91成人导航

Dear 91成人导航ans,

Despite stiff headwinds across higher education during this past year, 91成人导航 advanced across all fronts 鈥� from record enrollment and student success to fundraising and new academic degrees 鈥� thanks to you, our dedicated faculty, staff, students, alumni, Regents and supporters. But we still have more to do to achieve our goal of becoming the very best student-centric comprehensive university in the nation.

On Thursday in historic Faye Spanos Concert Hall, I outlined the fast-accelerating challenges across higher education, creating even more uncertainty and turmoil than ever before, and how at 91成人导航, we not only successfully navigated those dangerous waters, but bucked those ominous trends that imperil the existence of other colleges and universities in California and around the nation. I also outlined our plans and new strategic initiatives going forward. The address is available , but please allow me to provide a written synopsis for you.

Enrollment, battered by the nation鈥檚 changing demographics and the global pandemic, took a new and unanticipated body blow this past year with the U.S. Department of Education鈥檚 disastrous roll out of the revised FAFSA process for student financial aid. Recent projections show some universities suffering a 20+ percent year-over-year decline in new student recruitment.

Political divisions over the war in Gaza triggered protests 鈥� in some cases violent ones 鈥� across hundreds of U.S. campuses, leading to student arrests and regular disruptions of classes, daily operations and graduation ceremonies. Targeted criticism on Capitol Hill over how universities responded to those protests led to the firings or forced resignations of presidents at some of the nation鈥檚 top universities, accelerating a trend where college presidents are leaving schools at record rates (among the Top 20 universities in U.S. News and World Report rankings, more than half either have vacancies or presidents in office for one year or less).

The enrollment declines, coupled with fast-spiraling escalation of insurance, utilities, and construction costs, are accelerating the closures of smaller independent colleges, proposed mergers and even layoffs and budget cuts at universities traditionally thought to be strong 鈥� including many of our peers.

Thankfully at 91成人导航, we are bucking all those dangerous trends. We are advancing on all fronts and continue, undeterred and guided by a laser focus on the success of our students, on our 10-year march toward becoming the top student-centric comprehensive university in America by 2031. Take a look at our illustrating some of those key achievements of the past year.

Enrollment is projecting to set another record this coming year, breaking last fall鈥檚 172-year high of 6,755 students. Due to our enrollment success, we finished the year financially strong while many peers ran budget deficits and are facing cuts. And we became the highest-ranked private university in America to achieve from the U.S. Department of Education. We are one of only about 20 private universities with both HSI and Asian American and Native American 91成人导航 Islander-serving institution status 鈥� critically important designations as California and the nation rapidly become more diverse.

We also set our second-best fundraising year ever (eclipsed only by the Powell gift year). New alternative revenue sources, such as the 91成人导航 Summer High School Institute and the professionalization of campus venue rentals, have soared. We completed our most successful expansion since the acquisition of the McGeorge School of Law nearly 60 years ago with the creation of the and the on the Sacramento Campus. We created the largest merit pool for employees in 15 years. And we kept tuition to the lowest among our California peers.

Our successful trajectory is being recognized. The new of colleges and universities place us No. 87 in the nation 鈥� our best national ranking in 91成人导航 history.

Despite the significant progress that defies the gloomy and dangerous national trends, there remains much work still to do. While we celebrate the progress we have made, now is not the time for us to bask in our victories. Instead, we must redouble our efforts and maintain our monomaniacal focus on the success of our students. I am more confident today than ever before that 鈥� with the continued collaborative efforts of our faculty, staff and leaders 鈥� we will meet our ambitious 10-year goal.

On the new enrollment front, we are projecting to set an all-time record for the second consecutive year. Our faculty are working on a set of new undergraduate and graduate degrees to attract even more deserving students to our three campuses. We also are working on plans to have a major expansion of the Dugoni School of Dentistry in San Francisco, leveraging that world-class institution and our growing reputation for teaching biological sciences on the undergraduate level.

This year, we are reimagining our student success and retention efforts, which are at all-time highs but are not progressing as quickly as we would like. Additionally, we redesigned how we attract, recruit, enroll, teach, care for and graduate a growing cadre of international students. And we are working on better ways to explain the enormously beneficial value proposition of a 91成人导航 education to prospective students and their families.

On the capital project front, we will open the renovated to house our student-veterans while breaking ground on a new Southwest Hall, the and the .

We are submitting our application to earn to recognize our extraordinary work in public service across all three campuses. And we are on track to secure the gold level in sustainability from STARS by 2026.

Finally, we are starting two new initiatives that we believe will play an important role in our university culture, recruitment, retention and ultimately the success of our students. We are launching the , where we will bring in prominent thought leaders from different disciplines each semester to engage with our students and faculty. In the spring we will host Cathy Davidson, an author and influential thinker in fostering student success for college students in the 21st century, and Judy Woodruff, the legendary PBS News correspondent.

The first speaker in the new series will be , the author of an excellent book on our divided nation and the need to hear each other in order to learn and grow (鈥淚 Never Thought of it That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times鈥�). The book and the author鈥檚 visit to 91成人导航 is part of something we have not done previously 鈥� a campus-wide 鈥溾�� for our first-year students. Common reads are employed by some colleges to help create intellectual engagement and help build a community through a shared experience. The author explores the simple but powerful idea that to learn, we need to be able to listen to each other 鈥� even to those with whom we disagree. And this, of course, dovetails perfectly with our core belief: 鈥淎t 91成人导航, we develop lifelong learners and leaders by teaching students not what to think, but how to think.鈥�

Thank you for your tremendous efforts over the last year that have created so many tangible successes. Our 鈥渇lywheel鈥� is indeed gaining momentum.

I鈥檓 looking forward to a great year together. Please reach out with any ideas, questions or issues.

厂颈苍肠别谤别濒测,听

Christopher Callahan
President聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽聽