Presidential Updates

Clif’s Notes for Sept. 15, 2020

by

Last week the Board of Governors reviewed and finalized our Action Plan for 2020-21.

This year we will focus on diversity, equity and inclusion with action items such as:

  • Enhance intervention strategies for the university’s Bias Response Team.
  • Design and develop a facility expansion of the Multicultural Resource Center.
  • Curricular modifications to address cultural consciousness and competence.
  • Expand the Facing Racism Institute and create a Student Diversity Leadership Institute.
  • Review and modify university policies and procedures to ensure equal opportunity.

We will also focus on academic and career initiatives with action items such as:

  • Create a task force to evaluate new academic areas and programs.
  • Enroll students in new professional doctoral and terminal degree programs and develop plans for additional programs.
  • Pursue consortia arrangements and partnerships with national and international employers, higher education institutions and other organizations.
  • Increase career education opportunities through LinkedIn Learning and other resources.
  • Coordinate marketing strategies for academic programs.

We will also focus on managing the pandemic, completing our strategic enrollment management plan, and developing the university’s next long range plan and visioning guide.

Guiding our actions

This year the university will also pursue a wide range of action items in other areas:

  • Support student mental health and other needs through the Counseling Center, Student Success Infoline, the Bear CLAW, and other offices and resources.
  • Implement early intervention strategies to retain students.
  • Begin construction on JVIC building 4 and continue the development and expansion of IDEA Commons.
  • Take possession of the new residence hall.
  • Continue to raise private funds through the Onward Upward campaign.

Please take some time to review the 2020-21 Action Plan. We will follow this plan as we move the university forward this academic year.

State of the University

The Springfield State of the University address is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. Sept. 23. The West Plains State of the University address is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sept. 24. I will discuss the university’s COVID-19 response, this year’s action plan and our strategic planning processes.

The West Plains address will be held in the West Plains Civic Center theater. The Springfield address will be virtual. The format will be similar to the virtual employee town hall meetings we held throughout the spring and summer.

You can find additional information about how to participate in this year’s State of the University address online.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

2019 State of the University address

by

Clif Smart and Frank Einhellig will present the State of the University address at 12:15 p.m. Monday, Oct. 7, 2019, in the Plaster Student Union Theater.

You can view the livestream video here.

Supplemental resources

 

Asking questions

During the speech, President Smart and Provost Einhellig will accept questions in person and online:

Broadcast information

For those who cannot attend in person, the speech will air at 7 p.m. Oct 7 on KSMU and 8 p.m. Oct. 10 on Ozarks Public Television.missouri-state-state-of-the-unversity-2018-presentation sotu-2019-sgf-final

Clif’s Notes for Oct. 1, 2019

by

Missouri State University’s vision is to be the university of choice to develop successful students who excel academically and in ethical leadership, cultural competence and community engagement.

Providing access to higher education for traditionally underserved populations is a critical piece of that vision. Higher education provides tools for those who desire to break the cycle of poverty, transcend socio-economic boundaries, and achieve personal and professional success in the modern world.

Access to higher education in the United States has become more challenging in recent years. Tuition and fees have far exceeded inflation. The backlog of defaulted student loans continues to rise.

Recent news stories have revealed schemes where wealthy people game the system to get side door admission into elite schools and to obtain federal financial aid benefits that should have gone to low income students. These stories are aggravating and heart breaking.

Missouri State University must take a bold stand against this trend. We will make it easier to access an exceptional education for those who meet the standards for admission, regardless of their finances.

New access initiatives

We have initiated several programs over the last two months to address these access issues:

  • We created a scholarship program to allow high school students on free or reduced lunch to take dual credit classes free of charge. This program was implemented for the fall semester in Springfield Public Schools and will go statewide in the spring.  You can find more information in the Springfield and Kansas City press releases.
  • We signed agreements with every Boys and Girls Club in the state to provide scholarships for their students to attend Missouri State. Additional information is available in the press release.
  • We signed an agreement with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri (based in St. Louis) to provide scholarships for their students to attend Missouri State.
  • We joined the Common App, which allows students to enter their information one time and apply to many colleges without having to submit separate application information.
  • We will waive the undergraduate application fee.

I encourage everyone in the Missouri State community to join in this effort. Please help us get the word out that our university is committed to access for the underserved, and we provide pathways to a college degree for everyone.

State of the University Oct. 7

This year’s State of the University address is at 12:15 p.m. Oct. 7 in the PSU Theater. We will talk more about Missouri State’s commitment to access. Dr. Frank Einhellig and I will also highlight accomplishments from last year and plans for the year ahead. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Clif’s Notes for Sept. 25, 2018

by

On Monday, Oct. 1, Frank Einhellig and I will make our annual presentation on the State of the University. The presentation will start at 12:15 p.m. in the Plaster Student Union Theater. I hope you will join us as we discuss the university’s many successes last year and look forward to the opportunities this year holds for Missouri State. The presentation will also be broadcast on OPT later in the week.

Following the State of the University address, at 1:30 p.m. we will host a Medical Plan Town Hall meeting in the Plaster Student Union Theater. We are in the process of revising the university’s group medical plan. Matt Morris and I will present the current plan and the proposed changes. We will then answer questions and solicit feedback from the university community. A survey regarding preferences in a medical plan will be available following the town hall. The Medical Plan Town Hall meeting will be a good resource to inform you as you complete the survey.

If you are not able to attend the Medical Plan Town Hall meeting, you can livestream it on the website or view it later on the university’s YouTube channel.

Hass-Darr dedication

Tomorrow we will dedicate an important facility in the Missouri State University system — Hass-Darr Hall in West Plains.

Hass-Darr Hall will provide a central location for a variety of services crucial to enhancing student learning and academic success. It will house the Carol Silvey Student Union, the William and Virginia Darr Honors Program, Drago College Store, tutoring services, the admissions office, the veterans center and other much needed classroom and administrative space.

Thanks to our supporters

I want to thank our donors and supporters who made this project possible.

Major contributions were made by the Hass Family: Mary Hass Sheid, Judge William R. and Jeanne Hass, Judge William T. Hass, and Tim and Missy Hass Myers. The other major contribution was made by Bill and Virginia Darr.

Other significant contributions include:

  • Dr. Mark and Kim Dake
  • Charles and Pam Drago
  • Dr. Herb and Mary Beth Lunday
  • Dr. Charles and Robin Morgan
  • Ozarks Independent Living
  • Arch W. Shaw Foundation
  • Richard and Carol Silvey
  • Joe Spears
  • The Sunderland Foundation

Many other loyal alumni and friends of the university also contributed to this project.

I want to also thank Governor Mike Parson and our legislators for making this project possible. $1.5 million of this project was funded through the State of Missouri’s higher education bonding package approved in 2015.

Hass-Darr Hall will play an important role in enhancing the student experience in West Plains, continuing to increase our retention and graduation rates, and developing the profile of the West Plains campus.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

2018 State of the University address

by

Clif Smart and Frank Einhellig will present the State of the University address at 12:15 p.m. Monday, Oct. 1, 2018, in the Plaster Student Union theater. The Medical Plan Town Hall will follow the address.

Supplemental resources

Asking questions

During the speech, President Smart and Provost Einhellig will accept questions in person and online:

Broadcast information

For those who cannot attend in person, the speech will air at 7 p.m. Oct. 1 on KSMU and 8 p.m. Oct. 4 on Ozarks Public Television.