president's report 2008
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President's Report 2008TRANSCRIPT
PRESIDENT’S REPORT2008
President’s Repor t 1 2008 1 1
Dear alumni and friends,
As spring emerges on the Hilltop, we enjoy the blossomingtrees, the budding flowers and the long-awaited sunshine. Thisyear spring is most welcome. As I watch students throwingfootballs or studying on blankets, I feel a renewed sense ofhope—the exhilaration that comes after a long winter.
This past winter brought uncertainty to all Americans and toBradley as well; we face a new economic landscape. But Ibelieve we can face it with purpose and optimism and that,ultimately, the experience—as withmost challenges—will make us stronger.
In this year’s President’s Report, I want to share with you allthe excitement of the past year, from the gala that kicked off theCampaign for a Bradley Renaissance to the introduction of anew tradition for students — Late Night BU at theMarkinCenter. Our generous donors have helped us build new facilitiesand beautify the campus. Andwe received two significantgrants, one to expand educational opportunities and another tofund an important research project. There is much on the brightside, besides the spring sunshine.
Nevertheless, I want to take this opportunity to address howthe world’s economic crisis has affected Bradley University. Oneof our foundations is the strength of our endowment. Theseassets help underpin our University’s capital structure, providefinancial assistance to attract and retain high-quality students,support teaching, learning and research, assist access tofinancial markets for our building program, and supply criticalsupport for our operations.
Universities across the country with a strong endowmenthave seen it drop in value recently. Bradley’s endowment declined26percent the last sixmonthsof2008,performingbetter thanmanyothers. Still this has put a strain onour budget andour operations.
As a result, faculty and staff have been implementing cost-savingmeasures that will reduce our costs without sacrificingour core mission. I have made it clear that we cannot—wewillnot—cut our way to excellence and that any changes wemakeshould not impact the outstanding academic experience weprovide our students.
Even in these difficult economic times, wemust ensure thatwemaintain— and even improve—what is important to usacademically, operationally and structurally. As we shape ourfuture, wemust preserve our past.
Let me give you an example. This year we renovated theWestlake Hall clock. Its works were aging and last summer astorm damaged its south face. Donated by the first class ofhorology students, this clock is a Bradley landmark. It remindsus of LydiaMoss Bradley’s goal that all graduates leavewith skillsthatwill allowthemto support themselves andcontribute to society.
Althoughwe no longer train watchmakers, we remain true toMrs. Bradley’s vision.We offer many opportunities for studentsto collaborate on practical projects and to do hands-on researchwith professors.We encourage students to participate ininternships and cooperative work experiences.
Despite the challenging economy, I want to assure you thatwe are continuing the goals of the Campaign for a BradleyRenaissance.We are working diligently to secure funds for anewHayden-Clark Alumni Center and a renovation andexpansion ofWestlake Hall. Construction continues on theAthletic Performance Center and the PuterbaughMen’sBasketball Practice Facility. TheMarkin Family StudentRecreation Center opened inOctober; the first jewel of ourRenaissanceCampaign ismagnificent. Andwe remain committedto building our Engineering-Business Convergence Center, afacility that will become a signature structure on our campus.
I hope youwill take amoment to review the year’s highlightsand the Honor Roll of Donors that follow. I want to extend asincere “thank you” to each individual who contributes time,talent and resources to make Bradley the unique andoutstanding institution it is.
The Renaissance Campaign is transforming our campus,creating new and vibrant space for our students to learn,recreate and participate. The Campaign is our keystone inmaking Bradley a university of national distinction.With yoursupport, imagine what we will do next.
I wish the best for you and your family in the coming year.
Warm regards,
Joanne GlasserPresident
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The Renaissance begins.Any night of the week, theMarkin FamilyStudent Recreation Center is filled with students running,walking, swimming, studying or visiting with friends. Studentscome to learn new skills, such as fencing or yoga, in one of thefive multipurpose rooms. They love the climbing and boulderingwalls and have kept the exercise equipment in constant use. Sinceopening in October 2008, theMarkin Center has become the hubof student life on campus, with nearly 1,600 students, faculty andstaff members using it each day.We have seen how the addition ofthis magnificent new facility has enhanced the BradleyExperience for our students and the entire campus community.We have also seen how the center’s new nursing labs, with theirsophisticated electronic manikins, have transformed the learningexperience for nursing students. Students also benefit from theconvenient newHealth Center, Counseling Center andWellnessProgram in theMarkin Center. This is the first majorconstruction project completed in the Campaign for a BradleyRenaissance. As wemove forward, we will continue to see howthoughtful investment will help the Bradley Experience flourish.
