Appointment of Acting Dean of University College Community

August 30, 2007

Members of the University Community:
 

It is my pleasure to announce the appointment of Susan J. Schurman as director of Lifelong Learning and as acting dean of the University College Community. Dr. Schurman is a member of the faculty of the School of Management and Labor Relations (SMLR).

Professor Schurman, who served on the SMLR faculty from 1992 to 1997, has been founding president of the National Labor College (NLC) for the past 10 years. This fully accredited college is one of the few institutions of higher education in the world founded and sponsored by a labor movement (the AFL-CIO). During her tenure, Professor Schurman secured a $1 million grant from the Kellogg Foundation to create a system of partnerships among NLC, community colleges, and apprentice programs so that workers would not encounter obstacles in their pursuit of higher education. She led a $50 million campus renovation and construction program that included a state-of-the-art adult-learning classroom and conference center. She originated one of the most extensive distance-education degree programs in the nation.

Throughout her career, Dr. Schurman, in her scholarship and in her leadership positions, has focused on worker education and on issues in the workplace. Currently she serves as vice president of the International Federation of Workers' Education Associations and as chair of the Academic and Student Services Committee of the Board of Trustees of Morris Brown College, a historically black college in Atlanta. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and bachelor's and master's degrees from Michigan State.

I know you join me in offering support to Susan Schurman as she takes on these crucial and challenging roles focused on serving our nontraditional students.

Richard L. McCormick
President
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey