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Good morning and welcome to the 2008-2009 academic year at William Paterson University. Thanks for joining us today. I hope that your summer was relaxing and rejuvenating and that you share my anticipation for a wonderful year.
As part of our tradition of using the first day of the new academic year to collectively reflect and re-engage as an academic community, I encourage you to take part in today’s activities. At 10:30 a.m. in this ballroom, Richard Sweeney, University librarian at NJIT, will lead a panel of William Paterson students in a discussion entitled, “Higher Education and Multi-taskers: The Millennial Generation Goes to College.” We’ll then break for lunch before the colleges and department meetings at 2 p.m.
Now, please join me in welcoming our new colleagues. I‘d like to introduce each of them. When I call your name, please stand. I apologize ahead of time for any mispronunciations.
(NEW FACULTY AND STAFF SLIDES)
2008-2009 New Tenure Track Faculty
In the College of the Arts and Communication:
Michael Rees in Art
Michael Harrington in Music
In the Cotsakos College of Business:
Hannah Wong in Accounting and Law
Lukas Dean and
Malay Dey in Economics, Finance and Global Business
Robert Laud in Marketing and Management Sciences
In the College of Education:
Sandra Alon,
Carrie Eunyoung Hong,
Michelle Kowalsky and
Robert Rimmer in Educational Leadership and Professional Studies
Bernard Jones in Special Education and Counseling
Alison Dobrick in Elementary and Early Childhood Education
In the College of Humanities and Social Sciences:
Martha Witt in English
Suzanne Bowles and
Neici Zeller in History
Amy Learmonth and
Timothy Vander Gast in Psychology
Jennifer Di Noia and
Luis Nuno in Sociology
In the College of Science and Health:
Jeung Woon Lee and
Joseph Spagna in Biology
David Snyder in Chemistry
Vanessa Fiaud,
Michael Figueroa and
Amy Rady in Kinesiology
Jyoti Champanerkar and
Paul Von Dohlen in Mathematics
Karen Phillips in Nursing
William Kernan in Public Health
2008-2009 New Administrators:
Raymond Torres-Santos, Dean of the College of the Arts and Communication
Margaret Ann Renn in the Office of Field Experience, College of Education
Elizabeth Riquez, Director of Financial Aid
Yvette Viera-Villanueva in Institutional Advancement
Terry Bogorad in Police and Public Safety
(SLIDE-UNIVERSITY LOGO)
Would Professor Sue Godar, chair of the Faculty Senate, and Professor Sue Tardi, President of AFT Local 1796, please stand and be recognized. Provost Ed Weil and I look forward to continuing to work with you and your colleagues this coming year. I frequently joke about being sued on a regular basis. We don’t always agree with them and Heaven knows they don’t always agree with us, but we are very fortunate to have two individuals so dedicated to excellence and the betterment of our University in such important positions of leadership.
I’d like to begin with a video that was created as both a recruitment and fund-raising tool because it so simply and persuasively expresses the very core of what we are as a University.
(VIDEO PLAYS)
AFTER VIDEO:
(SLIDE – UNIVERSITY LOGO)
In the past year, we have embarked upon several planning initiatives that are giving us new directions and new purpose. These initiatives are now reaching a confluence that will help us chart our path forward. They will help us define not just who we are at this moment, but who we will be in the years ahead, and how we will pursue our future. Our commitment to innovation and the development of distinctive programs and experiences provides the durable backbone for all of our planning processes. Our shared vision for the future relies upon the learning opportunities created by you for our students.
Opportunity is a powerful idea. It reveals a sense of chance and possibility, but there’s so much more inherent in the notion of an opportunity. The power of creating opportunities is at the core of William Paterson University’s purpose. Opportunities created in the classrooms, labs and studios, and throughout every aspect of our diverse campus provide fertile ground for student success.
We need to identify, enhance and promote these opportunities to all those for whom the University can serve as an educational, cultural, intellectual and economic development resource. For the past year we have been engaged in a branding and marketing campaign to guide us to be more effective at spreading the word about all that we have to offer.
But branding is more than marketing. It’s a commitment to who we are and how we want to be known to our full range of constituents – the campus community, prospective students and their families, alumni, guidance counselors, legislators, the business community, and others. Branding is an opportunity to coalesce as an institution around our core identity. The marketing campaign, to which I’ll come back a bit later, is being designed to articulate that identity -- both internally and externally – in a realistic depiction that is both accurate and differentiating in comparison to our competitors.
