Town Hall Meeting Update, Feb. 8, 2007

At the February 8th Town Hall meeting, I provided a number of updates on initiatives and activities at UDM. These efforts take a great deal of work by many at the University. Special thanks to the following:

• All those who participated in the Count the Homeless project at the end of January, whether by making thousands of sandwiches, putting together care packages, or distributing the packages and doing the actual count.
• All who prepared for and took part in the Jan. 29-31 visit by the peer review team from the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.
• The Shared Governance Task Force and others who worked so hard to make the Shared Governance pilot period a success, resulting in an overwhelmingly positive vote on all campuses and the affirmation by the Board of Trustees. We will continue working together to embed these structures in our ordinary way of proceeding.

Other good news includes:

• The Leadership Development Institute reports that there are 37 service-learning courses being offered during Term 2.  Last year there were 28.  In addition, of course, there is all the combined service and learning that goes on in the clinics that are part of the curriculum in Dentistry, Law, and Health Professions.  It is encouraging to see service learning embedded more and more deeply in our teaching and learning.
• The President's Council and Academic Leadership Team have completed the first phase of the Strategic Planning Process and are now working with the Shared Governance Strategic Planning Team to disseminate the draft results broadly and invite feedback.
• Enrollment headcount for Term 2 is up 100 over last year, and the largest in five years.  Full-time undergraduate enrollment is up 100 over last year, and the largest in seven years.  Law and Dental enrollment is up 20 over last year, and the largest in 11 years.  Summer school registration is running about even with the last two years.  For fall 2007, freshman applications are up 14 percent, admits up 5 percent, and confirmed enrollees up 10 percent over last year, with all of these numbers at the highest level in over 10 years.
• We will begin an 18-month project to migrate our entire record keeping and reporting operation from the aged APECS mainframe to a server-based system running Banner software. It will revolutionize and simplify the way everybody–prospective students, current students, alumni, faculty, staff, and administrators–interacts with UDM's information system and processes. Associate Vice President for Information Technology Ed Tracy will lead the effort in cooperation with the Banner representatives.  A smaller steering committee and a larger implementation committee will oversee the process.
• In October, the Board of Trustees approved the beginning of the silent phase of the next campaign for UDM. Two long-time major supporters of UDM have agreed to co-chair the campaign: Board Chair and Absopure Water Company President William Young and former President, Ford North America and Executive Vice President of Ford Motor Company James Padilla.
• Also on the fund-raising side, Athletic Director Emeritus Brad Kinsman has agreed to continue his relationship with UDM as Executive Director of Athletic Advancement.  Brad will bring his skills and contacts developed over 35 years in UDM Athletics to help raise support for the field, fitness center, tennis courts, and other improvements that will benefit UDM students and athletes.
• Towards the end of 2006, UDM dedicated the Vito and Amy Cusenza Academic Hall of Honor, located in the southwest vestibule of Calihan Hall; the Willie Green men's basketball locker room; and the suite of athletic offices on the second floor of Calihan Hall made possible by the generosity of Barbara and John Wolak.

Campus improvements are currently under way:

• Work has begun in preparing the buildings at the new Dental Campus. We have engaged White Construction Company as the lead contractor for the full build-out.
• The DSA has been selected as the new architecture firm for the Riverfront Campus.  This change has pushed back the timeline for the final design work, but it should lower the cost somewhat.
• Plans are still in place to install the multi-purpose athletic field on the McNichols Campus this summer.  During the 2007-08 year we will recruit athletes for lacrosse so that we can field men's and women's teams the following year.

Our community involvement continues with University Commons (UCO), the coalition of business, institutional, and neighborhood organizations surrounding Livernois and McNichols, UCO held a successful holiday event that centered on the Avenue of Fashion and helped to heighten UCO's visibility. 

As Chair of the Board of Directors of University Commons, I am happy to have recently hired a full-time program manager, Kimberly Varner Tandy, who has been very active in UCO as a volunteer, to assure that we keep making progress on all fronts to strengthen the overall neighborhood and economic climate around the McNichols Campus.  In addition to facilitating façade improvements and several other efforts, UCO is seeking funding to maintain and beautify the Livernois median.

We appreciate the support and good will of our many alumni and friends of the University. Be sure to share our good news with others to ensure UDM's fine reputation in our community and region. 

Sincerely,

Gerard L. Stockhausen, S.J., Ph.D.
President