The opening day of the new semester brought the campus together in Shea Center for a speech by University President Arnold Speert, who highlighted strategic academic planning, enrollment and institutional advancement as important aspects of the University’s future as it moves forward through a period of fiscal constraints.

Of wide and long-term significance is the development of a strategic academic plan. Speert has asked for Provost Edward Weil to “structure a campus-wide review of our academic programs with the goal of the creation of an Academic Strategic Plan to be presented to the Board of Trustees by the end of the Fall 2007 semester.  This plan will shape the academic directions of the University in the near- and long-term.”

“Increasing revenue is a vital goal for this year,” Speert said.  Increasing enrollment and supporting institutional advancement are high on the list of ways to reach that goal.

To address enrollment, Speert explained, an enrollment management committee has been established to build on the collaborative effort of several divisions including academic affairs and student development.  The committee will be chaired by the provost and John Martone, vice president for student development.

Speert said other initiatives to recruit students include renewing and strengthening relationships with the community colleges, a task led by the provost, “who has been visiting campuses in our immediate area and beyond to encourage articulation and collaboration between our campuses. Prior agreements need to be reviewed and strengthened and many new agreements will be negotiated.”

Another way to enhance enrollment is by strengthening the courses offered by the Center for Continuing and Professional Education under the direction of Bernadette Tiernan. “She has created a comprehensive business plan for the division that deals well with current strengths and future directions and projects new revenue over the next three years,” he said.

Marketing existing graduate programs is also important for increasing student enrollment. “We should build enrollments within the capacity of our graduate program, while insuring their quality and competitiveness,” Speert said.

Speert is also looking to institutional advancement to continue its fund-raising activities in support of University projects and programs. The highly successful comprehensive campaign, “Affecting Lives, Shaping Worlds,” which concluded at the end of the spring semester, exceeded its goal by raising more than $40 million for capital projects, scholarships, and other initiatives.

“What draws donors to the University are you and what you do,” he said.  “What I describe to them is their ability to partner with us to transform lives.” As an example, Speert discussed a recent gift from philanthropist David Bolger, who donated $500,000 to the Department of Nursing.

“Our success in generating private funds depends so heavily on the value of developing and building upon relationships,” he continued. “If you know of anyone who you believe might be interested in supporting one of our programs, please let us know.  Contributed dollars can provide scholarships, research released time, research equipment and supplies, teaching supplies and construction and renovation dollars.”

Changes on campus were another topic Speert addressed. The new residence halls, High Mountain East and West, have opened and are designed to enhance the concepts of learning communities which encourage interaction between students with common interests.

The architect’s concept for the new science building and renovation will be presented to the board of trustees at the September 15 meeting. “We chose the science building as the next major project because it is in great need of renovation and modernization and because we are able to serve the interests of seven departments directly and those in health-related areas indirectly and because of national and regional urgency for state-of-the-art science research and education for the 21st century,” he said.

“Our goal in all our construction and renovation is to make the campus more residential in quality even for our commuting students. The campus should be, and should be seen as, a student-friendly environment,” Speert added.

The University submitted its Middle States Periodic Review Report, and received a single recommendation for a follow-up report by March 31, 2008 on preliminary student outcomes. “We have provided a response to the report that points out the considerable progress we have made in utilizing the assessment process to improve programs,” Speert said.  The Middle States Committee on Periodic Review Reports will act on  William Paterson’s accreditation status in October by considering the findings and the recommendations in the reviewers’ report and the University’s response.