Learning through Experience

From my perspective, at the heart of the University of Rhode Island’s academic plan lies the commitment to substantially expand the engagement of our students – at both the graduate and undergraduate levels – in research, scholarship, creative work, practica, and internships. This goal is linked to all of the other elements in the plan. As we educate students for success in the 21st century – with its unprecedented rates of change and the magnitude of the global challenges – nothing will be more valuable than providing our students with the opportunities to grapple with problems that have not been previously solved, or to create things that have not previously been created.

We have an admirable record of success in such endeavors, so this is not a new educational strategy for URI. Undergraduate research has long been an emphasis here. Our senior design courses in the College of Engineering are a long-standing element of the engineering curriculum and confront students with “real-world” problems. The Textiles, Fashion Merchandising, and Design Department’s spring fashion show annually highlights the amazing creativity of our students in the program, as do the many performances and exhibitions of our students in theatre, music, and art. I could fill pages with examples of the innovative ways our faculty and staff have worked to build "experiential learning" into the fabric of the university.

URI is working to expand such opportunities for students and spread them throughout the undergraduate curricula in all our departments. For example, URI 101 has a service learning component. And check out the website for the Office of Internships and Experiential Learning to get a good sense of the range of opportunities available to students and the extensive support offered by URI to students, faculty, and employers. This week I visited the Production Lab in the Department of Writing and Rhetoric, which provides a top-notch technical environment and a variety of support services for students interested in research and outreach in writing and in preparing cutting-edge web-based portfolios to showcase their work.

The word is getting out. As I talk with companies, organizations, and communities across Rhode Island an emerging theme is the interest in recruiting University of Rhode Island students to assist with projects and problems. Our students are making a difference in numerous capacities, and significantly enhancing their education at the same time. Research, creative work, and experiential learning are becoming hallmarks of a URI education and everyone who participates benefits.

A (Possible) Reversal of the Budget Decline

As we in Rhode Island know, Governor Lincoln D. Chafee's first budget presentation to the General Assembly contained some welcome news for Rhode Island higher education: a $10 million increase over our 2011 budget. The Board of Governors for Higher Education had requested a $31 million increase -- an amount that would be sufficient to freeze tuition at the University of Rhode Island, Rhode Island College, and the Community College of Rhode Island. Although the request was received sympathetically, the Governor and his team concluded that, given the current fiscal challenges confronting the state, funding the full request was not possible.

Nonetheless, I believe that it would be difficult to overstate the importance of the Governor's proposed budget increase for higher education. Across America the news has been almost invariably poor for public higher education. Staggering budget cuts for public colleges and universities have been proposed in many states. Although Rhode Island's fiscal problems are as challenging as those found elsewhere, it appears that within our State there is a growing recognition of the importance of higher education in creating a new economy and providing the jobs that are critically needed. That is good news, and not just for URI, RIC, and CCRI. It is good news for all of Rhode Island. Like our international competitors, Rhode Island is investing in strategies -- education, research, technology transfer, workforce training -- that will help us build a more globally competitive economy.

At the University of Rhode Island we take very seriously our responsibility to provide a strong return on the investment made in us by the people of Rhode Island. We will work even harder to provide high quality undergraduate, graduate, and professional education. Equally, we will continue to enhance our research, scholarship, and creative work, along with our service to the people of the state. Our colleagues at RIC and CCRI share our commitment to providing high value for the resources entrusted to us. And each of us is also committed to working together to generate more efficient use of those resources -- the planning for a joint nursing facility in Providence for URI and RIC is a great example.

The General Assembly will now take up the Governor's proposed budget. We should be cautious about predicting the final outcome. But the leadership of the legislature, and many of its members, have expressed strong support for higher education, for ensuring that it remains affordable to Rhode Islanders, and for the quality needed for our graduates to be prepared to succeed.

If you believe that investing in higher education is important to economic renewal and prosperity, let your representatives in the legislature know. Your support and input will be important.

Rhode Island has an opportunity in these challenging times to send a message that will be noticed. It is a message that we are moving forward, that we are taking the steps necessary to rebuild our economy, and that we are investing in our people -- giving them the knowledge and experience required to pursue their dreams. Thanks in advance for helping us send that message across our state, throughout our region, and to all of America.

Another Special Moment for URI

I don’t know if this is a “first” for us or not, but it is certainly infrequent to be featured, as the University of Rhode Island was this week, on the front page of the Chronicle of Higher Education, one of the premier publications on higher education in the world. URI was featured prominently in a story entitled “For Gay Students, More Room on Campus”, which examines both the progress and challenges faced by gay students at the University of Rhode Island and other colleges and universities across the country. It’s a good and fair article that cogently describes the difficulties that GLBT students face, the efforts to improve their safety and inclusion, and the ongoing work to assess and monitor progress at institutions of higher education, including URI.

