Dear Colleagues:

Thank you for your dedication to our beloved University and for the irreplaceable gifts and talents you bring to the Truman community!  It is truly an honor to work alongside you as we work to achieve even greater heights.  Wishing you all a magical and revitalizing break filled with joy!

Happy Holidays,
Sue

Top of the News

Organizational Excellence
Strengthen the University’s Financial Base by Investing in Initiatives that Ensure Long-Term Relevance

Enhancing Enrollment – SEM Works was chosen as our enrollment management consulting company via the RFP process. Dr. Jim Black, President and lead consultant, and Ms. Kathi Baucom began the discovery phase with a visit to campus October 15-17. Dr. Black returned to campus November 7-9 to present audit findings and deliver an Enrollment Opportunities Analysis. Discussion during this visit included high-level enrollment goals, prioritization of strategic opportunities, and establishment of strategic enrollment management planning parameters, principles, and high priority student segments. On November 27-28, Dr. Black returned to campus to review and approve high level enrollment goals and initiate work with strategy development teams. Strategy teams are focused on areas deemed the highest priority: Institutional Positioning, Website Enhancement, Enrollment Portfolio Diversification, Student Retention, and Strategic Enrollment Intelligence. The consultant will facilitate the second round of strategy team meetings on January 29-30. The draft strategic enrollment plan is expected in mid-February, 2019.

Communicating Truman’s Value – SME Branding has been selected to develop the new brand identity and marketing program for Truman. This firm was selected from 14 proposals and three finalists to provide the services. SME proposed a very strong team which should mesh well with institutional resources. Their proposals reflected an understanding of the challenges faced by Truman in a competitive higher education marketplace. Work will begin in January with a projected rollout of new marketing materials and initiatives by August 2019.

Future Planned Updates
February 2019
May 2019

The Top of the News is just the tip of the iceberg! Click on the Strategic Plan Updates links to get the rest of the important update news.
View the complete strategic plan here: http://wp-internal.truman.edu/strategicplan/truman-blueprint-success/
View strategic plan priorities here: http://wp-internal.truman.edu/strategicplan/priorities/
View strategic plan – progress updates, December 2018 here: http://wp-internal.truman.edu/strategicplan/files/2018/12/Progress-Report-Strategic-Plan-Update-December-2018.pdf

Dear Colleagues:

As we enter into the last few weeks of the Fall Semester, it is with great pleasure that I invite you to participate in the following upcoming events:

• Faculty and Staff Holiday Reception – Wednesday, December 12
  Our annual Faculty and Staff Holiday Reception will take place on December 12 from 2:30-5:00 p.m. at the University Residence located at 706 South Halliburton.  I look forward to celebrating Truman and the holiday season with you!
• Fall Commencement – Saturday, December 15
  Truman’s Fall Commencement Ceremony is right around the corner and it is time to cheer on our newest Truman alums!  The ceremony will be held on December 15 at 11:00 a.m. in Pershing Arena.  We will celebrate approximately 300 baccalaureate and master’s degree candidates and their families, and Dominic Armstrong, a 2002 alumnus and established international vocal artist, will be our Commencement Speaker and Vocal Soloist.
• Casual Dress and Departmental Food Exchange Days – Thursday and Friday, December 20-21
  December 20 and 21 are designated as Casual Dress and Departmental Food Exchange Days.  This annual tradition has grown quite popular and provides a fabulous opportunity for faculty and staff to mingle and dine on some very good food.  Those offices who do not have a food table are more than welcome to join the President’s Office celebration.

December Board of Governors Meeting

Our Board of Governors met on Saturday, December 1, under the leadership of Board Chair, Cheryl J. Cozette.  The Board elected officers and assigned committee membership for the 2019 calendar year.  New officers who will take office for a term of one year commencing at the first regular meeting of the calendar year are:  Chair, Laura A. Crandall; Vice Chair, Jennifer Kopp Dameron; and Secretary, K. Brooks Miller.  The Board also recognized former Governor Susan Plassmeyer for her service on the Board from 2012 to 2018.

