Periodic Updates - Update #58
CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
MARCH 6, 2006
TO:
The CMU Community
FROM:
Michael Rao
SUBJECT:
CMU Update 58
CMU 2010 Update
Completion of CMU 2010’s first year initiatives is about
40%. Analyses of general education, the honors program,
students' first year experiences, senior capstone courses, a
research transformation plan, diversity within curricula and the
impact of leading public service efforts are among many
activities underway. Recommendations are anticipated before the
year ends. An important aspect of the planning activities
underway are proposed Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), used to
further define and measure progress on achieving the vision.
More information about KPIs is available in the “documents”
section of the planning web site listed below. Hoping that
financial investment will help encourage involvement in CMU
2010, a request for proposals for FY 07 project initiatives was
recently distributed. Please visit
http://www.planning.cmich.edu/ for more information. I
offer sincere thanks to those investing so much time in this
important undertaking.
Student and Colleague Honors
Below are a few recognitions of which I am aware. If you
know of others who should be recognized, would you please notify
Mary Jane Flanagan or me? Congratulations to:
• Junior Jonathan Knapp, who won the best student poster
(“Paleoenvironments from newly-discovered Pennsylvanian rocks of
Michigan”) award for his presentation at the American
Association for the Advancement of Science Annual Meeting
• Professor Abalo Adewui and student teachers Rachel Nati
and Jillian Markham, who built a library for a school in Ghana
and raised money to buy books for the students
• Professor Roger Coles, appointed for three years as the
program manager of World Leisure, an organization that promotes
rest and leisure
• Head women’s soccer coach Tony DiTucci, assistant
athletics director for academics Pat Podoll, academic advisor
Deb McAlpin, and the CMU women’s soccer team for earning the
highest cumulative grade point average in Division I-A
• Professor Michael Gee and his class in which students will
design municipal Web sites for nine Michigan communities
• Professor Sivaram Narayan, awarded another National
Science Foundation grant to continue the successful Research
Experience for Undergraduates program for another three years
• Professor Tom Weirich, appointed to the Michigan Board of
Accountancy by the Governor
• Assistant professor Deborah Silkwood-Sherer, recipient of
the Barbara Glasow Therapist of the Year Award from the American
Hippotherapy Association
• Professor David Gillingham, winner of a 2005 ASCAP
Standard Award for Composers of Concert Music for the 10th
consecutive year
• Professor Brad Fahlman and chemistry students Dan Denomme,
Venkateswarlu Juttukonda, Robert Paddock, Jeffery Raymond,
Andrew Richardson, and Laura Slusher, for their discovery of an
easier and less expensive way to create metal oxide
nanoparticles
• Faculty members Wendy and Michael Papa, whose book titled
Organizing for Social Change: A Dialectic Journey for Theory and
Praxis was published by Sage India
• Faculty artists Bruce Bonnell, MaryBeth Minnis, Roger
Rehm, Joanna Cowan White, Kennen White, narrator Sue Ann Martin,
and audio production manager Scott Burgess, for their recording
of “Bremen Town Musicians” to be released on the Centaur label
• Director Randi L’Hommedieu for the School of Music’s
arrangement with the Sphinx organization to record with the
White Pine label and his work with Aaron Dworkin to promote the
involvement of black and Hispanic musicians in classical music
• CMU chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of
America president Megan Martenka, who received two national
awards, President’s Citation Award and Golden Key Award, and
advisor Diane Krider
ProfEd Options Under Consideration
Aware that off campus enrollments cannot be taken for
granted in a complex and competitive higher education market,
the university has been studying its off-campus operations,
seeking to understand the best path for CMU. There are several
potential options, including restructuring existing programs
and/or creating a new entity for off-campus programs connected
to CMU—which may offer a competitive edge particularly out of
state. To explore these, consultants are being engaged by ProfEd
to develop business plans for both options. Consultants will be
at CMU gathering information and interacting with many people.
The minor improvements and changes that we have made in the last
six years or so have not proven effective. Meanwhile, CMU’s base
budget relies on more than $4 million from ProfEd—a source that
is shrinking. I am pleased that ProfEd is exploring bold
options.
Campus Connections: SAP Campus
Management Update
Significant progress continues as the university moves
forward with the development and implementation of its new
student information system called Campus Management (CM). To
coincide with the university’s budget calendar, CM will become
operational on July 1. The current system (ISIS) will be
available for report writing after this date; however, beginning
in July all new transactions will occur in CM. The new student
information system will near completion by mid-April, and
primary users will begin acceptance testing then. Staff training
will start in May and continue through June. Please see
information on the implementation schedule and the project
itself at
http://www.sap.cmich.edu/cm.
