Updates to faculty layoff plan and other stuff

[leatherface]

So, how aggressive have the "local" state rep and senator been in representing Western and the area's educational institutions? Are they being aggressively contacted by constituents and standing up to their "bosses" with all of this?

[Neckerchief]

Statehouse Insider: Another nail in the fiscal coffin.

Comptroller Susana Mendoza warned the day of reckoning was coming when it came to paying state bills, when all of those court orders, consent decrees, and state laws requiring automatic payments would outstrip the cash available to meet them all.

This quote from Comptroller Mendoza is downright scary.

Something that CAN'T go on forever, WON'T.

We are reaching the end of the road here in Illinois. It soon will not matter if judges order the state to make payments. Soon, there won't be enough money left to make these required payments. And passing a budget won't make any difference.

Then what?

[wiu712]

In his Saturday column, political commentator Rich Miller wrote: "A budget has to be passed by June 30, or the state will be whacked with junk bond status, K-12 schools may be forced to cancel fall classes, social services completely collapse, and some of the "directional" universities have to consider becoming half the skeletons that they already are."

[Neckfansince71]

Here are some closing remarks from the Alumni Golf Outing yesterday held at the Links Country Club in Glen Ellyn. This was my second outing in two weeks and people are still very positive about WIU.

- Western has been in existence for 108 years and will be in existence another 108!

- Western is not closing!!!!!! Period!

- There are really good numbers for the incoming freshman class. The difference between WIU's freshmen class last year and the year before was exactly 5 students. Not 5%, but 5 totals students.

- Western will be re-investing in the programs that have made it "known!" LEEA, Supply Chain Management, Business Management, Biology etc. WIU turned away 120 speech path candidates last year and this needs to be addressed.

- The Summit League championship final moments are a prime example of what WIU is and will continue to be. A tradition of tough!

I am pretty sure that these statements will be a part of Dr. Thomas's speech tomorrow morning!

And finally, a number of years ago when I started working as the LC Club rep in the suburbs, I made it a habit to attend as many gatherings as possible. I shook a lot of hands and introduced myself to a lot of people. I have people now coming to me to talk LC Club and the "All Leatherneck" Golf Outing. Call me "Pollyana" all you want, but it seems to me that WIU is moving forward even with the state budget situation. I think many of us will agree that concentrating on the areas that WIU does best is curricular movement in the right direction. I know more needs to be done.......Just my two cents! jc

[Tere North]

- Western will be re-investing in the programs that have made it "known!" LEEA, Supply Chain Management, Business Management, Biology etc. WIU turned away 120 speech path candidates last year and this needs to be addressed.

I think many of us will agree that concentrating on the areas that WIU does best is curricular movement in the right direction. I know more needs to be done.......Just my two cents! jc

Thanks for sharing jc. If Western truly is making a directed change in approach as the quotes indicate, it will be a huge improvement in strategy.

[sealhall74]

Times have changed for sure. In my day, I would wager a hundred dollar bill that one out of four kids would choose a school over another simply on "party school" status. Today, as a businessman, would you prefer to be known as the best Italian restaurant in town or as a place with to die for lobster ravioli and a decent chicken parmesan. University leaders must ask the same fundamental question. I tend to lean in favor of the "Truman approach", i.e. there needs to be an overarching theme to all of our programs. We are just not big enough at this point to be good at everything. If we are are going to go after more speech pathologists, then those kids should feel like they are heading to a university with a strong reputation for producing the next great batch of health-care professionals. Well, that is my dose of idealism for this hump day.

[leatherface]

I listened to the president's strategic report today. He mentioned that Western has a new Director of Admission. What happened to the last fellow? I believe he came to Western from the Quad Cities campus.

[ST_Lawson]

I listened to the president's strategic report today. He mentioned that Western has a new Director of Admission. What happened to the last fellow? I believe he came to Western from the Quad Cities campus.

Andy Borst was the previous director of admissions. He got a job as the Director of Undergraduate Admissions at U of I: https://enrollmentmanagement.illinois.edu/aboutus

I assume the "new" director they were talking about is Seth Miner: http://www.wiu.edu/news/newsrelease.php ... e_id=13821
At least, I hope so, otherwise he was only here for a year.

[leatherneckcountry]

I listened to the president's strategic report today. He mentioned that Western has a new Director of Admission. What happened to the last fellow? I believe he came to Western from the Quad Cities campus.

Andy Borst was the previous director of admissions. He got a job as the Director of Undergraduate Admissions at U of I: https://enrollmentmanagement.illinois.edu/aboutus

I assume the "new" director they were talking about is Seth Miner: http://www.wiu.edu/news/newsrelease.php ... e_id=13821
At least, I hope so, otherwise he was only here for a year.

Well Seth drove past me yesterday so I would assume they were talking about.

[Neckfansince71]

Seth is from Bemidji State! Andy Borst did a great job as the head of admissions. As an alumni council member I was his liaison and he really kept the council up on what was going on. Since that time I have only heard good things about "Seth!" I definitely think the "good ship" admissions is pointed in the right direction. jc