STATE OF THE CAMPUS ADDRESS: "FROM PROMISE TO PRIDE" I would like to thank the 300-plus faculty, staff, and students who took time from their schedule to join me last Thursday to listen to my State of the Campus Address. It was just the beginning of an important conversation. The key points are these: UMass Dartmouth is no longer just potentially outstanding. It IS outstanding. It is time to recognize and celebrate what this University has achieved already and what we will achieve in the very near future, rather than just talking about our potential. There are always issues associated with growth, evolution, and aspiration, and we now stand on a firm foundation from which to face them. We aim to renew our emphasis on the sharing of ideas and heighten our community's intellectual discourse. To celebrate and nurture these efforts, we are establishing a new campus-wide, inter-disciplinary exchange of ideas in the form of three annual colloquia series. The Chancellor's Colloquia series will bring an intellectual figure of national or international renown to the campus once per semester; the University Colloquia Series will celebrate the passion and success of our faculty; and the Teaching and Learning Colloquia Series will highlight outstanding faculty who have demonstrated innovative and effective approaches to teaching and learning. Also, over the next six months we are: Increasing the number of Faculty Travel Grants from 75 to 100 to encourage more intellectual ambassadorship Providing financial support for the establishment of departmental seminar series for faculty and students Enhancing the Awards for Distinguished Teaching and Scholarship, Research and Creative Activity by increasing the monetary award to $2,500. This award will also include a course release and a $1,000 travel grant to allow the winners time to share their work in formal and informal ways with their colleagues and the community; Creating a new annual award - the Chancellor's Public Service Leadership Award, which will also include $2,500, a course release, and travel grant; Unveiling a "Scholarship Wall" in Group I where all the book jackets of our published faculty and staff will be framed and displayed. Establishing a resource center for staff professional development, which will offer ongoing programs that create the opportunity for learning about best practices and enhancing individual skills. Providing Service Improvement Grants to individual staff or groups of staff who have a good idea that needs to be supported through planning, testing, piloting, and implementation. Establishing the Chancellor's Innovative Service Award to be given to a team of three or more individuals who introduce a new or redesigned service that makes a difference for faculty, staff, or students. Our task is a fundamental one - to advance true understanding and steadfast judgment. Let us celebrate, share, and build upon our excellence. I know that our future will be intellectually and economically prosperous if we are not distracted from this essential activity.
	COLLEGE NOW SHARE THE DREAM BANQUET This past weekend's annual College Now Banquet was another reminder of the transformative role this University plays in the life of our students. In the midst of last year's budget restrictions, the program has persevered through a belief in its mission, in the staff's team orientation (so well displayed at the event), and through its strident vision that we each have the ability to achieve far beyond what we might think we can. And at the event, we applauded the efforts of 12 students who stood before a filled commuter caf� to receive merit scholarships for achieving GPAs in excess of 3.6. Congratulations to Academic Resource Center Directors Tom Daigle and Sokratis Koumas for their service to the Program and for always making themselves available to assist College Now students. Many of you may know Willio Destin, a Haitian immigrant and the President of our UMass Dartmouth Christian Organization. His address, directed to the freshman College Now class, offered an important reminder to us all. I paraphrase: He said, "I have been offered an opportunity to build my skills and to use these skills to earn money. If I am more fortunate, I will use these skills to aid my local community; if I am even more fortunate, I will use my skills to aid my nation; and if I am even more fortunate, I will use my skills to aid my world. In my country, I know many people of talent and intelligence, who have skills that could be used to earn a living for themselves and for their family, but they have no opportunity to use them. In this realization I feel I am privileged. This brings to me a sense of humility. When you are provided with opportunity, we have an obligation to do our very best. And this is one way we show our gratitude, by performing with excellence. And it is this humility that is manifest in a deep sense of gratitude. I am grateful for the opportunity that this program [College Now] has brought to me, and wish you the best on your most fortunate journey." These are words worth repeating and remembering.
	UMASS DARTMOUTH IN THE NEWS: Last, in case you missed us in the news over the intersession, the University has received important and glowing reviews. The Standard Times: "After a year of budget difficulties and a state threat of restructuring, this region's only university has weathered the worst and appears to be stronger than ever." Full Article "Do we have the capacity to look beyond our interpretive differences for that "inner compass" of our common humanity?" Full Article The Providence Journal: "UMass Dartmouth also has the fastest-growing research portfolio of any UMass campus, with a total of more than $17 million in research money. In the next few years, she [Chancellor MacCormack] said, research financing will probably grow to $25 million." Full Article "Chancellor Jean MacCormack of the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth is keenly aware of the difficulties of offering a quality education at a price that students can afford." Full Article The Fall River Herald: "It had a $3 million structural operating deficit that has been eliminated, MacCormack said, and the university now has a balanced budget." Full Article Have a great week.
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 Last Updated On: 8/18/04