President’s Newsletter

Wednesday, May 24, 2023
May 2023 Newsletter

Dear Colleagues,

As we get ready for Commencement, I wanted to thank you again for all your hard work over the academic year. Many of you will be off contract at the end of the month, and for those of you who are, I wish you a productive or relaxing summer break, whichever you most desire. And for our colleagues who work on campus 12 months a year, I am grateful for the work that will continue to occur on campus, including preparing our campus for the next group of incoming students in the fall.

Enrollment Update

I would also like to thank all of you for the work you have done this past year to prioritize new student recruitment. There has been a collaborative, team approach to this important work throughout the year and I am truly grateful for your contributions. While it is too early to draw conclusions, our early results are positive and show us trending in the right direction with first-year students. Much work will continue to take place over the spring and summer months to retain our deposited first-year students and grow our transfer, international, and graduate student populations.

Marketing

As part of our efforts to grow our enrollment and strengthen our position, we took part in a brand and identity study last fall. The study consisted of internal and external market research and led to the creation of a new brand core that we will be using as a tag line in our marketing materials moving forward: Excellence Within Your Reach. This speaks to both our outstanding academic programs and our institution’s commitment to affordability. University Communications will be rolling our new brand out extensively in the fall, but efforts are already underway. You may already have seen our billboard on 490 East, heading into the City of Rochester. We will also have new pole banners up on New Campus Drive in time for our Commencement ceremonies.

Shared Governance Survey

I also want to thank everyone who took part in the Shared Governance Survey. Based on your responses, the Shared Governance Committee will be doing some ongoing review and analysis of our statement on shared governance and our shared governance website. We will also ensure that BSG, College Senate and Cabinet have the direct feedback that you provided for their consideration. We expect to be able to have a revised statement available for ratification in the fall.

Preparing For the Fall

As we prepare to finish out this year, it’s not too early to begin thinking about how we begin the 2023-2024 academic year. There will be opportunities for individuals and departments to be involved in welcoming new and returning students, staff and faculty. For instance, during welcome week, Tuesday, August 22 through Sunday, August 27, there are opportunities to assist with new student move-in; participate in our revamped Academic Convocation, including the 1st Annual new student Scavenger Hunt; and take part in the Faculty and Staff Convocation, which will be followed by our employee appreciation lunch during which time we will be recognizing and honoring our longstanding employees. I hope to see many of you at these celebratory activities, as we continue to rebuild community in our new post-pandemic world.

Thank you for all that you do to Build a Better Brockport.