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Thank you all for being here for this annual state of the university report in which we celebrate
Central's major accomplishments for the previous year and identify directions for the coming year.
At the conclusion of my formal remarks, I'll invite your questions.
There are 57 new faculty at CWU this year. You may notice some familiar faces because a few of them
already have served the university in temporary or part-time positions. During the 2003 - 2004 school
year, 17 tenured or tenure-track faculty retired (6) or left the university for other opportunities (11).
So you can see there are quite a few additional faculty colleagues who are joining us this year.
I'd like to invite all of those who are here today to stand and be recognized.
There are 57 new members of the classified staff. 53 classified staff retired (15) or left the
university for other opportunities (38) during the past year. Would our new classified staff please
stand and be recognized?
There are 26 new administrators. During the past year, 21 administrative staff retired (15) or left
the university for other reasons (6). Would our new administrators please stand and be recognized?
In previous years, this has been an occasion to go over our annual "report card" and link our
accomplishments and challenges to specific goals and sub-goals of the university's strategic plan.
That plan - with its goals and sub-goals - still provides the framework for our planning and our
assessment of our progress. Indeed, this year, following last year's pilot of specific performance
indicators in a few units of the university, we will be fully implementing those indicators to allow
us systematically to measure our progress against the strategic plan. In the meantime, hard as it may be
to believe, we will also be gearing up for next year's campus-wide conversations of the strategic plan
for the next five years, since our existing plan is for the period 2001-2006.
However, today, as we continue to keep in mind the strategic plan and its goals, I want to talk to you
about how we can set our course for this year and beyond, given the political and economic environment
that surrounds us. It's in that environment that I want us to continue to move ahead with our agenda for
"transforming the university."
Both in the long-term context in which higher education institutions operate and in the evolution of the
forces shaping our university, change defines our challenges and opportunities. The annual Almanac Issue
of The Chronicle of Higher Education sums up the national context this way:
- In just the past four years, a sluggish economy has forced states to close a combined $235-billion
shortfall in their budgets. They did that in part by slashing appropriations for public colleges,
by putting few new dollars toward student aid for those attending both public and private institutions,
and, of course, by raising tuition and fees.
- The legislative sessions that recently wrapped up in many states show that higher education still has
plenty to worry about. While 44 states finished the fiscal year that ended June 30 with a combined
$18.4 billion surplus, a 50-percent increase over the end of the previous year, much of that cushion
is likely to dissipate in the next year. (Almanac Issue, 3-4)
A version of that prognosis is likely true for Washington as well. The supplemental budget for this year contained some admittedly good news for CWU in the form of 50 more FTE slots to continue to restore
funding lost in the cuts of four years ago; 75 general enrollment FTE; and high demand funding for 40
FTE. At the same time - apart from the legislative funding - we were also able to add faculty positions
and student services staff and enhance other areas important to the quality of student and academic life
through funds made available by the tuition paid by the additional students who have enrolled at CWU.
What is the likely context as we look ahead to the next legislative session? Current predictions are
that in the next biennium the state once again faces another revenue shortfall - possibly as much as a
billion dollars. That may mean another budget cut - something we were able to escape in the supplemental
budget this year.
Conditions still exist, in other words, that require us to think carefully about the possibility of
restricted funding as we look to the future. But "transforming the university" is desirable not simply
because of the current funding climate; it should be our agenda in good budget times and bad, based on
the larger question of what universities in general - and our university in particular -- should be in
the world of the twenty-first century.
And, our emphasis as we think about appropriate transformations of the way we do things should not
simply be on change for the sake of change, but on change that reinforces our commitment to excellence in
all aspects of our academic and campus life.
The base on which we build that transformation continues to be strong and a cause of great optimism.
Let's review some of last year's developments, and some of the progress we have made in meeting the goals
of our strategic plan.
The 2003-2004 academic year was full of great individual and collective accomplishments.
The slide show you saw as you entered the auditorium today is a small sample of the outstanding individual
accomplishments resulting from the work of our faculty, staff, and students during the past year. I
particularly want to note the fact that this year, CWU has three Fulbright Scholars-Tim Melbourne, Sura
Rath and Mark Halperin-a remarkable achievement.
Collectively, there have been significant accomplishments as well. Among the most notable was our
success in the supplemental legislative session. Those additional FTE I mentioned earlier added much-needed funds
to our operating budget, and the additional funds were important supplements to the tuition-growth revenue
we have had to rely on the past several years. And even though we did not have any major projects up for
consideration, we did have success in obtaining support for key capital projects at our Wenatchee and
Highline Community College centers.
This has been the result of a very broad team effort involving Ann Anderson, Sid Morrison, Mike Sells,
Jim Huckabay, Crystal Manring, Linda Schactler, and other members of the board of trustees, as well as
the president's cabinet and university staff and students.
