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Friends Letters

25 January 2005

TO: Alumni and Friends of The University of Montana

FROM: G. M. Dennison, President

SUBJECT: A New Year

Happy New Year! Another year in the 21st century and we have only begun to address the challenge of assuring that we sustain a “University for the 21st Century,” to borrow a term from Jim Duderstadt, former President of the University of Michigan. As I explained in my 2004 State of the University Address, I have commandeered the term because it conveys so much about the challenge before us. I will not offer an explanation here, but ask instead that you review my comments in the Address and send me your reactions. We have made good progress, have a great deal to accomplish, and have a much better chance of success because of the excellent support from our friends and alumni.

But let me return now to the primary purpose of this missive, specifically to let you know of recent developments. I can report that we have come through this last year in remarkably good condition, thanks to the excellent work and commitment of the faculty, staff, and my administrative colleagues. We have record enrollments, and happily the mix of residents and nonresidents met our expectations. In brief, if this year proves the beginning of a new trend, then we shall have reversed the downward slide of nonresidents that began in 1998 for reasons we do not fully understand. We do know, however, that targeted recruitment efforts and responsiveness to the needs of young people for recognition of their academic accomplishments helped immensely as we invited prospective students to consider The University of Montana. In addition, we initiated a Legacy Scholarship Program to attract the children and grandchildren of alumni. Having learned a few years ago that enrollment forecasts always remain problematic, we will continue our efforts but maintain the contingency fund we established at that time to manage the situation if the trend does not materialize. Nonetheless, I have a great deal of confidence that we have found the solution.

As a result of this good work, we have a robust budget for the current year, even considering the assistance provided from Missoula to the smaller campuses in Helena, Butte, and Dillon, and I believe that we will have for the next few years. But we cannot afford to rest on our laurels. Failure to deliver on our promises to students will inevitably lead to problems. Therefore, we have fulfilled our commitment to improve the quality of the education we offer by adding twelve new faculty members to teach the courses that students need. In addition, we have developed and implemented some new programs that clearly have great market potential and that will help our students prepare themselves for the challenges of the 21st century. We will continue the
effort to improve quality and diversify the program array, but always within the context provided by the mission of the University and the needs of the State and Nation. The University of Montana has always had a distinctive mission and we intend to maintain the focus articulated in our statement of Strategic Directions.

As an additional indicator of progress for the next couple of years, the budget request prospect for this Session of the Montana Legislature looks much brighter than at any time during the last few years. With the modest economic upturn producing a favorable ending fund balance, the outgoing Martz administration presented an Executive Budget recommendation that goes a good ways toward redressing the problems created by revenue shortfalls during the current biennium. The Schweitzer administration has improved on the Martz proposal, with the result that we feel fairly confident about the budget plans for FY 2006 and FY 2007. We cannot avoid tuition increases, since the State of Montana simply does not have the revenue to cover all of the needs, but we believe we can restrain the necessary increases. In addition, with assistance from the State, we will provide more assistance to those students without the funds to assure access.

At the same time, the faculty marked another record year in research volume. The level of activity continues to rise, with the result that we must work even harder to provide the necessary infrastructure to support the research, referring, of course, to policies, facilities, and people to support the researchers. In that regard, the success in attracting donations to fund the renovation of existing and construction of new facilities exceeded even my optimistic expectations. During the coming Spring, we will break ground for Anderson Hall, to serve Journalism, and launch the expansion of the Skaggs Building for Pharmacy – for a total exceeding $26 million, most of which came from donations. During the next two years, we will also complete more than $3 million in deferred maintenance made possible by careful management and re-financing some earlier bonds during this period of very favorable interest rates.

We have a ways to go yet to identify the funds to support a much-needed addition to the Law Building. As you know, we need more space for seminars and small classrooms, must make the building fully accessible for all students, and simply have to expand the Jameson Library to assure that students have access to materials and study space. Dean Ed Eck and the Committee have raised more than $3 million toward the needed $8 million, and we will continue the effort. In fact, we intend to have most of the funds identified by the close of the academic year so that we can complete the project within the next two years. I recognize that the schedule appears ambitious, but it matches the critical need.

We have also made good progress toward identifying what we need for the Native American Center. The campus has become even more of a magnet for Native American students, and Patrick Weasel Head has implemented a responsive array of programs to assist the students toward the realization of their academic goals. The Native American Studies faculty under Dr. Kate Shanley’s leadership has a well deserved and enviable reputation for their excellent work to increase awareness of the rich cultural legacy in Montana. We have conceptualized the Center as a place on campus to continue this work and where students, faculty, students, and Native American elders can gather to share insights and experience or just to celebrate together. This new Center will also bring us together to formulate and implement an appropriate response to the challenge of “Indian Education for All” in Montana.

I think it important to report to you that we have resolved all the issues related to the deficit in Intercollegiate Athletics and have put it behind us. While we have work to do to eliminate the accumulated deficit, we have made the necessary changes to prevent any recurrence. More important, the programs themselves show no lingering effects from the incident. The football team made it to the Championship Game in the national playoffs, and represented the University very well. As Coach Bobbie Hauck told his players, they have every right to feel great pride in their accomplishments. We all share that view. The soccer, golf, volley ball, and cross country teams performed quite well, and Athletic Director Don Read sees great promise for the future as a result. The basketball season has begun, and we all feel a sense of excitement and anticipation for these two teams. I want especially to thank you for your continued support and enthusiasm during a very difficult time for a number of people.

