Presidential Updates

Clif’s Notes for Jan. 19, 2021

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I have positive budget news to share.

In July, Gov. Mike Parson withheld $11.9 million of our state funding.

In October, Gov. Parson released $1.7 million. The board used this revenue to fund a $600 across-the-board pay increase for full-time faculty and staff hired on or before Nov. 30. The pay increase will begin this month for 12-month employees and in February for 9- and 10-month employees.

Earlier this month, Gov. Parson released the remaining $10.2 million of withheld state funds. When he released the funds, he directed that we spend $8.4 million on maintenance and repair projects.

I want to thank Gov. Parson for once again prioritizing higher education and Missouri State University when making decisions about which funds to release as the FY2021 state revenue situation came into focus.

Planning maintenance projects

The Executive Committee of the Board of Governors will meet later this week to discuss what projects to prioritize with the funds recently released by Gov. Parson.

I will recommend that the board invest $8.4 million in maintenance and repair facility projects as directed by Governor Parson and hold the remaining funds in reserves. These remaining funds — approximately $1.7 million — will then be available to allocate for FY2022, which will begin on July 1.

State FY2022 budget recommendations coming soon

These developments place us in a strong financial position as we begin to develop the university’s FY2022 budget. That budget process will begin soon.

We anticipate receiving Gov. Parson’s budget recommendations in late January. Our Executive Budget Committee will then meet in mid-February to begin assembling budget recommendations for the Board of Governors.

COVID-19 vaccination update

I also want to update you on our work regarding the COVID-19 vaccine.

The State of Missouri authorized vaccination for people in Phase 1A a few weeks ago. This group includes healthcare and long-term care facilities.

Last week and earlier this week, the state authorized vaccination for everyone in Tiers 1 and 2 of Phase 1B. This includes people 65 and older, people with certain co-morbidities, first responders, emergency services and public health infrastructure.

Unfortunately, vaccination has not yet been authorized for higher education. In the meantime, I would encourage all members of our campus community who are in Phase 1A and Tiers 1 and 2 of Phase B to get vaccinated.

The state’s decision on who can be vaccinated is only one piece of the puzzle. The other piece is the state’s decision on how to physically distribute the vaccine. Vaccine supplies are very limited.

We learned last week that we will receive a small number of COVID-19 vaccines early this week. These vaccines will be available through Magers Health and Wellness Center for employees who are eligible to be vaccinated (currently meaning they meet the requirements of Phase 1A and Tiers 1 and 2 of Phase B).

Eligible employees will sign up for this vaccination through My Missouri State online, similar to how employees sign up to receive the flu vaccination.

The university continues to work to obtain additional vaccine. As we receive additional vaccine and as additional groups of employees become eligible to be vaccinated, we will let you know through Inside Missouri State and the vaccination webpage on the COVID-19 Information Center.

View the town hall recording

Thanks to all who attended the town hall meeting last Friday. For those unable to attend, a recording of the presentation is available online.

If you have questions about the subjects discussed at the town hall meeting or any other topic, feel free to email them to me at president@missouristate.edu.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for Jan. 12, 2021

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I hope you had a relaxing winter break. Due to the pandemic, this winter break was different than prior years. Gail and I spent a lot of time together at home recharging and celebrating the holidays.

The spring semester began yesterday, and we are off to a good start. Opening day enrollment numbers show us up in new undergraduate and graduate students, up in returning graduate students, but down in returning undergraduate students. It is important that we continue to do everything we can to support our students.

COVID-19 initiatives

This semester we will continue our COVID-19 initiatives from last semester. Asymptomatic testing will be available throughout the semester. We will continue to administer COVID-19 tests at Magers Health and Wellness Center for those who have symptoms or have been exposed to someone with the virus.

We have also implemented several new initiatives.

Our students living on campus were tested for COVID-19 immediately before the semester began.

We have scaled up and automated our wastewater testing program to systemically monitor campus wastewater for early detection of COVID-19 outbreaks in a residence hall or other facility. I want to give a special thanks to Dr. Amy Hulme, David Vaughan and others who made this possible.

We are also in communication with local, state and federal authorities to obtain and provide COVID-19 vaccine for our campus community as soon as it becomes available for us. We will keep you updated as we receive information about vaccination priorities for our campus community, etc.

You can find other information about the university’s virus response and initiatives on the COVID-19 Information Center. Our dashboard has been updated for the new semester. You can find the final fall 2020 dashboard online as well.

Plan to join town hall

We will host a Virtual Town Hall meeting at 3 p.m. Jan. 15.

I will be joined by Director of University Safety David Hall and other administrators to update the campus community on the university’s COVID-19 response and strategies. You are free to submit your questions and input on any topic at the meeting.

