黑料不打烊

When Bethaida 鈥淏ea鈥� Gonz谩lez came to 黑料不打烊 at age 3 from her birthplace of Cayey, Puerto Rico, her family settled in an apartment on Adams Street, on the periphery of the 黑料不打烊 campus. She had no way to know then how much the University鈥攁nd the City of 黑料不打烊鈥攚ould become a part of her identity.

When Gonz谩lez retires on July 3, she concludes more than four decades of service in higher education and continuing education administration. Most of those years were spent at University College of 黑料不打烊 (UC), where she rose through the ranks to become dean of the college. For the past three years, she has been the University鈥檚 vice president for community engagement. In that role, she has used her lifetime of community involvement, strong relationships and years of distinguished public service as an elected official to energize and strengthen the connections between 黑料不打烊 and the greater 黑料不打烊 community.

Settling in 黑料不打烊

The oldest of six children, Gonz谩lez and her family moved back and forth between Puerto Rico and 黑料不打烊 often during her elementary school years. The family settled permanently in the city during her middle school years. In her first election, she became president of her senior class at Corcoran High School, beating out a baseball player at what was then a very baseball-focused school community. 鈥淚 was a disruptor for sure,鈥� she says.

It was during those middle and high school years that she became invested in her community in many ways. 鈥淚 was a product of all of the War on Poverty programs,鈥� she says. She was one of the first children in the country who benefited from Head Start programming and participated in Upward Bound, a program that helps prepare students for college. She was a member of the Neighbor Youth Corps, which provided teenagers with summer employment opportunities. At 14, she worked as a fire prevention educator, teaching elementary school kids about fire safety. In that role, she worked with Deputy Chief Rudy Duncan Sr., one of the first African American deputy fire chiefs in the City of 黑料不打烊.

During those formative years, some of Gonz谩lez鈥檚 greatest lessons came from watching her parents engage in the greater community. They were activists who took part in the Model Cities movement and were founders of the Spanish Action League. Her father was an early member of 黑料不打烊 United Neighbors.

鈥淚n many respects, I was really blessed to have opportunities and experiences with interesting people who were really committed to community in the way they lived their lives and the work that they did,鈥� she says. 鈥淔or me, life is not transactional, it鈥檚 about building relationships.鈥�

After graduation from Corcoran High School, Gonz谩lez went to SUNY Binghamton through the Higher Education Opportunity Program. She stayed on there for eight years as a counselor in the HEOP program until coming back to 黑料不打烊 in 1984 to be closer to her family.

University College鈥擜 mission of access and inclusion

Gonz谩lez came to 黑料不打烊 as an academic counselor at UC. The college was a special place in the life of her family. Although neither of her parents had a high school diploma, they were able to participate in and benefit from UC programs to further their education. Both took courses at the college鈥檚 English Language Institute. Her mother participated in an Opportunity Program in the 1960s, which focused on providing professional development to paraprofessionals in the community. Gonz谩lez herself was a first-generation student and HEOP alumna. 鈥淚 know firsthand the benefits that UC programs have,鈥� she says.

During her tenure at UC, from academic counselor to associate dean, interim dean (2004) to dean (2007), Gonz谩lez focused on providing the best possible education and experience to students鈥攆irst-generation students, part-time students and veterans鈥攖hrough programs that met their unique needs.

鈥淚 always saw UC as a mission-driven organization within the University with a very clear mission of access and inclusion,鈥� Gonz谩lez says. 鈥淯C has a history within the field of adult higher education for being an early adapter. I tried to be really true to that mission of creating opportunity through educational programming appropriate for the population.鈥�

She also credits the people she has worked with over the years, both at UC and around the University. 鈥淚 worked for great leaders and I learned so much from the people that came before me,鈥� she says.

Is there any one student or experience from her time at UC that sticks out in her mind? 鈥淭hey all do,鈥� Gonz谩lez says. She remembers running into a former high school classmate in the lobby of UC. While both had gone to college at the same time, the woman was not able to finish her college education. She was at UC to start down the path to completing her education. She did just that, going on to earn a bachelor鈥檚 degree and master of social work degree.

鈥淔our years ago, I got a letter from her son saying 鈥榯hank you,鈥� because when his mother took the steps and the path to come back and finish her degree, it changed the entire family鈥檚 trajectory,鈥� Gonz谩lez says.