So, despite statewide budget conditions that continue to challenge us, we must continue to collectively move this University forward, breaking new ground, literally and figuratively, and actively redefining and improving what we do, and how we do it.
The Board of Trustees holds the statutory responsibility to define who we are and shape and guide the major strategic decisions before us. Last year the Board began a strategic planning process to help us position ourselves moving forward. About 70 members of the University community participated in a working session in early February that was very helpful in guiding the Board’s thinking. The process involves identifying key factors that will shape the environment we will confront looking ahead, and developing strategies that work within a wide range of contingencies. One variable selected by the Board is how well or poorly we are supported, fiscally and in all other respects, by all our stakeholders. The second variable is the full range of potential means by which we deliver our programs and services, whether primarily through local learning communities or with a more global reach. Each combination of potential support and delivery mode suggests certain strategic decisions in the areas of mission, enrollment, faculty and staff, programs and curriculum, student experiences, campus facilities, development and external relations. On September 12 the Board will hold a retreat to apply this analysis to the subject of enrollment, seeking to reach consensus on decisions about how many and what type of students we should and are able to best serve. Ed and I will keep the university community informed and engaged in this process.
The University faculty and the Faculty Senate spent considerable time last year working on and reviewing the draft Academic Plan which, as you will recall, is a very comprehensive document with several major university-wide initiatives, numerous suggested curriculum modifications, and various suggested new programs at the undergraduate and graduate level. This document provides a blueprint for the University to better position itself with a reputation for preparing students for careers (or more advanced education) by providing high-quality, up-to-date, and technologically-current academic programs, an integrated curriculum, and substantive, value-added professional or co-curricular experiences that support their academic preparation. As a result of a Senate resolution passed in May, a conference committee met during the summer to review some of the recommendations contained in the document and find additional language and the clarification of overarching goals to move the draft Academic Plan back to the Faculty Senate for final review during the first few weeks of the semester. It is my understanding that the committee will recommend several planning principles and overarching goals that clearly summarize the intent of the Plan for consideration by the Faculty Senate and the Board of Trustees.
At the Faculty Recognition Luncheon on Commencement Day in May, I briefly cited some of the many curricular initiatives approved by the Faculty Senate last academic year, and when necessary, by the Board and the statewide process. These included the reinstatement of some majors, modifications of several undergraduate and graduate programs, new certification opportunities for education students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and a few new graduate programs. I know that the Provost’s office, the Deans, department chairs and graduate directors had the conscious intent of providing clarity to what we offer to prospective students, to provide some new and modified curricular opportunities at minimal additional costs, and to add a few new programs and concentrations that were long on hold or have been developed with grant support. Our enrollments depend upon relevant programmatic opportunities for our students as they consider their career options and the employment marketplace. Congratulations to all those involved in these many improvements and advancements to our offerings.
I want to recognize the steadfast leadership of Professors Jean Levitan and John Peterman, as they have led us through the first year of General Education renewal. As we all know, this is never an easy task. Working with the Senate General Education Committee, they initiated and have maintained the discussion at the highest levels of collegiality always respectful of the various perspectives and curricular possibilities. They have also developed an ambitious schedule for the Fall semester, and beyond, in hopes of moving toward a program proposal sooner than later. I expect and encourage extensive faculty involvement with these ongoing discussions and, along with Provost Weil, anticipate a creative, innovative and, hopefully, long-lasting General Education sequence that will bring distinction to the University. This initiative is another opportunity for William Paterson to clarify its identity, as well as demonstrate its distinctiveness as we attempt to integrate this essential component of the undergraduate curriculum with our evolving majors, and our assessment activities.
Our commitment to providing a supportive learning environment for students in both academic and extracurricular activities extends throughout our campus. Yes, we need to continue to provide the programs and experiences that create and stimulate the spark of learning. But, as an institution, we must do more than teach. We have a responsibility to provide an excellent system of student services that is responsive to the day-to-day needs of present and future William Paterson University students.
