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Clif’s Notes for Jan. 25, 2022

January 25, 2022 by Clif Smart

Collage of 6 recipients.

Unfortunately, the pandemic caused us to cancel this year’s Staff Awards Luncheon. Work is underway to schedule a different event in May to honor all of our staff and recognize service milestones.

In the interim, I want to announce the recipients of this year’s Staff Excellence in University Service Award.

Recipients announced

Jeremy Beach

Jeremy Beach works as a dispatch specialist for the office of university safety.

Jeremy’s nominators mentioned his superior customer service and proactive approach to reducing crime on campus.

While Jeremy performs a wide array of duties that contribute to the success and safety of the university, he excels in identifying suspicious activity on the university’s extensive camera system. His attention to detail while monitoring the cameras has led to the apprehension and identification of several suspects.

One nominator shared, “Jeremy has had an unparalleled impact on reducing crimes on campus. His use of the camera system to prevent crimes has a profound impact on the would-be victims, without them ever knowing it.”

Michelle S. Rose

Michelle S. Rose works as the assistant director for the office of creative services.

Michelle’s nominators highlighted her incredible work ethic, her dedication to diversity and her ability to create award-winning material used to recruit students, promote private support and raise the profile of Missouri State University.

She serves as the managing editor of Missouri State’s alumni magazine and the new Advancements magazine and is the lead writer for the university’s highest-level admissions piece, the Viewbook.

Michelle has won over 30 Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) awards.

Jesse Scheve

Jesse Scheve works as a staff photographer for the office of creative services.

Jesse’s nominators spoke of his dependability, professionalism and willingness to go “above and beyond” to contribute to the university’s visual identity. Jesse obtained his drone pilot license in order to capture still and video assets for university projects and publications.

He is one of the main photographers for high-profile publications, such as Mind’s Eye, the Missouri State alumni magazine and the admissions recruitment viewbook.

One nominator shared, “Jesse makes us all look good. The public, prospective students and families first see the university through the lens of Jesse’s photos. He captures the essence of the game-winning shot, the hard-fought touchdown, the happy students and is also careful to showcase the diversity of our campus population. Jesse really captures campus the way it is felt by all who work and live here.”

Daezia Smith

Daezia Smith works as a leadership programs specialist in the international programs office.

Daezia’s nominators highlighted her passion for providing a quality educational experience for MSU’s international students. She plays an essential role in the ongoing education, involvement and well-being of students far from their home countries.

Daezia co-created Global Leaders and Mentors (GLaM), an organization that creates and develops peer-to-peer relationships between domestic and international students.

One nominator shared, “Daezia is a living example of what it means to be a Citizen Bear and to live the public affairs mission. As a staff member, she represents MSU at the highest level to our international students, their families and the cooperating governments. Her passion, customer service, as well as her joy and true compassion, sets a shining example of Missouri State University and its successes to the local and international community.”

Erin Snider

Erin Snider works as a fieldwork education and admission specialist in the department of occupational therapy.

Erin’s nominators spoke about her dedication to student and faculty success, commitment to lifelong learning, and desire to use her knowledge and experience to serve others.

One nominator shared, “Erin embodies the public affairs mission in her actions, professional duties, and in relationship with faculty and students. She is a trusted resource who beautifully represents our department in outreach activities and campus-wide events. Erin is a welcoming face, a wealth of departmental information, and a progressive, dynamic thinker. This combination of growth-mindset and caring is certainly an asset to the university.”

Gary Wells

Gary Wells works as a maintenance supervisor in the department of facilities management.

Gary’s nominators spoke about his knowledge of “all things Missouri State, his servant leadership, and his dedication to helping staff and students have a positive experience at Missouri State University.”

Gary volunteers time to promote the United Way campaign, serves on the Staff Senate Executive Board and is a part of the International Friends program.

One nominator shared, “Gary Wells goes above and beyond. His title may be maintenance supervisor, but I know him as a role model, a well of knowledge, an inspiration and a friend. Not only does he work hard on campus to do his job, but he also advocates for his workers and others in his job family.

“He advocates for changes to increase morale and encourage positivity. He asks for nothing and is willing to give everything. Gary Wells is the best of MSU.”

I hope you will join me in recognizing the outstanding work of this year’s recipients.

Nominations for Wall of Fame open through March 18

These stories make one thing very clear: Missouri State University has developed a rich heritage of outstanding faculty and staff who have contributed much to the success of our university.

The Wall of Fame, located outside the Ballroom in the Plaster Student Union, is a designated location for the university to recognize and honor former employees who have excelled at Missouri State and significantly contributed to the success and positive collegiate experience of students.

Nominations are now being accepted for next year’s honorees. I encourage you to nominate former Missouri State University employees who you believe should be recognized with this honor.

