Dr. Jonathan Gueverra, President and CEO of the College of the Florida Keys, joined Good Morning Keys on Keys Talk 96.9/102.5FM yesterday morning to talk about what’s going on at the college.
The Seaside Soiree was a huge success, commemorating 60 years of the College of the Florida Keys.
Dr. Gueverra said, “That was actually a very, very good event. It was a great event for us. We started planning this a couple of years ago. And I’m very fond of saying to folks that when I came to the college of the Florida Keys, my deal was, I said, if you all will have me, I’m going to stick around for 13 years. And that had nothing to do with my retirement date. It had to do with celebrating the college’s 50th anniversary, and then really prepping to celebrate really, really big for the 60th and we did it at East Martello, a very historic place in the Keys, and celebrating our 250th this year for the United States as well. We had so much support there, our donors, our former board chairs, and we try to include even those individuals who are no longer with us, if somebody from the family would come, so we had a few people there who weren’t actually former board chairs, representing their family’s legacy, because there’s such a rich history of that here in the Keys. I like to joke again about us being here longer than FIU, the Florida International. We’ve been around longer than they have and we continue to succeed. And there was just, again, so much support for all the work that we do. We had our county mayor, our city mayor, we had our big sponsors, and to have our chief judge for the third district appellate court take on the role of being our MC. I mean, what a marvelous evening.”
There were testimonials from students at the event.
Dr. Gueverra said, “What is remarkable about that it was not just the students, but they were entire families, both sets of speakers, the husband and the wife that came up at the beginning, Angelique and her husband, and then Wendy and her entire family and even her daughter, her youngest daughter. Her son was in dual enrollment. Her husband was in our marine engineering program. She was in culinary but the whole thing, it just gives that legacy of what the college has been able to do with and for this community over the last 60 years. I could not have been more pleased, and I am thrilled that the community showed its support the way it did. And we will continue to do as much as we possibly can do to make sure we support the workforce needs of this community and other peripheral things that we do going forward.”
Dr. Gueverra’s wife was also made an honorary conch.
He said, “I knew there was going to be some surprise there. I said to my wife, I asked her if our children were coming. And she says, no, why would you ask that? And I said, I just have a sinking feeling somebody’s up to something. And so, yes, it was a real tribute, because she has been with me, front and center, by my side throughout all of this. We’ve been together over 40 years, and it’s work, but it’s also beautiful work that we enjoy almost every day.”
The Hemingway look alikes were also there.
Dr. Gueverra said, “The Hemingway look alike group, one of my favorite groups. And we have done a variety of things with them, co branded stuff. Fred Johnson and his wife, Jean, I call them Fred and Ginger have been major supporters. He was the Papa in 1986 and they continue to support the college. They have the largest endowment at the college currently. In 2012, they were supporting about six scholarships. Today, they support and will be supporting about something like 18 or 20. I mean, it’s just tremendous support.”
April is Florida College System Month.
Dr. Gueverra said, “As we celebrate our 250th anniversary, the Community College is an American creation. It’s an American innovation, and that’s how we started out as a community college. And the Governor Ron DeSantis will be highlighting all sorts of facets and features about our colleges. We are the workforce engine of this state, of this country, for the most part, because so many people get their start for education at a community college or at a state college. So many people come back to our institutions to really get a second start or to get a jump on something while they’re doing this. The College of the Florida Keys, and that impact we were talking about earlier, and I talked about this during the gala where we contribute to generating $44 million of economic impact across Monroe County, where our students see an average rate of return on their investment of their education of 19%. That’s a big deal. And for every dollar invested, students gain $4.50 in future earnings. Our alums and again, I took a point of pride to brag when we were at the gala that $45,000 on average is what a Florida College System student who graduates with a two year degree will earn in their first year, but our students are earning 58,000. That’s unimaginable, that we are so far ahead, and a big part of that is because of the things that we do, the programs that we offer, the manner by which we get our students to the job market. Last night, we held an academic showcase where we had faculty, we had alums, we had our deans. I was driving back from Key Largo, and I got on to welcome the students, but it’s all of those things, starting from the top. And I say to students, look, you can choose to go wherever you want, but I’m just going to say to you, if you can find an institution where the president makes time to greet you as you walk through the door, or to keep an open door policy to talk to you, and if I’m going to do that, rest assured, every last person on this campus is going to make the same effort to assure that you succeed, and this is a big part of what we do. So I’m really, really proud and happy to be celebrating and supporting Florida College System month as part of the statewide effort.”
The next semester for the college will be the summer term.
