It’s been a landmark fall for St. Cloud State University as we celebrated a series of sesquicentennial events with campus and community folks and had opportunities to connect and reflect on our history and heritage.
This fall also marked a number of historic philanthropic gifts from donors that created state-of-the-art academic facilities and resources for our students.
Some of the remarkable new programs and facilities for students we launched this past few months with support from generous supporters will build on the many ways we already provide hands-on experiences to our students and benefit our region. They include:
- Collaboration with Greater St. Cloud Development Corporation and St. Cloud Area Chamber of Commerce to inspire partnerships between St. Cloud State and local firms through internships and other joint ventures.
- Financial Markets Lab, made possible by a $1 million donation from university alums Ron and Bonnie Swenson, a high-tech new resource for students to access immediate information from national and international financial markets.
- Maciej Nursing Education Suite, made possible by a $1 million gift from Jim and Anne Marie Maciej, to provide a state-of-the-art nursing simulation lab.
- CentraCare/St. Cloud State partnership through the $1.5 million commitment from CentraCare that will help establish a Graduate Nursing Education Program and the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research on our campus.
- Anoka Ramsey/SCSU partnership between ARCC and the general business major in the Herberger Business School, expanding accessible opportunities for students.
- Remodeled and reimagined Eastman Hall, home of the Center for Health and Wellness Innovation to serve our students’ academic, mental and physical needs and well-being for decades to come.
- Assistive Technology Lab, a first among Minnesota universities, to provide resources to help campus and community constituencies use assistive technology to address and reduce the barriers that keep people with disabilities from reaching their potential.
- Husky Plaza with its bronze husky dog to celebrate our heritage and pride in St. Cloud State University. Alumni, faculty/staff and friends of the university purchased bricks inscribed with expressions of fond memories and Husky spirit, raising $80,000 for scholarships.
We are proud to be a public regional comprehensive university: affordable, accessible and adaptable to the needs of a broad range of students and the region’s education, businesses and non-profit institutions. We offer our region the vast resources and faculty expertise of a larger university and the welcoming environment of a smaller university.
Ninety-eight percent of our graduates are employed and of those, 97% are working in fields related to their majors. Our alumni are serving in leadership positions in our community and teaching in our schools, working in our businesses and our hospitals. They are actively involved in the arts and – along with our students, faculty and staff – contribute more than $600 million annually to the local economy and nearly two million volunteer hours to charitable organizations.
A commitment to continue to provide a high-quality education and be responsive to the needs of the greater St. Cloud region also requires a commitment to boldly changing how we operate in the rapidly changing higher education landscape. And change we must if we are going to continue to be responsive and relevant.
It’s time.
It’s time to respond because higher education and St. Cloud State currently are experiencing one of the most accelerated and disruptive social, demographic and technological changes that comes only once in a generation. The most obvious impact of these changes has been on our enrollment.
New realities include fewer high school graduates throughout Minnesota and the Midwest, as well as significantly more choices for higher education – 150-plus higher education options in Minnesota alone, including online colleges that offer new approaches to delivering degree programs.
Our new reality also includes a change in how students begin and complete their university experience. A decade ago, students enrolled directly from high school as freshmen, spent four years in college, graduated and worked in a career for 25 years and then retired.
A new trend of learners looping in and out of higher education is emerging. Many are taking a “gap year” before they come to college. A significant number of our students are now entering with enough credits from a community college or concurrent enrollment in high school to be classified as juniors. A remarkable 70% of undergraduates are considered nontraditional, including those over age 25, veterans of military service and mid-life career changers.
This fall we have turned our attention to identifying what SCSU will be in the future and how we will change to address these challenges. Members of our campus community are excited about proactively shaping our future to ensure that SCSU remains a thriving and relevant institution. We are ready to build on a foundation of strength and move forward with big, positive changes.
It’s time.
This is the opinion of St. Cloud State University President Robbyn Wacker. To A Higher Degree is published the fourth Sunday of the month and rotates among the presidents of the four largest Central Minnesota higher education institutions.
