Jessica Kubiak never gave much thought to a future working in higher education administration. Even so, SUNY Jamestown Community College’s vice president of Academic Affairs understands how the path led her here.
Kubiak remembers being in her late 20s, returning to college after having two children and serving as a student representative for the educational policies committee at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford.
“I loved that committee,” Kubiak said in explaining how she helped review potential new courses and programs. “I remember thinking to myself, if I could do this committee for a living, that would be so great. But I never said that to anyone, and I probably should have, because they would have said, ‘Well, you should be a higher ed administrator.’”
Kubiak was appointed to her current position in May after serving in an interim role for a semester. The job titles she has held at JCC can fill up an entire page on a resume: everything from coordinator of Experiential Learning – where Kubiak started in 2010 in a grant-funded role – to director, dean, consultant, and associate vice president.
Kubiak, who was born in Olean and raised in Bradford, has also been a faculty member since 2013, teaching reading and composition. She was a recipient of the 2020 State University of New York Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching and the 2021 Outstanding Teacher Award by the Conference on College Composition and Communication.
“Being a faculty member, especially a full-time faculty member, gave me an opportunity to not only teach, but get involved in affecting change at the college,” Kubiak said. “I was the curriculum chair. I was the director of my program for a while. That sort of administrative work really was meaningful to me. It was a natural progression”
Kubiak served as dean of Arts, Humanities, and Health Sciences from 2020 to 2022. She then took a faculty sabbatical to complete a doctorate degree from Old Dominion University in 2023.
Kubiak returned to JCC as a planning consultant for JCC president Daniel DeMarte and also held the role of associate vice president for planning and faculty relations.
“When I came back there was a little uncertainty in terms of what direction I may take,” Kubiak said. “President DeMarte was very good about helping to give me that space and time to both move the college in some good directions and give me an opportunity to try out being an executive level administrator. And I love that. I'm able to do good things and make this a better place for teaching and learning.”
In addition to her doctorate, Kubiak earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Pittsburgh, a master’s in Adult Education from Buffalo State University, and a graduate certificate in Composition Studies from Indiana University-East.
Kubiak oversees JCC’s four academic divisions and the college’s support services for students, including its high school partnership, prison education, and global learning programs.
“Jess is working tirelessly to help align our faculty and give them the resources they need to be exceptional teachers and scholars for our students,” DeMarte said. “With her diverse background as a professor and academic leader, she has a deep understanding of the college, the challenges we face, and what we must do to improve our learning experiences and educational environment for students.”
Marilyn Zagora, a longtime JCC employee and role model to Kubiak, previously held the role of Academic Affairs vice president.
“She's been with me literally every step of the way since I joined the college,” Kubiak said of Zagora. “She has been a tremendous mentor. I feel so fortunate to be the one who is stepping into those shoes. It's really an honor. It’s also intimidating because she's so accomplished and she's been with the college for so long. But I hope that I'll be able to strike a balance between continuing to realize the successes that she has helped us achieve, but then also recognizing what can be changed and improved.”
Kubiak is looking forward particularly to making connections with area school district superintendents and principals, as well as colleagues from regional colleges and universities, and supporting the JCC’s community health and wellness initiative that is being led by DeMarte.
Speaking to her excitement about JCC’s future, Kubiak said: “We are time tested at this point. We're about to enter our 75th year. We're in a good place, especially as you look at what other colleges are facing right now across the country. I’m very hopeful about the fact that we've been here for 75 years, and that we will be here for another 75.”