Today is election day. I encourage all faculty, staff and students to vote.

In Greene County, we have only two propositions on the ballot that involve the same issue.

Proposition A is a 20-year renewal of a $0.05 tax first passed in 1998. It is used to fund technical and healthcare program operations at Ozarks Technical Community College (OTC). Proposition B is an additional $0.05 property tax with a 20-year sunset that would be used to fund new technical and healthcare programs, including the construction of a Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Technology at OTC.

These propositions are very important to our friends at OTC. The Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce (along with many other business and community groups in Greene County) supports both of these propositions.

You can find more information about these propositions on the OTC informational website.

As the state of Missouri’s public affairs institution, it is important that we become educated on these issues and vote today.

Progress on the budget

Last week we made progress on our legislative priorities.

The House passed a budget that restores the $6.4 million cut recommended by Governor Greitens. The budget will now go to the Senate, and we have already begun advocating with leadership in the Senate. You can find more information about the status of the budget in my blog post from last Tuesday.

The legislature also passed the program approval bill. This bill eliminates the prohibitions on Missouri State’s ability to offer new doctorate degrees and replaces them with a statewide framework that includes a pathway for Missouri State to expand its professional doctorate degree offerings. You can find more information about this bill in my blog post from last Wednesday.

Set aside time for the Public Affairs Conference

This year’s Public Affairs Conference starts on April 9. The conference theme is Sustainability in Practice: Consensus and Consequences. Participants will explore best practices for a sustainable future.

The featured speaker is Dr. Robert Ballard, the explorer who discovered the wreckage of the Titanic in 1985. His presentation titled “The personal account of how the Titanic was found and a look into the future,” is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts.

The full schedule is available on the Public Affairs Conference webpage. All sessions of the conference, including the presentation by Ballard, are free and open to the public. No registration or tickets are required to attend.

As in prior years, employees may use up to two hours of their work time, in coordination with their supervisors, to attend the conference. I encourage you to attend, and I encourage supervisors to facilitate attendance by individuals in your offices or divisions.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!