University hits scholarship goal, readies for strategic plan
By Scott Rochat
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Emporia State University has met its scholarship fund-raising goal, ESU President Michael Lane announced at the university’s general assembly Tuesday.
“We have successfully concluded the Building Blocks for Success campaign, raising more than the $15 million goal,” Lane said as an audience of mostly faculty and staff applauded in Albert Taylor Hall.
“Unfortunately,” he added with a rueful chuckle, “most of the people who raised that money are gone.” ESU starts this semester with several vacancies in its advancement office — the university’s fund-raising arm — and only hired its new advancement director, Judith Heasley, last spring.
In a prepared statement after the assembly, Heasley praised the donors and those who had worked to get the donations. She gave the total as $15.88 million as of June 30, when the school’s fiscal year ended.
“Our success is a tribute to everyone involved,” her statement read. “Their vision and tireless efforts have brought this campaign to fruition and their work will touch the lives of students for years to come.”
The assembly ran a little more than an hour, a bit longer than usual. Attendance was good -- perhaps because of the near-constant notices leading up to it.
“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,” Lane said, drawing a big laugh from the university employees. “Even I got tired of reading the reminders.”
Most of the assembly’s length came from a long list of new hires and another long list of accomplishments since January. Fifty-four new employees were introduced, including two new deans: Gwen Alexander of the School of Library and Information Managment and Steven Brown of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Even the list of accomplishments, a favorite item for Lane, had to be abbreviated a bit. But it still included items such as the completed renovation of the Twin Towers dorms, art professor Elaine Henry receiving the Governor’s Art Award, and the selection of art therapy faculty member Gaelynn Wolf-Bordonaro to be part of a national team working with tsunami survivors on the east coast of India.
“Including everything would have involved all of us being here until 5 o’clock,” Lane said. “And that is not a healthy thing to do.”
The centerpiece of Lane’s address involved the university’s as-yet unformed strategic plan. Over the summer, ESU gathered information for what is called a SWOT analysis: a study of the university’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. An overall task force has been formed and work groups are being finalized to go over the data and recommend what issues and objectives the plan should address.
The task force itself will work on setting the plan’s goals and initiatives next March and April after a series of public forums and focus group meeting. The text of the strategic plan will be prepared between May and June and presented in August 2008, along with recommendations on how to put it into practice.
“Yes, this is an aggressive agenda!” Lane said. “But I think we’re perfectly poised as a Regent’s institution to set new goals and initiatives.”
Lane also gave a progress report on the Banner computer system, the database that is intended to handle most campus functions. Putting degree audits on the system is the next goal, he said, so that students and advisers alike will have an easier time determining what a student still needs for graduation.
Student billings and human resources are now on Banner, Lane said.
“The September payroll will be the first full payroll since the new system,” he said. “So say a prayer.”