Presidential Updates

Clif’s Notes for May 8, 2018

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In less than two weeks we will celebrate graduation, the academic year will be over and we will usher in a summer full of events and activities on campus.

Prepare for a night under the tent

Starting on June 13, we will continue our Tent Theatre tradition with three outstanding productions:

  • “Cry-Baby” (June 13 – 16, 18 – 23) – In 1950s Baltimore, the conservative squares face off against the leather-clad delinquents in this rockabilly musical.
  • “Peter and the Starcatcher” (June 28 – July 3, 5 – 6) – The Tony-winning play, based on the best-selling novels, upends the century old story of how a miserable orphan boy becomes the legendary Peter Pan.
  • “The Drowsy Chaperone” (July 11 – 14, 16 – 21) – When a die-hard theater fan plays his favorite cast album, the characters come to life in this hilarious musical farce.

Staff appreciation night at Tent Theatre is on June 12. All tickets are already reserved for this MSU staff-only free performance of “Cry-Baby.” Email BarbaraJones@missouristate.edu if you’d like to have your name added to the waitlist.

You can buy single or season tickets for Tent Theatre online or at box offices in JQH Arena or Craig Hall.

Reserve tickets now for spectacular summer shows

We also have a number of outstanding performances in JQH Arena and Hammons Hall this summer.

“Phantom of the Opera” will be at Hammons Hall May 23 – June 3. The plot revolves around a singer who becomes the obsession of a mysterious, disfigured musical genius. “Phantom” is the longest-running show in Broadway history and has received numerous awards and accolades. If you’ve never seen “Phantom of the Opera,” you don’t want to miss this opportunity.

Concerts on campus this summer will include a June 29 performance at JQH Arena by Tim McGraw and a July 15 performance by Alison Krauss at Hammons Hall.

You can purchase tickets for these and other shows at the Missouri State TIX webpage.

Summer camps fill campus

We will also host students of all ages at our wide array of summer camps and conferences, including:

Engaging the alumni community

We will host several alumni events during the weekend of June 22 – 23.

That Friday evening and throughout the day on Saturday we will host the MarooNation Volunteer Engagement Forum. The forum is directed toward alumni groups, but other members of the Missouri State community will undoubtedly find the event beneficial as well. If you have a passion for Missouri State and would like to volunteer your time and talents to benefit future generations of Bears, check out details about the Volunteer Engagement Forum on the Alumni Association webpage.

Following the forum, at 6 p.m. on June 23, we will host the Bears of Distinction Dinner and Awards Ceremony to recognize the distinguished alumni and former faculty and staff who promote the public affairs mission. You can find more information about the Bears of Distinction Awards on the Alumni Association’s webpage. Call the Alumni Association at 417-836-5654 to purchase tickets.

Take yourself out to the ball game

Before we head into summer, don’t miss your last chance to see the Bears baseball team play at Hammons Field. The Bears will take on the Southern Illinois Salukis this weekend. Games are scheduled for Friday at 6:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for Sept. 12, 2017

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As you know, this week is Public Affairs Week (“PAW”). If you missed last night’s keynote presentation by Eboo Patel, you have a second chance to hear him present on a different topic — Our Common Life: Sustainability through Interfaith Connections — at 11 a.m. today in the PSU Theater. There are also many other PAW events remaining this week. Check out the schedule for details.

Though PAW activities wind down at the end of the week, we have an action-packed weekend to look forward to on campus.

Family Weekend begins on Friday and continues through the weekend. Please welcome our students’ parents and family members as they visit campus and participate in various activities throughout the weekend. Details about particular Family Weekend activities can be found on the full schedule.

Cheer for the Bears

We also have an array of athletic events this weekend.

Missouri State Volleyball will play their first home matches in the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational in Hammons Student Center starting on Thursday and continuing through Saturday. The Bears will play at 7 p.m. on Thursday, at 6 p.m. on Friday, and at 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Missouri State’s Soccer teams will also play throughout the weekend at Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium. The Women’s team will play UMKC at 7 p.m. on Friday and the University of Tulsa at 1 p.m. on Sunday. The Men’s team will play Oral Robert University at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

On Saturday, the Bears Football team will play its home opener against Murray State at 2 p.m. in Plaster Stadium. Pregame tailgating and festivities in Bearfest Village will start at noon.

