State of the university strong, campus on the move
Released: August 27, 2008
Chancellor Richard Telfer The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is a university on the move. Chancellor Richard Telfer demonstrated that by arriving at the State of the University address on a purple and silver motor scooter to the sound of “Born to Be Wild” and cheers from a packed audience of students, faculty and staff.
After parking the scooter on stage at the Young Auditorium, he told the audience that he’s learning as chancellor a person is required to do a lot of different things to get people’s attention.
“The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is moving in the right direction, the state of the university is strong and we are well positioned to maintain our momentum,” Telfer said.
“I have been going to the chancellor’s address for a good many years…this one was the best,” Carol Miller, director of financial aid, said. “What a great sport our chancellor is coming in on a scooter. It set the stage for a ‘lighter mood’ in the auditorium. A little humor goes a long way in keeping your audience with you.”
Tuesday’s event was a celebration of the past academic year’s accomplishments and a chance to focus on the future. Telfer hopes that campus will have another banner year.
Some of the successes he pointed to include:
- the College of Business and Economics was again named a “Best Business School” by the Princeton Review;
- Professor Robert Benjamin, with help from current and former students, was recognized for three major findings regarding the Milky Way Galaxy;
- David Cartwright, Ed Erdmann and Jo Ellen Burkholder of the College of Letters and Sciences received $185,000 in grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the most awarded to any university in the state.
- Sue Messer, Teresa Faris and Ben Strand from the College of Arts and Communication received grants from the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) totaling $38,000. These are the first grants to be awarded to UW-Whitewater.
- UW-Whitewater’s athletics program was recognized as the sixth best program in the nation according to the Director’s Cup competition.
To remain a university on the move, Telfer said it is important for campus to:
- Implement the strategic plan;
- Consider whether and how to grow;
- Become more entrepreneurial;
- Expand its commitment to diversity;
- Become a model of sustainability.
“I think the chancellor did an excellent job at highlighting the progress that the campus is making in terms of the strategic plan,” Kyle Naff, reference and instruction librarian, said. “I think that all of the campus units really are moving forward while taking slightly different paths.”
The complete State of the University address is available at www.uww.edu/chancellor/speeches.php
- University Marketing and Media Relations,ummr@uww.edu
