|
|
I’d like to begin with the FSU Staff Awards for Excellence. These annual awards recognize several employees who are nominated by their peers and who always do an outstanding job at FSU. These awards are sponsored by the Alumni and Friends of the University through the 2009 Annual Fund Campaign. Each winner receives a plaque and certificate, plus $500 funded by the FSU Foundation.
This person began her employment at FSU 17 years ago and she has served the University in various capacities during that time. She is currently the Administrative Assistant and Box Office Manager for the Department of Theatre and Dance and Communication Studies. She is known for coming up with ways to improve services, like the new box office ticketing system. Students benefit from her eagerness to help them find financial aid and the assistance she provides through writing letters and helping them locate community resources. Students, faculty, staff and the entire community are all direct beneficiaries of her commitment to FSU. Please join me in congratulating Beth Andrews!
This award-winning employee has offered his service to FSU for 15 years. In the residence halls he is known for going above and beyond his call of duty. He cares a lot about the quality of his work and is constantly vigilant about the safety and comfort of our students. He ensures that students can enjoy comfortable residence halls when they arrive on campus. Congratulations to Michael Beeman!
FSU has benefited from this person’s resourcefulness, creativity and dedication for almost 30 years. Her roles have included everything from serving as the University’s first-ever graphic designer to overseeing countless publication and marketing efforts after she became the Director of Publications in 1990. She has brought her sense of humor and talent to many committees, including Strategic Planning, Enrollment Management and the Marketing and Branding Task Force. She is currently serving as Associate Vice President for University Advancement, with responsibility for communications and media relations. Her involvement goes beyond FSU to include contributing countless volunteer hours to her church and local organizations such as the YMCA and the Board of Education of Allegany County. Please join me in congratulating Colleen Stump! Once again, my sincere congratulations to all the award recipients. You set an example that can inspire us as we move forward this year. As you saw on the screen behind me earlier, we also want to recognize the NEW faculty and staff who have just joined our community. Please take the time to say hello to them, answer their questions and help them feel at home. Our new employees also bring inspiration to our University through their ideas, their energy and their initiative. We extend to you a very warm welcome. I hope you look to your respective departments and find a supportive group of colleagues who can guide and mentor you. We’re glad you’ve chosen Frostburg as a place to have a career, and we value your professional growth and involvement. I also want to personally welcome all the students who are here today. Whether you’re just joining us, or you’ve chosen to spend your career at our University, FSU prides itself on being a place where people support one another. That’s going to be incredibly important this year. We all know that the economic crisis is taking a toll on higher education both nationally and in the state of Maryland. No one is happy about that. But it’s during these moments that we discover our inner strengths and start to see how they will take us to a better future. Today I’d like to talk about those strengths. Extraordinary accomplishments are taking place at Frostburg State University, despite any obstacles that may be before us. These achievements are re-defining this institution, and they are evidence that our Strategic Plan is guiding us to a new level of greatness. I want to begin by highlighting something that is without a doubt an extraordinary accomplishment for Frostburg. It was just 3 years ago that FSU reached its lowest enrollment in 17 years. But thanks to the hard work of our Enrollment Management Committee, Admissions and FSU’s dedicated faculty and staff, we have turned our enrollment situation around. This fall, Frostburg welcomed our largest undergraduate class to date: 4,755 undergraduate students. Our increase resulted from a strong transfer class from community colleges—416 transfer students joined us this fall, the highest number we’ve had since 1991. Enrollment also rose due to increased international enrollment—we have around 60 international students right now, up from 23 international students in 2006. Undergraduate enrollment is 3.8 percent higher than last year, and up nearly 10 percent since 2006. Total undergraduate and graduate enrollment is 5,385, an increase of 170 students from last year.
