October 31, 2006
Dear Colleagues,
Last week we welcomed the Board of Supervisors of the University of Louisiana System to our campus for its October meeting, and the Board members’ response to our campus was phenomenal. While they were pleased and surprised at the physical changes on campus, most comments were about the open and friendly reception they received from everyone. Many of them commented on the positive attitude of our students, faculty, and staff. Board President Mr. Jimmy Long, of Natchitoches, noted that other universities would have a “tough act to follow” and that we had certainly “raised the bar on hospitality to the Board.” This was the first visit to ULM for many of the Board members and your combined efforts left them wanting to return. One Board member even requested recruiting material. There is no question that you made their visit a success, and I thank each and every one of you.
During the Board’s meeting on Friday, I made a short presentation concerning many of the wonderful activities and programs underway at ULM. Time did not allow me to focus on each and every one of the fine academic programs at ULM, but every program could have been highlighted. If you would like to see the Board presentation, it can be found on our Web site at www.ulm.edu/president/.
In addition to the successful Board of Supervisors visit on Friday, we also learned of another triumph from the Board of Regents, when they announced that they approved ten SELECT (Supporting Electronic Learning and Essential Campus Transitions) grant proposals out of the 33 that were submitted from across the state. Four of those ten belonged to the University of Louisiana at Monroe.
The SELECT grants include a $50,000 grant, entitled ”Interdisciplinary Faculty Clustering for Web Development at ULM," that will fund interdisciplinary English-History computer-based lesson plans, secured by Gene Eller, English, and faculty electronic learning coordinator Paula Thornhill. Others who have committed to this project include Ralph Brown, history, Monica Bontty, history, Roger Carpenter, history, Janet Haedicke, English, Christopher Harris, English, Helen Lock, English, Julia Guernsey-Shaw, English.
Other grants include, “Physical Geology Lab as an Electronic Course for University Students and Rural Teachers," a $44,999 grant that will fund a permanent electronic geology laboratory course, secured by Anthony Feig and Michael Camille of geosciences; “E-Portfolios: Teaching with Emerging Technology,” a $40,500 grant that will fund faculty and student e-portfolio training, secured by Thillainatarajan Sivakumaran and Glenda Holland, College of Education and Human Development; “Enhancing Teacher Quality in Rural Northeastern Louisiana,” a $22,596 grant that will fund an online course required for improving professional qualifications, secured by Michael Beutner, curriculum and instruction, and Bob Cage, educational leadership and counseling.
Please continue to access the ULM University Relations website and check your e-mail for the ULM Weekly News Updates for additional exciting news about ULM’s faculty.
I am currently working on the program for Envision 2006, which will include many of the accomplishments of our students and faculty. I encourage each one of you to make a special effort to attend this event on November 9, 2006, at the Monroe Civic Center. Please contact Dr. Skelton at 342-5440 for tickets and information.
With very few exceptions, we are experiencing a wonderful fall semester. It is amazing how much can be accomplished when people pull together. I would like to ask all of you to reach out to a student this week. Please contact your advisees, and spend a little more time with a student in your class who needs some extra guidance. We know that faculty interaction with students is the most powerful retention program available.
As many of you know, we began the process of updating our strategic plan. The Strategic Planning Steering Committee (SPSC) is reviewing the Level II plans and our progress to date. In the near future, you should receive a status report outlining the work of the committee from the SPSC chairman Dr. Jeff Galle.
James E. Cofer, Sr.
ULM President