1. January 11, 2010
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN
RE: Bruce Smith
I have known Bruce Smith for approximately two and a half years, since he came to
Excelsior College as the Vice President for Enrollment Management. In that capacity,
Bruce had oversight of admissions, financial aid, marketing, and business development.
Therefore, we worked together on a routine basis as well as on a number of special
projects and initiatives.
I have found Bruce to be a colleague who works collaboratively and who is a valuable
team member, one who is always willing to do his share to achieve goals. Bruce and I
have co-chaired a number of committees (for example, the Student Success Committee,
and the search committee for the Chief Information Officer). As a co-chair, Bruce was
conscientious about working with me to set agendas, accomplish needed tasks, and
engaging others in the processes and work that we had to do. In the Student Success
Committee—which focuses on initiatives to improve student persistence—Bruce was
instrumental in implementing those projects in Enrollment Management that have
contributed to vastly improved student persistence.
Bruce is a very strong advocate for students, and his commitment to student support and
success is evident. He has a passionate commitment to the College’s mission of access
for traditionally underserved students, and he has championed increased financial aid
opportunities, as well as additional staffing and improved service in the financial aid
office. During his tenure, the College has experienced dramatic growth in the dispersal
of federal financial aid, and Bruce has overseen the growth in staffing and service in the
Office of Financial Aid to meet student needs.
Along with the other vice presidents, Bruce has served as a member of the College’s
executive staff. In that capacity, he has contributed to weekly decision making, strategic
planning, and tracking performance metrics. Bruce routinely kept his colleagues on
executive staff informed about enrollment metrics, with timely and detailed reports. He
consistently made a concerted effort to alert us of any issues and to present new projects
or initiatives to help the College meet its enrollment goals. While Bruce has been at
Excelsior, we have consistently met our new enrollment expectations and increased the
diversity of our student population.
Bruce is very willing to embrace innovation and to facilitate change and improvements.
He led the effort to develop an analysis of our academic calendar and to identify areas for
systemic improvements. In a considerable undertaking, he identified an outside
consultant to work with us; he developed the project schedule and timeline for the study;
he collected considerable information to provide background and context for the study.
The result is a series of recommendations that will guide the improvement of our
academic calendar for the next several years.

2. Bruce is a man of integrity, candor, and honesty. He is not reluctant to state his opinions
and assert his beliefs, even if the prevailing discussion is at odds with his opinions. I
believe that he is guided by a commitment to education, to serving students, and to doing
the best possible job that he can do.
As the provost of Excelsior College, I have had the opportunity to work extensively with
Bruce. I have valued him as a colleague, and appreciated the contributions that he has
made to the College. He is a person with a great deal of energy, commitment, and
enthusiasm for his work.
Dana Offerman, PhD
Provost and Chief Academic Officer
Excelsior College