Collaborative relationships between Emporia State University and the Emporia-area community are key to success, according to Dr. Jackie Vietti, interim president of the university. Vietti spoke to nearly 100 business leaders and members of the campus and local community.
“Partnerships are pervasive through the community,” Vietti said. “There is not anything we cannot achieve.”
Vietti was the guest of honor Thursday, July 16, at a welcome reception sponsored by the Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce and the Emporia State University Foundation.
“Good campus-community relationships are vital for the success of all of us,” said Jeanine McKenna, Chamber president about why the groups worked together to introduce Vietti.
During the two-hour event, Vietti greeted each guest individually, then spoke to the group. She outlined her background — earning four degrees from three Kansas universities including a secondary teaching certificate from Emporia State and a 17-year tenure as president of Butler Community College. In addition, her mother earned a degree in French from Emporia State in the 1950s and her daughter earned a master’s degree in library science in the 2000s.
Accepting the interim presidency is a way to return to her roots, Vietti said.
“Every morning, I get to come to Hornet Nation,” she explained. “You are what makes Emporia State University what it is. This culture is not what you see at every university.”
With a goal from the Kansas Board of Regents to have a new president on the job Jan. 1, Vietti’s six-month tenure at Emporia State has one primary goal.
“I’m going to do everything in my power to keep momentum going,” Vietti told the group. “You can feel the energy on campus; you can feel the energy in the community.
“Why would we slow down momentum; why would we change direction?”