This “State of the University” speech is my annual opportunity to share with the community my thoughts about where we’ve been, where we are, and where we need to go in the coming year.  Thank you all for being here today.

Last fall, I described a concept for this University, nicknamed the “hedgehog” because it describes who are when we curl up, like a hedgehog, and focus on our core mission.

The “hedgehog” concept is this:  We are deeply passionate about ensuring our students develop mature, balanced minds.  These outstanding students drive our economic engine.  And we can be the best in the world at applying technology.

To support this concept, a year ago I described the Five Big Rocks that we would focus on during the academic year.  The illustration that I used for these five major areas of focus was a beaker, filled with five rocks (if you’ve forgotten the origin of this concept, please see the explanation I provided last year, at http://www.spsu.edu/president/openingcomments2002.html).

Right after my “Big Rocks” presentation last year, Judy Waits (Secretary to the Vice President for Academic Affairs) brought me this beaker, filled with – you guessed it – Five Rocks.

What’s important about this today – which Judy could never have guessed when she filled the beaker – is that each of the rocks in here is a metamorphic rock.

Okay.  You all know I’m a geologist.  So stay with me for a minute.

A quick review:  Some of you may remember from a science class that there are three types of rocks, classified by how they formed:

• Igneous rocks, which form when rock cools from a liquid -- lava or magma.  The rock is so hot it has melted.  Granite and basalt are examples of igneous rocks.
• Sedimentary rocks form when any other kind of rock is eroded into pieces, which are then transported by wind or water or glaciers or landslides or other processes.  The eroded grains are deposited, buried by other sediments, and eventually the materials are compressed, cemented together, and form a new rock.  Sandstone and limestone are examples of sedimentary rocks.
• But metamorphic rocks can start out as any type of rock…igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic.  The original rocks are changed by heat and pressure.  The rocks aren’t heated so much that they melt – that would turn them back into igneous rocks – but they change, both physically and chemically, to achieve equilibrium with new environmental conditions.  These new conditions are different from the ones under which the rocks originally formed.

Now, we find ourselves in new conditions.  We are out of equilibrium with the current fiscal environment.  We’re under increasing pressure from outside forces:  regional, and perhaps national, forces are creating huge stress for all of higher education.

This University is going to have to change in some fundamental ways – we are undergoing metamorphism.

When rocks are metamorphosed, the changes are controlled by physics and chemistry.  The responses of individual minerals to specific kinds of heat and pressure are highly predictable.  The rock doesn’t have a choice.

We, on the other hand, do have choices.  We can make decisions about how we choose to change in response to these external pressures.  That’s where my remarks are headed:  based on what we’ve done in the last year and where we are now, we are well positioned to control our own metamorphic processes.

In fact, we can’t afford not to.  The external heat and pressure – the external stresses -- are real.  We will be forced to change.  We have no choice about that.  Our choices are about how we change:  What the university that we will become will look like.  How tough and resilient it is.  How attractive it is.  How coherent it is.  We get to control that part of the process, as we come into equilibrium with our external environment.

So today, I’m talking about how we undergo metamorphism.

Thanks for staying with me on that metaphor.
 

Review of the past year (2002-03)

I’d like to say a few things about the last year, and therefore where we are now.

In the last 12 months, we have been focused on five “Big Rocks”:

1. Viable academic programs
2. Ensuring enrollment supports the mission
3. Establishing a campus-wide ethic of customer service
4. Creating a strong sense of place
5. Increasing private resources

Rock #1 is “viable academic programs.”

To assess viability, we have an academic program review process in place.

Last November, the Board of Regents approved our new M.S. degree in Systems Engineering.

We’re seeing growth in several academic programs right now, including information technology, architecture, software engineering, biology, and the MBA.  Academic Affairs, under Dave Hornbeck’s leadership, is starting an effort to ensure continuous improvement, providing a model for the rest of the University.  This effort will directly support our goals of viable academic programs.

Rock #2 is an enrollment to support our mission.

