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The University for
Everyone--Powering the New California
(Remarks follow Provost’s opening comments)
 Faculty
Assembly: Part 1
(Quicktime)
Faculty
Assembly: Part 2
(Quicktime)
Faculty
Assembly: Part 3
(Quicktime)
Watch
the Faculty Assembly through iTunes U
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Outstanding faculty
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Provost Echeverria well
stated the outstanding contributions you make.
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Fresno State provides
opportunity for everyone. Your role is at the heart of this.
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Your dedication to
opening minds and hearts to dream makes real our promise of a
university of opportunity for everyone.
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We give people from every
background in the Central Valley the chance to dream and accomplish
greatness in their lives.
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The best example I can
think of is high above us right now: At this moment Fresno’s own
Barbara Morgan is circling the earth on the Space Shuttle Endeavour
200 miles above the earth, traveling at 17,000 miles per hour. Her
earliest educational experiences were here on campus in our
laboratory school overseen by our faculty. Back then few would have
ever imagined that a little girl from Fresno would become an
astronaut. Now she is inspiring girls and boys throughout the world
as America’s “Teacher in Space.” She represents the reality that the
Central Valley residents can dream and achieve greatness.
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This is why we say Fresno
State is powering the New California. This is a university on the
move and our faculty and students are making it happen. We are in
the heart of a region that is growing four times faster than the
rest of the state. This New California is being created from
demographic shifts that are dramatic. Our academic program is strong
and getting stronger. We’re providing the spark of innovation for
Central California, and we’re encouraging investment in the future
of our region.
Achieving
Greatness
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As we approach our
Centennial in 2011, we can look back on the incredible growth of the
university and its role in developing the Central Valley as a
dynamic hub powering the New California.
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I’ve been President at
Fresno State for 16 years. During that time we’ve faced many
challenges as we’ve worked with the people of the Central Valley to
build a university with national recognition and distinction. We are
:
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The University of
Opportunity for Everyone.
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We’ve built Fresno State
as the university of opportunity. In the San Joaquin Valley, Fresno
State is the main path for women and men of all backgrounds to
fulfill their dreams of a college education. Thousands of our alumni
know full-well the opportunity represented by Fresno State.
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As you leave today,
you’ll receive a brochure that helps to remind us of our role: I was
pleased to see this new publication that traces how many of us on
staff and in the faculty are first-generation college students. We
know what a college education has meant in our lives. We’re proud to
offer that same opportunity to Fresno State students. (See First
Generation Stories at
http://firstgeneration.csufresno.edu)
Continuing
to achieve success
People
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Our people – the faculty,
students, staff and community partners – are Fresno State. Fresno
State simply would not be as great as it is without your talent,
experience and creativity. Our campus recently attracted the
attention of The New York Times for the “iamFresnoState” campaign on
You Tube and MySpace where students shared their favorite things
about the campus. There is an interesting notion here – we all are
Fresno State.
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Click here to watch the
IamFresnoState video
Resources
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We are gaining in the
resources needed to keep growing. Thanks to the efforts of our
faculty and Tom McClanahan and his staff, we achieved a 29% increase
in our grant and contract activity totaling $35.6 million dollars.
This is an incredible achievement!
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$56 million has been
raised to-date during the comprehensive fundraising campaign’s
“quiet phase.” That’s another incredible step forward.
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This is an exciting year
for our campus. Everywhere you look there are new academic programs
and projects being developed, major new building projects underway,
and a spirit of anticipation and change. There have been many years
of hard work by faculty and staff to bring these improvements to our
campus. I know you join me in taking pride in what we’ve been able
to accomplish together.
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We have created a new
Master Plan for our campus and we will complete an Environmental
Impact Review to support the plan this year. While much of the
master Plan deals with infrastructure it also details new buildings
and facilities which will be needed to fully implement our Plan for
Excellence.
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If you haven’t had a
chance to see the progress being made on the new Madden Library,
you’ll want to go take a look. Fortunately, most of the steel
framing for the building has been put in place over the summer,
minimizing the impact of construction on campus life. Next fall the
new library will become the hub of the campus, providing a place for
discussion and discovery.
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Everyone talks about how
important it is to protect the environment and reduce energy use.
Well, we’re doing something about it. Our new solar parking project
will soon provide 20% of the electrical power it takes to run this
campus. According to our partners at Chevron it’s the largest solar
parking project of its kind at any university. We like to say that
Fresno State is “Powering the New California” – and in this project
we’re literally showing the way Central California can tap the power
of the sun to reduce pollution. Our favorite colors at Fresno State
are cardinal and blue…but we think green looks pretty good too.
Shared
Values
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We’ve worked hard to make
the university a place known for its great diversity, fairness, and
understanding.
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We understand the value
of education and how education changes lives
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I know you share these
values with me.
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Values are our
strength—our guide to greatness. Our achievements would not mean as
much if we lost sight of these important values.
Challenges
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We’ve faced challenges.
All universities face problems at times…and if there aren’t problems
it can be a sign that you’re not doing enough.
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Let me address the
current challenges directly.
Litigation
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I’ve invested many years
of my life in helping to build this university of opportunity. No
one feels the pain of the lawsuits in which we are engaged more than
I do. I know that when you are out in the community people have
questions.
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So let me say clearly so
there is no question -- I do not and I have not tolerated
discrimination at Fresno State. I act when any discrimination is
found. This is core to who I am as a university president. It’s core
to who I am as a person. It is also core to the strong women and men
on my leadership team who partner with me in guiding this great
institution.
Still, I am aware that these legal issues would seem to indicate
otherwise. Because of the litigation I won’t be able to be as
specific on these charges as I’d like, but I can tell you that where
there were problems we’ve addressed them. The upcoming cases really
deal with job performance and the need to protect the safety and
welfare of our students.