Previously funded capital projects were completed this year, including the Deccio Higher Ed Center in
Yakima and Kamola Hall. McConnell was re-opened after extensive upgrades. And we completed work on the
section of the combined utilities upgrade that runs past Wilson and North all the way to Black Hall.
We completed remodels to the Depot Deli (now the North Village Cafe) and to Tunstall Dining Hall.
And of course, Phases I and II of the Music Education Building were completed, with grand opening
ceremonies scheduled for October 3. With respect to the last project, I want to give particular
recognition and thanks to the facilities staff and the department of music for their Herculean efforts
in moving the music department into the new building and getting the building ready to start the new
academic year.
Other projects getting under way this year include the remodel of Sue Lombard and construction of the
SUB/REC building.
There were significant achievement in other areas as well. Because of tuition revenues available to us
in a year when the state once again allocated no money for general salary increases, we continued to make
progress on salaries of individuals of all categories of faculty and staff.
Also very impressive was the progress that we made toward completion of the Enterprise Information System
project and the Safari component of that project. This was a major campus effort across all divisions.
The value to us in data retrieval, record keeping, and access to our computing systems will be profound.
Congratulations to Don Diebert, Sandy Oftedahl-Brown and to many others of you here today for making this
work as smoothly as it has.
Looking ahead: We have already developed in consultation with departments, deans, directors, and unit
heads in all divisions the legislative priorities for this biennium. At the top of the capital list is
the remodel of Dean Hall. On the operating budget list, funding for faculty and staff salaries is our
top priority. Next is core funding for our existing enrollment and adjustment of our tuition waiver
authority to achieve parity with our sister comprehensives.
We continue to work with our Foundation Board to focus and expand their fundraising efforts and have
added staff to allow us to move ahead with planning of a comprehensive fundraising campaign.
Our record in obtaining federal grants and contracts is a continuing success story. Wayne Quirk reports
the following numbers: grants funded during this fiscal year totaled a record-breaking $7,996,897.
Between July 1, 2003 and June 30, 2004, a total of 127 grants were submitted to external funding sources
by 76 different faculty and staff, requesting a total of $13,439,912. Of these, 75 have already been
funded and 29 are still pending. The funded total so far is an 18 per cent increase over last year's
total awards.
The marketing plan continues to expand the visibility of the university, publicizing the
accomplishments of our programs, students, faculty and staff. And we will be making even greater use
of cable Channel 15 for university programming-including such ongoing programs as "Inside Central" - produced by Rick Spencer and Chris Smart, with the assistance of Mark Anderson, Rob Lowery, and others.
Another significant innovation has been the implementation of a faculty/staff intranet, thanks to Carmen
Rahm and his team.
We have several areas of excellence in student life programs. Our admissions office continues to do an
outstanding job of interacting directly with high school and community college staff and students to tell
Central's story. They also are continuing to focus on increasing the academic credentials of our freshman
class by recruiting heavily and providing scholarship assistance to students at the top of their
graduating classes. And they are attempting to increase the ethnic diversity of our student population
through aggressive outreach. The result: for the fourth time in four years, this is the most academically
talented and diverse entering class in our history.
We have just completed another outstanding Wildcat Welcome weekend, culminating a recruitment and
orientation program that is second to none and that accounts for much of our success in student
retention. Faculty and staff in other divisions are also responsible for these successes. So
congratulations to the student affairs staff, as well as to faculty and staff across the university
who have participated in these efforts.
As an index of this success, remember the goal set by the Retention Action Team a few years ago, of
improving CWU's freshman retention rate to 80%? Three years ago the rate was 72.7 per cent; two years
ago, it was up to 74.7 per cent - already quite good in national comparisons. Last year's rate was
77.1 per cent. That's a remarkable growth in that measure of how well we are doing, and - as was the
case last year -- also indicates that part of our enrollment growth continues to be not just new students,
but the retention of those we have here.
Last year's annualized enrollment was 8,649 FTE. This year we expect about the same annualized FTE.
Final numbers for fall quarter will be available after the tenth day next week.
We've also received recognition of our improved academic and student quality: US News and World Report
ranks us among the top twelve public regional comprehensive-master's universities in the west. Further
distinctions included the establishment of two new student honor societies on campus last year, with a
third to be added this year.
We continue to build mutually beneficial partnerships, not only with the city of Ellensburg (expanding this year into discussions of ways we can collaborate with them in economic development activities for the community), but also with Boeing and other industries through cooperative education programs, and with school districts around the region in a variety of teacher training initiatives. A major new partnership we began this past year was the Campus-Community Coalition, charged with address issues of high-risk drinking among high school and college populations. This, too, is a great team effort being spearheaded by several individuals in Students Affairs--notably Gail Farmer, Bob Trumpy and Jack Baker, and now being coordinated by Lynn Imamshah.
