To the Scripps Community,
Welcome back! I hope you had a restful spring break. As we head into the festivities at the end of the week, I would like to take a moment to update you on the progress in a few key areas of the College of interest to all of you. First, I encourage you to attend the activities celebrating the Cesar Chavez holiday that will be held this week at the various Claremont campuses, including the Mariachi Serrano de Claremont performance at the Scripps Tea this Wednesday, March 24.
- Dean of Faculty search. As you know, members of the Dean of Faculty Search Committee Professor — Hao Huang (Chair), Professor Thierry Boucquey, Professor Newt Copp, Professor Amy Marcus-Newhall, and Maureen McCluney, Assistant to the Dean of Faculty — spent many hours on behalf of the College to bring three candidates to campus for the Dean of Faculty position. I want to thank the committee for their diligent work this year. For a variety of reasons, the search did not result in an appointment, and I am currently undertaking steps to move forward in a timely manner.
- Vice President for Development and Alumnae Relations search. The appointment of a Vice President for Development and Alumnae Relations is a vital one for the College and fundamental to our future fund raising success, which is why the search committee and I have been deliberate about finding the best match for Scripps. We held a series of on campus interviews in the fall that did not yield a new V.P. for Advancement. Another candidate will be on campus on March 28-29 for interviews.
- Fundraising success. As announced previously, we received a pledge of $3 million from the Weinberg Family Foundation to support Joint Science, and a $3.5 million pledge from Joan ’49 and David Lincoln for ceramic arts, with $1.5 million of that amount in-hand to break ground on a new Ceramics/3D facility this summer. In addition, we expect to receive approximately $3 million in bequests. The Development staff is optimistic that we will exceed our fundraising goals this year. This will be a significant accomplishment in these economic times. Many thanks to all of the staff in Development for their hard work and dedication.
- Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The Foundation has awarded the College a three-year grant of $500,000 to support the faculty and curriculum development associated with the Core Curriculum in Interdisciplinary Humanities. Thank you to Professors Roswitha Burwick and Dion Scott-Kakures, Director of the Core Program, and Kristen McInnis, Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations for their work on an excellent grant proposal.
- The 2010-11 Budget. On the recommendation of the on-campus Budget and Planning Committee, the Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees has approved a proposed budget for 2010-11. The Board will vote on the budget at its meeting on March 26. Treasurer James Manifold, Interim Dean of the Faculty Michael Lamkin and I will hold a Community Meeting to present the approved budget after it is finalized. A date for that event will be announced very soon.
- Ad Hoc Committee on Strategic Prioritization. Last year, the Board appointed a Committee of trustees, faculty, staff and students to prioritize elements of the 2007 Strategic Plan as a road map for the near future. The Committee, chaired by Board Chair Linda Davis Taylor, has been developing clear consensus on the key priorities, and a full report will be submitted to the Board in June 2010. I will provide an oral report on our progress at the community meeting and at the April Faculty Meeting.
- The Future of Denison Library. James Manifold, Michael Lamkin, and I developed a proposal to move forward on planning for Denison Library with the care and consideration necessary to optimize the program and design. The Ad Hoc Committee on Strategic Plan Prioritization reviewed this proposal on March 16, and it will be presented to the Board of Trustees at its upcoming meeting. I will report on the outcome of the Board meeting in a memo to the community that specifically addresses the next steps for Denison.
- Admission. Pat Goldsmith, V.P. for Enrollment, Marketing and Communication and the Admission staff have worked very hard to recruit and admit an outstanding class this year. With 85 early decision students already committed, we are on track to enroll another talented and dynamic group of women. In all, 814 students have been admitted to the class, for a current selectivity rate of 39% (fewer than 13% of colleges and universities nationally admit less than 50% of their applicant pool). Furthermore, the Class of 2014 has the potential to significantly enhance the diversity of the student body. As you may have heard, this year’s incoming class will be larger than last year’s class. I look forward to sharing with you the reasons for this increase at the community meeting in April.
- Public Relations. Momentum is gaining for Scripps College’s media visibility. Two Scripps College athletes appeared in a nationally televised CBS Evening New story watched by over 6 million viewers in the United States, US News and World Report mentioned the College’s generous financial aid, and Forbes Magazine called the Scripps College campus one of the ten most beautiful in the world. We were mentioned nine times in The Los Angeles Times and LATimes.com since January 1st, a record for any three-month period in the College’s history. Total media coverage for this year is 9 million media impressions, surpassing the same period last year by nearly 6 million. We also anticipate significant positive media coverage for the Inauguration Weekend.
- My travel. As you may know, I am on the road quite a bit reaching out to alumnae, parents and friends of the College and elevating Scripps College on the national arena. I participated in seven President-on-the-Road events from late January to early March. I attended the Women’s College Coalition meeting in early January and the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) meeting later that month, where I served as a facilitator in a session on undergraduate science education. I also joined the President’s Trust, a leadership group within the AAC&U’s initiative championing the value of a liberal education. In addition, I was honored to represent Scripps College at an invitation-only event at the White House on March 8 for Women’s History Month. Last week, I was one of ten presidents invited to a workshop for new presidents at the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation in New York City. At each of these events, I take every opportunity to talk about our mission, our unique curriculum, and the strength of our community.
Scripps is in a very strong position as we move forward, with increasing recognition of our academic excellence; financial stability; and an energized, positive community eager to support our success. I look forward to the upcoming events this week and greatly appreciate the time and energy so many of you contributed to help us shine the light on Scripps College!
Lori Bettison-Varga
President