General Assembly Remarks
August 14, 2007
President Michael R. Lane
Emporia State University

Good Afternoon,

I am pleased to welcome our new faculty and staff and to welcome back our returning faculty and staff.  The beginning of the academic year is one of the most exciting times to be on a university campus.  Whether we are faculty, staff, or students, we have a chance to see old friends and to meet some new friends as we begin another academic year that will provide many opportunities to help change lives.

For those of you who are returning and who missed the January General Assembly due to lack of notification, I think we solved that problem.  Even I got tired of reading the reminders.  At any rate, I am pleased to see you here today.

Today I want to talk about three things.  First, I want to announce two changes in administrative responsibilities, second, I want to highlight some of the many accomplishments of faculty and staff during the first half of 2007, and finally, I want to outline the process and timing for the strategic planning efforts which began this summer.

Those of you who participated in the Stakeholder Survey last November and the Stakeholders’ Conference last February will recall that we ranked ideas in two categories:  Opportunities and challenges.  It will come as no surprise to anybody that the number 1 challenge was “Funding.”  I must admit, I was surprised at the intensity of the response which ranked second in challenges and first and second in opportunities.  “Marketing” was second in both responses and “Visibility” was ranked first in opportunities.

After the Stakeholders Conference, I spent the next several weeks assessing our institutional processes in the area of Marketing and concluded that no fewer than six components of the institution were involved in marketing with little or no coordination:  Department of Public Affairs and Marketing; Undergraduate Admissions; Graduate Admissions; Lifelong Learning; Athletics; and Alumni Affairs (and that does not include the efforts of programs and schools and colleges).  My basic conclusion was that Marketing must be the ultimate responsibility of one person who will coordinate (and approve) all marketing of the University. 

I am pleased to announce that Brad Goebel has agreed to accept the position of Director of Marketing effective July 29, 2007.  At the same time, I have moved Marjorie Werly to a new position of Director of Public Relations and Executive Assistant to the President.  In addition to working with the media, Marjorie will be responsible for managing speaking engagements and many of the externally visible roles of the president.  I believe that both of these changes will allow us to do a much better job of managing the marketing and the image of ESU.

As we set our course for the next year, it is important that we take a few moments to reflect back and celebrate accomplishments from the first half of 2007.  The list of accomplishments provided by each vice president was impressive and, of course, in the interest of time I’ve selected some of the most outstanding accomplishments to share with you.

Administration & Fiscal Affairs

  • Within Facilities, completion of the Towers Residence Hall project has involved our staff preparing some of the cabinetry, at considerable savings compared to purchase of comparable products.
  • Facilities staff is very busy planning.  They continue work on implementation of the deferred maintenance projects to be completed during the next five years.  They are also beginning work on plans to renovate the Memorial Union.
  • Banner Implementation
    • HR is up and running!  The September payroll will be the first full payroll since the new system – wish them luck!
    • Student billings and A/R are up on the new system.  (No wonder it has been a hot summer.)
    • We are also in the process of evaluating how best to take this important system to the next level for our institution.  An initial step has been initiating a user group to assist us in considering recommendations for the future for this important system at ESU.

University Advancement/Foundation

  • Hired a new President of the ESU Foundation/Executive Director of University Advancement.
  • With the input of Deans and Department Chairs, advancement is building fund-raising priority lists for colleges, schools and departments across campus that identify critical major gift needs and significant naming opportunities.
  • Spotlight magazine received a gold award for photography and a bronze award for graphic design from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) District VI. Congratulations to Dick Garvey, University Photography and John Decker, graphic design.
  • Successfully completed the 5-year Building Blocks for Success scholarship campaign realizing more than $15 million.

 

Liberal Arts and Sciences

  • Elaine Henry, an internationally recognized sculptor:
    • Received the 2007 Kansas Governor’s Arts Award;
    • Elaine was also one of 27 American ceramic artists placing artwork in the inaugural collection of the new American Ceramic Museum in FuPing, China.
  • Patrick Martin, glass professor, was one of the seven summer residents invited to demonstrate and create work at The Glass Museum in Tacoma, Washington.
  • Tiffany Shogren a student from the journalism program, received one of only three national scholarships awarded by the Society of Professional Journalists.
  • Ben Spalding, senior music education major, had an original composition for Wind Ensemble, The Night Has a Thousand Eyes, accepted for publication by J. W. Pepper & Son, Inc/Wingert-Jones Publications. 
  • Music student Dion Johnson, was accepted by competitive audition and received a scholarship to participate in “Canta in Italia,” held in Florence, Italy in June.

