First Friday Video Series
Cape Cod Community College is looking forward to opening the Frank and Maureen Wilkens Science and Engineering Center in Spring semester 2023. The new Center elevates STEM education, encourages industry collaboration, and facilitates community partnerships in STEM education. Students will have improved access to state of the art materials, labs, and equipment to enhance their success. The Center will incorporate net carbon neutral operations including photo voltaics, sustainable building materials and a model closed-loop toilet system.
Speakers
Dr. John Cox
John L. Cox, Ed.D, CPA, is a visionary leader who has served as President of Cape Cod Community College since 2012.
As a strong advocate for minimal student loan debt, Dr. Cox is committed in his pursuit of seeking additional supplemental governmental support on both federal and state levels. Under his steadfast leadership, the Federal Government approved the Project Forward program at Cape Cod Community College (4Cs) as Massachusetts’ first “Comprehensive Transition Program (CTP),” making the College the first to offer financial aid to eligible students with intellectual disabilities. Dr. Cox also renovated the Nursing Program’s lab and classroom completely through private donors. Because of his unrelenting efforts, the College was awarded state capital funding for $25 million ($5 million above the allotted amount) for the new Frank and Maureen Science and Engineering Center scheduled for completion in 2022.
Dr. Cox consistently seeks new opportunities to expand the 4Cs’ programs. He created the FAA- approved Aviation Maintenance Technology Program (AMT) and obtained the Funeral Service Program (FS). Through his strong commitment to collaboration, he formed a partnership with Bridgewater State University, to not only offer residential housing for both programs, but to host the FS Program on their campus. This is the only collaboration of its kind in the state.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, President Cox led the charge and quelled uncertainty by becoming one of the first institutions in Massachusetts to announce Fall semester plans. The pivot to a successful and safe remote, online and hybrid learning model enabled students to keep their higher education plans in place. Committed to his faculty and staff, President Cox maintained all 4Cs’ staffing levels through the remainder of the academic year.
With the social unrest on the heels of COVID-19, President Cox brought the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access Committee, formed under his presidency, to the forefront. The Committee created a speaker series to discuss the social issues of racism, police brutality, the CROWN Act, and other pressing social justice topics.
President Cox earned his doctorate from George Washington University, and received the 2010 John Grezenbach Award for Outstanding Research in Philosophy for Educational Advancement, through the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. He has also served on the Fulbright Commission’s Community College Seminar in Russia and the American Association of Community Colleges’ Commission on Global Education. During the Russia seminar, he achieved a by-line photo in The Moscow Times, observing the public protests in Astrakhan.
Dr. Donald Crampton
Dr. Donald Crampton serves as the Dean of Academic & Student Affairs for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics at Cape Cod Community College. Dr. Crampton earned a B.A. in Biochemistry at Ithaca College, a Ph.D. in Botany at Arizona State University and worked as an NIH post- doctoral fellow at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Crampton specializes in developing research-based and data‐informed student‐centered approaches to institutional effectiveness.