You can find the Zoom link and other information about the meeting on the university’s webpage.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

 

Clif’s Notes for Dec. 15, 2020

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The Board of Governors met last week. They approved the compensation increases and budget adjustments I discussed in my last two Clif’s Notes.

Tuition changes

I also presented a new tuition and fee model for discussion. Currently, the university charges in-state undergraduate students $228 for seated classes and $299 for online classes. The university has developed a plan to charge the same tuition rate for seated and online classes.

Charging one rate will be fairer and more transparent for students. It will eliminate financial impact on students when the decision is made for a particular class to be online. It also recognizes that the line between “online” and “seated” classes has blurred.

The plan I presented would change the tuition rate for all in-state undergraduate students to $250. Students taking at least one seated class would be charged fees that are consistent with the current fee schedule. Students taking only online courses would be charged a new fee that is substantially lower.

This proposal will have minimal impact on most students. Under the new model, the average in-state undergraduate student would pay $50 less than under the current tuition and fee model.

The proposal is also revenue neutral on tuition, meaning it would net the university the same tuition revenue as the current model. The new online student fee generates some additional revenue, but it recaptures only about half of the fee revenue that has been lost over the past two years as students gradually migrated to online classes.

The proposal would also preserve MSU’s cost advantage by continuing to price tuition and fees below MSU’s major competitors.

The board discussed and provided feedback on this proposed model. Those discussions will continue in the coming months. The board will vote on tuition and fees for the 2021-22 academic year in the spring.

SEM Plan

The board discussed and approved the Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) Plan. The plan includes four measurable goals in the following categories:

  • Outreach and recruitment.
  • Retention and student success.
  • Successful graduation and completion.
  • Financial preparedness.

The plan also includes strategies to attain each goal. The plan establishes a committee structure that will implement the plan throughout the coming months and years.

The board and our leadership team are pleased with the final SEM Plan and proud of the work we have done to chart our pathway forward on enrollment. I want to say a special thanks to the SEM Plan co-chairs Dr. Tammy Jahnke and Dr. Rob Hornberger, the SEM Steering Committee, and others who served on committees and otherwise engaged in the SEM Plan process.

Reviewing the budget

The board reviewed the FY2021 budget.

Due to Gov. Mike Parson’s release of withheld appropriations, cost saving measures that have been implemented and fall enrollment numbers exceeding projections, the Springfield operating fund is $5.5 million ahead of budget and the West Plains operating fund is $300,000 ahead of budget. These totals include more than $4.5 million in university reserves that were allocated when the board originally approved the FY2021 budget in June.

COVID-19 policy updates

I provided the board with an update on the impacts of COVID-19 on our campus.

As part of that update, I advised the board that we have eliminated the COVID-19 Work and Compensation Policy and updated five other temporary policies:

Board appointments

Finally, the board approved the executive committee, and Gov. Counts announced board committee appointments for 2021:

  • Govs. Counts, Silvey, Frazier and Waters will serve on the Executive Committee.
  • Gov. Waters will chair the Finance and Facilities Committee.
  • Gov. Parman will chair the Programs and Planning Committee.
  • Gov. Silvey will chair the Risk Management and Audit Committee.
  • Gov. Frazier will serve as the board representative to the MSU Foundation.

The end of the calendar year also marks the end of outgoing board member’s terms. The board recognized Govs. Gore, Keltner and Tergin for their service on the Board of Governors. I have enjoyed working with each of them, and they will be greatly missed when their replacements are appointed and confirmed.

Save the date

Before we leave for winter break I wanted to let you know about an upcoming event. At 3 p.m. Jan. 15 we will host a virtual town hall meeting to discuss our COVID-19 response, plans for the spring semester and other topics. We will distribute the Zoom link and other details in January.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for Nov. 17, 2020

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Last week, I let you know that our plan is to finish the fall semester and start the spring semester as planned. Classes will resume for two weeks after Thanksgiving, the spring semester will begin Jan. 11, and holidays and spring break will continue as scheduled.

Even so, it is important for each of us to be mindful of the increase in COVID-19 in our community.

The university has partnered with federal, state and local leaders to mitigate spread of the virus. We are working with the state to increase COVID-19 testing in our community. We have also partnered to make cold storage at JVIC and in other campus facilities available for storing COVID-19 vaccine when it is distributed.

It is important that each of us stay diligent in our individual efforts as well. Wear a mask. Wash your hands frequently with soap and water or with hand sanitizer. Maintain at least six feet of distance from others. Limit your travel and exposure to others, particularly as we encounter the holidays.

Get flu shot by Dec. 1

As winter weather approaches, public health officials expect the spread of COVID-19 to remain strong. Doctors and hospitals are busy handling the virus and have less capacity to address other community health issues.

