In the past weeks, we all learned that President Ribeau is leaving the University to begin his Presidency at Howard University. He has been a significant leader for the University and community for the past 13 years and his legacy will continue at BGSU for many years. BGSU and the community will miss him in our daily lives and we wish him well as he begins a new path in his career.

The Board of Trustees has begun a process to select an Interim President for this next year as well as appoint members to a search committee to identify a new President as we enter into our second century at BGSU.

As we begin the new academic year, we will continue the important work in several areas that will position the University for the future and new leadership. Enrollment management has been identified as a priority for the University. We have contracted with Tom Williams of Williams and Associates to facilitate the search for the Vice Provost of Enrollment Management.

This position will be important to us as we begin our work with Noel-Levitz, an enrollment-management consulting firm that specializes in addressing enrollment-management issues for institutions of higher education. Noel-Levitz will work with us in the areas of recruitment and retention for our traditional student population as well as our nontraditional adult students. Over the next three years, each of us will be engaged in working with the recommendations of Noel-Levitz, led by the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management.

An important area to retention is the newly organized area of Advising and Academic Support.  We are in the process of conducting an internal search for an Associate Vice Provost for Advising and Academic Support. The position description will be posted next week, and I urge you to review the description and consider nominating yourself or any colleagues you feel may be interested in leading this important group of professionals.

During the upcoming year we will begin the search process for several positions. With the departure of Dean Nieman, an interim Dean for the College of Arts and Sciences will be named in June. We are in the process of contracting with a search firm to conduct a search for a Dean of that College, with placement anticipated in fall 2009. Jim Smith will complete his role of Interim Dean at Firelands in June 2009. We will work with the Firelands campus community to initiate a search for a replacement this fall.

Dr. Heinz Bulmahn, Dean of the Graduate College and Vice Provost for Research, has announced his plans to retire from Bowling Green State University on December 31, 2008.  Dean Bulmahn, Professor of German, began his employment with BGSU in 2000 as an Associate Dean of Research in the Graduate College. He has provided leadership as Vice Provost for Research and Dean of the Graduate College since 2002, after being named Interim in 2001. Dean Bulmahn will remain on leave through his retirement in December.

I am pleased to share that Dr. Deanne Snavely has accepted the appointment of Interim Vice Provost for Research and Dean of the Graduate College, effective July 1. Snavely, a Professor of physical/analytical chemistry, earned her Ph.D. in physical chemistry from Yale University. Before being appointed acting Dean, she served as Associate Dean of the Graduate College, Chair of the Department of Chemistry, and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, College of Arts and Sciences. Please join me in extending congratulations to Dr. Snavely and Dr. Bulmahn as each begins a new phase of their careers.

We are pleased that Dr. Bruce Edwards has accepted the role of Associate Vice Provost for Academic Technology and that Paul Hofmann will continue as Director of the Office for International Programs. Both positions will report to the Office of Academic Affairs.

During the coming year we will reorganize the current area of Continuing and Extended Education to embrace the concept of Continuing Education and Engagement for the University. We are pleased that Dr. Marcia Salazar-Valentine has accepted the role of Interim Dean of Continuing and Extended Education for the 2008-2009 academic year. Marcia will play a critical leadership role in the creation of the new area of Continuing Education and Engagement. As we begin the reorganization of this area, several of you will be invited to participate in the design of the new unit.

Interim Dean Rosalind Hammond is effectively leading the College of Education and Human Development in her current role. The College is in the process of preparing for accreditation from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) -- a very comprehensive and important process. Because the process is vital to the College and University, I have asked Roz to extend her interim contract until June 2010. We will begin a search for a Dean in the fall of 2009.

The Change Team, leading a process to design the Strategic Plan for BGSU, will continue its work through the summer and fall. The President's Cabinet is preparing to engage in a daylong retreat with the leaders of the Change Team to align Division goals with those of the Change Team. As we enter the fall semester, all of us will be engaged in the important work of completing the plan, which will define our priorities for the next ten years.

Dr. Milt Hakel is leading a group of faculty to complete the design of the Centers of Excellence for BGSU. The arts, as a Center of Excellence, was presented to the Board of Trustees in May. The Trustees applauded the work of the faculty, staff and students engaged in the arts at BGSU.

The Trustees will be considering and approving the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year at their June 25 meeting. You may recall that the state's biennial budget approved for FY08 and FY09 provided for two consecutive years of increased funding to public higher education in exchange for schools' agreeing to hold tuition and fee increases at zero for those same fiscal years.

We appreciate the Governor's support of higher education and recognize that for the first time in more than a decade, higher education was spared a mid-year reduction in state support when most other state agencies were not. Since tuition and fees represent nearly 70 percent of the University's revenue, we will be facing an extremely challenging fiscal environment in the upcoming year due to no increases in tuition, a decrease in enrollment in FY08, and an additional enrollment decrease anticipated in FY09.

It is summer... and we are in the process of registering students for our next academic year.  Many of you will be engaged in welcoming our students to campus. Your commitment to create a welcoming environment for our students is vital and is deeply appreciated.

Change is a constant... and all of us are part of the BGSU team as we embrace a change in leadership and as we honor the legacy of President Ribeau.

Shirley L. Baugher
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

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