Nominations will be accepted until March 18, 2022. A reception and installation of honoree recognition plaques will take place Oct. 29.

Review criteria and nominate

Attend our Jan. 28 Virtual Town Hall

I hope you will join me for a Virtual Town Hall meeting at 3:30 p.m. Jan. 28. Dr. Frank Einhellig and I will provide an update on COVID-19 and other matters.

You will have the opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions.

Access the Zoom link and other details

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Smart Tagged With: Coronavirus, staff awards, Wall of Fame

Clif’s Notes for May 18, 2021

May 18, 2021 by Clif Smart

Students sit with feet in fountain

This week is Staff Appreciation Week. If you haven’t already seen it on social media, please take a look at the below video message we prepared to thank our staff at MSU for their hard work.

Enjoy Staff Appreciation Week events

We will honor our staff this week at two events. Both events will take place on Friday in BearFest Village — the greenspace behind (to the west of) Carrington Hall.

First, at 11:30 a.m., we will host a Staff Appreciation Picnic.

We were not able to have our annual staff awards luncheon and ceremony in January this year.

The Staff Appreciation Picnic is designed to take the place of that ceremony, and we will honor staff at this event in a much less formal, decentralized way.

Second, after the picnic, at 1:30 p.m., we will host a Float into Summer ice cream social. As we did two years ago, we will close the university from 3 to 5 p.m. May 21 after the ice cream social.

Issues related to essential personnel, time reporting and compensation for this closure are addressed in section 2.15 of the Employee Handbook. Supervisors will work with their staff on how to coordinate coverage if coverage is required.

I hope you will plan to attend both of these events.

Recognizing great contributions

During its regular meeting last week, the board approved this year’s slate of inductees into the Wall of Fame. This year’s inductees are:

  • Anson Elliott
  • Mike Jungers
  • James Moyer
  • Thomas Plymate
  • Mark Stillwell

As in years past, we will have an induction ceremony honoring these individuals during Homecoming week. Due to the pandemic, we were not able to have this ceremony last year, so we will also recognize the 2020 inductees at this year’s ceremony.

Read the news release

The board also recognized the recipients of the Missouri State Foundation Awards in Teaching and Service.

Margaret Weaver and Kyler Sherman-Wilkins were selected for this year’s teaching award, and David Romano was selected for the service award.

The board also approved this year’s recipients of the Excellence in Public Affairs Award:

  • Tara Benson
  • David Hall
  • Judith Martinez
  • Gary Meints
  • Caryn Saxon
  • Travis Schilla

Read the news release

The board also approved commendations for Cameron Wickham (outgoing chair of Faculty Senate), Ryan Reed (outgoing chair of Staff Senate), Tara Orr (outgoing student body president) and Blake Haynes (outgoing student body vice president).

I offer sincerest of congratulations to all of these award and commendation recipients. The university and the Springfield community are better because of your leadership and service.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Smart Tagged With: public affairs, staff awards, Wall of Fame

Clif’s Notes for Jan. 26, 2021

January 26, 2021 by Clif Smart

Masked clinician fills needle with vaccine.

As you know, we received over 1,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine last week.

I am pleased to report that we successfully distributed all of the vaccine we received through the good work of our staff at Magers Health and Wellness Center.

We gave faculty and staff priority to sign up for vaccinations early in the week. We then allowed retirees, spouses and dependents to sign up later in the week.

At this time, we do not anticipate receiving additional COVID-19 vaccine this week.

Please continue to monitor the university’s COVID-19 Vaccinations webpage for updates as we receive additional vaccine and as the state authorizes additional groups of people to be vaccinated.

Vaccination criteria

There are many rules around who can be vaccinated. These rules are set by the state, not the university.

Right now, the state has only authorized vaccination for people meeting the requirements of Phase 1A and Phase 1B, Tiers 1 and 2.

By our estimates, only about one third of our workforce qualifies for vaccination under these standards — primarily including individuals over the age of 65 or with particular co-morbidities.

We are working and will continue to work to obtain more vaccine. Based on the guidance we have received from people involved in the vaccine distribution process, we believe it is imperative that we immediately use the vaccine we receive to stay in the supply chain for additional vaccine in future weeks and months.

Our hope is that by continuing to distribute vaccine, we will continue to receive vaccine as the state authorizes other segments of our workforce to be vaccinated.

Recognizing excellence among staff

Due to the pandemic, we were not able to have our annual staff awards luncheon this month. We are working on a replacement event to occur after the end of the spring semester.

In the meantime, I want to recognize our staff who received awards.

This year’s Staff Excellence in Community Service Award recipients are Mandi Muse and Jason Ray.

This year’s Staff Excellence in University Service Award recipients are Steve Braden, A’dja Jones, Lyn McKenzie, Karen McKinnis, Benjamin Metzger and Dr. Dave Muegge.

