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Title: Vincent Banrey
Description: Mr. Vincent Banrey graduated from the college in 1977 and at the time of the interview was Associate Director of the Student Health Office. Timestamp summary [Interview follows the interview with Enock Charlotin on VHS tape]: (22:19) Introductions and discusses coming to the college as a student because of the Cooperative Education Program and his impressions of the college as a student. (24:41) “The college wasn’t very big so there was a sense of people knowing each other” (25:00) Describes the layout of the building, covering the cafeteria, “Sangria Junction,” and the multi-purpose Great Hall. (28:40) Discusses the different faculty and staff that helped him as a student and the counselors the college provided (31:20) Banrey discussed the closeness of the college in the early years and knowing people from different departments (32:53) Covers the Cooperative Education Program and mentions how the Writing for Business and Coop Seminar courses helped him prepare for writing resume and interviews. (36:07) Had an internship at the Brooklyn Navy Yards. He was a Research Analysis Assistant. (37:11) Talks about how internships helped him decide his career path. (40:00) Goes into the growth of the college, construction and the changing physical space of the college and changing administrative structure. (45:12) Covers the different support services and student resources on campus and how they have changed and grown over the years (48:32) Talks about changes in the student body and points out the large number of veterans who attended the college in the 1970’s, coming from Vietnam and benefiting from open admissions (51:35 ) In reference to the question “what makes LaGCC distinct,” Banrey said, “The slogan that was used – LaGuardia Works – because it cares about the people.”
Subjects: , 25th Anniversary, Oral History, Students, Great Hall, Cooperative Education, Banrey, Vincent
Publisher: LaGuardia Community College (New York, N.Y)

Title: Maxine Lance
Description: Maxine Lance was a student in the first graduating class of LaGCC in 1973. She later became a CUNY Office Assistant, eventually working in College Discovery and retiring in 2019. Timestamp summary of interview: (1:05) Maxine Lance said she decided to attend LaGCC because all of her friends were applying to college. She didn’t want to be left out so she applied to LaGCC. (1:53) Talks about meeting people through Student Activities and her major in Data Processing (2:52) Describes the M-Building and Great Hall and how encouraged interaction and impacted student life. (4:15) She discussed prices in the cafeteria for breakfast and lunch and compares them to the present time. (5:16) Talks about being part of the first graduating class (7:01) Talks about her courses, especially in Data Processing and her professors (8:13) Describes how the college and student body has changed since she was a student (having remained at the college as an employee) and how she thinks it has affected student life. (10:32) Speaks about her experience with Cooperative Education and the challenges of attending class and while working. Talks about the different internships she had, including working in the Extended Day department with Ralph Garrett. (14:05) Continued to work at LaGCC in the Registrar office. She said during that time she believed Eileen Murray was the Director and she had also worked in the Adult and Continuing Education Department part-time with Allen Goldberg. She now working at Student Affairs in the College Discovery program and is working there for 13 years. (18:05) Goes on to talk about the Cooperative Education program and the opportunities and skills it builds. (19:23) Lance talks about her work history at the college, working as a hourly for about 10 or 11 years and now she is Civil Service for almost 9 years. (20:01) End
Subjects: , 25th Anniversary, Oral History, Lance, Maxine, Students, Cooperative Education
Publisher: LaGuardia Community College (New York, N.Y)

Title: Sandra Watson
Description: Sandra Watson Director of Family Staff (at time of interview) talks about her experience in the Division of Adult and Continuing Education and as a counselor in the Veterans Program (00:46) Sandra Watson spoke about the founding of LaGCC in the early 1970s -- a period when people struggled during the Civil Rights movement and CUNY was in position to respond – at a time for women and people of color wanted to come into the institution -- it was a time after the Vietnam War. (2:23) Goes on to describe the student body (2:47) Talks about her coming to LaGuardia Community college as a vocational counselor for the Veterans Programs. (4:05) Came to LaGCC in 1974 and said it was a very exciting place. Talks about the Great Hall, Leonard Saremsky who would drive up in his motorcycle right up to the door; tennis courts in the back; partitions separating the space, no offices – a feeling of oneness. (4:47) Talks about Joseph Shenker’s age and the overall young staff. (5:43) The Division of Adult and Continuing Education was written in the Governance Plan – the arm to reach out to the community – a community that was very diverse. (6:53) Speaks about Adult and Continuing Education creating programs which would later be turned into degree programs – The Dean of Adult and Continuing Education was Ann Marcus, Sandra spoke about different faculty lines in Adult and Continuing Education and support for President Shenker. (8:18) Sandra said, most of the people in the division ran program areas and knew how to write grants. (8:47) Mentions the Single College Concept (9:38) “We were told we could fail, we could try, we could experiment” (11:22) Discusses the Veteran’s Program and says it was one of the most challenging programs she ever worked in. Talks about how the counseling and workshops were organized (14:14) Mentions that the Veteran’s program was not funded for the first time in 24 years (1996), in her opinion due to the sharp conservative political turn in government (15:11) Talks about how ACE programs were funded, developed and community involvement in the process. Discusses the Deaf Program (17:55) Speaks about Fern Kahn (18:19) Speaks about collaborating with funding agencies and city agencies (19:19) Goes in depth about the Deaf Program and its diversity (22:31) Discusses the continual need for space in the college, the Great Hall, moving offices (25:44) Speaks about changes in the college now and before, and innovation and LaGCC. (30:11) She also discussed changes and development of programs for changes and the community. Sandra spoke about Queens and the development of programs and going to the community – Children’s College was built. (30:11) Mentions the change of the ESL program – credit and non-credit programs. (36:11) She discussed the college and its growing older. (37:04) Sandra says she comes to a place where she works with social problems and social change – happy to be here. The institution is for the students.
Subjects: , 25th Anniversary, Oral History, Watson, Sandra, Veterans Affairs, Adult and Continuing Education, Program for Deaf Adults
Publisher: LaGuardia Community College (New York, N.Y)