 Our enrollment is up again this fall, to about 3800 students – but one of the things we have clarified during the last year is that “enrollment” is not about unlimited enrollment growth.  Our goal is to have the maximum number of students for whom we can provide a quality educational experience.

Our current enrollment targets are based on our ability to provide a quality education.  Our analyses show that we have enough space, in most regards, to serve an enrollment of about 4,500 students (about 700 more than we have now).  We have sufficient space in terms of classrooms, labs, offices, parking, and food service.  However, we are already in deficit in study and library space, in student-services space, studios, and in continuing education.  Much of the instructional space we have does not come close to supporting the quality of our programs – the original academic buildings on campus, which were built in the early 1960’s, are all examples of this.  They desperately need to be replaced.

Our campus facilities master plan calls for demolishing the now off-line Building I – the old architecture building – and constructing the first wing of a new facility for science, math, and engineering, at an estimated cost of $25 million.  This first wing would provide new space for Mathematics and Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology.  I presented our case to the Board of Regents a little over a year ago.  Dean Alan Gabrielli and others joined me in making the case for our need for this facility to the Board of Regents’ staff last summer, and I’ll be trying again this spring to get it on the Regents’ Five-Year Capital Outlay List.

Phase II, the second wing of this building, would house Biology, Chemistry, and Physics – and rather than build two wings as separate projects (phase I and phase II), it may turn out to make the most sense to combine these projects and make a proposal for the whole building at one time.  The total price tag for the math, science, and engineering building will be around $46 million, and such a request will only be successful if we are able to demonstrate significant private funding for the project.  That will be a challenge – and we’ll be talking more about that in the next few months.

But the limiting factor, right now, to providing a quality education for our students, and therefore limiting our enrollment target, is the number of faculty – and that’s constrained by our institutional budget.  The budget links to resources, and we’ll get to that in just a minute.

Rock #3 is developing a campus-wide ethic of customer service.

In working on the issue of customer service, the clearest progress has been in providing better service to students during registration – and in clarifying the fact that we have no agreement on campus about who our customers are.  Depending on who you ask and when you ask them, the answer is “students,” “parents,” “faculty,” “staff,” “each other,” “whoever is standing in front of me,” or “me.”

But these answers all miss the point of what our mission is.  Our mission is to educate students who can apply their knowledge in science, engineering, and technology to solve real-world problems.  Our real consumers are the businesses, industries, agencies, and organizations that hire our graduates. They are our ultimate customers.  We need to start by focusing on how to serve them best.

When we think of students as customers, we need to do that in the context of providing the best possible support for their educational experience, so that they will remain enrolled here, complete their degrees, and provide added value to the State of Georgia – or wherever they end up being employed.  Serving students well is part of fulfilling our overarching mission and doing a good job of serving our ultimate customers – those who employ our graduates.

Our customer service for each other is simply wise use of our limited resources – if we are helping each other, saving time and energy, we are also serving our ultimate customers well.  We still have a long way to go in using our human resources as effectively as possible, but we’re making progress.

Rock #4 is a “sense of place.”

A year ago, I wouldn’t have guessed which of the Five Rocks we would make the most progress on, but I think there is no question that our greatest successes have been in the category of sense of place.

A lot of energy has gone into this Big Rock, and we’ve seen some great results.  I think the survey that was distributed at Fall Kickoff provides some important evidence of our success.  The four top positive responses were all about sense of place – valuing collegiality, feeling valued, liking to work here, feeling proud of the institution.  I can’t tell you how happy I was to see these results.  This is wonderful evidence of the value of working to strengthen our community – our sense of place.
 

And I want to thank all the people who have contributed to this effort – beginning with Ron Koger and all the people who worked with him, including many of the people in Student and Enrollment Services, Staff Council, and the Social and Community Building Committee.  Thank you all.