I’m pleased to announce that the new Center for Student Services, developed by Vice President John Martone and his staff, will begin operation in the next two weeks in Morrison Hall in a redesigned, visually welcoming suite. The center will be fully operational by the end of September. It will combine certain direct student contact functions from the Bursar, Registrar and Financial Aid offices, for example, transcript requests and bill payment, providing high demand services for students that previously required them to make visits to three different locations. Ken Schneider, a veteran member of the Student Development staff, is the director of the Center and will work with an advisory board that includes faculty, students and professional staff. We are committed to developing a student services model that fulfills our commitment to effectively meet student support needs and we want to ensure that this model service unit will be stronger and more effective than any other State University’s. Student services should be a source of pride for our institution and should be an element that distinguishes us in comparison to our competitors. Today’s opening puts us on that path.
Campus safety is an important component of maintaining an environment that supports learning and student success. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished in this area and we’re eager to continuously improve. Preventive measures are particularly crucial. The Students of Concern Committee is beginning its second year providing a frontline early warning system to detect and, if necessary, refer for proper evaluation and treatment, students judged to be manifesting aberrant behavior in the classroom or elsewhere on campus. Faculty have been counseled on how to report such behavior to the committee, which consists of representatives of each college, campus police, counseling and Residence Life. The committee then decides on the appropriate course of action.
We’ve had a long-standing plan developed to address how we would manage a critical incident on campus and we ensure that the plan is kept current. Please also be assured that we’ve developed a plan that addresses emergency communications on campus, as well as emergency communications to the media and external community. I would recommend that we all review the procedures in the Faculty and Staff Handbook.
Our colleagues in Counseling, Health and Wellness have developed a new system of electronic medical records that is a benchmark for college health initiatives nationally. After three years of development, Point and Click, a state of the art health and counseling appointment and medical records system used by universities with medical schools, has been implemented at William Paterson University. As a database system, it is searchable and permits the generation of reports that will help our professionals more effectively and proactively identify health issues in our community. For example, if we detect that a large number of students report a particular ailment, such as asthma, health education programs can be tailored to the specific issue. We join 51 other universities, such as Harvard, Penn State, and NYU that offer this level of support.
Alcohol use and abuse continues to be a source of concern on campuses throughout the country. There has been much dialog in the media in recent weeks regarding an effort initiated by more than 125 college presidents to stimulate a national debate on the drinking age. William Paterson University has developed a proactive and nationally recognized program of alcohol and drug abuse prevention and education that has been effective in helping our students make increasingly responsible decisions regarding alcohol use. Our assessment of the needs of our students and the relevant research leads us to conclude that lowering the drinking age is not right for our students or any others. From my perspective, the entire idea is wrong-minded. I’m extremely proud of the groundbreaking prevention program led by John Martone and Glen Sherman. The University has recently received a $250,000 renewable grant from the Division of Addiction Services in the Department of Human Services. The grant will help us to designate a clean and sober residence hall area for students with addiction issues and the grant will also fund a staff member who will work to create late-night, alcohol free recreation programs.
One of the hallmarks of a William Paterson University education is our ability to provide a diversity of experiences so that individual students can find their own niches, their own interests, their own group of friends whether or not they live on campus. We have just completed the renovation of the residence halls formerly known as North and South Towers. Reflecting the renovations, the new names will be Overlook North and Overlook South. Now, all of our residence halls are either new or renovated, so that all students living on campus benefit from the highest level of residence hall quality. The Department of Counseling, Health & Wellness will move into Overlook South beginning this fall. By next fall, we will have a fitness/exercise center as part of Counseling, Health & Wellness, located in what is currently the lobby. Eventually, these buildings will have separate new entrances. This is part of our ongoing efforts to create a residential village with each building offering programs and services that attract and retain resident students.
The learning community concept applied to our residence halls will also grow this year. In addition to the Honors College community in High Mountain East, we are expanding to Overlook where non-honors freshmen will live with other students who are registered for the same freshman seminar sections and the same general education courses. One group of freshmen will be undeclared students, who will have special programming designed to help them acquire the information and skills they will need to make an informed decision about a major and career path. We’ve looked at the learning community concept as an innovation in residence life and we want to make sure that it’s working as designed. Student Development and the Honors College are developing an assessment program to ensure that these learning communities are achieving the collaborative goals of academics and student life.
For quite some time, we’ve talked about the importance of a more comprehensive marketing campaign that would build on the core William Paterson University identity. To do this, and to do it right, we needed to take a step back and carefully develop an assessment of our identity and the best way to articulate it.