I suppose it could be argued that such a high-profile presentation of the issues, problems, and progress at the University of Rhode Island is not the most advantageous publicity for the university. I would disagree. Many of your have heard me say that one cannot solve problems while trying to hide them, or by pretending they don’t exist. You can only solve a problem by acknowledging that it is real and marshalling the resources needed to resolve it. That is what we are doing at the University of Rhode Island, and we will continue to confront the problems of intolerance and mistreatment of our GLBT students until we succeed in building a community where all of our members are welcomed, affirmed, and supported. As pointed out in the article, that will take time and will not completely eradicate all incidents of bias or hate. But I think we can succeed in building a community where all our members can say “I fit in; this is a place where I can be myself”.

That’s our goal, and the Chronicle article is a good reminder of its importance.

There is one "first" to note: this is the first time for two posts on the same day. Just a lot to write about, and more to come. Please also check out the previous post.

A "First" for URI

Last Saturday evening Lynn and I had a truly wonderful time at an event that is apparently new to the University of Rhode Island: the “Praise Him No Matter What” gospel concert, proclaimed by the organizers as the first gospel concert to hit the URI campus. The talent on display that night was truly amazing! And there was lot of talent in evidence – the concert went from around 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. We enjoyed every minute of a program that included music, dance, poetry, and testimonies.

There is another reason that Saturday night was special. I would guess that over 95% of those in attendance (and main level of Edwards was nearly full) were people of color, including a lot of URI students. The warmth, support, affirmation, and enthusiasm among everyone there was simply inspiring. It was a great example of community in action – an event based on community, where all were welcomed, supported, and affirmed. The community represented at the concert was part of multiple, larger communities: including the University of Rhode Island and other colleges, Providence and other towns across New England, and the community of faith. All of the communities represented were tied together by the concert.

Communities of faith, although certainly not for everyone, can be very supportive of efforts to build communities across many common and problematic dividing lines. The University of Rhode Island is fortunate to have many communities of faith that contribute in multiple ways to building a supportive campus environment.

Of course, religious convictions can be a terribly divisive force – but they need not be. Faith can be a strong and positive force for community and justice, for compassion, mercy, and understanding, and for hope. For me, that was the central message of “the first gospel concert to hit URI”.

Texas Medical Center

I just returned from a visit to Houston with Governor Lincoln Chafee and the Mayor of Providence, Angel Taveras. The Governor invited President Ruth Simmons of Brown University and me to accompany him and the Mayor to visit the Texas Medical Center, which is one of the world’s foremost centers for patient care and medical research. The Texas Medical Center is composed of 49 institutions, including 21 academic institutions, six nursing schools, three medical schools, and two schools of pharmacy. Further, the Texas Medical Center encompasses 33.8 million (!) gross square feet of patient care, education, and research space, employs over 93,000 people, and teaches over 71,000 students. The annual research expenditures are approximately $1.8 billion. In short, as they might say there, it is truly a “Texas-sized” organization.

So why visit? What could be learned from meeting with administrators, researchers, and others in Houston that would be helpful to Rhode Island? As it turns out – a lot. I was very impressed by the enthusiasm for, and commitment to, service – the focus on helping people was always foremost. It seems to me that such a spirit is also common among Rhode Islanders.

Here are some other key findings that are directly relevant to the University of Rhode Island and our missions of advancing education and research and contributing to the economic renewal of our state.

First, the synergy of co-locating academic institutions and programs with hospitals and health care agencies or organizations is dramatic. That has been my experience (on a much different scale) and, to me, this is an opportunity for which Rhode Island is well positioned. Education, research, patient care, and job creation are all significantly enhanced by simple proximity, and further magnified by collaboration. Collaboration and partnerships are critical to success – we already know that here – but the results can be even more dramatic than many in Rhode Island might think. It’s clear from the Texas Medical Center example that the concept of bringing the University of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College to the “Knowledge District” in Providence, where the Brown University Medical School and multiple health care providers are located, is potentially transformative. In fact, we should consider a presence for health-related programs in addition to nursing. Also, as we have experienced so powerfully at URI, the integration of teaching and research that can occur when faculty, students, and research staff can readily interact enhances both education and innovative scholarship.