On the other end of the scale, the two issues in that survey that drew the strongest negative responses were about compensation and communication.  More than a third of the people responding to this survey feel like they are not compensated fairly, a response about evenly shared between staff and faculty.  Decisions about raises are approved by the General Assembly, but I’m lobbying as hard as I can on this issue for next year.  I served on Chancellor Meredith’s advisory committee on the FY05 budget for the University System, and compensation was a major issue that we discussed.  Your feedback is also something that I can share with Chancellor Meredith, so that he has this type of data in hand when he talks with the Governor and the Legislature.

The second most negative response in the survey was about communication on campus.  After all the efforts that were initiated last year – including reinstituting Around Campus, starting PolyProgress, and having several series of campus-wide meetings – this response was a little surprising, but it tells me that we still have a lot of work to do in this area.

But I need your help here.  I feel like we’ve done a lot to address this issue, but your feedback tells me it’s not enough.  Help me out.  Please take the green card that was on your chair and write down three things that would improve communications on campus immediately.  Please go ahead and do this, and we’ll collect these cards now.  I want to be responsive to your concern, but I need input from you on how to do this.

Overall, the survey was extremely valuable, and we will do it again next year, to continue measuring our progress in developing a strong sense of place.

Rock #5 is increasing private resources.

This Big Rock is one that needs even more attention in the coming year, as our state allocation decreases even further.  In FY03, our Foundation, Alumni Association, and Athletic Association raised nearly $460,000.  However, only $160,000 of this total was unrestricted.  The $300,000 in restricted funds are valuable, but they don’t count toward the challenge grant, through which our Foundation will receive $500,000 from a generous donor – if we can raise a total of $1 million in unrestricted funds by this December.  This grant is a challenge in several ways, and increasing private resources remains a critical need for the University.  In a sense, it’s the biggest rock of all.

The five “Big Rocks” all remain vital to our future – and they will continue to be important in this new academic year.
 

Creating and investing resources:  The focus for 2003-04

In fact, this year we will continue to focus on the Big Rocks, with an important overlay.

As you all know from Divisional meetings, we are focused this year on a theme of “Creating and investing resources.”  I want to thank all of you for the time and energy you have invested already in this discussion.  You’ve spent time in meetings, in every division, and you’ve generated some great ideas.  The process is continuing.  The discussions that have already happened are laying important groundwork for our efforts this academic year.
 

The first element of creating and investing resources is to define the term “resources” broadly.  Our resources include every person, every dollar, every minute, and every idea.  With our broad definition, our challenge is even clearer in terms of how to use resources wisely and obtain more.

We also need to distinguish between resources we control and those we do not.  If we have some control, we can get more of these resources:  private dollars and great ideas are high on the list of resources we have some control over.  We don’t have much influence over state revenues, which impact the state allocation the campus receives.  As you all know from the news, these resources are declining, and we can’t control them.  And we simply can’t expand the amount of time available – unless someone in physics has made a discovery that hasn’t been shared with the rest of us yet.

But an important resource is our community itself – and I want to emphasize how very important that is to us.  As I’ve already noted, the “Big Rock” about a sense of place has been very important, and we’ve made real progress there.  Our survey shows that we value this resource, and we can control how it grows.

The second point about creating and investing resources is about using our existing resources more wisely, and lots of good ideas have already come out of discussions in each of the divisions.  Ideas for more effective use of current resources, investments (like the voice-over-IP phone system) that will, in the long term, save us money.  Ideas for saving money that can only come from the people closest to the situation, who see opportunities that the rest of us don’t have a clue about.

We already have a list of many ways in which we can use existing resources better, and some divisions are still developing these ideas.  We’ll be doing cost/benefit analyses and talking more, as a community, about a wide range of options for using our existing resources more wisely.

We are very fortunate that we started these conversations early – before we even knew about additional budget constraints in the current fiscal year and those projected for next year.

We recognized – independently – the need for this type of focus, this type of campus conversation.  We started to do it first – before information about budget cuts got started, and before we were told we had to start doing this.

As I have talked with presidents of other campuses in the University system and shared the process we are following, discussing our “creating and investing resources” focus, the most common response has been, “What a great idea.  I wish we had thought to do that.”  The fact that we are already having these conversations puts us ahead of other schools, and ahead of where we would be otherwise.