I know some of you are worried that we’re sacrificing academic standards in favor of higher enrollment. But I can assure you that’s not the case. Although the SAT scores of our incoming students have decreased slightly over the past couple of years, their potential is perhaps better indicated by their high school GPAs than their SATs. Many recent studies indicate that SAT scores are falling out of favor as the best indicator of students’ abilities. FSU’s retention rates and graduation rates are improving, as well. For the fall cohort of 2008, the second-year retention rate was 72 percent, up from 67 percent for the fall cohort of 2006. Over the past two years, 10 out of 12 FSU graduates who applied for medical, dental, pharmacy, physical therapy or veterinary school have gained admission. Additionally, our latest alumni data shows us that 94 percent of our students are employed within one year after graduation. And finally, some of the recent merit scholarships that have been established through fundraising efforts, like the Quincy and Eugenia Crawford Scholarship Fund, are geared towards attracting promising students who have higher SATs. Improving FSU’s academic standards remains an important part of our efforts. Staking Our Claim: The Campaign for Frostburg, FSU’s campaign to raise $15 million, is another area of remarkable growth. Despite the economic crisis, in June 2009, University Advancement completed its best fundraising year ever with $2.8 million. This exceeded their goal for that fiscal year by $700,000. To date, FSU has raised more than $10.5 million toward the campaign’s $15 million goal. That’s truly extraordinary, given the state of the economy. And this money makes so much possible for our institution; it’s reinvested back into the right places, like student scholarships and faculty and staff development.
But probably the biggest concern on everyone’s mind right now, in terms of money, is how the University System of Maryland’s Temporary Salary Reduction Plan will affect us. I want to take a moment before I begin to let you know that how incredibly sorry I am that we are dealing with this. I don’t feel good about anybody’s paycheck being reduced, and let me reassure you that we are doing everything possible to avoid layoffs. I truly appreciate the fact that all of you are working so hard every day for our students. Their education remains the reason that we are all here. And as we prepare for these cuts in our salaries, it might help to think about the following:
And one thing that I really love about our University is this is the kind of institution where people care about their colleagues and don’t want to see anyone lose their job.
But over the past 3 years, despite budget limitations, we’ve made a commitment to putting money into faculty and staff salaries and creating a greater sense of equity. For example:
If you look at the total 1.2 million we have reinvested back into our faculty and staff, I think you can see that the net effect is enormous. I want all of you to know that our commitment to increasing salaries and equity for all employees will remain a top priority—both now and when the economy recovers. We’ve also not lost sight of the fact that our faculty and students need a quality learning environment and we’ve continued to improve the campus infrastructure. Here are a few select highlights from the many projects we completed last year with funding from our operating budget as well as other strategic sources:
As many of you know, the renovation of the Lane University Center will soon be under way. It will be closed and taken off line, beginning in January of 2010. Most Lane Center offices and services will move to Tawes and the Engineering Annex during this time. The new and improved Lane Center is expected to open in 2011. It will include more meeting space, student organization offices, a 24-hour computer lab, a cardiovascular workout room and an expanded Bookstore, among other amenities. The demolition of Tawes Hall is expected to begin as soon as the Lane Center reopens. Planning also continues for the approved Center for Communication and Information Technology building. Right now we’re in the process of selecting an architect to help us design the CCIT. Construction of CCIT is slated to begin in 2012 and it’s scheduled to officially open in fiscal year 2013. We’re also working to secure approval for development of a new Education Professions and Health Sciences Center, which will provide facilities for state-of the-art teacher preparation and instructional spaces for nursing. I want to emphasize that these are all state-funded projects that come from the state capital budget instead of our operating budget. Here are some examples of some of the planned upgrades for fiscal year 2010. These projects focus on supporting our university’s strategic initiatives, like sustainability, health and wellness, recruiting and retaining students, faculty and staff:
You may have already seen our renovated workout areas in the Physical Education Center. Some of you know that we have a wellness initiative called CHILL that’s funded through a contribution from AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals. CHILL was launched in 2008 to promote healthy practices and education among college students and the local community.
FSU’s strong academic offerings are also very strategic to how our institution will grow and succeed. We’ve created several academic programs that respond to regional and national workforce needs. It is incredibly important that our institution reflects the job market so our students can find employment:
There are so many steps taking place that I believe will ultimately transform this institution for the better and help us form a stronger community. Another key issue that we have to consider is what we offer our students, faculty and staff in terms of support and mentorship. Here are some areas where FSU is expanding its efforts to support Engagement, and solidify our sense of community.
