Chancellor Nancy Zimpher delivered her State of the University address yesterday and below is a rundown of her major points. Here is a full transcript of her remarks. To view the address, go to: http://www.youtube.com/generationsuny
Cost
- Shifting Administrative Cost Savings to Instruction: Through its shared services initiative, SUNY will reduce administrative costs and move those resources toward academics and student services. Regional Administrative Centers will centrally process payroll, benefits, purchasing, travel, and other basic administrative services. Over the next 3 years, all SUNY campuses will shift—at minimum—5 percent of their administrative spending to academics and student services, resulting in $100 million being invested in instruction.
- Allocating Resources Based on Performance: The current funding model for SUNY campuses is based on the number of students and the cost of programs at each campus. Performance-based allocations are made using indicators, such as graduation rates or a diversity index, to determine the amount of funding each campus receives. SUNY will put in place a Finance and Administration Strategy Team (FAST) to manage this new process. Their initial charge will be to determine a pilot program for the 2012-13 academic year, with campuses seeing these allocations reflected in their operating budgets in 2013-14.
- Crossing the Digital Divide: Over the last few decades, devolution of the SUNY system has led to every campus having the freedom to choose its own path for information technology resources. By summer 2013, a plan for all SUNY campuses to operate on common Information Technology (IT) data systems will be in place, and by summer 2014, these systems will be implemented across the board.
Productivity
- Delivering on 6 Big Ideas: In the coming year SUNY will take its Report Card from a statement about accountability—the “You can hold us to it” promise—to a testament to progress and a tool for improvement. SUNY will invest resources, and look to external support as well, for major initiatives found in its strategic plan, The Power of SUNY. The impact of those actions will then be assessed by the data collected in our report card.
- Eliminating Remediation: SUNY spends $70 million a year in remediation. All of SUNY’s ag/tech campuses combined receive $63.6 million in state support. This means, for SUNY students alone, the state is spending more on remediating its high school students than it is on supporting 8 entire college campuses. The Chancellor has invited K-12 leaders throughout the state to partner with SUNY in eliminating the need for remediation over the next decade.
- Producing New York’s Future Workforce: Strategic enrollment management is the key to ensuring that students have access to the programs and courses they need to graduate prepared to work in the competitive, global 21st-century job market. SUNY will utilize data to ensure that program offerings meet New York’s high-need workforce demands.
Access & Completion
- Connecting the Transfer Dots: By fall 2013, SUNY will implement seamless transfer for community college graduates. This means an AA or AS degree from a SUNY community college will satisfy general education requirements at SUNY’s four-year institutions.
- Opening the Door to Online Education: Open SUNY has the potential to be the nation’s most extensive distance learning environment, connecting students with faculty and peers from across the state and throughout the world and giving them access to the best in open educational resources. Using a combination of online courses, an expanded YouTube channel, and a new presence on iTunes U, Open SUNY will be launched in time for the Fall 2013 semester.
Turning Access into Completion: Access is only half the battle. Completion is the other half, and SUNY will work to ensure that every student who walks through its doors leaves, on time, with a degree. Each campus will set targets to improve its completion rates. These targets will be set by the SUNY Council of Presidents and, once agreed upon, will be included as a factor in presidential evaluations.
Published: Tue, 10 Jan 2012 12:45:15 +0000 by e.bryant