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Pomp and circumstance: New presidents tapped at four CUNY colleges

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From left to right: Dr. Berenecea Johnson Eanes is appointed president at York College, Kenneth Adams at LaGuardia Community College, Dr. Christine Mangino at Queensborough Community College; and Anthony Munroe has been named president of the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC). (Photos courtesy of CUNY)

BY BILL PARRY AND MEAGHAN MCGOLDRICK

With challenges ahead due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the board of trustees of the City University of New York selected new leaders as presidents at three Queens institutions and the Borough of Manhattan Community College. 

To lead York College in Jamaica, the trustees appointed Dr. Berenecea Johnson Eanes, who has served as York’s interim president for the 2019-2020 academic year. 

This spring, Dr. Eanes guided York College through the COVID-19 crisis, implementing a system of distance learning and remote working for the school’s 40,000 students and more than 400 employees, while also launching a number of support services to help the most vulnerable students. She earned a Ph.D. in social work from Clark Atlanta University, a master of social work from Boston University, and a bachelor of science in public health from Dillard University. 

“It is a great privilege to be selected by Chancellor Félix Matos Rodríguez to be the president at York College. York is a campus rich with a history and a diversity that is a reflection of the Jamaica, Queens, community it was built within,” Dr. Eanes said. “It has been a pleasure to serve as the interim president this past academic year and establish the new strategic plan and priorities that will drive the future of the college. Following our ‘One York’ theme, we will push ahead and work collaboratively to embrace the amazing opportunities and tackle the current challenges, together.”

LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City, known for its strong success as a driver of economic mobility and a leading voice on behalf of community colleges nationwide, will now be led by Kenneth Adams, who currently serves as dean of workforce and economic development at Bronx Community College. He brings a highly accomplished résumé as chief executive of numerous New York State governmental agencies. Adams succeeds Interim President Paul Arcario.

Fundamental to Adams’ mission is the cultivation of robust partnerships with employers, including unions and industry associations to advance students’ outcomes and CUNY priorities.

“LaGuardia is uniquely positioned to support the city’s recovery by training and upskilling workers who have lost their jobs and preparing students for new fields and emerging occupations in a post-COVID economy,” Adams said. “I look forward to working with the incredible LaGuardia faculty, students, staff and alumni, and of course the Queens community, in a collective effort to deliver on the rich promise of LaGuardia to a growing number of students in these challenging times.”

To lead Bayside’s Queensborough Community College, which prizes the diversity of its students and the engagement of its faculty in pedagogical research for the improvement of teaching methodologies, the board appointed Dr. Christine Mangino, a proud champion of community colleges who previously worked at CUNY’s Hostos Community College for 16 years, the last five as provost. Dr. Mangino succeeds Interim President Timothy G. Lynch.

“I am honored and excited for the opportunity to serve the QCC community,” Dr. Mangino said. “I look forward to working together not only to recover from the current crisis but also to continue the important work of student success and providing an affordable, high-quality education marked by academic excellence and rigor. I am deeply committed to the QCC and CUNY missions and eager to partner with faculty, staff, and the community to support students as they achieve academic, social, and economic progress.”

Dr. Mangino is a first-generation college student and developed her interest in championing the mission and success of community colleges from her experience as a student at Nassau Community College. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education from Hofstra University, and later, a doctoral degree in instructional leadership at St. John’s University.

Dr. Anthony Munroe, a first-generation U.S. citizen with roots in the Bronx, has been tapped to serve as president of Borough of Manhattan Community College.

Munroe, who comes with more than 30 years of experience leading education and healthcare organizations, will take the helm of CUNY’s largest school on Oct. 1. BMCC is home to about 24,000 students in over 50 associate degree programs and thousands more in adult and continuing education programs.

Previously the president of Essex County College in New Jersey — one of the state’s most diverse college campuses — Munroe brings with him three decades of experience as an educator and as a nationally recognized executive and institution-head.

“BMCC has established itself as a leader among community colleges providing an exceptional academic and workforce training experience for all,” said Munroe, who was named a winner of the 2020 Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society’s Paragon Award for New Presidents, which recognizes college presidents who have shown strong support for student success at their schools.

Munroe will succeed BMCC Interim President Karrin Wilks.