Thanks to all of you for your great work during this challenging year.

Submit Wall of Fame nominations

Each year we recognize retired employees who, during their time at the university, significantly contributed to the success and positive experience of students. We honor these employees by placing their names on the Wall of Fame located outside the Plaster Student Union Ballroom.

Last year the Board of Governors inducted six individuals into the Wall of Fame: Dr. Michael Carlie, Karen Horny, Paul Kincaid, Marcia Morriset, Judith Smith and Dr. Howard Orms.

Unfortunately we were not able to have our traditional induction ceremony during Homecoming last fall.

At Homecoming this fall we will have a ceremony to induct both the 2020 and the 2021 classes into the Wall of Fame.

You can nominate inductees for the 2021 class online. Please review the selection criteria when making your nomination. The deadline for nominations is March 12.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

 

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Smart Tagged With: Coronavirus, staff awards, Wall of Fame

Clif’s Notes for May 26, 2020

May 26, 2020 by Clif Smart

Fountain with library and Glass Hall behind

The Missouri legislative session ended earlier this month.

We advocated on many issues in the concluding weeks of the session. We worked on legislation that would have limited the Board of Governors’ ability to regulate the possession of firearms on campus.

We also worked on legislation that would have increased reporting requirements for universities, legislation designed to regulate academic credit for students who take advanced placement exams and numerous other bills.

None of this legislation — or any other legislation that would have substantially impacted our operations at Missouri State University — passed this year.

Thanks to our state legislators

Our team also advocated for Missouri State in the state budget.

The legislature passed a budget that holds core funding flat for all public universities. A portion of this funding is contingent on the federal government extending a Medicaid stimulus program. We will remain engaged with our federal leaders on this issue.

Passing a budget that includes flat funding for universities in the current economic environment was not an easy task. I want to say a special thanks to Sens. Dan Hegeman and Lincoln Hough, Reps. Elijah Haahr, Curtis Trent and Cody Smith, and our entire legislative delegation for supporting Missouri State in this difficult budget year.

State budget witholdings

The budget now moves to Gov. Mike Parson for his signature or veto.

You will recall that Parson announced a $7.6 million withhold for Missouri State in April. Additional withholds will likely occur before this fiscal year ends on June 30.

Parson has indicated the budget passed by the legislature for next fiscal year includes hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue that the state will not likely receive. We anticipate additional withholds being announced for next fiscal year to close this gap. Those withholds could occur as early as July.

We remain engaged with the governor and his staff to advocate that withholds be spread throughout state government and not disproportionately impact higher education.

Outlook of FY2021 budget

Despite uncertainty in state funding and enrollment, we must establish the university’s budget for next fiscal year.

The Board of Governors discussed the FY2021 budget at their meetings earlier this month.

The board approved a CPI increase of 2.3% in tuition and fees for the 2020-21 academic year. This increase, along with the tuition and fees waived last year, will generate $4.6 million in new revenue.

We also have $3.2 million in revenue carried forward from last year’s appropriation increase. Through $2.9 million in spending reductions that have already been implemented, we have more than offset our unavoidable expense increases for next fiscal year.

However, enrollment declines will have a dramatic impact on our budget. Before the pandemic, we anticipated a decline of 834 students due to the second year of large graduating classes. This decline alone will result in $5.9 million in reduced revenue, plus an additional $1.3 million in reduced auxiliary support.

We took several steps earlier this year to counteract this enrollment decline. We waived the application fee, joined the Common App, and implemented a series of recruitment and retention strategies.

Enrollment indicators showed that these strategies were working before the pandemic hit and the environment shifted. These same indicators have now become mixed, pointing to an anticipated enrollment decline that will likely exceed the projected 834 student drop.

This enrollment uncertainty, along with the likelihood of a state funding withhold, means we must further reduce expenses for the FY2021 budget.

Principles for FY2021 budget

The board approved principles that we will follow when developing the FY2021 budget.

Under these principles, we will utilize the following factors when evaluating all FY2021 cost savings options:

  1. Potential to generate substantial savings
  2. Impact on the university’s mission. Mission considerations include:
    • Academic quality and accreditation
    • Enrollment
    • Affordability
    • Student success
    • Student experience
    • Inclusive excellence
    • Public profile
  3. Impact on employees and workforce morale
  4. Impact on university risk and compliance
  5. Impact on university’s ability to generate revenue
  6. Improve efficiency and processes

The FY2021 budget will also include strategic investments to support revenue and the university’s mission. The overall need to generate substantial savings will be considered when evaluating all strategic investment options.

As always, we will use a transparent process that seeks input from stakeholders when developing this year’s budget.