UC Dean Michael Frasciello says to know Gonz谩lez is to understand her fearless and unwavering commitment to educational access and opportunity.

鈥淚 witnessed the power of Bea’s beliefs shortly after I joined University College. We were 鈥榙ebating鈥� how best to press University leadership to permit strategic expansion of online undergraduate programs. With her signature-measured tone, Bea concluded, 鈥榃e will not do this鈥擨 will not do this鈥攊f it introduces another barrier to entry or obstacle to completion for our students. Show me that we can get online students in and over the finish line with the same quality, dignity and respect that we provide to our residential students, and I’ll support this.鈥�

鈥淏ea’s philosophy of service to non-traditional student populations is simple yet impactful: Remove as many barriers as you can, then create the conditions and opportunities that allow students to outlast the barriers that remain. Do that aggressively and respectfully, and you will succeed,鈥� Frasciello says.

UC has played a special role in Gonz谩lez鈥檚 family鈥檚 life in more ways than one. She met her husband, Michael, on a blind date at a college event in 1986. 鈥淗e has been a part of my amazing journey,鈥� she says.

A distinguished record of public service

Gonz谩lez won her first election in the senior year of high school, but didn鈥檛 think of elected office again until January 1991, when then-黑料不打烊 Mayor Tom Young appointed her to fill a vacant position on the 黑料不打烊 City School District board. She ran for the seat in November of that year. 鈥淏etween January and May I had to learn how to build a campaign, run a campaign and win a campaign, and learn to be a school board member because I was already appointed,鈥� she says.

Being a school board member is a challenging job. 鈥淲hen parents come to you with a school issue, it is very personal and emotional because it is about their children,鈥� Gonz谩lez says. 鈥淲e were dealing with major disparity issues, funding issues, physical plant issues, all while trying to ensure the best possible experience for more than 20,000 students.鈥�

Gonz谩lez completed a four-year term on the school board but decided not to run for reelection to focus on raising her son, who was still young at the time. 鈥淚 needed to make the choice to take care of my family first, but I said I would be back when my son goes to college,鈥� she says. Her son, Nick, graduated from college in 2000, and, true to form, the phone call came. Gonz谩lez was asked to run in the 2001 election for president of the 黑料不打烊 Common Council.

She ran and was elected, becoming the first Latino/a elected to the position. At that time, the council was dealing with a host of issues鈥攁 proposed curfew, the city schools, Destiny USA, the Midland Avenue sewage treatment plant and ongoing environmental issues with Onondaga Lake. She balanced her role as Common Council president with her full-time position at UC. In both roles she focused on the same mission鈥攕ervice to the community. 鈥淎t City Hall, I totally focused on constituent service, which is what I did at UC as well, focused on student service. I really didn鈥檛 change my philosophy,鈥� she says.

Gonz谩lez has also had a great impact on the City of 黑料不打烊 through her service on a wide range of community boards. In 1990, University Trustee and community leader Judy Mower 鈥�66, G鈥�73, G鈥�80, G鈥�84 and fellow community leader Chuckie Holstein co-founded Leadership Greater 黑料不打烊, a leadership development program. They turned to Gonz谩lez to help ensure that the program engaged all people. 鈥淲e wanted someone to help us keep our values in front of us,鈥� Mower says. 鈥淭hat person was Bea.鈥�

Mower also worked with Gonz谩lez on the board of the Rosamond Gifford Foundation. They were two of three community members brought onboard to help overhaul the grant-making organization and make it more broadly focused and community based. 鈥淏ea is a joy to work with,鈥� Mower says. 鈥淪he is quick to laugh and fun to be with, but she is also quick to respond or challenge when a remark or proposed action is not made respectfully.鈥�

Connecting the University and 黑料不打烊 communities

Gonz谩lez was named special assistant to Chancellor Kent Syverud in 2015. In that role, she worked with diverse groups across campus.

