New Degrees, State-of-the-Art Security Mark Start
of New Academic Year at C.W. Post

Brookville, N.Y. – New degree programs in earth science and American studies, elite accreditation for the Master of Social Work program and a state-of-the-art emergency notification system are among the highlights of the start of the 2007-08 academic year at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University.

More than 1,025 freshman join 4,200 undergraduates and 3,000 graduate students on the first day of class, Wednesday, Sept. 5. All 1,950 residence hall rooms have been booked since early August.

“I can’t wait to get started,” said Molly Lisenco of Brooklyn, a freshman who plans to major in theater and whose resume includes “Law and Order” and a dozen high school plays and musicals.

Juggling the demands of life as a college student should be a snap for Lisenco. After all, she once played three roles in a high school production of “The Orphan Train,” not to mention serving as stage manager, lighting director and sound engineer. She made the honor roll throughout high school at Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, played varsity basketball and soccer, was an active Girl Scout and worked at Key Food. She was an extra on “Law and Order” and is a member of the Screen Actor’s Guild.

“When I visited the Campus I thought it was beautiful. And I like that it’s not located far from the city,” Lisenco said. “It’s close enough that I can come home when I need to and it’s close to the city – and that’s where Broadway is.”

New Emergency Notification System

Among the latest projects at the C.W. Post Campus is the launch of a new emergency notification system. In the event of a crisis where members of the campus need to be notified quickly, administrators will now be able to simultaneously contact students and their families, faculty and staff by text message, instant message, cell phone, fax, landline and the campus Web site, said Dianna Pennetti, C.W. Post director of public safety. The system is expected to be available sometime during the Fall semester.

Administrators will be able to send voice messages in multiple languages. Students, faculty and staff will have the ability to register off-campus family members and associates for notification during emergencies. The Campus also plans a new outdoor public address system to alert students who may be outdoors in remote locations such as practice fields and bridle paths.

“These notification systems will augment the safety procedures we already have in place,” Pennetti said. “Even more important, we have a collaborative and coordinated effort with the neighboring colleges and police and fire departments.”

New Degree Programs

Academic news at the start of the 2007-2008 year includes:

• The new Master of Science in Earth Science, the only degree of its kind on Long Island, will prepare teachers and environmental leaders to manage community and natural resource concerns. The 32-credit program includes courses in earth science and geology as well as electives that allow students flexibility in meeting certification requirements, their employers’ needs and their individual intellectual interests.

• A new Bachelor of Arts degree in American Studies is now available for students who wish to examine the diverse peoples and complex histories that make up the United States.

• C.W. Post has added two more accelerated degree programs, where students can earn both their bachelor’s and master’s degrees in only five years. New this year are a B.S. in Information Management and Technology/M.S. in Information Technology Education, and a B.S. and an M.S. in Information Systems. C.W. Post offers 53 accelerated programs.

• Long Island University’s Master of Social Work degree program recently earned accreditation by the Council on Social Work Education, signifying that the program meets the highest standards of quality and academic excellence. The M.S.W. is a two-year program that can be completed at either the C.W. Post Campus or the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University. Graduates of the program are prepared to work with underserved at-risk populations and to fill leadership and administrative positions in a wide variety of organizations throughout the community.

New Dean

The C.W. Post College of Management opens the new academic year with a new dean – Francis N. Bonsignore, a former executive with Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. and other top professional services firms – and a new online course in corporate mergers.

New Online Course

Part of the C.W. Post Master of Business Administration program, the three-credit, 700-level course, “Corporate Mergers and Restructuring Strategies,” will prepare students to plan, evaluate and execute corporate restructuring activities.

Posted: August 28, 2007