Enrollment Management Plan to be
Developed
To achieve and maintain the optimum recruitment, retention,
and graduation rates of CMU students, a group has been formed to
develop an enrollment management plan during calendar year 2006.
The plan developers are Bruce Roscoe (on-campus undergraduate
enrollment), Jim Hageman (on-campus graduate enrollment), and
Terry Rawls (off-campus undergraduate and graduate enrollment).
This will be a university-wide effort and require involvement of
many professors and staff as the developers examine key factors
such as campus infrastructure and demographic characteristics of
potential students, retention and persistence, student interest
in specific academic programs, among others.
New Faculty Positions Funded
Since my arrival, I have worked toward increasing the number
of regular faculty—despite managing the university’s deepest
budget reductions in recent history. CMU has ten percent more
filled regular faculty positions than when I arrived and it is
my hope that further growth will continue. I am pleased to
provide funding for six new faculty positions—two in biology,
history, psychology, human environmental studies, and the
library (in its report, the Higher Learning Commission review
team commented on staffing in the Library, which this action
aims to address). All of these positions should commence in Fall
2006, except for the psychology position, which should start in
Fall 2007. A seventh position, in counseling and special
education, will also be added in response to new requirements
for teacher education students.
Recruitment of Graduate Students
A new graduate recruiter, Roberta Niedson, has been hired by
the College of Graduate Studies and began work in mid-February.
Under the direction of the CGS staff, she is working closely
with departments to develop marketing strategies, enhance web
pages, and adopt other means to recruit more strong graduate
students. She will also work with departments to examine and
improve policies aimed at increasing the retention of students
who have chosen CMU for graduate studies.
President’s Research Investment Fund Results
I recently requested an analysis of the results of grants
awarded under the President’s Research Investment Fund (PRIF)
program that was started about five years ago. Through spring
2004, CMU has awarded $1.3 million to 60 PRIF proposals. CMU has
received $2.7 million in grants and contracts directly
attributed to PRIF support. While not related to PRIF-supported
activities, another $3 million in external support has been
awarded to CMU on behalf of PRIF recipients subsequent to their
receipt of a PRIF grant.
At the same time, the first round of applications for
PRIF-funded Faculty Insight Team (FIT) grants yielded excellent
applications. The university is developing a “research
equipment” grant program and a “bridges to commercial
application” grant program to support those who have filed
patents and have a route to a commercial product worth
exploring.
Beaver Island Academic Center
CMU’s Biological Station on Beaver Island is the premier
biological teaching and research station in the Midwest. It is
one of only three such stations associated with public
universities in Michigan and the only such station on an island
in the Great Lakes. The new academic center approved for
construction by the Board of Trustees at the Biological Station
will house the facilities needed to conduct 21st-century
teaching and research in the biological and environmental
sciences. The center will include three well-equipped
instructional laboratories, a library and computer laboratory
for student and researcher access to print and electronic
information, and a fully-mediated lecture room with nearly 100
seats that will also be a venue for Beaver Island community
activities. The building will comprise approximately 10,600
square feet and will cost approximately $3.8 million dollars.
Construction is scheduled to begin in August 2006, and to be
completed in time for classes in May 2007.
Faculty and Staff Professional Development Support
Knowing that professional development funds are scarce in
many departments, I will invest some president’s contingency
funds to help support faculty and staff professional
development. If you are interested, please submit a brief email
(no longer than the equivalent of one page) to Mary Jane
Flanagan or me (flana1mj@cmich.edu)
with your supervisor’s approval outlining your professional
development proposal with specific expenses and how the proposal
will strengthen CMU’s ability to achieve its mission and vision
(CMU 2010).
GMAC/CMU Automotive Mural Contest
Central Michigan University students, both on- and
off-campus, can show their creativity by designing artwork for
the GMAC/CMU Automotive Mural Contest. One student's piece of
art will be selected for permanent display at CMU's new Vehicle
Design Center in Troy. The student artist will receive a $1,000
scholarship from GMAC to be used toward CMU expenses. For more
information, including how to submit entries, please visit
http://www.cel.cmich.edu/mural/default.html.
Chief Information Officer Search
A search for a Chief Information Officer/Vice President for
Information Technology is underway. Chaired by Dean Bob Kohrman
of Science and Technology, the committee expects to begin
screening applications this month and to have candidates on
campus for interviews in April. It is hoped this position will
be filled by mid-May at the latest.
