President Shaeffer Announces New Movement on Campus:

At the same time we began our Spring 2020 Semester and opened the new building, we launched a new movement within Eastern Shore Community College that I want to share with you.  It starts with a simple word:  YES!!  Your Eastern Shore.  Yet, it is much more than that.  It reflects not only our personal interpretation of what our Eastern Shore is, but it is also the motivation and drive behind all that we are doing here at Eastern Shore Community College.

It begins by asking yourself – “What is my Eastern Shore?” I challenged my leadership team to share their YES!! at our pre-semester college-wide celebration.  It was a wonderful experience watching each member of the cabinet share their very personal YES!! 

When I think about My Eastern Shore the word that comes to mind for me is inclusivity.  YES!! is inclusive at ESCC because we are open to all and our student body represents the diversity of the Eastern Shore.  YES!! is inclusive in the programs we offer for transfer students, short-term workforce programs, and full degrees.  We are also inclusive in the span of ages we serve.  Finally, we strive for inclusivity in serving the needs of the community throughout Your Eastern Shore.

Each faculty and staff member present was asked to reflect on what YES!! meant to them and I challenged them to write it down.  Our goal is to bring these personal “YES!!” ideas alive and make them a part of each and every day at ESCC.

When we welcomed students to their new home on January 13 in ESCC’s new building, I introduced the idea of YES!! Faculty asked the students in their classes to write down their YES!!

For many, ESCC was seen as home:  a place that is safe, warm, and welcoming-and a place where faculty and staff care for and about them. ESCC is also seen as a place to launch your new future.  For others, ESCC was that place where you get a second chance, and you can rewrite your life narrative. In short, at ESCC, YES!! is our culture of hospitality. We go beyond the mechanics of customer service to focus on the learner’s experience of Your Eastern Shore.

As I read our students’ YES!! statements, I feel so fortunate to be part of this institution that provides a safe place. At the same time I felt a great responsibility to work every day to earn the trust of our students, their families, and the whole Eastern Shore community.

I also shared the YES!! movement with my Advisory Board and our Foundation Board.  The folks on both boards love the idea and a Board member even came back with her own YES!!

IF……

You Envision Success,

You Energize Success

        and…

You Ensure Success!

I love YES!! It is simple and very personal.  You determine your YES!! And you must hold yourself accountable to your YES!!

Quite honestly, we don’t see YES!! as something that belongs to ESCC.  We believe it belongs to everyone, because everyone has their own YES!!

Personally, my YES!! of inclusivity is really how my wife Peggy and I have been treated from the day we arrived on the Eastern Shore.  Everyone has been so welcoming, encouraging, and accepting.  I tell folks that I have the best job in the world because everyone wants to see Eastern Shore Community College succeed.  Our Eastern Shore. Your Eastern Shore.

ESCC President Jim Shaeffer