I Knew We Could
By Bob Hassmiller
Many years ago I’d love to read to my daughter. She would find a book that we enjoyed and read it together until the book would sometimes come apart in our hands. One such story was about a tiny engine who was small compared to the larger, sleeker versions. The engine was often ignored until the big night when no one else could take the crtically important cargo up the steep hill (the little engine couldn’t possibly make it – could it?). But "I think I can. I think I can" became "I knew I could. I knew I could." Just remembering it now, I may read it again tonight to my now 28 year old daughter who lives in a different city (father’s never forget and daughter’s often indulge our emotions).
So now you may understand my feelings when the Chairman of the Board of NACUBO introduced the President of NACUBO to deliver a presentation that was webcast around the country for free by CCBO and a few of our friends. If you read our e-blast you were one of many community and four-year colleges who benefited from CCBO’s free webcast. The webcast was also sponsored in part by our friends at CardSmith.
I think that this is indicative of the value that the CCBO Board is creating for our members. CCBO will be co-sponsoring more than eight free webcasts in 2011, just as we did for 2010. Perhaps you’ve already enjoyed the increasing quality of our programs at our annual conference and benefited from the networking available with your exclusively community college colleagues.
Your President may have been educated in AACC programs that included instruction in financial affairs by your CCBO instructors. As a close partner with AACC you have benefited from our work with AACC on behalf of all community colleges, whether you are a member or not.
There is much more coming. Your CCBO Board is committed to introducing new online communities where you can interact even more closely with your colleagues. We are working with NACAS to offer an even greater variety of programs at your desktop. Our partnerships with our business partners are providing you with important information when you need it. That’s what we’ve done and that’s what we are committed to continue.
We want you to stay a member. We want you to tell your colleagues why THEY should be members too. We offer low cost, high quality, and ALWAYS we represent the best of community college commitment. There is much more we could do, but we can’t do it without you AND your colleagues. So give me or Managing Director Heather Brown a call and ask how you can increase your involvement. E-mail us the names of one or two of your colleagues who SHOULD be CCBO members. Do it now, because at this critically important time for community colleges CCBO needs you and your colleagues more than ever.
Agree or disagree to bob@ccbo.org.
Dr. Bob Hassmiller, CAE
Executive Director
Community College Business Officers (CCBO)
3 Boar's Head Lane, Suite B
Charlottesville, VA 22903-4610
Phone: 434.293.2825 x222
Fax: 434.245.8453
www.ccbo.org