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Late Night BU.With the opening of theMarkin Center, we began anew tradition—Late Night BU. These fun, themed events offerplenty of food, games and entertainment and provide an alcohol-free alternative for late-night activity. Developed as part of theComprehensive Alcohol Action Plan, Late Night BU events areheld several times throughout the semester and have drawn asmany as 900 students between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. Additionally,Lydia’s Lounge provides an alcohol-free social environment withlate-night entertainment every weekend during regular semesters.
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A new era.Construction began last fall on the AthleticPerformance Center and the PuterbaughMen’s BasketballPractice Facility. The APCwill provide a new visual identity forthe university. The entryway to the Athletic Performance Centerwill reflect the familiar arched lines of RobertsonMemorial FieldHouse, but make its own architectural statement. Students will be
able to enjoy popular performers right on campus in the 4,200-seat arena, which will also serve as home court for women’sbasketball and volleyball. The Puterbaugh Facility will ensurethat the men’s basketball team has first-rate, dedicated practicecourts that will allow the program to compete at the highest levelsin the nation.
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Among the best.We continued the tradition of being ranked as oneof the top universities in theMidwest byU.S. News&WorldReport in its “America’s Best Colleges” listing. Earning a top spotfor more than 10 consecutive years, Bradley ranked sixth amongcomprehensive universities in the region andwewere the fourthhighestMidwestern school in the ranking of Great Schools, GreatPrices. In addition, the College of Engineering and Technologyranked 27th nationally with its manufacturing program ratedthird nationally. BU has also been included in the PrincetonReview’s 368 Best Colleges and on Forbes.com’s list of topundergraduate colleges and universities in America.
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Lydia’s favorite flower.Whenwe decided to enhance the beauty ofour campus, we knewwhat flowers to plant. LydiaMossBradley’s statue in Founder’s Circle is now surrounded bybeautiful red roses—the same flowers she planted in her owngarden onMoss Avenue.We also added amodern look bysurrounding the perimeter of campus with bright red banners.Throughout the year, we hope to add banners promoting the bestthe university has to offer. This summer look for bannersfeaturing extraordinary students from each of our five colleges.
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Improvingmedical training.With the help of an $850,000 grant fromthe United States ArmyMedical Research andMaterialCommand, a group of Bradley professors and local medicalprofessionals is working to create a new generation of cost-effective medical simulators. The group, Peoria Robotics, wantsto simulate tests that require the sense of touch for diagnosticperceptions and develop ameans to teach and duplicate a wide-range of exam experiences and pathological conditions. PeoriaRobotics dreams of developing technology that can provide arealistic experience for medical students. Ultimately, they hope tostart a small company in the Peoria area to produce thesimulators.
Since opening in October 2008,
the Markin Center has become
the hub of student life on campus….
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Award-winning performances.Our Theatre Department, along withtheatre units at the University ofWaterloo inOntario, Canada,and the University of Central Florida in Orlando, received twoprestigious awards for their collaborative efforts: the 2008ORIONLearning Award ofMerit forAlice (Experiments) inWonderland: A Convergent Telematic Performance and the 2008Internet2 IDEAAward forThe AddingMachine.The threecampuses simultaneously presented the performances in theirtheaters in front of live audiences through the use of broadbandcomputers and 2-D and 3-D sets with multiple screens andlighting effects with live actors appearing on stage in each venue.
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First time, first place. In 2008, a team ofMBA students representedBradley in the Society for the Advancement ofManagementInternational Case Competition for the first time. And they tookfirst place, besting teams from 38 other schools. The team,Helena Racicka, Hana Syslova, Jennifer Franczak and AbishekManmadhan, prepared a strategic turnaround and executionplan for a real company that has seen consistent decline in itssales and profits over the last few years. After researching thecompany, they presented a new strategic direction through athree-year plan. They then answered questions from the panel ofjudges.
