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I would like to take this opportunity to thank all members of the faculty, administration, and staff who have made this year so rewarding and exciting. Western is a great university that is getting better by the day. We have had challenges, to be sure. But, so many of you have stepped forward to accept the challenges that we cannot help but continue to move forward. And, your achievements have been significant.
Attention to academics, student development
On the academic side, we are beginning to get consistency in our rigorous academic expectations of our students. I hear from across the campus of increasing expectations, significantly higher student workloads, and requirements that students come to class and that they come prepared. You are raising your expectations of students and, likewise, you are helping them raise their expectations of themselves. This can only produce long-term good both for them and the University.
Our technology changed dramatically. As of this summer we will have four electronic classrooms, revitalized labs, and a campus network available in every residence hall soon. It is not enough, but it is a start.
Academic departments also took first steps in developing senior-level assessment programs. These programs will be very important to us as faculty since they will allow us to really understand what our students can--and cannot--do. But they also will help us explain to those beyond the campus about the quality of what we are about at Western.
At the same time that we are pressing our students on academic quality, we are improving our attention to the student as a person. The freshman residence hall, the faculty fellows program, and increased attention to advising in several departments were begun this year. We can, and will, do more, but we are moving in the right direction.
Faculty governance
This also has been a significant year for faculty governance and I would publicly like to thank Terry Kinnear for all his efforts to assure that the voice of the faculty is heard. And what a year we have had. This year, the faculty approved the Honors College, oversight of athletics, student behavior, reviewed and approved a new draft mission statement, dealt with class scheduling, and passed the proposal for a masters in nursing, along with many other significant actions. And, as a result of Terry's efforts, we have begun a significant process of re-examining the entire governance structure to assure that all constituencies have a voice in the future of the University. I also would like to thank Jane Hall and her committee for their hard work in this regard.
Student behaviors
We also are beginning to address some of the critical problems being faced by our younger students with regard to alcohol and other abusive behaviors. Strong work has been done with the Greek community to create a more responsible fraternity and sorority system. These efforts are beginning to bear fruit and we see students taking responsibility for setting standards for their own behavior. At the same time, we are anecdotally hearing that the number of emergency medical situations involving our students has declined since the new relationship policy was instituted.
Other emphases
Progress is being made in so many areas, but there are some that we need to get better in hand. Next year, we will need to develop a strong plan for expanding or reorienting graduate programs to meet the needs of the student within the context of state program review. We also will need to look at our retention programs to begin to reduce the number of academically qualified students who transfer or drop out. Likewise, we will need to renovate our Asheville program and increase attention to nontraditional and minority students. Our housing capacity has nearly been reached and we will need to begin to expand housing either on campus or through off-campus, private construction. We hope that the Legislature will see its way clear to fund the fine and performing arts center which is so critical to our future; and we need to carefully look at facilities available for student support services. And, when the new vice chancellor comes on line, we will need to examine the consistency, direction, and focus of those services.
The next year or two are going to bring significant change to the external community within which Western operates and I hope to be able to focus some of this change to support the University. You are all aware that there will be a new casino in Cherokee. Econometric projections suggest that this casino will be responsible for creating 2,800 new jobs in Western North Carolina and for increasing the number of tourists by more than a million a year. Sylva is the nearest community to Cherokee, so we can expect many changes associated with this shift in employment opportunities. We at the University need to continue to work to preserve the quality of this environment, to assist with growth management, and to help diversify the economy so that our region's entire future is not tied up with tourism. At the same time, we need to work to assure that the needs of our students, faculty, and staff are considered as these regional changes occur.
Applicants, alumni appreciation
You have had a great year and there are a number of indicators that tell us that your work is not going unnoticed. For example, the number of freshman applicants, has increased by 6.7 percent over last year, and it is now the highest in this decade. The number of freshman who met traditional minimum admissions standards is up 11.2 percent. In fact, in March, the University instituted a deferred admissions program, and increased the minimum admissions standard for fall admits.
While we will not know the actual characteristics of next year's class for some time, the students who are considering us are, on average, the best in our history. The average SAT score of accepted fall students is right at 1000. While many of the better students will have other options so that the actual SAT will be lower than 1000, we are now being considered by students who would have passed us by only a few years ago. There are indications, however, that some very academically talented students are looking to Western. To date, 108 students have accepted academic scholarship offers from us. They have an average SAT of 1193 (the highest being 1490) and an average weighted high school GPA of 4.0. We also expect to have 20 to 25 Teaching Fellows and enough National Merit Finalists to keep us on a faster track to recognition.
Our alumni and supporters also are responding to what you are doing. Everywhere I go in the state, alumni tell me to let you know how much they appreciate your efforts to raise academic and behavioral standards at Western. Your hard work is not going unnoticed, and it has tangible results. For example, the percentage of alumni donating to the University has increased by 37 percent in one year, and the total money donated is up significantly. Indeed, the total value of the University's endowment has increased by 71 percent in the last 18 months; most of which has come from new gifts. Your work is increasing the alumni's pride in Western--and those alumni are critical to our future.
Again, I just want to thank you for all the hard work of this year. No chancellor could ask to work with a better faculty and staff. Thank you for making my job so easy and for all you do for the students and for the people of North Carolina. Have a great summer.
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