Although we may be limited in dollars right now, we are rich in ideas.  With the creativity of this University community, we have a virtually unlimited supply of ideas.  Ideas are one resource over which we have enormous control, and I think we are using this resource wisely by generating as many good ideas as we can.

The third focus in “creating and investing resources” is about getting more resources by raising private funds.  We control part of this process, too.  We can’t control the philanthropic environment, but we can control our efforts to raise funds.  I’ll come back to this in just a minute, too.

Looking forward

You’ve all heard the radio, seen the TV, and read the newspapers.  You know that the State of Georgia’s revenues are less than what was projected when the General Assembly passed the budget for the current year.  It’s a serious shortfall.

The impact will be felt by every state agency.  We see that in the news every day.  The University System of Georgia is no exception.  And Southern Polytechnic is no exception.

We expect to be given a 2.5% budget cut for the current fiscal year, which is already underway, and we have been asked to prepare for an additional cut next year.

We’re not going to meet those cuts by shaving everyone’s operating budget just a little more.  Cutting back on travel, or supplies, or long-distance phone calls isn’t going to solve our problem.

We need to be fundamentally rethinking how we do things…and we need to be looking at what we can’t afford to do – and what we can’t afford not to do.  We need to be finding new ways to use our existing resources as wisely as possible – at the same time we are creating more.

Over the next month or two, we’ll be having some campus meetings to discuss these issues.

We’re in relatively good shape for the current year.  With the increase in enrollment this fall, tuition that recognizes our special mission and our technology-intensive curriculum, and conservative budget planning, we’ll be able to cover a 2.5% budget reduction this year without having to reduce any budgets that have already been allocated to the divisions.

The challenge will come next year, and that’s what I’m going to be spending the resources of my time and energy on over the next couple of months.

Good news

The news is not all bleak.

As a community, we’ve got some good things happening.

Our overall enrollment is up by 3%, with even higher percentage increases in selected disciplines.

Our average combined SAT score for entering freshmen is 1108 – an increase of 14 points over last fall – and an increase of 52 points in the last 5 years.  As I mention at every opportunity, we are consistently ranked third in the University System in SAT scores for entering freshmen.  That’s something to be really proud of.  We have outstanding students.

Our Foundation has committed to supporting campus housing, and the Board of Regents just approved the ground lease and revised rental agreements that will let the Foundation go forward and get the bond financing to have 400 new beds in private apartments on campus, ready for occupancy next fall.  It’s a complex project that will bring all three pieces of our campus housing together under University management – the existing residence halls (Norton and Howell), the existing apartments (University Commons), and the new apartments (University Courtyard).  All students will benefit from the increased residential experience available at Southern Polytechnic.

Our engineering technology programs have just had their accreditation reaffirmed – in all but one case, for the full six years.  The management and construction programs have also just had their accreditation reaffirmed.  The Southern Association of Schools and Colleges (SACS) has asked to postpone our next campus visit by a year, until 2009, giving us time to fully implement our assessment program.

A marketing campaign is currently underway, with radio spots, billboards, Atlanta Business Chronicle, AirTran’s in-flight magazine, banner ads on ajc.com and accessatlanta.com, and a new exit sign on I-75.  As we discussed in campus meetings last fall, the big cantilevered sign on I-75 North that now says “Exit 263, Southern Poly” is going to be changed to say “Exit 263, Southern Polytechnic State University.”   Last I heard, it was scheduled to go up this weekend.  It’s been frustrating to wait, but our willingness to wait has meant that the Department of Transportation agreed to pay for the manufacture and installation of the sign, rather than paying for it from our budget.  So we’ve been willing to wait.  Now that the newly named Commissioner of the Department of Transportation is an SPSU graduate, we may have other ways to get this to happen.  But I can’t wait to see the new sign.

We also have a new flier, which is intended to be an insert to go along with other mailings.  It’s hot off the press (just arrived yesterday), and these will be available at the end of today’s session.  Please take one – and let Melissa McGarity know if you need more copies to share with colleagues and supporters.

