I thought I would share this note I received today. It made my day and reminded me, once again, of all the good we do at UW-Whitewater.
Dear Chancellor Saunders,
Hello!
My spouse and I are UW-Whitewater Alumni of the class of 1979….we met at Whitewater… fell in love and have been married since.
We have two great daughters…ok hear is the reason for the email.
We live in Thousand Oaks, Ca…and our daughter Melanie who is 17 and is going to be HS Senior next year wanted to visit UC-Santa Cruz…so we did just that this last Saturday…did the tour…great campus. I sure you may have heard want happen to the Chancellor at UC Santa Cruz….Ms. Denice Denton…very tragic.
We did not hear about her death until after we left campus.. we talked about life being so short and we should be very thankful for all we have..but my daughter asked me if I ever just told UW-Whitewater that they played a huge role in making our lives so much better.
I said not really….so from my Laurie & I…just wanted to tell you that UW-Whitewater did change our lives forever!…and God Bless you and the great staff of Faculty that continues at UW-Whitewater today.
Sorry it took so long to tell you!
The Best!
Paul & Laurie (Licht) Meder..Class of ‘79
I thought I would share some of the beautiful flowers we have been admiring around campus. If you see Steve Bertagnolli or any of his talented grounds crew, please tell them how much you appreciate their efforts.
In addition to the students here for Preview this week, you may notice some 600 high school students from 29 countries and 34 states enjoying the 30th annual World Affairs Seminar. I was pleased to greet these youngsters yesterday and welcome them to the campus. They know we are a university that stresses the need for a global vision and encourages all our students to seek out international experiences.
I had a grand time leading the procession of flags for the UW System at yesterday’s Brewers’ game. I gave the welcome to a full stadium and was so proud to represent UW-Whitewater there. It was my first visit to Miller Park and an impressive introduction to that marvelous facility. To add to the festivities, the Brewers beat the Indians 3-2.
Last night I met with an extraordinary group of alumni. You may already know that Deloitte & Touche routinely hires our accounting grads. There are approximately 80 Whitewater alums in the Milwaukee office alone. That group has raised $350,000 in support of the new business building and scholarships for students majoring in accounting. Needless to say, I was happy to accept the gift on behalf of the university. We will be naming a facility in the new building in honor of this long-standing partnership. The Deloitte Cafe will serve coffee and food to business students, faculty & staff, and community partners. It will be located on the first floor in the heart of the new building.
If you see Bob Gruber, chair of the accounting department, or Dean Clements, you might want to congratulate them.
If you are looking for something to do Saturday might I suggest attending the UW System Big Reunion at Miller Park. I’ll be offering a greeting to the fans on behalf of the entire UW System. I guess I also get to say, "Play ball" so I’ll need to start practicing.
The evening will begin at 4 p.m. with a tailgate party. The game begins at 6:05 p.m. when the Milwaukee Brewers take on the Cleveland Indians. Prior to the game, there will be UW System on-field festivities including a UW System Parade of Flags.
The cost is $40 per person, which includes the tailgate party, game ticket and the opportunity for one of 50 prizes. For more information, contact Mark Dorn, UW-Whitewater alumni director, at dornm@uww.edu or (800) 648-ALUM(2586).
I stopped by John Patterson’s (geography & geology) retirement party today and joined his friends and family in wishing him well as he moves to the next chapter of his life. It’s pretty clear that John has "led to a legacy" during his time at UW-Whitewater. The campus and community are better for his efforts. John…you inspire me!
Sometimes it amazes me how much loyalty and support we have from our alumni and friends. I spent yesterday with the Foundation Board as that group worked on plans to assist in moving our university forward. They are back at work today. Stay tuned for some ambitious and gratifying results.
Martha
Our New Strategic Plan:
Employing Regional Leadership, National Presence, Global Vision
I’m really pleased with the quality of the newest draft of the UW-Whitewater strategic plan currently being circulated to individual campus departments. I’m happy mainly because I sincerely believe this plan is “of the university…for the university…and by the university.” As you may recall, we began the process armed with the campus strengths, hopes and dreams that were identified during a week of campus-wide summits in the fall. We followed up with a campus town-meeting in November to present the summit report and asked for input at that point. Next, I convened the Strategic Planning & Budget Committee and charged that group to come up with a succinct document that is accessible, cogent and straightforward. The group met weekly and completed a draft in time for the HLC re-accreditation visit in March. Campus governance bodies have now blessed the conceptual content of the plan, and we are currently applying benchmarks and editing the document to reflect recommendations gathered along the way. The document will be fleshed out this summer and fall at the department level as each program identifies individual strategies for moving us forward. (Early discussions have revealed emerging priorities for increasing self-sustaining programming, enhancing diversity and expanding international programming – but that could change as others have a chance for thoughtful review.) Be mindful that this is a fluid process. We will use the plan to set priorities, communicate and lead the university. We will update it annually. For now, the very best way to offer feedback is through active participation in your department’s development of strategies, tactics, and additional benchmarks.
All the best,
Martha