For those of you who have not seen it yet, the Lyric Building houses the FSU Foundation, the Office of Alumni Programs, a state-of-the-art community theatre and a branch of the University bookstore. It also houses really beautiful apartments for new people moving to the area who want to live downtown. The Lyric will soon incorporate FSU’s Center for Creative Writing, as well. When I arrived at FSU in 2006, many people told me about the rich history of the Lyric building and how it was destroyed in a fire. You can certainly see how remarkable this transformation is. I want to encourage all of you to stop by and check out these new places where the University is making itself known on Main Street. As part of our Middle States reaccreditation, we had an obligation to contribute to Western Maryland’s economy, and these efforts help us to meet that commitment. They also help us establish stronger ties with the City of Frostburg. I see this as a fitting tribute worthy of FSU’s historic role here: We should give something back to this city, because without the City of Frostburg, it is likely the University would not exist today.
FSU’s outreach through social media has also allowed faculty and staff, current and prospective students and alumni build strong emotional connections to the University and share ideas in powerful and immediate ways. I’ll continue to offer insights and updates through Blog from the ‘BURG, which is growing in its readership. Later this semester, I plan to host an online Q&A on a message board that is being added to the Blog. It’s this type of interactive communication and idea-sharing that inspired the Blog in the first place, and I really hope you’ll all continue to take advantage of it. In addition to all these social media efforts, I want to reassure everyone that I will continue to keep you updated through regular e-mails about budget issues and other university concerns. I know you need to stay informed as we work through various challenges in the year ahead. After Convocation, we will send out an e-mail with helpful links to online resources where you can learn more about some of the issues I’ve talked about today. Additionally, in response to the “Suggestions” Web site created by Mary Mumper, FSU will be posting a copy of the budget on a secure place online where we will all have access to it. This is part of our ongoing effort to be more transparent about the budget. In closing, I’d like to focus on a final, fourth aspect of our Strategic Plan: Leadership. FSU is increasingly becoming an institution known for its unique programs in leadership and its overall approach to helping students find their way to futures that will change the world. We are interested in graduating leaders who care about civic change and volunteerism, proactive learning, professional development, health and wellness and global community. We provide a lot of great activities and learning experiences that give students opportunities to develop leadership skills that are truly transformative, and we want to continue enhancing this key aspect of education here. For example, the President’s Leadership Circle. I see all of the students participating in this program who are with us today. I believe we can also approach leadership as part of an overall focus of this institution that goes beyond disciplines, departments, and other divisions. There’s a quote by education advocate Eliot Wigginton that I think sums up what we need to remember this year as we collectively define Frostburg as an institution. We teach, and at the same time allow ourselves to be taught by those we teach. Take some time every day to remind yourselves of our common purpose here: to provide students with an exceptional education. Think about how you will be a leader as a member of this campus, and how your leadership in turn will define what kind of university this is. Clear communication, respect and common courtesy for one another will be incredibly significant in how we make progress in the coming months. Please keep that in mind before you hit “Reply All” or decide to post comments in online forums. If possible, it never hurts to talk to someone face to face and in person. Take a little time to just leave your desk and take a short walk around our campus. We’re all going to be dealing with moments of feeling overwhelmed, and the best that we can do is just be sensitive to people around us. To not make assumptions about what any one of us might be dealing within our own personal lives. (Marching Band starts to trickle out onstage, unbeknownst to Dr. Gibralter) I think most of you assume I’m a very serious academic person who would never try to end this convocation on a positive note by doing anything glitzy. I would never resort to cheap tricks like special effects with lighting (spotlight on Dr. Gibralter; lights, smoke). Or making silly little puppets pop out (Bob E. Cat and Kitty appear at side of the stage). Or that I’ll bring in the marching band, I mean, come on. That’s cheap and it’s certainly beneath me. (Marching Band plays “Bobcat Fever” and Bobcat mascot, Bob and Kitty dance. Once song is finished, Dr. Gibralter concludes.) Once again, thank you so much for being here today! Many thanks to Phil Klickman and FSU’s Marching Band for sharing their school spirit with us. I really believe we have a promising future ahead of us, and I’m enormously proud of all that we’ve already accomplished. Have an outstanding year, everybody. GO BOBCATS!
|
| Web Page Manager: News@frostburg.edu Copyright | Privacy Frostburg State University, 101 Braddock Road, Frostburg, MD 21532-2303. |
|||