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A Springboard for businesses.Memwäs, an easy-to-use, interactiveaudiovisual guestbook experience for weddings and specialevents, was chosen as the winner of the 2008 Second AnnualSpringboard Business Plan Competition. Offering students real-life experience in business plan development and the opportunityto win cash and services valued at more than $100,000, ProjectSpringboard encourages and educates aspiring entrepreneurs inthe creation and start-up of companies. The hope is thatSpringboard launches potentially high-growth businesses.Through the use of a kiosk, or theMemwäs InteractiveGuestbook, guests record personal videomessages, providing avideo keepsake of special events.Memwäs set up a kiosk at theMarkin Family Student Recreation Center dedication and createda videomemory of people’s first impressions of the facility.
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PT program evolves. Sixteen Doctor of Physical Therapy studentsmade history in 2008when they became the first to graduatefrom Bradley’s sole doctoral program. Seeking to stay on thecutting edge of physical therapy education, we decided this wasthe time to launch downstate Illinois’ first DPT. The DPT evolvedfrom the department’s original bachelor’s degree established in1990, which later developed into the master’s degree. Both ofthese programswere phased out with the introduction of the DPT.
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Student-athletes excel.An important part of Bradley’s strong athletichistory is that our student-athletes understand the importance ofbalancing academics with athletics. For 2007-2008, the BradleyUniversity men’s golf and soccer teams andwomen’s tennis andvolleyball teams received Public Recognition Awards from theNCAA in honor of their academic achievements. For this sameperiod, Bradley was second in theMissouri Valley Conferencewith four team awards. In the most recent release of four-classgraduation rates from theNCAA, we continued to lead TheValley at 77 percent. Also in 2007-2008, Eitan Barbalat, baseball;Todd Reedy, soccer; and Evgeny Samoylov, men’s tennis, werenamed Academic All-Americans, while Reedy and Barbalat wereboth candidates for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in theirrespective sports. In 2008, Kim Braun, women’s tennis, wasnamed to the Academic All-District V At-Large First Team andtheMVC Scholar-Athlete First Team. Reedy, a major inmechanical engineering, went on to become the fifth player inBraves history to receive a prestigious NCAA PostgraduateScholarship.
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A newPre-Law Center.We have added a Pre-LawCenter to helpstudents prepare for and apply to law school and learnmoreabout the legal profession. Future plans include the developmentof classes to introduce undergraduate students to the legalprofession and to prepare more senior students for internships.Maria Vertuno, J.D., is the center’s first full-time director.
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Honoring our first Cabinet secretary. Shortly after retiring from the18th Congressional District seat, Ray LaHood ’71 wasnominated by President BarackObama to be the new Secretary ofTransportation. LaHood became the first Peorian—and firstBradley alumnus—to occupy a Cabinet position. The 52-yeartradition of a Bradley alum occupying the 18th CongressionalDistrict seat continued inNovember when Aaron Schock ’02won the election. Bradley alum BobMichel ’48 occupied the seatfrom 1957-1995. LaHood, who held the seat from 1995-2009,was named Bradley’s 2008Distinguished Alumnus and became amember of the Centurion Society.
A perfect fit.With our rich history in Division I sports, outstandingcommunication programs and nationally renowned alumni, suchas Charley Steiner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the newconcentration in sports communication is a perfect fit for Bradley.Sports comwill provide a strong academic foundation in diverseaspects of sports communications, including sports promotion,marketing andmanagement. The programwill offer partnershipswithmajor sports andmedia organizations, guest professors andlecturers from the professional world of sports communication,and expedition courses to major sports andmedia venues.
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Support for STEM scholars.A $600,000 grant from theNationalScience Foundation will allow us to provide financial assistanceso talented, economically disadvantaged students can attendBradley and study in the STEM areas. By encouraging students tostudy science, technology, engineering andmath, we will helpcreate the workforce needed for the 21st century— andwewillhelp provide a promising future for these students. The inauguralgroup of STEM Scholars, composed of incoming freshmen andtransfers from two-year colleges, will enroll this fall. They willalso participate in the upcoming three-week STEM ScholarsSummer Program andwill be eligible for paid summer researchinternship positions prior to enrollment.
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The ForeWarn initiative.We have put in place a multi-dimensionalplan—ForeWarn— to help prepare our campus in the event ofan emergency, whether it be a natural or manmade disaster.Wehave a text messaging system that sends emergency alerts toregistered cell phones. Additionally, faculty or staff members incharge of a classroommust ensure that a registered cell phone ison during class.We also have installed public address emergencyalert systems inmany buildings across campus. As necessary,emergency notifications will be put on ourWeb site, sent tocampus e-mail addresses, and recorded on our telephone hotline.
