President's Perspective
A New Year Awaits Us
August 2009
In the May President's Perspective, I told you about
plans for my summer sabbatical: writing on Cape Cod, and then going
with Suzanne on a three-week, 192-mile walking tour of England to
celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary.
I'm happy to say that both endeavors turned out successfully. The
first draft of Going to College: A Primer for Parents, the
book we are co-authoring, is complete. And we experienced a
memorable journey across England. You can
read our journal and view photos from the trip here.
I hope your summer was equally invigorating.
It's my pleasure to be back on campus, both to greet returning
students, faculty and staff and to welcome new members to our
community. When I left in mid-May, the addition to the Pharmacy and
Health Sciences Building was under construction. Although the wet
summer has delayed some of the internal finishes, the lecture halls
and offices are ready for classes, and the remaining spaces should
be open in weeks. Many thanks to Vice President of Operations Mike
Gardner for overseeing the project.
Other capital projects this summer have included classroom
renovations and a new academic corridor in Jordan Hall,
modernization of the residence halls, remodeling of student spaces,
the C-Club, and the Starbucks in Atherton, and a new roof for
Hinkle Fieldhouse.
Careful planning has enabled us to identify and achieve our goals
over these past eight years. Accordingly, this fall, Butler will
begin to implement our new five-year strategic plan, Dare to
Make a Difference, which the Board of Trustees approved in
May. We have also engaged Christner, Inc., to work with the
University on a campus master plan for facilities. Having finished
our highly successful ButlerRising campaign in May, we
will begin to develop fundraising plans to underwrite the strategic
plan and the campus master plan.
Some of what we accomplish during the 2009-2010 academic year will
depend on the national economy. Last year was probably as
tumultuous a year as higher education has experienced in a
generation. Something that was always regarded as an unqualified
university asset - an endowment - became a drag, ironically, for
the best-endowed schools. Much of their operational budgets were
tied up with the need to draw from their endowments. With lower
investment returns, the best-heeled institutions often found
themselves cutting operations, ranging from freezes on salaries and
hiring to reductions in personnel programs and salaries.
By the same token, we know there's going to be continuing concern
over tuition prices and cost increases, along with demographic data
showing the number of prospective traditional college-age students
declining.
Despite that, Butler has done remarkably well. Our budget is less
dependent on endowment draw than many of those schools. We have not
needed to institute freezes, reductions or eliminations. We trimmed
some at the edges, but we finished the 2008-2009 year with a small
surplus. Right now, indications are that we will exceed our targets
for entering students, transfer students and returning
students.
All that is good news.
We do face a new economic hurdle, however. The state of Indiana has
capped need-based grants to in-state students at about 30 percent
below the previous level. The State Student Assistance Commission
of Indiana reserved more money for students going to two-year
schools, but cut the level of support for students attending
four-year public and private schools.
Butler made the decision to underwrite about 80 percent of what our
students lost due to this cut. The cost will be around $1 million.
We knew that a reduction of need-based state awards would be more
than many of our families could afford. In the end, we felt the
need to stretch to help as much as we could.
We'll have to navigate some uncertain waters this year. But it's a
testament to the strength of our institution that our tuition
increases were smaller than those that occurred at the public
universities and many private universities. I also have been
gratified by our recent faculty and staff hires - who are excited
to be part of what our students, faculty and staff have
accomplished - and the quality of our incoming freshman
class.
Some statistics worth noting: The incoming class had a 3.74
grade-point average. Eight students are National Merit Scholars,
one is a National Achievement Scholar, 29 are Lilly Scholars.
Sixty-six percent volunteered in high school, 11 percent were class
officers, 20 percent were captains of their athletic teams.
We continue to attract high-achieving students who share our ideal
that it's important not just to make a living, but to lead a life
of purpose.
From 2000 to 2008, Butler University had risen from seventh to
fourth place in the annual U.S. News & World Report
ranking of Midwest master's institutions. Results from the annual
U.S. News & World Report survey of America's Best
Colleges were released last week.
This year, Butler University has risen to number 2, our highest
ranking since the inception of the survey, and the University's
21st consecutive year being among the top 10 in this
category.
Butler's numbers include a freshman-retention rate of 87 percent
and a student/faculty ratio of 11/1, which is the equal of any
Midwest master's university in the top 50. Our reported
standardized test scores - the majority of applicants for admission
now take the ACT - puts us second among Midwest master's
universities. And with regard to the percentage of entering
students who graduated in the top 25 percent of their high school
class, our 79 percent puts us among the top 15 master's
universities in the United States. Most gratifyingly, our average
six-year graduation rate rose again, from last year's 71 percent to
72 percent, a 10 percent increase over the last nine years.
Butler also was recognized in numerous other categories: as a best
financial value among Midwest Master's schools (Butler ranked 8th
in that group), as one of 34 colleges and universities nationwide
with an outstanding program for study abroad, as one of 77
institutions nationally designated "Top Up-and-Coming Schools" for
having "made the most promising and innovative changes in
academics, faculty, students, campus, or facilities," and as one of
80 colleges and universities in the nation identified by experts as
having "an unusual commitment to undergraduate teaching."
I'm proud of what the hard work and dedication of our faculty,
staff and students has brought to this University. My best wishes
to everyone for a meaningful and peaceful year.