We’ve got good things to talk about – a valuable product (an applied education in science, engineering, technology, and related fields) and a strong economic driver (our outstanding students).  I believe we can be the best in the world at providing this type of education.

Focus on our mission

At a time when we – and all the institutions in the University System – are being challenged financially, we need, more than ever, to focus on our mission.  This community is capable of managing our future – of controlling our own metamorphic process.
 

I can’t emphasize enough the importance of focusing on our mission.  Our special mission is why the additional tuition revenues were so critical this year -- explicitly to fund our technology-intensive needs in instructional equipment.

Our special mission and our resulting contributions to the State of Georgia are what will keep this University moving forward during these challenging economic times.

In the last year, many studies have been done to assess what’s happening in private giving.  One message is clear (quoted here from the Bulletin on Public Relations and Development for Colleges and Universities, May 2003, published by Gonser Gerber Tinker Stuhr LLP).
 

Making the connections between these mission-related questions and the needs of donors is the primary work of the Advancement function of the campus.  When donors’ needs match our mission, major gifts result.

But every one of us on campus has a role in communicating our special mission – in sharing the information about what we do here, what makes us special, what we contribute to the city, the county, the region, the state, and to our ultimate customers, the employers of our graduates.

What you can do

That brings me to the question of what each of us can do – what I’m asking each of us to do this year to move our University forward.

1.  Communicate the elevator statement.  Never miss a chance to tell people about who we are, what we do, why we exist, and why our contributions to the state of Georgia are important.

2.  Continue the conversation about creating and investing resources.

In the category of “defining ‘resources’ broadly,” I need each of you to keep thinking creatively about the resources we have that can help us do your jobs and fulfill our University mission.

In the category of “using existing resources wisely,” I need you to continue participating in the divisional discussions about how each person, each office, each department, and each division can make the best possible use of available resources.  Please continue these conversations, and share your insights in the discussion.

I also need you to remember that we will be undertaking cost/benefit analyses before we make any major changes – whether that’s funding a particular activity, choosing not to fund it, or changing the way we do it.  We need to understand the benefits before we make changes – to be sure that we are investing our resources wisely.  We’re not going to do anything stupid to save a few dollars.  But the budget challenges will be significant, and we all need to be thinking about how we can invest our resources in fulfilling our mission.

And in the category of “getting more resources by seeking private funding,” I need you all to do three things.

One goes back to sharing SPSU’s mission at every opportunity.  As the quote above reminds us, people give because they see value in our mission.  They need to know what it is.  So please help get the word out.

The second is to identify potential donors.  Please share with the Advancement Office names of people, businesses, and organizations that might be interested in supporting SPSU.  A number of suggestions have been forwarded in the last few months, and this is incredibly helpful.  Please keep it up.

The third is to remember that the Faculty/Staff Annual Campaign started last Tuesday and runs until October 31.  Please consider giving your own support for this University.  The support of faculty and staff is a powerful statement to potential donors – our investment speaks volumes about how much we believe in what we do.

Finally, under creating and investing resources, I hope you will all continue to be engaged in our discussions about the future of this University – about what, as a result of this metamorphism, we will become.

Metamorphic change

Metamorphism, in geology, is a process of change in the structure, texture, or composition of rocks caused by a combination of heat, pressure, and stress.  The rock changes, but it remains solid throughout the process.

We are being subjected to the external pressures of a declining state budget and the stress associated with increased enrollment, declining funding, and aging facilities.  But we will respond.

We will not melt under the pressure, ceasing to exist in any recognizable form.  We will not be worn away, eroded into fragments so that there is nothing left of us.

We will change.  But we will retain our integrity, our mission, and our goals.  We will remain intact as a community.  Our structure has already changed – a couple of times.  Our composition has changed, and it will likely change some more.  We will continue to change.  But we can control our own metamorphosis.

And we will be a new university.  Thank you all for being a part of this process.