We've talked about accomplishments. But there are plenty of challenges and opportunities ahead for the coming year.
At the fall faculty meeting last week, I spoke briefly about continuing our discussion of the way to match our vision for our future with steps we need to be taking now. I am asking the entire campus to consider several elements that will require us to maximize our strengths and minimize the negative impact ofthe challenges that surround us and that will enable us to be active rather than reactive in understanding and responding to the external forces affecting the university.
This year, I am asking the campus to make progress on these specific planning goals:
- Identify and emphasize centers or areas of excellence. Begin to promote at least two of them this year
- Come to closure on developing a plan for the campus that defines who we are and what we want to be known for - including areas of excellence and potential excellence.
- Continue to be more selective in our admissions process, making greater demands on our students, and enhancing our diversity.
- Take steps to realize the goal we have set identifying the optimal size of the residential campus and the centers and understand the costs associated with additional enrollment.
- Be committed to nurturing and achieving excellence in all aspects of university life.
As this larger conversation continues, several specific activities and initiatives will have particular impact on campus. As I mentioned earlier, construction will begin soon on the SUB/REC project. This will be the culmination of a very effective process of planning and consultation and a very successful sale of bonds to finance the project.
There will continue to be a campus-wide emphasis on increasing diversity in our student and employee populations and integrating diversity and multiculturalism more fully into our curriculum. Following recommendations from the Diversity Council under the leadership of Keith Champagne and the council's 11 commissions, we have made good progess on diversity issues. This year's co-chair with Keith will be Carlos Oncina of the Department of Industrial and Engineering Technology.
We have already seen significant increases in the percentages of our minority student populations. Consider these figures for last year:
- a. New freshmen: up from 13.7 per cent last fall to 14.2 per cent
- b. New transfers: up from 16 per cent to 18.4 per cent
- c. All new undergraduates, up from 14.7 per cent to 16.2 per cent
- d. And for all undergraduates, up from 14.1 per cent to 14.7 percent
This past year, university officials and students met with leaders of the Hispanic Community to identify an agenda of issues enhancing our partnership and collaboration with them. We are also moving ahead with a Memorandum of Understanding to be signed with the Yakama, Colville and Umatilla tribes, identifying areas ofpartnership and cooperation.
We have established an External Advisory Council on Diversity, with representatives from a wide variety of constituencies. The first meeting of that group will be held on campus tomorrow.
As we continue with these initiatives, there will be several other important activities. As you know, we recently submitted our interim accreditation report to our regional accrediting agency, and now we await the visit from the regional accrediting team. We are also preparing for the next NCATE visit, after the very successful result of three years ago.
The process of civil service reform will continue, as we work with staff unions; and we will be entering into collective bargaining discussions with the faculty union.
And because we are faced with increasing enrollment in a depressed funding environment, part of our planning for the biennium must be for potential changes in funding. Initiative 884 could have a great effect on us.
Other goals reflect ongoing initiatives: after careful discussion, we are close to establishing a center to foster faculty development in teaching.
We will continue our efforts to tell CWU's story more broadly and to give greater visibility to the quality of this outstanding institution.
Among the campus events for the upcoming year, I want to call your attention to the following:
- As you know, the Presidential Speaker Series last year focused on globalization, with several outstanding speakers and campus colloquia. This year the theme will be "America on the World Stage." Our first speaker will be David Abshire, Tuesday October 19 in McConnell Auditorium. Dr. Abshire is President and CEO of the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Vice Chair of the Board of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C.
- In January, the second speaker in the Presidential Speaker Series will be Mark Trahant, Seattle PI columnist and editor of the PI editorial page.
- The Campus Community Building Project will continue this year, with Linda Garcia at the helm. Volunteers for the teams are always welcome; those interested should contact Linda by e-mail.
We've said goodbye to a number of our full-time faculty and staff. Earlier in my remarks, I noted the number of faculty, staff and administrators who left the university during the 2003-2004 year. We salute all of these colleagues and wish them well in their new adventures.
This past Memorial Day weekend, we said goodbye, with a flag-lowering ceremony held the day after the holiday, to students, staff, faculty and friends of CWU who died during the preceding year. At that time, we honored 29 individuals.
We have already begun to set our course for the next year, as we continue the task of "transforming the university" in accordance with the vision we have for our future.