As critical parts of this informational package, I have assembled and included a collection of news items, press releases, and other materials for your review. The annual President’s Report and the State of the University Address serve to set the stage. If you have seen them, fine. If not, I think you will find them valuable because of their focus on the University and its faculty and students. If you find omissions, please let me know and I will strive to improve the coverage in the future. I doubt that a running commentary on the enclosed items will benefit anyone capable of reading, so I will forego it. Instead, I have focused on those developments I think relevant and needing additional elaboration. From time to time, I refer to some of the materials because of the topic of discussion. I think you will find the excerpts quite informative.

Again, as mentioned last year, I have now displaced Charles H. Clapp as the longest serving President of The University of Montana, although I did so only because he died quite young while in office, having presided with great skill and grace for thirteen years, eight months, and eight days. Most people probably do not know, however, that former President Bob Pantzer made certain that the University dedicated a building to Charles Clapp in the early 70s, although the name has never appeared on the building. We will correct that oversight this Spring with the public announcement that the Science Complex – hardly a fitting name for a University facility – is actually the Charles H. Clapp Building. I hope that Frank and Aida Clapp – Charles’s son and his wife – will find it possible to make the trip to Missoula to help us with the dedication.

Many people have probably heard that we lost a wonderful man and great servant of the University with the death of Bob Pantzer in 2004. Thankfully, we seized an earlier opportunity to name our newest residence hall in honor of Bob. Pantzer Hall has won acclaim for its design and responsiveness to student needs, just as Bob would have wanted. We must do all we can to pay our respects to and exult the examples of the men and women who guided and developed this University. Because of them, we can accomplish a great deal today.

At the mid-point of the academic year, I remain very optimistic about the future. We have an energetic recruitment effort in progress to make certain that we meet our enrollment targets, bringing to bear all that we have learned during the last few years. The competition has become very keen, but I think that fuels our desire to prevail. If we cannot compete in the academic market, we have only ourselves to blame. We have developed a solid program array, and have also sharpened our focus on projects and activities likely to contribute to the preferred cultural, economic, and social development of the State. As mentioned, however, we always remain mindful of the imperative to remain true to the educational mission, thus avoiding an all too common tendency under these emergent circumstances to let the market decide everything. Even as we must respond to the market, we must also make certain that we educate the next generation to assume their places in society as competent, committed, engaged, and ethical citizens.

I mentioned in my letter last year my intention to place new emphasis upon the Student Leadership Development Program on campus. Several colleges and universities around the country have such programs, and I personally regard the University of Southern California as a model program, directed by President Steve Sample. We have initiated the discussion on campus that will culminate in a similar program for students at The University of Montana. Most programs that succeed enjoy the support of an endowment, and we have made this a priority in our fund-raising goals. We owe it to the students to provide the program.

Finally, I will take this opportunity to report on two new initiatives that appear to hold great promise for The University of Montana. In my State of the University Address, I mentioned both of them without much elaboration. I refer specifically to 1) the proposal to deliver University of Montana degree programs in China and 2) the development of a planned community on the campus of the University.

I visited three possible sites in China in the effort to identify the most appropriate one to begin delivering our programs to meet needs in China. With a potential cohort group of 250 million people needing access to higher education, the government of China has sensibly asked for help. Moreover, the difficulties of securing student visas after 9-11 have persuaded the Chinese that having access to accredited programs at home makes good sense. We have formed a partnership to explore the possibilities and have moved forward aggressively in the development of a business plan. I have made it quite clear that the University will not divert its scarce resources to pay for the initiative, and that the venture must pay all up-front and continuing costs and provide new revenue for us. While we still have much to do before we begin delivering the program, we have made good progress and the prospect looks quite good.

The initial focus groups met in January 2005 to launch the community discussions about a planned community located on the South Campus that currently contains Dornblazer Track, the University Golf Course, student housing, and some play fields. The discussions will focus on the most appropriate use of the area, recognizing that we must reserve a large portion of the space for future academic expansion. Because of the land-locked situation, and because the University will certainly need to grow in the future to meet needs, we must reserve space on the South Campus for that purpose. Nonetheless, we think that sufficient space exists to accommodate a planned residential community for alumni and retirees – and possibly others – who wish to live in a campus environment. Other universities have developed such communities and they have done quite well. While we have not reached any conclusions as yet, we will continue the community discussions and bring them to a conclusion. Once again, I have made it clear that the University will not make direct investments, providing only the land and the campus environment; the developer – an alumnus and a good friend with a daughter currently attending the University – will provide the funding and the expertise, with any resultant project contributing new revenue to help support the University.

Enough for now. If you know of other issues of interest, please write and I will respond. I assure you that your interest and support have made and continue to make the difference between success and mere survival for The University of Montana.

Thank you!

GMD/ab
Denmem2017

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