We’re not perfect. I’d simply ask you to keep an open mind as we
work through these legal issues because sometimes charges are well
founded, and sometimes charges are just charges.
These lawsuits may indicate some past problems in athletics, but
they do not reflect today’s realities in Bulldog athletics.
New era in
Bulldog Athletics
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During the past two years
we’ve created a new era in Bulldog athletics--we have a highly
experienced Director of Athletics, and a new senior leadership team
is in place with over 100 years of Division One experience. We have
been changing policies and the culture of our program to reinforce
our fundamental values as the university of opportunity for
everyone.
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Also…for the past two
years, the Athletic Department budget has been balanced. This is not
been without great pain, but it has been accomplished.
Matching
Gifts
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An independent review of
the corporate matching gifts program has been completed. The
independent report found that from 1986 to 2003 the university
benefited from up to $2.9 million in company matching gift funds
which it was not qualified to receive based on company restrictions.
The report found the error resulted from an erroneous management
judgment which occurred in 1986.
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The auditor also stated –
and let me emphasize this point – that “no monies were taken from
academic purposes and redirected to athletic purposes.” All
companies affected are being offered repayments of their donations
because it’s the right thing to do and it reflects our values as a
University. The report found we had successfully eliminated the
problems in matching gifts back in 2003 by establishing and
enforcing new guidelines. Our independent counsel also provided us
with a best practices report which will be fully implemented by all
of our auxiliary boards.
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The complete report from
the independent auditors and counsel may be found at
www.fresnostatenews.com/2007/06/matchinggiftsreport.htm
Budget
challenges
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At the state level there
are still some question marks as we await the adoption of the state
budget. As the budget was being considered in July there was concern
that the California Legislature might reduce CSU’s budget by one
percent. While one percent doesn’t sound like much, it would cut
approximately $28 million of this year’s CSU budget. That would mean
the university couldn’t cover cost increases and would threaten the
university’s ability to provide more competitive salaries for
faculty and staff.
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The legislature returns
to work today. We need them to act to approve a budget so we can
implement already negotiated salary increases and support our
students. In anticipation of approval of the budget, we have
provided temporary allocations to the Colleges, Schools and our
major units.
Tell our
story
Fresno State has a remarkable
story to tell. All of you are ambassadors for Fresno State in the
community. I want you to take pride in your university and remember:
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We are a powerful force
that is making Central California a better place to live.
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We do not
discriminate…instead this campus offers opportunities for everyone.
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We have a new senior
management team that is modeling our athletic program after the most
highly regarded universities in the country.
Leadership team
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Over the past few years
we’ve been adding many new faculty and staff members, and many of
you haven’t had the opportunity to meet our campus leadership. I’ll
be joining our leadership team in the foyer at the end of the
assembly and look forward to meeting with you. We’ll stay as long as
you would like to talk.
I’m very proud of the leadership team we’ve assembled. For those who
haven’t had a chance to meet them…here are some short video segments
from the university leadership about their key goals for this year:
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Click
here to watch the video of our Vice Presidents
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Vice President for
Student Services/Dean of Students Paul Oliaro
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Vice President for
Administration and Chief Financial Officer Cynthia Teniente-Matson
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Vice President for
University Advancement Peter Smits
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Athletics Director
Thomas Boeh
The university is now
heading to our Centennial at 2011. As you have heard today, there
are many good people working very hard to shape the future of Fresno
State. We can take pride in new doctorates being offered, the
growing achievements of our students and the exciting plans that
will guide the future development of our campus.
Our campus is in the midst of a major transformation as we seek to
be recognized as one of the top ten engaged Universities in this
country. The key to this achievement will be the private support
which we can generate to fuel this transformation. We have been
laying the foundation as you heard earlier for a major comprehensive
campaign to generate support. We have volunteer leadership in place
and we have built a staff to assist us. Already we have had some
early successes which will help in the transformation of our campus.
But this campus isn’t
best known for its plans, buildings and programs. It’s known for the
impact of our faculty, staff and students in our community and the
world.
Perhaps that’s best illustrated by the many ways this university
shows students how to give back to their community. It’s
demonstrated in the lives of our faculty who inspire their students
to broaden their vision to see how their lives can make a difference
here in Fresno and throughout the world.
I’m very proud of the
many Fresno State students who volunteer in the community – from
teaming up with Stone Soup to meet the needs of our campus neighbors
to mentoring low-income preschool children in the Jumpstart program.
Thousands of our students serve our region each year. The story of
Fresno State is told through their hard work and dedication. They
are our best ambassadors of Bulldog Pride.
Our goal is to provide
one million hours of service annually to the community by our
Centennial in 2011. I’m creating a Centennial Committee this fall
that will focus on celebrating the hallmarks of our campus…like
community service. Our nearly 100-year history is one of
opportunity, courage, hard work and achievement. Today, I am very
honored to announce another major chapter in our history that
underscores what Fresno State means to the people of Central
California. Could I please ask all of you who have taught a service
learning course or who have been involved in promoting community
service with our students to please stand? Thank you for your
leadership. Your pioneering work is about to be recognized in a
special way. Please watch this video with me.
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Click
here to watch the Video of Jan and Bud Richter
After consultation with
the Senate Executive Committee I will seek the Board of Trustees
approval to name our center the Bud and Jan Richter Center for
Community Engagement and Service Learning.
Bud and Jan please join
me on the stage. Please join me in thanking Bud and Jan for their
great commitment to our campus.
(RICHTER COMMENT)
Thank you all for joining
us today. Let’s look forward to a great year for our students and
our university community.
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