William Andrews shook dozens of hands on April 13 as students and staff flocked to Bakersfield College’s Fireside Room to welcome the newly appointed president.
“I just wanted to introduce myself and invite him over to the library. He used to be a librarian, so we figured that he would be interested,” said BC librarian Patti Brommelsiek.
The meet and greet was scheduled from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. and planned by Walter Howald, the executive director of Institutional Development and Foundation.
“We scheduled it to go from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m., with the idea that we would cover various classes both before and after to accommodate faculty as well as students,” Howald said.
Andrews arrived slightly early and talked with a group of administrators while people straggled through the door, eventually creating a huge line to shake the presidents hand.
The line remained long right up until 2 p.m. when only three people remained waiting for the chance to talk with the president. Everyone who attended did get to meet him.
“I thought it was important to come out and meet Dr. Andrews because basically this man is in charge of my educational future,” said Denise Byford, 35, business administration major.
“The decisions he makes along with student government make a difference on whether or not I can learn, and what is available for me to learn.”
Although students and staff seem eager to see what changes and improvements Andrews will make, the day was mainly to get to know the new president.
“I had a wonderful time today, wonderful people, just as I knew and great faculty, great staff, students, and administration. Today was a resounding success,” Andrews said.
Andrews has previously stressed the value of more afternoon classes to expand availability for all students, but when asked how he plans on implementing this plan, Andrews admitted that he does not have a clear solution.
“I understand that the vast majority of students work, and the afternoon is the toughest time. I don’t know how to solve that problem for students,” he said.
“We looked into doing more online classes, but that is not for every student. If they haven’t taken one, an online class is probably the hardest class they’ll take.”