September 15, 2023
Dear Colleagues:
I write to share a few highlights from today’s meeting of the Board of Trustees.
The Board approved my request to provide a one-time supplemental payment of $1,000 to all full-time employees and a $500 one-time supplement to all part-time and temporary employees as part of our University’s efforts to invest in our talented faculty and staff. The supplement is available to all employees who have been employed at our University as of August 31, 2023.
The supplement was made possible by the University’s prudent fiscal management, which resulted in a modest surplus of one-time funds. I am grateful for this tangible demonstration of the Board’s appreciation for all that our faculty and staff do to support the success of our students. Our faculty and staff have earned this additional compensation.
During the meeting, the Board also received a report about Fall 2023 enrollment results from Paula Luff, our vice president for enrollment planning and management.
Despite a statewide decline in the number of college-enrolled high school graduates, our University has experienced a nine-percent increase in freshmen enrollment compared to Fall 2022. The size of our freshman class is larger than our pre-pandemic ten-year average.
The Board also reviewed the proposed designs of our new Performing Arts Center (PAC), which is the principal catalyst for our University’s comprehensive plan to revitalize The Village.
The design of the PAC will feature two performance venues, a 425-seat main-stage theater and a “black box” theater, as well as the necessary spaces to support theatre and dance performances.
I am grateful to our colleagues from University Facilities Planning and Management for helping to manage the development of this important project, which we anticipate will be completed in 2026.
Finally, the Board heard an update about our University’s partnership with Muncie Community Schools from guests Jim Williams and Lee Ann Kwiatkowski.
Since our University’s partnership with MCS started in July 2018, there have been many positive outcomes. These outcomes—from stabilized enrollment to increased pay for teachers and staff to maintaining a balanced budget—demonstrate that MCS is on a positive trajectory of improvement. Other notable achievements highlighted during the presentation included: a 13-percent increase in teacher retention (now 84 percent) from 2019; a 300-percent growth in number of students (197) enrolled in MCS’s pre-K program; and more than $40 million invested in recent renovations to several elementary schools and Muncie Central High School’s football stadium.
At the end of the Board meeting, I made a few comments. If you would like to read my remarks, please visit the website.
