Convocation Address
President Charles Middleton

September 3, 2002

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. What a pleasure it is be to here with you today. Thanks for joining me as we start our new academic year, and as we begin a bright and promising future together.

And thank you, Jim Mitchell, for your kind introduction, and for your leadership and support. Over the past two months, I have found Jim to be a valued and valuable ally on several critical issues. We’re all extremely fortunate to have a board chairman who cares so deeply about this institution.

I also want to thank and recognize President Emeritus Rolf Weil, and trustees Don Hunt, Mel Katten, Jay Kirby, Blanche Manning, Bob Mednick, Paul Oliver, Ken Tucker, Jerome Stone and Norm Frankel for joining us. Would you please stand and be recognized. I also would like our faculty trustees to stand. They are Steve Cohen, Larry Howe, Pam Kimmel, David Hamilton and Vicky McKinley.

Welcome to the 2002-2003 academic year! ….. Welcome back to our students, our faculty, our staff, and our trustees. You are Roosevelt University, and I am honored to become part of your community – our community.

I want to extend a special welcome to the new members of our faculty and staff and to our students, who are joining Roosevelt for the first time like I am.

To our students: You are joining an enterprise, higher learning, that for a thousand years or more, has been dedicated to enriching the human spirit and opening the doors of opportunity. In a sense, we have been waiting for you all your lives; we are delighted that you are here. Welcome!

To our faculty and staff: We all share in a special stewardship of this University. Our predecessors have given us the awesome responsibility to pass this institution along to our successors in better shape than it is today, just as they have bequeathed it to us much enhanced from where they found it. I pledge to you to do my part in this endeavor, just as I expect that you will all do yours.

I have been president for a little over two months; and while I have learned a lot about Chicago and Roosevelt University from briefing papers, meetings, visits with many of you, and discussions with trustees, legislators, and community leaders from all walks of life, I recognize that I have much more to learn, so forgive me if I ask naïve or repetitive questions or occasionally forget your name when we come upon each other by chance. These “transition moments” will diminish as I learn more.

When I first began the interview process for the presidency, I remember being told about the strong sense of community at Roosevelt, and the University’s large number of loyal supporters. During the past two months, I have experienced for myself that there is indeed a vibrant community spirit here at Roosevelt. I have met with clerical union employees, physical plant workers, students, faculty members, and administrators at both the Chicago and Schaumburg Campuses. I have been truly impressed with the uniform commitment to Roosevelt, and everyone’s love of this wonderful University. Roosevelt University is many things, but chiefly it is about people – about talented students, faculty and staff. People are Roosevelt University’s greatest strength and resource – the defining quality of its accomplishments in the past – and the assurance of its success in the future.

Whatever else we accomplish together, it is critical that we remain a warm and caring university. The rallying cry in our Enrollment and Student Services Office is “Students First.” This is not just a slogan. It means that we must always extend a helping hand to students, especially our new freshmen and transfer students. This doesn’t diminish in any way our mutual obligation to support others in the University. Indeed, it sets the stage for doing so.

The change in presidents has naturally received much attention, and, I presume, a great deal of talk in the hallways and offices. For many of you, Ted Gross has been the only Roosevelt president you’ve known. My arrival means there will be change and adjustment. But let us never forget that Ted’s leadership during the past 14 years has made it possible for this community to succeed in the future. I am extremely grateful for those foundations upon which our future together will be built.

Let me just say that I find concern about presidential transition to be normal and understandable. Some things will be different, some will remain the same; but even as we seek to engage our future vigorously, please don’t fear that radical changes will occur. Like everyone here, I want Roosevelt University to continue to be Roosevelt University, and like all of you, I want it to thrive.

I have been anticipating this moment since my selection by the Board of Trustees last April, because it gives me an opportunity to share with you some of my ideas about how we can work together to enhance learning and scholarship at Roosevelt.

But first of all, I want to share some good news.

We begin the fiscal year in sound shape. Summer session, which is the first part of our academic year, was very successful as enrollments and revenues were both above budget. Special thanks are due to everyone who worked on summer session and to all the faculty members who taught this summer. You are all great!

Last fiscal year, by the way, was also extremely successful. During the year that ended on April 30th, operating revenues exceeded operating expenses by more than $1.8 million. Enrollment growth at both campuses also exceeded budget, and credit hours grew by about 4.7%, well in excess of our 3% goal.

Although some students are still registering for classes, as of 9 a.m. this morning, we had enrolled 6,603 students. That is 4% above last year at the same time. I am confident that we will have another excellent year and exceed last year’s level for credit hours, which was the highest since 1975. So far this semester, we’ve enjoyed very strong enrollments at the graduate level, but undergraduate applications have been soft. We have to work on that in the future. However, thanks to programs like Starting Out at Roosevelt, students here feel more comfortable and our retention rate is improving, and this is excellent news!

