Welcome Back!

Much like New Years Day, the start of a new academic year is a time of anticipation, reflection and renewal. A new academic year provides us the opportunity to re-commit to the vision and values of the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, a community of scholars who engage with and improve this community and the world.

Our community, whose shared interest is the welfare of students, developed and described a listing of unifying values as part of our Strategic Planning process. These values provide a template in which to place our commitment for this academic year.

Our values:

• We value a collegial, inviting, and safe learning environment that stresses excellent teaching, encourages growth, and rewards academic achievement
• We value an education rich in both theory and practical experience that enables our graduates to pursue careers and professions with competence and confidence
• We value collaboration throughout the campus community in scholarship, research, and service
• We value individuals, respect their diversity and varied perspectives, and commit ourselves to tolerance of divergent views
• We value academic freedom and responsibility, creative expression, and the unfettered pursuit of truth
• We value deliberative dialogue in making decisions and solving problems
• We value shared governance and shared responsibility in the operation of the university and the allocation of its resources
• We value honesty, integrity, and openness while promoting ethical behavior
• We value lifelong learning and recognize our responsibility to contribute to civic well-being
• We value longstanding, continuing partnerships that unite and benefit both the campus and community
• We value efficient, trustworthy, and able stewardship of our university

Our mission, vision and values allow us to reflect upon the past year and the achievements and challenges that have faced our university. We have remained faithful to commitments made to current university employees. Using $1.8 million of federal budget stabilization funds to support existing positions and in the face of major financial pressures, we have

• Raised our minimum salary at USFSP to $20,000
• Reduced costs by eliminating positions and still providing high quality services to students
• Provided sabbaticals for faculty

Another priority of the institution is the focus on academic programs. This year, we are most proud of the College of Education achieving full accreditation from the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education; the College of Arts and Sciences’ program re-accreditation in the Department of Journalism and Media Studies from the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications; and the College of Business ranking 36 on the Aspen Institute’s Global 100 list in recognition of their efforts in social and corporate responsibility education.

The faculty has distinguished itself in both teaching and research. Two associate professors, Judithanne Scourfield McLauchlan from the College of Arts and Sciences and Todd Shank from the College of Business, received Fulbright offers. Judithanne accepted the offer and will spend the fall 2010 semester teaching politics and law at the Free University of Moldova in Chisinau, Moldova. Sixteen faculty members published books in 2009 and the institution is proud of these many accomplishments. Lyman Dukes, associate professor of special education, continued as the principal investigator for a $1 million annual grant to operate Project 10: Transition Education Network, a program that addresses transition needs of students with disabilities. Jordan Knab, EdS, directs the project. Knab also launched STING RAY, a pilot model for post-secondary institutions to host students with significant cognitive disabilities who have graduated from high school with a special diploma and wish to continue their education on a post-secondary campus.

Grant submissions are at an all-time high with seven proposals funded for $2,698,684. This is more than the total received during the previous two years. New programs are in development, on their way to approval, or headed for implementation.

• The College of Arts and Sciences has proposed a BS in Health Sciences.  This is the top program prospective students request, and it meets a key workforce need for the region and state.  It was presented to and approved by the ACE Workgroup of the USF System Board of Trustees this month and will proceed to the full board for approval in October.
• The College of Business has proposed a BS in Entrepreneurship.  This will be the first such degree program in the USF System and it, too, was approved this month by the ACE Workgroup and will be presented to the USF System Board of Trustees in October.
• The College of Education will initiate USFSP’s first graduate certificate program in Digital Mathematics.  We have received approval from SACS for this certificate which grows out of and reinforces the Sunbay Digital Math collaboration with SRI International and the Pinellas County School Board.
• The new MLA concentration in Liberal Studies has proved to be a welcome addition to the graduate programs in the College of Arts and Sciences.  It has attracted many new students who might not otherwise have sought USFSP for graduate studies.

Students have distinguished themselves in many ways, both in scholarship as well as in the political arena.

• Kira Barrera, an environmental science and policy undergraduate, is the first USF St. Petersburg student to earn the Hollings Scholarship, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) award. Barrera also earned an honorable mention from the Udall Scholarship.
• Jason Memmer, a graduate student in the Florida Studies program, won the LeRoy Collins Graduate Essay Prize from the Florida Historical Society. He is the fifth USFSP graduate student to win the award since its inauguration in 1991. Six USFSP undergraduates have won the award.
• Several recent graduates start PhD programs this fall. Peyton Jones earned a four-year fellowship for a PhD in history at Tulane University. Ben Hardisty starts a five-year PhD program in Biology at the University of Utah. Alanna Lecher will start a PhD program in Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Cory Weaver starts his PhD in mass communications at Syracuse University.
• Our debate team captain, David Trigaux, continues to make history for us with an All-American award from the Cross Examination Debate Association.
• Our student government and senate leaders worked diligently and effectively to raise the student fee cap to allow USFSP to build a multipurpose campus facility.

In terms of the year ahead, we face some substantial challenges. Operationally the very tight financial forecast is most significant, and the looming SACS reaffirmation activities are vital to our future. Concurrent with the August heat was the Board of Governors’ request to identify a 5 percent budget reduction for this year as well as a 15 percent budget reduction for the following year. This is also the final year of federal stabilization money funding. On the positive side, tuition has been increased 15 percent and the institution has taken many cost-saving measures. The most significant help has come from the move of the College of Business back to the main campus. Although these measures will not completely make up for the loss of state revenue and federal funds, they are most helpful.

I hope you are excited for the coming year. We are in a position to move this extraordinary university forward through our accreditation reaffirmation. Your commitment to USF St. Petersburg has made this possible. Our full reaffirmation review by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges begins with a report we will submit in September. A site visit is scheduled for February 2011. This review is part of the normal reaffirmation process of the Commission.

A new requirement for USFSP will be to produce and implement a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP).  The QEP will make this five-year review after initial accreditation both challenging and exciting. The focus of the plan on quantitative literacy should benefit the students and the entire USFSP community. Special recognition should be given to Dr. Jay Sokolovsky and the QEP committee for their work to date and their continuing efforts. Additionally, Dr. Gary Patterson and the Planning, Effectiveness and Budgeting Committee (PEBC) have been doing the difficult work associated with institutional assessment.

The year cannot conclude without recognizing the work of Dr. Brie Reck and the Faculty Senate. The work of the Senate has been very helpful to the university. The evaluation of administrators that Dr. Reck and the Senate implemented will be an important effort which will strengthen the collegial governing process. Additionally, the USFSP Senate has been active and productive in helping to design a USF System Senate. This is still a work in progress and will be very important in ensuring that, at some point, the USFSP Senate President will have an opportunity to serve on the USF System Board of Trustees.

Our proud and active participation in the great University of South Florida System allows us opportunities to advance as an institution while benefiting from USF System resources.  This year our System relationships have been particularly helpful on the legislative front and bonding discussions.

This has been an eventful year with more fun on the horizon. I would like to thank you for the privilege of serving as your Regional Chancellor.

Margaret Sullivan, PhD Vita (.pdf)