Without question, the time is right for us to project a more powerful image of William Paterson University in a way that will reinforce our stature and expand the universe of stakeholders who recognize us as a special institution, an institution that touches lives and prepares students for life. We want to articulate the excellence of our faculty and of our programs and want to do so in a way that promotes the best features of our institutional culture.
Last fall, after testing preliminary ideas and strategies in focus groups, the Lipman Hearne agency presented us with a description of a proposed brand identity and a recommended strategy for positioning ourselves in an increasingly competitive environment. We directed the agency to craft a creative concept that would differentiate us from our competitors. Lipman Hearne recommended that our marketing should make an emotional connection from the students’ point of view by emphasizing the feeling that “I know people are looking out for me and are invested in my success.”
(SLIDE – BRAND MESSAGE)
Their recommended central brand message reads, “William Paterson offers an environment rich in possibilities. We put student success first; providing a supportive and challenging environment that encourages students to push themselves, gain confidence and come away with the knowledge that remarkable things are within their reach.”
(SLIDE – UNIVERSITY LOGO)
Last spring, we instructed Lipman Hearne to develop and implement a marketing strategy that would build upon the brand and we agreed that the messaging will emphasize outcomes and opportunities, largely by highlighting our students and faculty. The agency developed preliminary creative concepts and tested them in student focus groups. Based on the feedback and our directions, the concepts were refined, then validated in additional groups that included high school students, a faculty marketing committee, William Paterson students, and admissions department staff. We ultimately decided on a creative approach that we believe captures our brand essence in a strong and flexible way and projects the university’s image in a distinctive and engaging manner.
Let’s take a look at the design concepts for undergraduate recruitment. These will evolve into recruitment materials and ads in a range of media, including online, billboards, buses, malls and newspapers.
(SLIDE – YOUR NEXT ON VIEWBOOK COVER)
We’re very pleased with the themeline of “Your next…” It can be combined with a wide range of ideas to suggest opportunities, achievements and encouragement. The concept is forward thinking and seems to work well in a wide range of media. We believe that it creates a strong platform for us to communicate about student outcomes, the impact of faculty, the benefits of individualized attention, and the culture of student success that underpins the William Paterson University experience.
We will launch the undergraduate recruitment campaign shortly with plans for a graduate campaign now in development.
(SLIDE - YOUR NEXT MENTOR) Here is an example – still a work in progress -- of one of a series of ads to highlight the close connection between faculty and students. The headline reads “Your Next Mentor” with a supporting line, on the bottom, that reads “Learn from Experience.”
The campaign will also highlight our impact on student life. (SLIDE -- YOUR NEXT FRIENDS FOR LIFE). This sample ad says, “Your Next friends for life” with a supporting line that says, “Make the connection.”
(SLIDE -- YOUR NEXT FAN CLUB) This next slide is an example of the series of ads that we plan to highlight specific academic programs. “Your Next Fan Club”…”lead by example.” We will develop one ad for each college.
(SLIDE – UNIVERSITY LOGO)
The branding effort will include an on-campus component. This is crucial to the success of the initiative. We are all potential ambassadors and nothing is more important than word of mouth communications from the people most closely involved, and affected, by the marketing. The integrated marketing campaign will go forward in stages. We’ve designed the program to generate inquiries that will lead to increase enrollment, to improve alumni engagement, and to bolster our image in a way that helps us maintain and build relationships with the legislative and business communities. Overall, we’re working to increase awareness about all that we offer and to strengthen our image as an institution of excellence.
Our plan is to build on the brand through the years, refining it, as we assess its impact.
As you recall, on October 1 we are due to provide to Middle States an update of our progress on student learning outcomes activities. Ed has described a very busy year of activities throughout the Colleges and departments. Having recently chaired a visiting team, I am very much aware of the focus Middle States is placing on this particular accreditation criterion and the extensive efforts underway on other campuses as well. I look forward to hearing more details about your efforts and activities. It is my expectation that as all colleges and universities are held to new standards of accountability, effective assessment that clearly demonstrates that programs are meeting learning objectives or are modified for program improvement will serve us well. And speaking of accountability, this year we will begin the process of developing documentation for our next Middle States visit scheduled for Spring 2011. Ed will speak further on this and on assessment at the September 18 all-faculty meeting.