At the meeting, Kara Jo Levery, Chair of Staff Council, provided the annual Staff Council report.  Dr. Jim Black, President and CEO of SEM Works (the firm chosen as our enrollment management consultant), shared the results of his review and provided a progress report on the work taking place on campus.  I provided a President’s Report highlighting campus and community activities that have occurred since the last meeting of the Board.  In addition, the Board reviewed financial reports, received an update on construction projects, and heard reports from their three committees.

In terms of action items, housing and food plan charges effective with the 2019 Fall Semester were approved.  Due to an increase in utilities and fringe benefits, the Board approved an overall average increase of 1.5% in the room rates and an average increase in meal plans of 2.8% to offset anticipated operating costs such as the minimum wage increase and utility costs.  The overall increase for on-campus housing/food under typical circumstances will be 2.6%.  Based upon feedback from over 650 students, there will be several new meal plan changes including Sunday evening meals, meal transferability to Chick-Fil-A, additional serving days each semester, and an increased value of meal transferability.

Last, but certainly not least, the Board approved faculty sabbaticals for the 2019-20 Academic Year.  Please join me in congratulating the following faculty members:

2019-20 Academic Year
Vayujeet Gokhale, Associate Professor of Physics
Sara Orel, Professor of Art

2019 Fall Semester
Peter Ramberg, Professor of History of Science

2020 Spring Semester
Joseph Benevento, Professor of English
John Quinn, Professor of Political Science

We look forward to hearing about the impactful outcomes of their sabbatical work.

A copy of the open session agenda can be found on the Board of Governors website located at http://www.truman.edu/about/our-people/board-of-governors/board-of-governors-agendas/.  The next regular meeting of the Board of Governors is scheduled for Saturday, February 9, 2019.

Best wishes to each of you for a fantastic end to your semester!

Sue

Dear Colleagues:

An immense thank you to everyone who helped orchestrate a fabulous Truman State University Homecoming Celebration!  Students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends are individually special, but all of us combined are the magic of Truman and that is what we celebrated this weekend.  It was a great pleasure to be involved in such a fun-filled weekend and it is one more example of why I am truly proud to be a Bulldog!  Speaking of bulldogs, if you have not already, go visit the newly named Roger J. Johnson Patio to view the bronze bulldog which was unveiled during a ceremony on Saturday.  Thanks to a generous donor, the bulldog statue is a fun and distinctive addition to the Sesquicentennial Plaza and will certainly be a focal point from this point forward.

The members of the Board of Governors participated in the weekend events in conjunction with their annual October meeting.  Board Chair Cheryl J. Cozette led the meeting at which the Board officially recognized Carter Brooks Templeton for his service as Student Representative to the Board of Governors from April 2016 to July 2018.

Representatives from RubinBrown LLP reported on the annual audit of the University, and Dr. Ernie Hughes, Vice President for University Advancement, provided an update on Advancement/Foundation Board activities.  The Board heard comments from Justin Naumovitz, a 1995 graduate of Truman in regard to the Wrestling program.  I provided a President’s Report reflecting many of the initiatives taking place on campus including status updates on the selection of an enrollment management consultant (the selected consultant, SEM Works, began their work on campus today), a branding and identity consultant (the Request for Proposals closes on October 16), and the Missouri Department of Higher Education call for MoExcels workforce development proposals.  In addition, the Board reviewed financial reports, received updates on enrollment management and on-campus construction projects, and heard reports from their three committees.

In terms of an action item, the Board approved architectural services for the Greenwood Center Windows/ Recreation Center Improvements Project, a project which will replace two-thirds of the windows in the Greenwood Building as well as replace the Recreation Center alarm system (original to the building) and diagnose the HVAC controls systems which has been experiencing significant temperature variations.

A copy of the complete agenda from the October 12 meeting can be found on the Board of Governors website located at http://www.truman.edu/about/our-people/board-of-governors/board-of-governors-agendas/.  The next meeting of the Board is scheduled for Saturday, December 1.

Although it is hard to believe it is already here, best wishes for a wonderful Mid-Term Break.  May the second half of the semester be even better than the first!

Best regards,

Sue

President Thomas will hold a coffee (and chocolates) with the president on Wednesday, October 24, at 3:30 p.m. in the Conference Room of the Student Union Building (SUB 3000).