The quality of our student body also is improving. In 1997, the average ACT of a new Roosevelt freshman was 19.4; so far this year the average ACT is 21.2, slightly above the national mean. Another example of academic quality is that in 1997 our freshmen came to us with an average high school grade point average of 2.74. This year the average high school GPA is 3.32. In addition, Roosevelt Scholars, our honors program, attracted 46 talented students this year, bringing the program up to 140 students. The average ACT of these students is above 26, which is the 86th percentile in the country.

On June 3rd, Mayor Daley officiated at groundbreaking ceremonies for the University Center of Chicago, a 1,720-bed residence hall we’re building in collaboration with DePaul University and Columbia College at State Street and Congress Parkway. We will benefit from having 315 beds for our students when the building opens for the fall 2004 semester. I think this alliance is one of the most creative ideas in higher education today, and it will probably serve as a model for other universities facing critical housing shortages for their students. I have already met with Father John Minogue, President of DePaul, and with Dr. Warrick Carter, President of Columbia, to discuss other ways our institutions can collaborate in the future.

Construction crews also have been busy in the Auditorium Building and at the Schaumburg Campus this summer. In fact, it’s been nearly impossible to walk down any hallway without encountering carpenters, painters or others whose skills are transforming the way the University looks. While I applaud their overall excellent work, I want to pay a special tribute to the talented individuals in our Physical Plant who redid the Office of the President. This accomplishment is a daily reminder for me, and more importantly, for all the visitors to my office, of the pride Roosevelt employees take in the quality of their work. Other renovated spaces you should check out, either now or in the weeks ahead, are the new 10th floor rehearsal hall for the Chicago College of Performing Arts, Ganz Hall, Alumni Hall at the Schaumburg Campus, and, of course, the Wabash Avenue elevators.

We are an institution of ideas, values and opportunities, but we are also a community of scholars. Creative ideas abound at Roosevelt. In each of our five colleges, we are constantly creating, conserving and transmitting knowledge. We are a resource that people turn to for intellectual expertise, as well as for the outstanding quality of our instruction.

Last year that intellectual expertise was on display in numerous ways. It is always dangerous for presidents to list faculty accomplishments for fear of leaving someone out. Probably the best way for me to recognize your achievements is to say that in addition to teaching, advising and serving on committees, Roosevelt University faculty members in 2001-2002 wrote or contributed to 22 books; conducted 115 lectures and workshops; edited or reviewed 33 publications; and published 113 essays, papers or articles. In addition, you attended countless professional conferences, performed numerous musical concerts, directed plays, wrote grant proposals and did many, many other things. I, for one, am impressed by this level of intellectual and creative accomplishment. It bodes well for the academic quality of the University.

These achievements also reinforce the many positive comments I have heard about the expertise and dedication of the Roosevelt faculty. This is a demanding time to be a university professor. Excellence in teaching is obviously your number one responsibility, but you are expected to do research, publish, participate in university activities, advise students and meet with them on an informal basis. I think there will always be a tension between teaching, research and student contact, but excellence in teaching is dependent on sustaining the quality of your intellectual and creative life.

Therefore, in order to help you continue pursuing your creative ideas, I have established a new initiative that I’m calling the President’s Fund for Excellence. This Fund will allow the University to respond to your resourceful ideas in a more timely manner, and to create excitement in your academic disciplines. The Fund will be used for projects not included in the annual budget. We have already received contributions for the Fund, and I expect it will continue to grow. You will be receiving more information on the President’s Fund for Excellence soon.

In the next few weeks we will resume the search for a new dean of the Walter E. Heller College of Business Administration. To help us find and attract the best available candidates, we have hired an executive search firm to work with our internal search committee. I will work closely with the faculty and other leaders in this search, as I will in all endeavors, to assure that we are successful in building strength for the future.

On Wednesday, September 11th, Roosevelt University will hold ceremonies in the late afternoon at both the Schaumburg and Chicago Campuses to remember the men and women who perished in the September 11th terrorist attacks and those whose lives were affected by the horrible events of that day. Roosevelt faculty members and students will discuss how the events of September 11th affected their academic disciplines and their lives. I encourage all of you to come and join in the discussion.

Another event you may want to attend is the grand opening of the Convergence Journalism Lab at the Schaumburg Campus on Friday, September 27th. Funded by the Chicago Tribune Foundation, this unique classroom contains video editing rooms, a TV production system, and computers capable of web design, print production and digital photography. It will enable students and faculty in that program to do state of the art work, and it exemplifies our commitment to academic excellence.