I want to share with you two additional means by which we demonstrate accountability and learn more about the effectiveness of our programs and services. The first is a national effort entitled the Voluntary System of Accountability or VSA. Responsive to concerns arising from the work of the Spellings Commission regarding commonality of information and ease of access for students and families, the VSA emerged from a collaboration between the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. This web-based template for public colleges and universities (a similar vehicle has been developed for independent institutions) provides a common national framework for delivering facts and figures of interest to students and families such as costs of attendance, degree offerings, living arrangements, student characteristics, graduation rates, transfer rates, and post-graduate plans, conveys information regarding student experiences and perceptions and documents student learning outcomes. We are in the process of populating the template with our data as well as designing the presentation of optional information that will allow us to put our best foot forward to those who visit us on-line. Be on the lookout for the release of our VSA page during the fall semester.
The National Survey of Student Engagement, (NSSE) better known as “Nessie” affords us the opportunity to look at the perceptions and experiences of our students, and of students at institutions like ours, in key areas related to involvement in the learning process and student satisfaction. The “Nessie” instrument poses questions regarding student group learning experiences, active learning experiences, institutional commitment to student learning and success, student satisfaction, student interaction with faculty and staff and experiences with diverse groups of people and ideas. There is much for us to digest in these results, some positive and some not so, and we will find the appropriate means to involve you in that review this fall. Let me only note three things at this point. First, the results make clear that when we are focused on and invested in a key element of our mission, we succeed and surpass our national peers. For example, 88 % of our seniors in 2008 reported that “… their experience at this institution contributed to their understanding of people of other racial and ethnic backgrounds some, quite a bit or very much.” This is strong evidence of our own success in developing an appreciation for diversity in our graduates and slightly better than our public regional peers and our Carnegie Classification peers who reported 86 %. Also, 93 % of our seniors reported that “faculty members provided prompt feedback on their academic performance.” On the other hand, only 32 % of our 2008 seniors “… believed the campus staff are helpful, considerate or flexible,” considerably worse than our comparison groups who scored at or near 50 %. Simply put, we must do better, and I hope and expect that the work being done by Vice President Martone and Ken Schneider in the Student Services Center will dramatically improve what our students experience when they interact with staff. Our students’ experience of frustration isn’t solely a problem in Student Services. Last month I met with all of the managers to address the issue campus-wide. Whether we want to describe our efforts as customer service or student centered we can’t afford to ignore the issue. I have asked Jane Zeff, Director of Institutional Research and Assessment to administer the “Nessie” survey annually, rather than in alternate years, to more closely track our progress on this and other measures.
We are moving forward through a weak economy and an extremely difficult state budget environment. We’ve weathered another difficult budget year and, with the cooperation of the campus community and the leadership of Vice President Steve Bolyai, we have been able to close out the fiscal year with a balanced budget. The University’s strong financial health has been reaffirmed by rating firms, Moody’s and Fitch, who rated our bonds A2 and A+ respectively. Those ratings by external reviewers in this highly scrutinized borrowing environment represent a particularly strong statement about the confidence we should have in our fiscal management.
As always, we are sensitive to the financial burden placed on families to pay for the cost of education and, with that strongly in mind, our increase in tuition and fees this year was the lowest on a percentage basis of all of the state colleges.
In response to the longstanding lack of state support for expanded capacity and student affordability, we are working with our sister institutions and the New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities on a program know as the New Jersey College Promise. The program is part of our effort to make the nine state colleges and universities a higher priority in Trenton. This advocacy initiative is working to organize a powerful, focused and united voice for the nine state colleges and universities based on a network of students, parents, alumni, staff, trustees, educators, business people and other friends of the institutions. Please look for updates on this program as it moves forward.
Throughout the campus, in a wide range of departments and a wide range of activities, we are working to generate revenue that supports your ability to continue to provide outstanding educational experiences, conduct research, develop and improve programs and enhance community outreach activities. At the same time, we are conserving expenses to the greatest extent possible without hampering our ability to meet our mission.
Under Vice President Sandra Deller’s leadership, last year was another record breaking year for Institutional Advancment. The staff increased the total raised from gifts and pledges by 26 percent to $4.6 million. Gifts from corporations increased 18 percent and, more importantly, gifts from William Paterson alumni increased 56 percent – reflecting the growing engagement of alumni giving back to the institution that set them on a successful path. Alumni gifts to the Annual Fund continue to rise – the fund reached $463,231 this year with 4,422 alumni providing gifts. That’s very impressive.
