Submitted for: Dr. Roger Richardson, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Campus Life
Peg Adams, Associate Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, has announced that she will retire on May 31, 2006.
Peg Adams, Associate Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, has announced that she will retire on May 31, 2006. An Ohio native, Peg came to Ithaca College with degrees in English literature and experience as a writing teacher. During her 31 years at the College, Peg has always worked with ALANA and HEOP students. She started as a writing teacher and tutor in what was then the Educational Opportunity Program, working one-on-one with students—her favorite part of her work has always been to act as a coach and mentor. “I love it when students leave my office with an expanded sense of what is possible—nothing could be more rewarding.”
Currently providing interim direction for the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Peg has worked with New York State sponsored programs since 1975—the Higher Education Opportunity Program and the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program—and estimates that over the years she has collaborated on or been responsible for writing grants that have brought IC students and the College close to six million dollars in state funding. In 1987 she was honored by HEOP as a Trail Blazer for Educational Opportunity in New York State. In her many years here, Peg has always recognized the College’s strong commitment to educational opportunity. “The College has never stepped back from its outreach to, support of, and generous funding for ALANA students—I am grateful to have been a part of IC’s efforts.”
Peg’s strong connection to alumni is evident, particularly during the annual Professionals Symposium weekend. Her one-on-one work with students forged strong bonds with them, and she still gets phone calls from alums from the seventies and eighties who expect her to recognize their voices—sometimes she does! She passed a milestone in the mid-nineties when she welcomed an alumna’s daughter to the prefreshman summer program. “Seeing alumni ten, fifteen and twenty-five years into their lives has been such an unexpected enrichment in my life—it’s been incredibly satisfying. I have followed some alumni from age eighteen to fifty—from undergraduates to grandparents. I have a deep sense of what the opportunity of an Ithaca College education can bring to someone’s life. It’s been a rare privilege, and I am truly grateful for this wonderful sense of community and family.”
Peg has given ALANA students at the College a great sense of connection, stability, and continuity. She has provided leadership for staff and inspiration for students. She will be missed, but she leaves a legacy of skills, enthusiasm, and dedication that will continue to inspire us. Peg plans to enjoy her retirement in Ithaca, so we will see her on campus, especially when alumni are visiting.
A farewell reception has been planned for Peg on May 18, from 2 – 4 p.m. in Klingenstein Lounge. Details will be announced at a later date.