This makes it more important than ever that each of us get vaccinated for the flu. For this reason, the university is incentivizing faculty and staff by allowing them to save $30 per month on health insurance premiums by getting the flu shot by Dec. 1.

Free flu vaccinations are available through Magers Health and Wellness Center and at various locations throughout the Springfield, West Plains and Mountain Grove campuses. If you have not already received your flu shot, I encourage you to schedule your vaccination today.

Complete Open Enrollment by Dec. 1

Dec. 1 also marks the end of our annual Open Enrollment period for employment benefits.

Open Enrollment is the period where employees can review, elect, decline or make changes to their benefits for the upcoming calendar year. Once elections or changes have been made, no changes can be made during the year unless they are due to a qualifying, life changing event (e.g. marriage, divorce, birth, etc.).

This year’s benefit options are similar to the slate of options available last year.

Minor changes include an increase in rates for dependent life insurance and the availability of MO ABLE, a new benefit that allows individuals with disabilities (and their qualified family members) to save for expenses that can be used to help maintain their health, independence and quality of life.

You can find more information about Open Enrollment and the various benefit options available to you online.

To begin your Open Enrollment:

  • Login to My Missouri State
  • Click on Profile
  • Locate the box labeled Employment Details and click on Online Benefits Enrollment

Dec. 1 also marks the deadline to enroll in the university’s cafeteria plan. Additional details can be found online.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

 

Clif’s Notes for Nov. 10, 2020

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We are coming to the end of the United Way and MSU Way campaigns. So far we have raised a little more than $80,000 for United Way. We have great momentum and are only $5,000 behind last year’s total.

If you have not participated yet, please help us get there. I invite you to watch the video below about the United Way’s impact on community health and how nonprofit agencies benefit from our support.

If you have not already done so, I encourage you to complete and submit the campaign contribution forms in the campaign packet you received in the mail. Alternatively, you can complete materials online through the campaign webpage.

At 11:30 a.m. Nov. 13, we will celebrate the end of this year’s campaigns with a virtual event.  We kindly ask that you participate in one or both of the campaigns and register in advance online to attend the virtual celebration. Additional details about the event can be found on the campaign webpage. If you have any questions, please contact Jessica Heinz or Alison Harper.

To recognize their contributions, I will publish the names of current employees who gave to the United Way campaign at the Leadership Level and current employees who are members of the MSU Foundation’s Founders Club in a Clif’s Notes before the end of the year.

Thank you to everybody who has participated in these campaigns at any level.

Staff awards ceremony moved to May

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Staff Service Awards and Appreciation Luncheon normally held in January will be moved to May 20, 2021.

As in past years, our Staff Appreciation Luncheon will honor those who have reached a five-year milestone at the university.

For any questions, please reach out to Josh Allen, associate director of human resources, at 417-836-5102 or JoshuaAllen@missouristate.edu.

Adaptations for COVID-19

Colleges and universities throughout the world have analyzed a variety of strategies and tactics to protect their campus communities and mitigate spread of COVID-19.

We have done this at MSU as well. This fall, we:

  • Implemented a masking requirement.
  • Established quarantine and isolation protocols for the campus community.
  • Significantly restricted travel and events.
  • Moved a large number of our classes online and to blended formats.
  • Adopted new cleaning and disinfecting protocols, which included closing campus two days in October for cleaning.

As a part of the many adjustments, faculty and staff have been creative and attentive in ways to assist students in quarantine. In some cases, faculty have even continued teaching during their own stint in quarantine or isolation.

We also created a COVID-19 response team, tested symptomatic and asymptomatic people throughout the semester, and encouraged social distancing and hand washing.

All of these adjustments have shown a great collaborative spirit.

After a spike in COVID-19 cases early in the semester, our weekly case count decreased and has remained under 100 for the last eight weeks. Meanwhile, we have maintained a robust teaching and learning environment for our faculty and students and continued to operate the university in as normal a manner as possible under the circumstances.

As we develop strategies and tactics for the spring semester, our plan is to continue to build on the good work of our faculty and staff.

Many classes that would normally be fully seated will be taught online or in a blended format.  We will continue to require masks, administer COVID-19 tests, implement quarantine and isolation protocols, and clean and disinfect high-touch areas on campus. In the coming weeks, we will also update our travel and events restrictions.

We have evaluated several options to adjust the spring academic calendar. At this time, we will not make any changes to the calendar.

The spring semester will begin on Jan. 11. We will celebrate holidays and have spring break as set forth in the current academic calendar. Spring commencement is scheduled for May 14.

Similar to how we have operated this fall, we will move forward cautiously and make adjustments and changes in concert with local, state and national public health authorities and as we receive up-to-date data and information about COVID-19.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!