One highlight in development was a $1 million gift from Barry Shier, an alumnus, to launch a comprehensive academic program in entrepreneurship in the Cotsakos College of Business. The Shier Entrepreneurship Program will focus on developing an M.B.A. program with a concentration in entrepreneurship, followed by other complementary programs. In addition, the program will act as a catalyst for developing a culture of entrepreneurship by sponsoring an annual week in residence during which the program’s donor will lecture and mentor students.
In collaboration with the Student Development division, Institutional Advancement has initiated a novel campaign that supports student services and leadership. Donors to this campaign will have their names attached to specific locations in University Commons.
We have successfully expanded our efforts to garner grants and contracts. Just since the beginning of this new fiscal year on July 1, we have received word of close to $5 million in new or continuing grant awards, thanks to the work of many of you and the Office of Sponsored Programs. These particular grants will provide support for faculty research, tuition for graduate nursing students, teacher development programs in partnership with local school districts, the preparation of teachers in critical languages, and the prevention of alcohol and substance abuse among our students.
We recently received great news from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. We, along with the College of New Jersey, Stockton and Kean, will share a $2.5 million grant for four years as part of the New Jersey Nursing Collaborative. We’ll work to develop a cadre of masters-level nurses who are prepared to teach in New Jersey based nursing programs and are committed to pursuing a career in nursing education in New Jersey. These grants and other potential funding opportunities permit us to partner with those in the public and private sectors with whom we have shared interests to enhance our mission. I encourage you to work with the Office of Sponsored Programs and the Office of Institutional Advancement to that end.
Fortunately, not only have we successfully generated revenue, we’ve also taken important steps to conserve expenses, as well as resources. Over the past few years, we have made a commitment to be greener and leaner in our operational activities. Since 2001, the University has reduced its utilization of utilities significantly. In fact, with your cooperation and the dedication of our Physical Plant management team and staff, we reduced nearly $10 million in expenses related to utilities, from 2001-2008. It all adds up.
Despite the fiscal environment, it’s crucial for us to continue to develop ways to provide the resources needed to teach and conduct research and the resources needed to provide and maintain an environment that is conducive to learning. We just began construction on the Science Building project and a groundbreaking ceremony is in the works. The addition to the building is scheduled for completion in two years and then, 18 months later, we plan to complete the renovation of the existing building. Thank you to everyone – faculty and staff – who have worked on the planning of this critical project. If you haven’t already noticed, I hope that you will soon see the latest results of our ongoing campus beautification project – the creation of a walkway and sitting area in front of Raubinger Hall.
In each of our individuals departments and areas of interest, in our teaching and scholarship efforts and throughout our administrative units, there are countless examples of ideas and initiatives that combine to form a potent force in support of our commitment to our students.
As we engage in strategic and academic planning and as we identify and promote a brand, I keep thinking with pride that we are not really working to take on a fresh new identity. Instead, we are affirming who we are as an institution based on what you and your colleagues do each day. Our collective blueprint for the future describes what has made us great and what will continue to make us great. We are making a commitment to our collective ability to create the programs and experiences that challenge and guide students to lives of achievement.
We provide opportunities and prepare students for successful lives when we develop the country’s first master’s degree program in sales leadership.
We provide opportunities and prepare students for successful lives when we nurture relationships with Chinese institutions, enabling Chinese students to interact with music students and faculty on our campus and on campuses in China.
We provide opportunities and prepare students for successful lives when we collaborate with a donor to create a state-of-the-art patient simulation nursing laboratory.
We provide opportunities and prepare our students for successful lives when we acquire federal budget support for an initiative to advance a Center for Critical Languages, leading to expanded career opportunities in the global economy.
We provide opportunities and prepare our students for successful lives when we establish a new Center for Lesson Study, which focuses on a professional learning process for teachers to examine and improve their instructional methods and enhance the quality of education in the classroom.
Our students benefit from your innovations, your insights, your ability to challenge, inspire and mentor, your role in their education and in their lives. The opportunities that you create distinguish us as a University and, more importantly, help prepare our students for the world that awaits them. This is the core of our identity. It’s part of our history. And it points us toward the future.
I wish you a wonderfully productive, fulfilling and creative academic year.
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