School of Business

  • Students: The ESU Phi Beta Lambda chapter from the School of Business competed at the State Leadership Conference in Salina. The chapter won 11 state championships in various business related activities.
  • Received an unconditional (no issues) reaccreditation response from AACSB.

Teachers College

  • Alumna Jennifer O'Laughlin Brooks, was named Texas Professor of the Year by Carnegie Foundation for Advancement of Teaching.
  • Alum Josh Anderson named as Kansas Teacher of the Year and one of four finalists for National Teacher of the Year.
  • Great Plains Center for National Board Certification:  80% pass rate (compared to 38% nationwide).
  • Gaelynn Wolf Borndinaro was the only US Art Therapist to be selected to serve on the American Team who traveled to the east coast of India to work with tsunami survivors.
  • Joella Mehrhof: District Scholar Award (Central District Association of the American Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance).

School of Library and Information Management

  • Rachel Bridgewater, an Oregon SLIM alumna and part-time faculty member, was named a “Library Mover and Shaker” for 2007 by Library Journal.
  • SLIM master’s degree student Royce Kitts was awarded the 2007 Presidential Award for Beginning New Professional from the Kansas Library Association.

Intercollegiate Athletics

  • Emporia State University is ranked 11th in the nation in producing Academic All-Americans named by the College Sports Information Director’s of America (CoSIDA).
  • ESU had seven Academic All-District performers during the 2006-07 school year to rank third among MIAA schools.
  • All spring sports at ESU participated in their respective NCAA tournaments – Men’s and Women’s basketball; Men’s and Women’s Tennis; Men’s and Women’s Track; Baseball; and Softball!
  • The cumulative GPA for the athletic programs in the spring semester was 3.11.

Division of Student Affairs

  • Through partnership with the Department of Counselor Education created and received Board of Regents Approval of a Leadership Minor, for which 15 students participating in the minor program traveled to Europe to study leadership as a capstone class.
  • The TRiO programs secured two Upward Bound grant renewals with three year commitments in excess of 3 million dollars.
  • Instituted a complete assessment program modeled after academic assessment programs.

It has been a pretty good beginning to the calendar year wouldn’t you say?

From the Office of the President

  • I will continue my visits to each department on campus.  I hope to get to all remaining departments (academic and administrative) this academic year.
  • I will begin a series of meetings with students tentatively called, “Pizza with the Prez.”  This will provide opportunities for students to meet with me informally during the year.
  • I will begin a process of holding small group meetings with faculty members (approximately 10 faculty members per meeting) to help me learn about the things you are working on and to provide an opportunity to have discussions.  It will take a couple of years to get through the entire faculty and the meetings will be cross-disciplinary.
  • I plan to block periods of time in my calendar to walk around campus.  I will probably visit one building at a time.  My purpose is to get to know you and for you to get to know me.  It will also help me gain an understanding of our facilities and needed improvements.

Strategic Planning
On June 29th we held the kick-off (pre-planning) meeting for the Strategic Planning Task Force.  In addition to reviewing the planning process, and time frame, we also discussed the structure of the process and agreed on using several “Work Groups” to address specific areas of the process.  The process will be facilitated by Dr. John Moore, President, Penson Associates and President Emeritus of Indiana State University.

My goal is for this process to be broad and inclusive.  The co-chairs of the Task Force are John Schwenn and Kenna Reeves.  Jim Williams will serve as an administrative advisor and will be responsible for ensuring continuing progress of the Work Groups.  You should have received an e-mail message asking for volunteers for Work Groups.  The response was very impressive and unfortunately the co-chairs will not be able to place everyone on a Work Group and still keep the sizes reasonable.  We are planning for approximately 10 people per work group (including community and student representatives where appropriate).

