  
|
 |
President's Message for the Alumni Magazine
August 5, 2003
At gatherings of alumni parents, friends or neighbors, I often am asked, "How do you think you're doing?" Occasionally someone will say, "I hear Adelphi is doing well; what are your biggest challenges?" While we are actively updating the vision for the University by building on its strong heritage, as well as by considering its strengths and opportunities, we also must consider how we measure progress, and what hurdles exist to the university's continued momentum.
While not everything important can be measured, and not everything that can be measured is essential, it seems clear that some measurement is necessary. So, in order to gauge progress, we must define success and be able to identify a set of measures and benchmarks. For many people, including educators, bond rating analysts, and those who publish college rankings, measures of success include average SAT scores and the high school class rank of freshman applicants. They also think in terms of graduate and professional school placements, and GRE or GMAT or MCAT scores for seniors. They want to know about state licensure exam results. Other measures of success include retention and graduation rates, the percentage of applicants admitted, the percentage of admitted freshman applicants who actually matriculate, the percentage of students engaged with faculty in research and in the community as volunteers, the number and percentage of applications for admission from children of alumni, alumni participation in the Annual Fund, the accreditation status of the different academic units, the percentage of first choice faculty who accept offers of employment, library collections, IT connectivity across campus, grant and contract funding, the record of University athletic teams, and participation by the broader community in campus events. Some even count museum recognition for the art collection and arboretum status for the grounds. We also consider the Moody's and Standard & Poor's bond ratings, and the University's ranking and description in college guides These are all important indicators of progress if we are to fulfill our vision, which states, in draft form:
Adelphi University will be the premier private university in the region for students and faculty who value excellence in undergraduate and graduate teaching and learning, research, scholarship, creative activity, and service to one's community. The University will achieve this status by being even better known for the competence of its graduates, its interdisciplinary program orientation, its welcoming of the community onto the campus, and its impact on the broader society through educational, economic, intellectual and cultural initiatives.
For each measure, we employ a process to monitor progress. Some measures are monitored weekly; others are measured annually. The various processes we use include, but are not limited to, external reviews by consultants of academic programs, the internal audit function, performance evaluations of managers, post-tenure review of faculty, accreditation self-studies and consultants, a review of licensure exam results, and board of trustee committees and full board discussions.
While these measures cannot help assess our impact on preparing students with moral and civic virtues, they do show that we are as concerned about character and citizenship as we are about careers and commerce.
So far so good; we are making great progress on all fronts. Nevertheless, I wonder how we will ever meet all of our alumni, even by travelling to places where they live in large clusters. I wonder about the economy and its effect on college-going, and competition between and among colleges. I wonder how we will meet all of our challenges when each week has only 7 days and each day has only 24 hours.
Our progress is encouraging. Over the past three years, enrollment has increased by almost 30 percent, with students who are better prepared than ever. To meet enrollment growth, to add new programs, to increase the depth and breadth of our programs, and to replace those who retired, we have added nearly 100 new faculty—a net faculty increase of approximately 25 percent. Alumni participation in the Annual Fund has grown by over 400 percent, and we recently received the largest one-time gift in our history from a living individual. Social Work was reaccredited in exemplary fashion: the reviewers had no recommendations for improvement; they approved our programs for the maximum length of time; and they asked if our self-study could be used as a model for all other programs in North America. We manage prudently, pay attention to quality, and are in sound financial condition. We issued $16 million in bonds at an A-rating last year to renovate an existing residence hall and to build a new one that will open this fall.
As part of the process for updating the vision, we have developed ten-year projections for quality improvements, enrollment, staffing, revenues, expenditures, cash flow, new program development, and facilities, including the complete renovation of Woodruff Hall, construction of a new sports center, expansion of Olmsted Theatre to house music and dance as well as theatre, and a new facility for sculpture. I call these "projections" because that is what they are; they do not constitute a plan. One cannot plan that far ahead. However, we have established a set of principles for decision-making at any time, and we are working across the campus, with students, faculty, and staff, to make Adelphi the best that it can be.
Our commitment is to keep students, alumni, and friends informed about our vision, our goals and strategies, and our progress. In so doing, we hope to hear from you about how we can do even more to fulfill our role as the "engaged" University.
Thank you.
Robert A. Scott,
President, Adelphi University
|
Mailing Address
Adelphi University
Office of the President
Levermore Hall, Room 100
1 South Avenue
P.O. BOX 701
Garden City, NY 11530-0701
Office Phone
516.877.3838
Office Fax
516.877.3845
|
