TCNJ

3 CULTIVATING COLLABORATION Monisha Pulimood, professor and chair of computer science, was named the Barbara Meyers Pelson '59 Chair in Faculty-Student Engagement. With support from the chairship, Pulimood hopes to advance an ambitious agenda of fostering faculty-student collaborations at TCNJ across disciplines, with community partners. "The world is changing, and the kinds of challenges we're seeing are far more complex than one person from one disciplinary background can address," she says. "We need people from different backgrounds to come together, and they need to be able to understand each other. We have a responsibility to our students to see this at TCNJ so that they're ready for it in the workplace." TRAINING FIRST RESPONDERS TCNJ and Public Service Electric and Gas Company, New Jersey's largest utility, conducted an on-campus gas safety exercise with Ewing Township police, fire, and emergency medical services in July. During the exercise, PSE&G simulated damage to an underground gas line and underground electrical lines; a major power outage; and an on-campus explosion — all while practicing a coordinated response with other first responders. "Our top priority is to protect our campus community, and there is no better way to prepare for emergencies than to simulate them and train our responders and campus personnel to react accordingly," said Tim Grant, chief of TCNJ Police Services. "Having this exercise on our campus provides invaluable, real-time data and information to help us ensure we are as prepared as possible in the case of an actual emergency." ABC JOURNALIST ASKS TCNJ, "WHAT WOULD YOU DO?" John Quiñones, host of ABC's "What Would You Do?" spoke to a packed house in the Brower Student Center on October 31 in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. During his talk, he recounted the obstacles he faced in pursuing his dream career and asked the campus crowd to consider this question, "When you witness an injustice, do you step in or step away?" A SUSTAINABLE GROVE Working with the President's Climate Commitment Committee, the Bonner Center, TCNJ's Office of Grounds and Landscape Maintenance Services, and Mike Aucott of the chemistry department, student volunteers planted a small grove of 15 hazel trees near the TCNJ Campus Garden. Hazel trees — the nut of which is the hazelnut — can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and conserve natural resources like water. CABINET HONORS The Tambellini Group, an independent research and advisory firm dedicated exclusively to higher education, named CIO and Vice President for Information Technology and Campus Safety Sharon Blanton the 2018 Tambellini CIO of the Year, honoring her as an IT leader who demonstrates effective leadership, innovation, and creativity in planning and deploying modern technology. Gregory Pogue, vice president for human resources, received an honorary degree from his alma mater, Becker College in Massachusetts, at its 230th commencement in May. Pogue is the first recipient of an honorary degree recognizing distinguished alumni. A 1970 graduate of Becker College, he is a former trustee at his alma mater. "Beyond your affiliation with Becker, you are a respected leader in your profession," wrote Nancy P. Crimmin, president of Becker College. TCNJ IS HEARTSAFE TCNJ Lions EMS received the HEARTSafe campus award at the National Collegiate EMS Conference in Philadelphia in February. The honor, which is bestowed on only a handful of campuses, indicates TCNJ is properly staffed for cardiac emergency responses and meets all the standards within.

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