On this occasion every year, I like to draw on comments from distinguished educators whose previous experience in higher education gives us some perspective on the challenges and opportunities we face. This year, I'd like to recall some of the observations of Clark Kerr-whom I have quoted often in the past-but whose death last December ended a life and a career largely dedicated to dealing with, and commenting on, change in some of the most dramatic and challenging periods in the history of higher education.
There were many things I admired about the writings of Clark Kerr. One was his occasionally wry view of serious issues. Describing how difficult change is to achieve, in his essay "The Future of the City of Intellect," Kerr quoted classicist F.M. Cornford's observation that "Nothing should ever be done for the first time." According to Kerr, Cornford went on to say that "Nothing is ever done until every one is convinced that it ought to be done, and has been convinced for so long that it is now time to do something else." (The Uses of the University, 72)
Change or transformation isn't easy at any time, or in any era. But the problem with a gradual approach to change is that it diminishes an institution's ability to be active rather than passive. A gradual pace is something we can't afford when the rest of society is moving so quickly around us.
So it was also Kerr's ability to articulate a larger perspective on transformations of higher education that I most admired-especially since his was a longer view that captured the importance of the tradition of universities and their value in society at the same time that it saw clearly some major changes on the horizon.
In "The Worth of Intellect," Kerr's inaugural address in 1958, he acknowledged the history of universities as guardians and transmitters of knowledge essential to civilizations in the past, but he also emphasized the importance of balance in that tradition. He told his audience that the world had changed-"from an emphasis on tradition to an emphasis on progress-and the universities have changed, albeit at first reluctantly, to become the architects of progress instead of the protectors of tradition. In so changing, their role in society has become ever more important." (8-9)
Managing that role has become particularly crucial. Far too often, both in Kerr's heyday and now, change occurs only as the result of having to adapt to forces from the outside. Further, as Kerr said in a later essay, "The current problem is not so much that the university does not fully control the direction of its own development-it seldom has-but rather that that it must make what are judged to be essential adjustments so often and so quickly." (The Uses of the University, 81)
Kerr argued forcefully for the need, as we have described it, to control the agenda of change. In "The Future of the City of Intellect," Kerr summarized dimensions of the transformation that higher education was going through that sound very familiar today:
- The university is being called upon to educate previously unimagined numbers of students; to respond to the expanding claims of national service; to merge its activities with industries as never before; to adapt to and rechannel new intellectual currents. (The Uses of the University, 65)
Concomitant with those challenges was the university's further emergence as an institution crucial to the "knowledge industry" in this country-i.e. to "the production, distribution and consumption of 'knowledge' in all its forms." As he said, "Knowledge has certainly never in history been so crucial to the conduct of an entire society...And the university is at the center of the knowledge process." (66)
In the face of the many social, political and academic forces that were coming to bear on universities as they became so central to the knowledge process, Kerr argued for thoughtful change; that is, for carefully planned and configured "transformation" in the role universities play in our society. At the same time, in his words, "universities need to be quickly responsive to opportunities, readily adaptable to change."
(70)
My point in my conversations with you about "transforming the university" is that we will be better off if we do try to take greater control of our own development through planning and through anticipation of the impact of external forces upon the goals we set and the vision we define for ourselves. And while some of the problems are the same as those that Clark Kerr described in the 1960s--the growth of the student population; increasing pressure from outside the academy to emphasize programs that apply knowledge to industrial needs and social problems, rising costs and declining support- we don't have the luxury of allowing change to be unplanned, or for change to unfold so slowly that we cannot address in a timely manner the challenges that confront us. Nor does it mean we can cut ourselves off from the problems and the pressures of the society that surrounds us. Indeed, our future lies in becoming more---not less--engaged with society. Shortly after Kerr's death he was remembered in a publication of the American Council on Education with this quote from a 1999 interview:
- (P)rogress in the future must focus on improving human resources. In the 60s, I talked about the
'multiversity,' but if I were writing today, I might use the term 'integrated university.' Higher educationnow faces the challenge of being less an independent force and being integrated into more elements ofsociety than ever before.
- What worries me the most are all the uncertainties that lie ahead. But in any event, colleges and universities do not have a choice-society is rapidly forcing change upon them... (The Presidency, 13)
That's our challenge: to stay engaged in the life of society: to be responsive to the needs society has and the opportunities it presents, while preserving the university's larger, enduring role as a "city of intellect" where knowledge is created, transmitted, and preserved; and to be actively seeking balance in all of these roles, even in the face of the uncertainties and the rapidly changing forces that surround us.
So this year and in the years that lie immediately ahead, that's what I'm asking you to do under the rubric of "transforming the university." I'm asking the campus as a whole to think about maintaining that balance as we decide what we are and what we intend to be, and set our course for a future that will be ever more challenging and rapidly changing.
We already have some sense of our road map; it's time now to start charting our destinations more clearly.
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