Although we are off to a great start for 2002-2003, there are some storm clouds on the horizon that we must keep our eyes on.

The first of these is funding from the State of Illinois. As you may know, more than one-third of our students depend on grants from the Monetary Assistance Program – the MAP – to help students pay for their education. This summer, in order to balance the state budget, the MAP program got hit twice. First, funding for fifth year students was eliminated, affecting 158 of our students, and then grants for all other MAP students were cut by 5%. This was particularly difficult because many of our students were anticipating an increase. There is no way the University can replace these funds from our own resources. But to help those fifth year students who are on track to graduate in 2002-2003, we have redirected some limited scholarship money from University sources to this group. Along with other universities across the state, we will do all we can to have the MAP awards increased next year. I’ve already met with key legislators to discuss this matter, but we are acutely aware that there will be many demands on the budget in Springfield, so expanded fundraising efforts will also be required.

Another area we need to watch is the number of new undergraduates enrolling at Roosevelt. I mentioned earlier that credit hours this semester should be above forecast, but that good news is primarily due to retention and strong new graduate enrollments. As I am sure you know, demand for a number of our academic programs is cyclical and these programs are therefore directly affected – both positively and negatively – by the economy. We must devise enrollment strategies to smooth these cycles as much as possible.

During the next few years, Roosevelt will experience something of a culture shift. We must diversify the exemplary ways in which we have served adult undergraduate and graduate students. While continuing to serve those important populations, as indeed we will, we must also look for new and creative ways to interest traditional age students – those who are 18 to 24 – in enrolling and remaining at Roosevelt. We must all join together to help recruit high school and community college transfer students to our University and to provide services and programs that will keep them challenged and happy here. Ultimately, this university-wide effort will develop successful alumni for Roosevelt, which is critical for the long-term success of the University.

As you know, Roosevelt is in a very competitive environment at both the Chicago and Schaumburg Campuses. We face stiff competition for students, faculty, funds and most critically, reputation. I, for one, welcome competition; it makes us work hard and do a better job. Internally, there will be competition for resources. My goal is to find ways to assure that those who produce outstanding work and achieve excellent results are well supported. I believe strongly in assessment, accountability and rewards. Competition puts a premium on high quality, which in the end, is the only guarantor of success. Another way of putting this is that for Roosevelt to be truly successful, we must be recognized as a place of the highest academic and creative quality and achievement.

In order to compete successfully, we need to determine what we want to do. I believe this is the perfect time for a strategic discussion of what Roosevelt University is, and what our mission for the 21st Century should be. These are weighty topics that will require a great deal of creative thought, and so those of us in this room must address them in a fair, comprehensive, open and all-inclusive manner. Nobody alone, least of all your President, can determine the best way for the community to succeed. We must do that work together.

The goal of the strategic planning process is straight forward: To produce a document of six to eight pages that will consist of a concise mission statement that is known and understood both by the Roosevelt community and by the broader external community. Along with the mission statement, there will be a limited set of goals, from four to ten, each related to measurable objectives that will guide us as we carry out the mission for the next five to ten years. These goals and objectives will be reviewed on an annual basis and will help guide resource allocation and reallocation.

With the assistance of a facilitator, we will begin the process by having five Town Hall meetings during September so that every member of the Roosevelt University family can participate. If you are unable to attend one of these meetings, you can let us know what you think by participating on-line. No idea, no comment should go unheard. In order to attain our goals, we must work together as a community. And so we shall.

Recently Professor Max Plager, Chairman of the University Senate, presented the question of our mission quite succinctly, when he said, and I’m paraphrasing: At its founding, Roosevelt’s mission set it apart from other universities. We were the leaders in offering access to higher education regardless of racial, religious or ethnic background. Now our mission has been co-opted by many other universities. How do we respond to that? In the context of our mission, is there a way for us to take a leadership role again? Should we aspire to leadership? If so, where?

These and other questions will stimulate our discussions, so I am confident that our Town Hall meetings will be lively and informative. They will give us keen insights for the development of an updated mission statement.

I plan to reconvene the Roosevelt community in January of 2003 to give you a report on what we have accomplished by mid-year. I expect that there will be much to say.

In conclusion, this is an exciting time to be at Roosevelt University. We are located in the nation’s greatest city, we have growing enrollments, we are in a sound financial position, we have outstanding faculty, students and staff, and we have a can-do spirit that is contagious.

So you can understand, therefore, why I am deeply grateful – indeed blessed – to be standing here today as your President. I look forward to working with each and every one of you as we continue to enhance academic quality and ensure the success of all who come here.

Thank you.