Subject: [Faculty-l] Honoring CCA staff members Gail Davies, Ken Tanzer, and Donald Smith
From: Presidents Office <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked], [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 29 May 2020 09:02:57 -0700
List-Id: All-Faculty mailing list <faculty-l.lists.cca.edu>

Dear CCA Community,

I write to express heartfelt appreciation to three members of our
community. Each dedicated more than twenty years of their professional
lives to the college, helping us grow and enhance the educational
experience for generations of CCA students. They are Executive Assistant
Gail Davies, Associate Vice President for Financial Services Ken Tanzer,
and Library Technician Donald Smith. While Donald retired on May 15, today
is the last day on staff for Gail and Ken. I hope you will join me in
thanking them all for a job well done!

Gail is retiring after 30 years of service.  She joined CCA in 1990 as a
secretary in the office of President Neil Hoffman. She immediately became
an indispensable member of the president’s team as an executive assistant
and office manager. Over the course of three decades she worked with four
CCA presidents, and I know each would attest to the simple fact that Gail’s
insight, calm, dedication, and caring was critical to their success and to
the operations of CCA.  During my tenure, I’ve witnessed Gail’s special
talent in communicating with the breadth of people who visit Macky Hall.
She listened to every student, alum, faculty member, staff member, trustee,
donor, or neighbor who called or dropped in. She made sure their questions
and input were well heard and always followed up as promised. The trustees
have relied on her for years, and I know many who value her friendship.
Gail has too many talents to enumerate here, but I will say that she is
certainly someone who made it possible for our school to grow and evolve
while still keeping its culture and character. Thank you, Gail.

CCA also owes a debt of gratitude to Ken Tanzer, who served 21 years as an
essential lead manager in the Business Office. Ken has been a valued
partner working with CCA presidents, CFOs, and the board Finance Committee
to ensure the fiscal strength of the college. No one worked with greater
attentiveness and loyalty to business and accounting principles at the core
of sound nonprofit operations. Ken’s dedication helped CCA manage growth
responsibly, maintaining a balanced operating budget for more than 20
years. He spent long hours putting his expertise to work on critical
accounting responsibilities including preparing the annual audit, financial
statements, required regulatory filings, and tax-exempt bond issues. We
have all benefited from the solid financial foundation Ken created. I wish
him the best in his future endeavors.

Donald Smith joined CCA in April 1999 as the public services manager in
Meyer Library on the Oakland campus and in 2011 moved his work to our
Simpson Library in San Francisco. Over the past 21 years, Donald supported
thousands of students, faculty, and staff in their work with library
collections and research. His warmth and generosity of spirit was evident
to all as Donald greeted library visitors with a broad smile and an
eagerness to engage. His kindness set the tone, helping to position the
libraries as not only an essential academic resource, but a place where the
CCA community feels welcome and valued. Though Donald has retired as an
active staff member, the numerous library staff he hired and trained
continue on as a legacy to his achievements.

Again, I am grateful to each of these staff members who built a career and
a life around CCA.  They helped build the foundation for CCA’s promising
future.

Sincerely,
Steve Beal
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