President’s Town Hall Meeting summary, Nov. 27, 2007

Below are highlights from President Stockhausen’s Town Hall Meeting, Nov. 27, 2007:

Enrollment

Following this fall's strong enrollment trends, registration for Winter Term 2008 is running well ahead of one year ago. For Fall Term 2007, UDM had its largest freshman class in 20 years.  Applications, admits, and deposits for the Fall Term 2008 freshman class are currently running about 40% ahead of last year's record pace. (For additional Enrollment trends, see my Oct. 30 Update.)

Capital Projects

The new Dental School and Clinic will be located on what we will now refer to as the Corktown Campus.  The move from the current Outer Drive Campus actually began this week.  The classroom building at the Corktown Campus should be finished Dec. 8 and the clinic building, Dec. 15.  This project is expected to be completed on time and within budget.  Design work, planning, and fund raising for the Riverfront and McNichols Campus projects are continuing. 

Facilities Management has completed a detailed list of the deferred maintenance needs in each building on the McNichols Campus.  Although we increased the amount we will spend out of our annual operating budget from $2 to $3 million on deferred maintenance and capital improvements this year, additional funds are needed to address the full list of maintenance issues.

Gifts

Annual fund cash gifts to date total $1,929,215 compared with $1,232,461 this time last year.  This represents a 57% increase.

Academic Affairs

A Philosophy minor and a new track in graduate nursing, Clinical Nurse Leader, were recently approved.

Congratulations to Associate Professor of Philosophy Marty Leever on the best Ethics Bowl yet.  The winning team—Titan golfers Mikhial Pasic and Mark Sommerfeld, track and field middle distance runner Andrew Hayner, and Chris Payne of the UDM Pep Band—will represent UDM at the Regional Ethics Bowl in Madison, WI on Dec. 1.

Congratulations to Tony Martinico on his Fulbright scholarship to teach at Warsaw Polytechnic; he joins several other UDM faculty who have received such awards in the past few years.  UDM will welcome Fulbright Scholar Oriare Nyarwath, a lecturer from the University of Nairobi in Kenya, in January.

Athletics

The logo for the 2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four, with UDM as the host institution, was unveiled at the GM Wintergarden on Wednesday, Nov. 28.  UDM's pep band, cheer team and dance team performed during the event.

Events

Don't miss the exhibit, "Martyrs, missionaries and mystics: holy relics & religious artifacts," on display in the McNichols Campus Library until Dec. 15.  The exhibit features artifacts, texts and images from world religions including Buddhism, Catholicism, Hinduism and Islam.

University Commons

This year's University Commons holiday event on Livernois will be on Saturday, Dec. 15.

Blessings on all of you and your loved ones as we celebrate Christmas and the other holidays of the season.