Webb Celebrates Official Groundbreaking of Couch Family Academic Center
On Thursday, September 13, 2018, members of the Webb Community gathered to celebrate the official Groundbreaking of the new state-of-the-art Couch Family Academic Center.
The event was attended by members of Webb’s Board of Trustees, Cornerstone Campaign Donors, Carol and Paul Bentel of Bentel & Bentel Architects, DHI Construction led by Howard Dym, the Mayor of Glen Cove, Tim Tenke, Faculty, Administration, and many others.
The celebration, which was held in the Visconti Reception Room, included remarks by Dean Matthew Werner, President R. Keith Michel, Webb Trustee and Campaign Chairman Joseph Cuneo, Carol Bentel FAIA of Bentel & Bentel Architects, and landscape architect Richard Loeffler.
During the ceremony, a plaque was presented to Webb Institute on behalf of Congressman Thomas Suozzi, who extended Webb well-wishes on the construction of the Couch Family Academic Center.
Following the speeches, attendees and students made their way to the back patio of Stevenson Taylor Hall to witness the turning of the soil and a heartfelt speech by Jon Couch, representative of the Couch Family and Cornerstone Campaign Donor, whom the academic center is named after.
“Our family has been extremely fortunate and a principal reason for that good fortune has been William Webb’s vision and generosity,” said Jon Couch. Webb has played a central role in my family for four generations. That being the case, it is a wonderful honor to have the family name associated with this magnificent new facility and we are deeply grateful for the recognition.”
The Couch Family Academic Center is expected to be completed by Fall 2019.
View The Couch Academic Center Groundbreaking video!
Couch Academic Center Groundbreaking from Webb Institute on Vimeo.
Freshman Kevin O’Keefe ’22 Reflects on Orientation Week
by Kevin O’Keefe ’22
When I first arrived at Webb, I was honestly afraid of what was waiting for me. I had talked over the summer with most of my classmates prior to Orientation Week, but I still had not really known these people that I would be spending the next four years with. Thankfully, because of the activities and events my new classmates and I took part in during Orientation Week, we were able to become close and get to know each other very well in a short amount of time.
Orientation, even though it lasted less than a week, was the best time I have ever had. It felt like a lifetime of fun experiences, with each day feeling like several. We had so many great experiences, from the clue run, which helped me learn the layout of the school, to the scavenger hunt in New York City. The scavenger hunt was by far the greatest of the activities we did during the week. The scavenger hunt had us do so many crazy things throughout the city for points. My favorite of all of them was trying on wedding dresses in Macy’s with my group. Oddly enough, the people there were really into it and they all wanted to take videos and pictures with us.
Going into my first year as a Webbie, I hope to learn to properly manage this new environment and still have fun!
Kevin and his classmates participating in the wedding dress challenge during the NYC Scavenger Hunt.
Webb Family Remembers First Lady Peggy Michel
On Saturday, August 25, 2018, the Webb Community gathered on campus to celebrate and remember a special member of the Webb Family, First Lady, Peggy Sylvia Michel who passed away suddenly on July 22.
The celebration included beautiful reflections on Peggy’s life by many who knew and loved her including her husband, President R. Keith Michel; son, Dr. Joshua Michel; Webb’s Chairman of the Board, Bruce S. Rosenblatt; Vice President of the Webb Alumni Association, Victoria Dlugokecki ’88; Pastor David H. Collins ’73, Dean Matthew Werner, and Webb students Ashley Dias ’19, Andrew Pidduck ’19, Jonathan Wang ’20, and Kevin Lu ’21. Each speaker shared stories of Peggy’s kindness, warmth, generosity, and love for Webb.
In memory of Peggy and her love of gardening, she was a key caretaker of Webb’s Student Garden, the newly instituted Peggy Michel Memorial Fund will support the naming of the Peggy Michel Garden overlooking Webb’s future academic center and the Long Island Sound, as well as the Peggy Michel Memorial Scholarship Fund.
Contributions in Peggy’s memory can be made to Webb Institute.
Obituary:
Peggy Sylvia Michel died on July 22, 2018, at the age of 64. An experienced scuba diving enthusiast, Peggy died from cardiac arrest following a shallow dive in the Cayman Islands.