Virtual Town Hall

Last week we held a Virtual Town Hall meeting to seek input from faculty and staff on the budget and other matters. If you missed the meeting, you can view the recording of the meeting on the town hall webpage.

Please send any input or questions about the FY2021 budget or any other matter to me at president@missouristate.edu.

Cost savings

At the board meeting and the town hall, we presented a budget scenario that we plan to modify and build upon in the coming weeks.

This scenario includes $10.2 million in new cost saving measures that will be incorporated in the FY2021 budget that I will present to the board in June.

These measures include:

  • Freezing 68 open positions (see my prior Clif’s Notes for details)
  • Eliminating internet incentives payments for faculty
  • Delaying the opening of the new residence hall
  • Reducing the operating budget allocation for facility repairs and classroom upgrades

We have additional cost saving measures that could be implemented after the board approves the budget. We would implement these measures only as necessary depending on the extent of our revenue decline.

These measures include:

  • Further reducing the operating budget allocation for facility repairs and classroom upgrades
  • Reducing operating budget allocations for academic equipment and the president’s enhancement fund
  • Reducing travel budgets
  • Spending $4 million in university reserves

Through these supplemental measures, we believe we can reduce expenses by an additional $6.5 million.

If our revenue declines by more than $16.7 million, we will then be forced to evaluate options for employee furloughs and/or layoffs.

Recognizing good work by faculty, staff, students

The board also discussed the university’s response to the coronavirus and our efforts to reopen the campus.

The board approved inductees into the university’s Wall of Fame. They will be inducted at a ceremony in October. This year’s inductees are:

  • Michael Carlie, professor of criminology
  • Dean Karen Horny, dean of libraries
  • Paul Kincaid, chief of staff
  • Marcia Morriset, assistant director of the Honors College
  • Howard Orms, professor of theatre and dance
  • Judi Smith, director, development and alumni

The board also offered commendations to outgoing leaders of SGA, Faculty Senate and Staff Senate. Leaders receiving commendations include:

  • Saibal Mitra, chair of Faculty Senate
  • A’dja Jones, chair of Staff Senate
  • Abdillahi Dirie, president of SGA
  • Ethan Schroeder, vice president of SGA

I want to say a special thanks to each of you. Our university is better because of your service, and I will miss working with you.

The board also approved action items related to campus facilities, including:

  • Documents necessary to close financing on the JVIC expansion project
  • An amendment to allow the university to delay receiving the new residence hall until next summer
  • A facilities use agreement to facilitate the national headquarters for the Student African American Brotherhood relocating to our campus
  • Wyrick fund expenditures approved by a student vote to combine the Multicultural Resource Center and the MRC Annex into one facility on the first floor of Plaster Student Union

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Smart Tagged With: Board of Governors, budget, Coronavirus, legislative priorities, Wall of Fame

Clif’s Notes for Jan. 28, 2020

January 28, 2020 by Clif Smart

Flags flying at Missouri State University

Earlier this month Governor Mike Parson released his budget recommendations. Those recommendations:

  • Maintain our core operating appropriation, including the $10 million increase passed last year.
  • Include $1.8 million in one-time funding to establish the Missouri Cybersecurity Center of Excellence at JVIC.
  • Increase appropriations for state scholarship and grant programs used by many of our students (Access Missouri, A+, Fast Track and Bright Flight).

These recommendations include some of MSU’s legislative priorities for this year. We are grateful for Gov. Parson’s support.

We have already begun working with the legislature to advocate for our other priorities. Earlier this month I testified in support of our priorities to the House Subcommittee on Appropriations – Education. I have also been meeting with legislators throughout the past several weeks.

Our top priority continues to be an inflationary increase in the university’s core operating appropriation.

Provide feedback on SEM

We have made good progress toward finalizing a strategic enrollment management plan. The Board of Governors has approved SEM goals, and our SEM councils continue to meet and develop enrollment strategies.

As we move into the latter stages of our SEM planning process, we want to update the campus community and solicit feedback. Please mark your calendars and plan to attend a SEM Town Hall at 12:15-1:15 p.m. Jan. 29 in the PSU Theater. We look forward to seeing you there!

Wall of Fame nominations

Missouri State University has a history of outstanding faculty and staff. We honor employees who have excelled at Missouri State and significantly contributed to the success and positive experiences of students by recognizing them on the Wall of Fame located outside the Plaster Student Union Ballroom.

Nominations are being accepted for next year’s Wall of Fame honorees through March 13. I encourage you to nominate former Missouri State University employees who you believe should be recognized with this honor. You can complete the nomination form online.

You can find more information about the Wall of Fame (including selection criteria and names of prior honorees) on the Alumni Association webpage.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Smart Tagged With: legislative priorities, strategic enrollment management, Wall of Fame

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