The Blueprint

A conversation with Dr. Rudy Crew - Recap!

This past Thursday, the entire MEPS community had an opportunity to meet and hear from the new president of Medgar Evers College. Dr. Rudolph ‘Rudy’ Crew, former Chancellor of the Department of Education, took over the helm at the college back on August 1^st.

With his down home folksiness and ease of manner, Dr. Crew quickly charmed the entire room and laid out his vision for the future of MEC and its collaboration with our school. Dr. Crew overall mission is to reshape the College as not just a center of excellence in higher education but one which is a key and vital component of Brooklyn.

President Crew is going to focus on the recruitment our MECPS students and to ensure that they consider MEC as a viable choice. The College in turn is focusing on having  strong guidance programs, scholarships and mentoring, and investment in faculty and leadership.

Dr. Crew laid out what four years at MEC should look like. The first year is to have students increase their awareness of Medgar Evers, his social activism and an awareness of other ‘Medgar Evers’ around the world and their impact on their communities. The second year will be a specialization and focus of what future career goals are and laying the groundwork on how to achieve them. The third year is a focus on globalization which brings back the first year and an understanding the link between the micro and macro issues. By the fourth year, internships should be garnered and there should be a strong sense of a path upon matriculation.

Dr. Crew also spoke about creating a School of Education so that the efforts and success of MECPS could be replicated throughout other communities. He also said that having a law school is something that is being contemplated as an avenue to train students to pursue careers in social justice.

All in all is was a very inspiring evening. As a school that shares a name with the college, it was a bold and strategic move to have the entire leadership come to our school to meet the parents and the community and to officially lay out a place the table. Well done Dr. Rudy Crew – the MECPS community welcomes you and looks forward to working with you!

Photos Courtesy of Simone Serrao