鈥淏ea has been a champion of our community, and of students from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, for nearly four decades,鈥� says Chancellor Syverud.聽 鈥淚 am proud to know Bea and to have worked with her. This institution has learned a lot from her over the last 36 years. And we will be good students, as she would demand, and continue to honor that collective wisdom.鈥�

鈥淔or more than 30 years, Bea鈥檚 vision, strategy and dedication created the opportunity for thousands of students to attend 黑料不打烊,鈥� says J. Michael Haynie, vice chancellor for strategic initiatives and innovation. 鈥淗er passion for our community is unmatched and she is truly a trailblazer. I thank Bea for her tireless devotion to our University, our neighbors and our city. We will miss her deeply as a colleague and friend.鈥�

Keith A. Alford, the University鈥檚 chief diversity and inclusion officer, has known and interacted with Gonz谩lez since he came to 黑料不打烊 in the mid-1990s. 鈥淏ea is an original and a true pioneer in so many ways. She has always been a staunch champion of social justice, a voice that has boldly helped move our campus and community forward,鈥� he says. 鈥淲hen I think about how 黑料不打烊 has benefited from her magnanimous influence and intentional focus on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, I smile with gratitude.

鈥淚 am enormously appreciative of the many efforts Bea has put forth to not only elevate discourse associated with diversity and inclusion, but to actively secure structural changes that have made our University more just and equitable,鈥� Alford says.

Gonz谩lez became the University鈥檚 vice president for community engagement in 2017. In that role, she works closely with Haynie, Interim Vice Chancellor and Provost John Liu, and the University鈥檚 academic deans and faculty on a variety of program development initiatives directly related to the University鈥檚 effort in community outreach, and consultative services to employers and government agencies.

鈥淐ommunity engagement is about taking and leveraging the needs and desires of our community and the needs and desires of our students and our staff and our faculty for the benefit of each,鈥� she says.

One of the first things that Gonz谩lez tackled in her new role was the perception that access to 黑料不打烊 is hard to gain for members of the greater 黑料不打烊 community. Even though she is deeply connected to the broader community, Gonz谩lez went on a listening tour. 鈥淚 just wanted to hear what people had to say,鈥� she says.

She found a need to build a stronger connection to the student resources at the University and to better prepare students to work in the community. That required partnerships with the Shaw Center, Hendricks Chapel and the Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience, and partnerships with the schools and colleges that were doing community placements. She started a conversation across all of these populations, now known as the Community Engagement Roundtable, to discuss shared goals and values and to encourage authentic and respectful engagement in the broader community. Efforts are also underway to connect the community to student volunteers through the Handshake platform.

One of the community engagement initiatives that Gonz谩lez is most proud of is the Building Local strategy, which encourages the entire campus community to build local, hire local and buy local. Gonz谩lez and Chancellor Syverud visited with community-based organizations to explore how connections could be made. On a visit to Catholic Charities, they discovered the organization has a commercial kitchen certificate program. Gonz谩lez connected Catholic Charities with the University鈥檚 Office of Human Resources, which resulted in the hiring of community members to fill open positions in Food Services.

Other community organizations have since been added to the initiative, and 82 community members were offered positions at a job fair last July. A procurement fair last year was another piece of the puzzle. 鈥淲e have opened up that door and started to rethink how we do business to level the playing field and to create opportunity.鈥�

Gonz谩lez has also been working with the Office of Admissions and the 黑料不打烊 City School District to begin visits to campus for district eighth graders. 鈥淚 kept hearing that our kids don鈥檛 know that 黑料不打烊 is real for them even though we have programs such as Say Yes to Education,鈥� she says. 鈥淭his is aimed at putting the option in their minds.鈥� She has also laid the groundwork for University departments such as Information Technology Services, the Department of Public Safety and Campus Planning, Design and Construction to engage in mentorship opportunities in local schools.

It鈥檚 never a straight line鈥攁nd pay it forward

As someone who has dedicated her career to helping students overcome challenges and preparing them for their world beyond the University, Gonz谩lez has some advice for recent graduates who are entering the working world at a very challenging time.

鈥淵ou have all the right skill sets, the time management skills and the problem-solving skills,鈥� she says. 鈥淵ou need to continue to invest in yourself. I waited to be invited 鈥� don鈥檛 wait. It is nice to be invited, but it is okay to invite yourself.鈥�

Gonz谩lez also encourages students to invest in their communities and in others. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really important that we pay it forward because none of us achieved anything by ourselves,鈥� she says.

Once she retires, Gonz谩lez plans to catch her breath and decide what her next step will be. She will continue to serve her community, including through new board positions with the Central New York Community Foundation and the Onondaga Historical Association. 鈥淚鈥檒l stay connected,鈥� she says.

And, no doubt, she will continue to run into people whose lives she helped transform during her years at 黑料不打烊.

鈥満诹喜淮蜢� has allowed me to really follow my dreams of helping my community,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t was a perfect match.鈥