCC Student Government Association.
The installation ceremony concluded with a benediction delivered by Sr. Lois Sculco, a WCCC trustee and the vice president for Mission and Student Life, Seton Hill University.
Marching in the academic procession with WCCC faculty, administrators, and trustees, were delegates representing 11 colleges. Among the delegates were: Dr. Sharon P. Smith, president, University of Pittsburgh-Greensburg; Dr. Kevin G. Snider, chancellor, Pennsylvania State University-New Kensington; Brother Norman Hipps, executive vice president, Saint Vincent College and Dr. Walter Asenovich, president, Pennsylvania Highlands Community College.
Following the ceremony, the more than 430 guests attended a light reception held on campus.
|