As I outline the time frame for the process I will explain the expected outcomes. 

Purpose of Process

  • Create an opportunity for dialog about the future of the university
  • Affirm the university’s mission, vision, and core-values
  • Prepare a Strategic Plan
  • Ensure the quality and vitality of the university

Leadership/Organization:

  • The President
  • Strategic Planning Task Force
  • Planning Work Groups
  • Open Forums, Focus Groups
  • Planning Task Force Retreat

Phase I - Pre-Planning Phase
June 1 – August 31, 2007

  • Complete SWOT Analysis
  • Organize the Task Force and Work Groups
  • Establish Planning assumptions
  • Work Group Chairs have been selected and the Work Groups will be finalized by the Co-Chairs of the Task Force. 
    • As part of their deliberation processes, each work group will conduct focus groups and open discussion opportunities. 

Phase II - Governing Ideas
September 1 – October 31, 2007

  • First two work groups will complete their work.  They are:
    • Environmental/Institutional Analysis which will analyze the SWOT analyses which were completed last spring and summer, and
    • Governing Ideas which will review and revise as appropriate, our Mission, Vision, and Core

Phase III - Planning
November 1, 2007 – March 1, 2008

  • The following Work Groups will conduct their meetings each with the objective of determining appropriate Strategic Directions and strategic issues for the University.
    • Work Groups:
      • Undergraduate Education
      • Graduate Education
      • Outreach and Lifelong Learning
      • Distinctive Academic Programs
      • Internationalization of ESU
      • Public Engagement, Service, and Community Partnerships
      • Critical Resources
      • Facilities

Each of these work groups will develop reports to the Task Force to consider in development of the overall institutional plan. 

Phase IV - Formulation of Strategic Goals and Initiatives -
March – April 2008

The Task Force will participate in a retreat for the purpose of reviewing the reports from each of the Work Groups and formulating proposed strategic goals and initiatives for ESU.  These proposals will be shared and opportunities for discussion and input will be scheduled.

Phase V - Preparation of Strategic Plan
May – June 2008

The strategic planning document will be prepared including methods of assessment and assignment of responsibility for achieving the final goals and initiatives.  The final document should include:

  • An Executive Summary
  • Discussion of Purpose and Process
  • Context for Planning (Environmental/Institutional Analysis)
  • Planning Assumptions
  • Governing Ideas
  • Strategic Goals and Initiatives
  • Assessment processes and Key Performance Indicators

Phase VI - Implementation Planning
July – August 2008

  • Identification of individuals and units principally responsible for implementation of programs to achieve goals.
  • Time frames for accomplishing Goals and Initiatives.
  • Resource Investments necessary to achieve Goals and Initiatives.
  • Interim Reporting processes and timing
  • Mechanism to update our constituents on our progress.

Assuming the time frame is met, we will roll out the strategic plan at the August 2008 General Assembly.

Yes, this is an aggressive agenda!  However, we are perfectly poised as a Regent’s Institution to set new goals and initiatives.  With a relatively new president, supportive Regents, and some new operating rules, we can expand programs in Kansas City; expand opportunities for international students; and for ESU students and faculty to increase international travel.

Our future is in our hands.  I believe we can accomplish the things we plan as long as we:

  1. commit to meeting the needs of Kansas;
  2. commit to meeting the needs of our students;
  3. commit to maintaining and improving our quality academic programs;
  4. commit to providing the resources needed to accomplish the plan;
  5. commit to assessing and rewarding results, and
  6. commit to continuing to work together.

Emporia State University is an extraordinary place because of our history, our heritage and because of the people who comprise this University.  We have a mutual responsibility to continue to develop our institution into the future.  We have a mutual responsibility to help retain our students through graduation.  We exist to transform lives.  We can grow or we can fade.  We can stagnate or we can prosper.  We can walk, or we can fly.  The choice is ours and I believe we are up to the challenge.  Our greatest days lie ahead.

Thank you for your attention and I look forward to seeing you in about 15 minutes at the Sauder Center for refreshments and conversation.

Thank you and let’s have a great year at ESU.