Several members of the Online Strategic Plan Curricular Review Committee will be present to discuss and receive feedback about their work.  For more information on the curricular recommendations under review, go to the Revised Online Strategic Plan located at:  http://wp-internal.truman.edu/strategicplan/priorities/extended-reach/revise-implement-online-strategic-plan/.

We hope your schedule will allow you to attend.

Dear Truman Community:

I am delighted to report that Lauri Millot, Truman’s new Institutional Compliance Officer, began her new position at Truman on Monday, September 24.

The Institutional Compliance Officer is responsible for managing Truman’s compliance with Title IX, Title IV and Title VII and acts as a neutral party in all aspects of the University’s compliance with federal and state non-discrimination laws.  Lauri can be reached at lmillot@truman.edu or (660) 785-4354.  Her office is located in Violette Hall 1308.

Once again, we welcome Lauri to the Truman community!

Best regards,

Sue

	August 2018 Top of the News Intentional Experiences and Institutional Distinctiveness Curriculum Reform – Various committees worked through the summer and will continue to work this year to implement Truman’s new curriculum, “The Dialogues,” in Fall 2019.  Committee chairs sent routine emails updating the campus community throughout the summer.  All email updates and information presented at the SPAW can be found here: http://wp-internal.truman.edu/provost/resources/spaw/. Extended Reach Online Strategies – The refurbished Graduate Certificate in Data Science is already enrolling students for a January launch and the team at the Institute for Academic Outreach is working aggressively on marketing the program and building relationships with corporations with data science training needs.  The new version of the certificate incorporates adaptive learning technology, a personalized capstone, and embedded digital credentials. Internationalization – Tim Urbonya recently began his tenure as Executive Director of International Education.  He will supervise the work of the Center for International Education Abroad (Study Abroad) and the Center for International Students while working to coordinate our overall campus internationalization strategy. Organizational Excellence Prioritizing Employee Support – The Faculty Staffing and Compensation Committee and the Staff Compensation Committee completed their work, submitted final reports, and presented at the SPAW.  Full reports can be found here: http://wp-internal.truman.edu/provost/resources/spaw/.  Both committees will continue to work this academic year to develop a phased implementation plan. Fostering an Inclusive Community – A new preferred name and pronoun policy has been put into place and allows faculty, staff, and students to choose a preferred first name and pronoun of their choosing.  The implementation timeline can be found at: http://preferred.truman.edu. Financial Highlights – Guaranteed Energy Savings Project – This $10.5 million project has generated savings in energy costs which provide a 10-year payback.  Immediate reductions in natural gas and electricity usage have reduced Truman’s annual carbon footprint by 20.9 million pounds of CO2. University Capital Campaign – Total Campaign Commitments: $42,964,926 Thanks to your support, the campaign surpassed the $40 million mark! The Top of the News is just the tip of the iceberg!  Click on the Strategic Plan Updates links to get the rest of the important update news.   Strategic Plan Updates View the Complete Strategic Plan complete strategic plan with narrative Strategic Plan Priorities narrative update of priorities Strategic Plan – Progress Updates, August 2018 timeline Future Planned Updates November 2018 February 2019 May 2019

Dear Truman Community:

It is my pleasure to announce Lauri Millot has accepted my invitation to serve as Truman’s Institutional Compliance Officer beginning September 24, 2018.  Lauri is extremely well qualified to undertake the responsibilities of this position.  She received her Juris Doctor in 1992 and currently serves as Executive Director, Title IX Coordinator, at New Mexico State University, a position she has held since 2016.

The Institutional Compliance Officer (ICO) is responsible for managing Truman’s compliance with Title IX, Title IV and Title VII and acts as a neutral party in all aspects of the University’s compliance with federal and state non-discrimination laws.

Lauri replaces Jamie Ball who relocated to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville on June 18.  Janna Stoskopf, Vice President for Students Affairs, will continue to serve as Interim Institutional Compliance Officer until Lauri arrives at Truman.  For compliance matters, Vice President Stoskopf can be reached at 660-785-4111.

We look forward to the important work Lauri will do in support of our community.

Best regards,

Sue