Dr. Gueverra said, “I always try to make myself available, regardless of where I am, to at least have a few words with our students, to let them know that we are all interested in their success. And in preparation for summer, we have three summer terms, and these are all in an effort to provide the flexibility and the different kinds of options for students. We have the accelerated six week term, which goes from May 18 to June 29 so we will graduate students on May 8, and then a couple of weeks later, we will start the summer term on May 18. That goes until June 29, so for those students who want to move fast, who want to get through their classes, who might just want to take something real quickly, we do the six week term, and that’s on campus. It can be online, hybrid course format, so in less than two months, you can get ahead. You can complete full credit hours. You can stay on track. You can get ahead. And then we also have 100% online. This is the 12 week term that begins May 18 and ends August 10. So if you want something more traditional, it’s there. If you want something really quick, it’s there. If you want something online, it’s there. If you want something that will give you a flex between some online and some face to face, we have that. But in addition, and again, we talked about the gala earlier and the fundraising that we do, we have a summer kickstart, eight week program for new students that will be June 3 to the 10th. And this is designed for students new to the college. We are a one stop shop for all kinds of things. We will hold two events from 11am to 7pm on Wednesday, April 29 in Key West and on the 30th that will be in Key Largo. At these events, we will provide students with a $30 application fee waiver and $100 Kickstarter scholarship. So in addition to us trying to help you to get in, we are providing the financial opportunities and the options so that you can help to pay for some of those classes. And when you consider that our tuition is just over $300 per class. For a three credit class, $100 is a third of the way to getting you to take that first class. So we make it possible, and the deadline for applications is May 1, because we want you to be set up correctly, appropriately, so that when you start classes, you’re not worrying about all the other bureaucratic things that you need to do to make sure that you’re ready for your coursework.”
The college is collaborating with Monroe County School District on a joint Career Technical Education council.
Dr. Gueverra said, “The superintendent and a couple of board members from the school board were also at the gala to show their support for the college and so that collaboration extends at that level, on a personal level, and we’ve been working to make sure that we have because for for us here in Monroe County, it’s extremely important that we collaborate because you can’t just build anything anywhere. In fact, you can’t even build because the space isn’t there. So our goal in collaborating with the school district is to make sure that we are offering the kinds of programs that both the school district needs, the college needs, and that our community needs, so that we’re getting the right people into the workforce. As part of that, we are going to be doing a course specifically for students who are interested in getting into the teaching profession this summer. But the Career Technical Education Council is going to continue, and we’re going to look at a variety of things. One of the things that we’re looking at is, how do we help those young people to pay for taking those Career Technical Education courses while they’re dual enrollment students? Right now, the state covers some of that cost, but they do not cover the lab fees, and those lab fees can be very, very expensive. So we’re working collaboratively to try and figure out ways to support those students so they can get those skills and the training that they need to go right into the workforce, if they choose to do so straight out of high school.”
The Florida auditor general released its study recently of the 2024/2025 fiscal year, and it was found that the College of the Florida Keys fairly presented financial statements, and there were no deficiencies. The college was given high marks in terms of financial and fiscal responsibility.
Dr. Gueverra said, “It’s a testament to the great people that we have working for us in our business and administrative facilities and in other areas, who make sure that we spend the money that we raise and the money that we receive from the state and other entities, very, very wisely. It is always great to have a third party validate the work that you’re doing, and we will continue to be that accessible, affordable institution that supports our community in ways that provide workforce opportunities so people can find the jobs to help them sustain their livelihood here in the Florida Keys.”
Commencement will be May 8.
Dr. Gueverra said that “will be the day that we sort of close the loop on this 60th year. And at that point in time, we will graduate students, and we will see a number of them go right into the field. Some of them will come back with us, but that’s really what this is all about. It’s about making sure that our students, at the end of all of this are getting into the jobs that they were trained to do, and that their families are being appropriately supported. A big part of that also is the reason why we have been trying and have been raising funds to build a residential complex. Because we know that we get students who are from out of the county who come here, but we also know that we have young people who want to stay here and get a campus experience. And when we have students who come from out of town, whether out of state or out of the county, they need some place to live. Students will do what students do, and they will take a place where it was only designed for three and eight of them might live there, and somehow they’ll pay for it. Not to disparage any of our landlords, because sometimes they don’t even know. But we don’t want that to happen, because those kinds of things tend to increase the cost of living in our community. So we’re doing everything we can to stay well within the lines and the guidelines of being a good collaborator and a good contributor to our community.”
For more information, click here: https://www.cfk.edu/