Dear Colleagues,

This last week, the Board of Regents held its meeting in La Crosse.  Highlights from the board meeting: 1) presentations over a MOOC for remedial math offered by UW-LaCrosse and several to be offered by UW-Madison; 2) followed by discussion of the role of MOOCs in the educational landscape.  The discussion was quite lively, and there was a great deal of interest in using innovation, but doing so in a planned manner.  3) Presentations were made by several campuses with regard to proposals to target the Economic Development Initiative money IF the budget is passed.  Many involved the creation or coordination of a business incubator/accelerator.  4) A panel of entrepreneurs presented on their experience with the UW schools in doing joint projects.  5) An overview of the Flexible Degree option was offered.  6) An overview was provided by UW System with regard to degree production and program array.  This conversation was also quite robust; much interest in the alignment of degrees with economic needs exists.  Economic development , innovation, and efficiencies - these will be recurring themes during this budget process and beyond.

Steve Reno, our consultant, was on campus on Monday, April 1 to more fully receive a personal introduction to the campus.  Thank you to all who took the time to meet with him.  He was very enthusiastic about the conversations which took place.  He appreciated your interest and candor.  We will be working with him to coordinate next steps in the process of strategic planning and to organize a formal kickoff.

Next week is Global Awareness week!  If you have traditional ethnic clothing, please help our campus to resemble a mini-United Nations by wearing your special outfit on Tuesday, April 9!  UW-Superior alumnus Cher Pao Vang will speak on the Hmong experience: How the Generations Have Adjusted to Life in the U.S. on Tuesday, April 9 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Multicultural Center, Old Main 232 as part of the Diversity Dialogue sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Affairs.  The film, The Ramallah Concert - Knowledge is the Beginning, concerning conflict and tension in Israel and Palestine will be shown on Tuesday from 7:00-9:30 p.m. in Erlenbach Lecture Hall, Swenson 1004.  Wednesday, April 10, the Oxfam Hunger Banquet will be a feature in the Multicultural Center at 7:00 p.m., sponsored by the International Peace Studies Association.   Try your skills at Ping Pong, a highly competitive sport in other areas of the world, on Thursday, April 11. You won't want to miss the World Student Association's annual International Cooking Demonstration at noon on Saturday, April 13 in the Pilgrim Lutheran Church adjacent to the campus.  Family Fun Day on Sunday, April 14 from 3:00-6:00 p.m. in the YU Atrium will wrap up the week with a drumming circle performed by students from the Nettleton Elementary School in Duluth; international crafts, story-telling from different cultures, and games.

We had several wonderful concerts on campus, including the very well-attended faculty recital with Josh Aerie and Melanie Sever, the Jazz Luncheon, and the High School Honors Orchestra. 

Have you seen the new billboards for Unleash Your Superior Side?

? Some day our spring will come!?

Renée 

Dear Colleagues,

Spring Break has come and gone, and we are in the transitional doldrums of March.  As I look out the window, there is simultaneous shining of sun and falling of snow - only in Superior, except for maybe Iceland!  I hope that you were able to decompress some, warm in the sun, or romp in the snow.  I know that several of you were helping to expand the experiences of our students by taking them on short trips.  I spent part of the week in Arizona on visits to alumni and to see the Yellowjacket baseball team trounce California Lutheran University.  I was able also to connect with several members of our Board of Regents.

Of greatest concern at the moment is the status of the Governor's proposed budget.  During the week prior to Spring break, members of the Joint Finance Committee received briefings.  There are several important points concerning the budget for you to understand.  Because of the way that the budget has been packaged, ANY cut - including a cut in what is the $89.4 million "block grant" portion - is a cut directly to the UW System campuses.  In the block grant portion, for instance, there are adjustments in fringe benefits which normally would be included in "cost to continue".  There is concern that a lack of general understanding of the structure of the budget makes it tempting for some people to instigate rescissions.  Should your personal associations reach toward people who can assist the budget process positively, please make certain to your contacts that this message is understood.

We are in the process of marshaling efforts for advocacy.  I have written a letter to the Governor which you can see here.  We are leveraging our Foundation and Alumni boards, our local business connections, and several key alumni to advocate on our behalf.  We have drafted a template letter which can be used by constituents and can be found at the same site, http://www.uwsuper.edu/chancellor/communications/legislative-communication.cfm .

Stephen Reno, the consultant who will assist us with our strategic planning work, will be here this coming Monday, April 1 (yes, no fooling) to spend the day getting to know the campus and helping to craft initial process plans.  He will be meeting with small groups of faculty, staff, and students, the CIPT, some key alumni, and community members.  I want to reiterate that coming off of the HLC visit has put us in a tremendously positive position for strategic planning.  It is our opportunity to shape our future, to be bold, and to craft a vision which will inspire others as well as ourselves.

Our branding campaign, Unleash Your Superior Side, kicked off officially on Monday, the 25th.  You will see a series of billboards along I-35, in Duluth and Superior, and in several areas of the Twin Cities.  Changes to the look and feel of the admissions web page are being made.  Eventually, this theme will pervade all of our materials.

A round of thanks goes out to all who helped to make our hosting of the NCAA Women's Hockey Championship an overwhelming success.  We have had much nice feedback from players, friends, families of players, and from the NCAA staff.

Next week is the April Board of Regents meeting which will take place in La Crosse.  

Let's hope atmospheric Spring arrives soon!

Superior and Milwaukee team up to address regents on quality, student access and student success, and congratulations on a great HLC visit.

Regents hear of our retention efforts and UW System addresses challenges facing the higher education landscape today.

Liberal arts colleges need to tell their story in a way that connects with all who need to hear it.