Peggy was born in Paris, France, and immigrated to the U.S. at an early age. She attended the Grace Downs School in Glen Cove, NY, at which time she met her future husband, Keith. Peggy began her professional life working in customer service at Pan American Airways in Manhattan and enjoyed traveling the world. Upon the birth of her son Joshua, she was a stay-at-home mom for several years, after which she studied to become a pastry chef and co-founded a wedding cake business in the San Francisco Bay Area. This was followed by a twenty-one-year career working in various administrative roles at the University of California Office of the President in Oakland, California.
In 2013, when her husband was appointed President of Webb Institute, the nation’s premier college of naval architecture and marine engineering, Peggy readily transitioned into the role of “First Lady” at the college. At Webb, she quickly gained a reputation as a gracious host, mentor, and confidant to students, staff, alumni, and friends. Peggy was known for her engaging smile, warmth, and collegial nature. She had a passion for gardening, cooking, knitting, and quilting. Most of all, she enjoyed offering a kind word and helping hand to those in need.
Peggy is survived by her husband of 43 years, Keith, son Josh and his wife Beth, her sister Isabelle McVickar, and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins whom she loved very much.
Webb Recognized by Princeton Review as #15 Best Career Services, Ranks High in Additional Categories
Webb Institute is ranked in The Princeton Review’s latest edition of its college guide, The Best 384 Colleges, including being named #15 Best Career Services.
Webb was also received honors in the following ranking lists:
#5 Students Study the Most
#8 Most Accessible Professors
#20 Their Students Love These Colleges
Webb also received high marks in other areas, including 96 in Academics and 96 in Quality of Life according to The Princeton Review survey that asked students to rate their schools on dozens of topics and report their experiences.
A student surveyed for the guide boasted about Webb’s career services and premier internship program, “Work terms give each student a feel for industry sectors and allow them to make improved career decisions when selecting a first job – You’ll learn something in the classroom and then see it in action.”
One student said, “Professors are brilliant and since they all have practical work experience they are able to make our education applicable to what we’ll be doing once we graduate.”
“Students become best friends very quickly, giving everyone a great support system both academically and socially,” said another student noted.
One of The Princeton Review’s most popular guides, The Best 384 Colleges rankings are based on surveys of 138,000 students at 384 top colleges that includes a wide representation by region, size, selectivity, and character. Published annually since 1992, the book includes detailed profiles of the colleges with rating scores in 8 categories as well as ranking lists of top 20 schools in 62 categories.
For more information on the rankings and methodology visit www.princetonreview.com/college-rankings/how-it-works
Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation Grant to Fund Need-Based Scholarships for Webb Students
by R. Keith Michel
President, Webb Institute
When William Webb established Webb’s Academy, his intent was to provide an education free of all costs to qualified applicants whose families could not otherwise afford the cost of an education. In the 1960’s, Webb faced compelling economic challenges that drove us to begin charging room and board. Today, room and board and others costs of attendance over and above our full-tuition scholarship run about $16,500 per year. We have found that the cost of attendance is inhibiting our ability to recruit the diverse group of economically disadvantaged high school students. In recent years, some Webb students have accumulated debt of $40,000 to $60,000 during their four years at Webb. Although all our students secure good jobs when they graduate and successfully pay back their federal student loans, we would like to reduce the debt load they face as they start their professional lives.
We are very pleased to announce that the Long Island-based Gardiner Foundation has awarded Webb a grant of $250,000. This grant will enable Webb to meet the “demonstrated need” of our students for the next three years. Webb will make the best effort to solicit contributions to endow room & board scholarships so this scholarship program can continue after the third year.
“Demonstrated Need” is a term that describes the cost for a student to attend college in excess of their “Expected Family Contribution” (EFC). The EFC is computed by the federal government when students file an application (FAFSA) seeking federal loans, and is primarily a function of family income, family assets, and the number of family members attending college. We believe all students and their family should make a contribution to their education at Webb, regardless of financial status. Therefore, we have established an expected minimum contribution of between $3,000 and $5,000 which may be covered by Subsidized federal loans if the student so chooses. The generous grant from the Gardiner Foundation provides sufficient funds to enable Webb to meet all need in excess of this minimum expected contribution. Thus, no Webb should graduate with excessive debt. With this program, Webb joins a list of approximately 70 colleges and universities in the United States that meet the demonstrated need of their students.
(From left to right) Webb Institute Director of Development, Anthony Zic, Director of Admissions and Student Affairs, Lauren Carballo, Executive Director of RDLG Foundation, Kathryn Curran, Webb Board of Trustee, Joseph Cuneo, and President R. Keith Michel. Photo Credit: Robert David Lion Gardiner (RDLG) Foundation