There’s more. We heard how shared, multi-use facilities can benefit education, research, and patient care; building more such facilities appears to be a priority for the Texas Medical Center and I think this would be a productive and cost-effective strategy for Rhode Island as well. And, according to figures provided by the Texas Medical Center, the economic impact of the Center has been substantial – estimated at $14 billion for the region, and the creation of over 121,000 jobs in addition to the employees of the Center itself.

I think we can build on our current success, and the solid foundation that exists here, to create the “Rhode Island Medical Center” (a phrase first used by Governor Chafee in our discussions, if I recall correctly). It will be scaled to Rhode Island, of course, but I believe its impact would also be substantial and lasting. We can learn from the examples of Houston and elsewhere, and take advantage of our size, to move ahead quickly, to the benefit of all Rhode Islanders. I think that, as in Texas, success will require a sustained effort by many people and institutions working together. I’m confident that the University of Rhode Island is ready to do its part.

Athletics and Excellence

On Sunday, February 13, the University of Rhode Island celebrated National Girls and Women in Sports Day – and it was a great day for URI. Several of our women’s teams hosted hundreds of girls interested in sports, giving them a glimpse of high-level athletic competition. Concurrently, we hosted a reception for alumni who had competed on our women’s teams for URI. Over a hundred of our alumni participated, women who had made an impact while at URI, and who have continued to succeed and lead in their professional and personal lives following graduation. That was followed by a terrific game between Cathy Inglese’s Rams and St. Louis University, which the Rams won 68-54 behind senior Megan Shoniker’s 35 points and junior Lara Gaspar’s 20. On Saturday Jim Baron’s Rams had pulled out an exciting overtime win against Charlotte 71-70 on Jamal Wilson’s put back basket at the buzzer. The Rams were led by 20 and 19 point efforts from sophomores Akeem Richmond Nikola Malesevic, respectively. Marquis Jones played all 45 minutes and dished out 10 assists despite being a bit under the weather. All in all, a terrific weekend for athletics at the University of Rhode Island.

As good as it is to see our teams succeed on the courts, in the water, or on the field (and it is great) I am just as pleased to witness the success of our student athletes in the classroom and in our community. As a group, student athletes do very well academically at the University of Rhode Island because academic success is a priority for them, our coaches, and Athletics Director Thorr Bjorn. You will find our student athletes in practically every major offered at URI, including our most demanding. Our student athletes also contribute in many, many ways to serving the larger community and to building a strong community here at URI. They are involved and engaged, and they make a difference. They continue to make a difference long after they have left URI. I have met dozens of alumni who competed for the University of Rhode Island and, invariably, I have been impressed by their achievements following graduation.

Let me give credit where credit is due. Bill Reynolds and Jim Donaldson of the Providence Journal were right when they indicated that the greatest legacy of URI athletics is our players. And it is a legacy that we can be very proud of.

The Big Chill

The University of Rhode Island recently celebrated its Big Chill weekend. The weekend featured two events – one celebrating the continuing excellence of our scholar-athletes and our intercollegiate athletics programs, the other our annual fundraising evening devoted to scholarships. Together these events emphasize the excellence of the university and the importance of our students and their achievements.

The Hall of Fame Induction event welcomed Ed Bradley (URI's legendary men's soccer coach), Julia Chilicki-Beasley (outstanding swimmer and rower -- representing the USA at the 1996 Olympics -- and influential rowing coach at URI), Tyson Wheeler (one of URI's best men's basketball players ever, and a leader of the 1998 Elite Eight team), and Bob White (an All-American offensive lineman on URI's amazing 1982-1985 football teams). These individuals represent the tremendous achievements and continuing potential of intercollegiate athletics at URI, and remind us all of the importance and impact of our programs, to be sure; but, more importantly, these outstanding new members remind us of the qualities and the enduring impact of the people who become a part of URI as a result of our athletics programs.

That same weekend, the University of Rhode Island also convened many of our alumni, friends, and supporters to celebrate the achievements of our students and to contribute to their continuing success by raising critical scholarship funds. Since the Big Chill Weekends began, over $1.2 million has been raised for scholarships, including $80,000 this year. More than 400 people attended, and a wonderful time was enjoyed by all.

Special thanks to the Chairs of the Organizing Committee -- John and Gail Palumbo and Kathy O'Donnell-White and Bill White -- for their outstanding leadership of a great team, as well as Mark Davis, Working Chair of the Volunteer Committee. I would also like to thank everyone who attended and contributed to support our students. If you attended this year, please plan on coming back in 2012. If you were unable to attend this year, please plan ahead for the next Big Chill weekend. Scholarships for students have never been more important to the success of our students and the university.