I hope you will join me in cheering on the Bears.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for Aug. 22, 2017

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As you know, classes started yesterday. I am happy to report that our opening day enrollment shows an increase of 244 students over last year’s opening day enrollment number. This represents an increase of 1.2 percent.

The official census count is made after the fourth week of class, and I will update you again on the status of our enrollment at that time. I will also discuss enrollment data as part of my State of the University Address at 12:15 p.m. on Sept. 25 in the PSU Theater.

Connect with Bears at campus activities

As we start the semester, I hope you will join me in interacting with our new and returning students. We want all students to feel welcome at the university.

There are several opportunities for you to interact with students and others throughout the fall semester:

Please attend some or all of these events and show your support for our students and our university.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for June 13, 2017

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Our baseball team had a very successful year, with an 18 – 1 conference record and winning the NCAA regional championship. These kind of athletic successes, much like the Ad Team’s first-place finishes in national competitions and the Chorale’s performance at the Presidential Inauguration, raise the profile of Missouri State.

Success on and off the field

Outfielder catching ball

The importance of our athletics programs cannot be quantified in wins and losses. The athletics infrastructure at Missouri State changes the lives of student athletes by putting them on a path toward academic success.

The 2016-17 academic year was record breaking for our student athletes’ academic performance. The university exceed a 930 APR score in all sports and had a 985.81 average APR score. The average student athlete GPA for the year was 3.16, which set a new record. Volleyball had a 3.73 average GPA, which set a record for any of Missouri State’s large sports (women’s golf and women’s cross-country are the only sports to have had higher average GPAs). Seven Missouri State teams had average GPAs above 3.50, and football, baseball, softball, men’s soccer, women’s swimming and women’s tennis had record setting average GPAs.

Meanwhile, Missouri State won conference championships in baseball, women’s swimming, volleyball and women’s golf, and finished fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference All-Sport Standings.

Athletics also demonstrated their commitment to responsibly partner with the other divisions of the university by reducing their anticipated expenditures for fiscal year 2018 by more than $1 million. Leadership in athletics and for the university recognize that winning athletic programs are important, but academic excellence and responsible financial planning are critical to the mission of the university.

This has been a good year for Missouri State athletics. Our student athletes performed admirably on the field, but more importantly, they knocked it out of the park in the classroom. I want to thank all of our coaches, athletics administrators, and faculty and staff throughout the university for helping to put our athletes on a trajectory for success.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for March 14, 2017

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Clif's Notes

About a year ago I told you about financial reports we submitted to the NCAA. I clarified that despite allegations of exorbitant increases in athletics expenses from some observers, the newest report merely reflected a change in the way athletics expenses are reported. Nevertheless, the athletics department was over budget.

Latest NCAA reportBaseball fans cheer

Missouri State’s most recent NCAA report is now complete. You can find that report on the financial services webpage.

Highlights from the report include:

  • Total athletics expenses increased by 4 percent
  • Revenue from royalties, licensing, advertising and sponsorships increased by 154 percent
  • Revenue from program, novelty, parking and concession sales increased by 37 percent
  • Donor contributions (cash and in-kind) increased by 3 percent
  • Ticket sales decreased by 18 percent

Moving forward, reducing expenses

Women running hurdlesBecause of increased expenses and decreased revenue, the athletics department was again over budget. I have been clear with our athletics administrators and coaches that this trend must be reversed and that we must proactively reduce our athletics expenses. We have recently taken several significant steps to do this.

Last month we withdrew as the host for the 2017 Missouri Valley Conference Track and Field Championships. We also decided not to make approximately $600,000 in improvements to existing facilities that would have been necessary to host the tournament.

We formed an Athletics Budget Work Group chaired by Dr. Jim Hutter and tasked the group to find at least an additional $750,000 of ongoing athletics expenses to cut. I expect to receive the final report from that group this month.

Athletics are important to the university. Successful sports teams help in recruiting students, create a positive spirit on campus, lead to good alumni relations and aid fundraising efforts. The university must create and sustain competitive athletic programs, but we must accomplish that goal within a reasonable financial framework. In the current circumstances, that means containing costs.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!