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President’s office hours. President Joanne Glasser wants to keep intouch with students. So she has begun a new tradition of holdingmonthly office hours open to all students. This marks the firsttime that a Bradley president has held open office hours forstudents. At the three sessions during the spring semester, about100 students visited her office in Swords Hall. Their concernsranged from recycling, graduate assistantships, the Pre-LawCenter, a university mascot andmore. President Glasser willcontinue to hold office hours once amonth during the fall andspring semesters.
An energetic conference. For the second consecutive year, theInstitute for Principled Leadership in Public Service at Bradleyexplored a controversial national topic at itsMidwest EnergySolutions symposium inOctober 2008. Eager to help the regionplay a critical role in reshaping the national energy strategy, IPLbrought together a wide range of experts to discuss ideas onsolving this crisis.Wewill send the symposium’s findings andrecommendations to the National Science Foundation, fromwhere they will make their way to the 111th Congress as it beginsto map a new energy strategy for the country.
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Sharing his story. In December 2008, HallmarkHall of Fameaired amovie about the life of a remarkable Bradley alumnus,Brad Cohen ’96. Based on his book, Front of the Class, themovie follows Cohen’s life from the time he was diagnosedwith Tourette syndrome to when he landed his first teachingjob. Cohen, now a lead teacher in suburban Atlanta, said themovie is a celebration of everyone who has supported himthroughout his life.
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Stressing public service. Patrick Fitzgerald, U.S. Attorney for theNorthern District of Illinois, spoke to graduates atMid-YearCommencement in December, where he was awarded anhonorary Doctor of Humane Letters. Fitzgerald, who spokeabout the importance of public service, is the district’s top federallaw enforcement official. Eleven days prior to giving thecommencement address, his office charged former Illinois Gov.Rod Blagojevich with various counts of public corruption. In2006, Fitzgerald’s office obtained the conviction of former Gov.George Ryan on similar charges.
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Saying goodbye.We bid farewell this year to RobertsonMemorialField House. Built out of twoWorldWar II airplane hangars, theField House had a raised court and, when fans began to stompand cheer, deafening sound.Mindful of the significance of thisbuilding’s history, we will preserve the memories that it inspiresand continue to honor Coach A.J. Robertson, for whom it wasnamed. In his 28 years at Bradley, Robertson coached football,basketball and baseball simultaneously and also served as athleticdirector. A statue of Robertson will be erected near the AthleticPerformance Center, which is being built on the site of the oldField House. Before the Field House was razed, a goodbyeceremonywas held and Robertson’s great-grandson James madethe last basket on the historic court.Memories of the Field Housewill be incorporated into the Athletic Hall of Fame, which will bea prominent feature of the Performance Center.
Mindful of the significance
of this building’s history,
we will preserve the memories
that it inspires and
continue to honor
Coach A.J. Robertson,
for whom it was named.
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Imagine Bradley’s future.When Bradley University hosted its Red TieGala to kick off the Campaign for a Bradley Renaissance on April24, 2008, the 1,000 alumni, employees, students and friendsattending were encouraged to “imagine what we’ll do next.”Making it easier to imagine howwe can shape Bradley’s futurewas the announcement of the largest gift in Bradley’s history, a$30million contribution fromCaterpillar Inc.; the recognition of20 individual, corporate, foundation and estate gifts of $1millionor more; and the realization that nearly $105million had alreadybeen raised toward a $150million goal. “Wewant you toimagine, imagine, imagine, and together, we can seize themoment,” President Joanne Glasser told the audience.With thestrength of our academic programs andwith the help of thecampaign, Bradley’s future looks bright.We can imagine a futurefull of possibilities and opportunities, a future in which Bradleywill be recognized nationally for its outstanding and innovativeacademic programs.
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Welcome alumni!With the announcement in fall 2008 of two $2.5million gifts, we look forward to welcoming alumni to campuswith a stunning newAlumni Center. The gifts, from Jerry ’59 andMarilynHayden ’61 and Bob ’67 and Kathleen Clark, willsupport the building of a new 34,700-square-foot Alumni Center.Looking out over a beautifully landscaped Alumni Quad behindBradley Hall, the Hayden-Clark Alumni Center will connect thebuildings on the west side of campus. It will include an alumnihall of pride, an alumni library, offices, conference rooms and aballroom that can accommodate more than 200 guests. The costof the Hayden-Clark Alumni Center is projected to be about $12million.
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The time is now. For more than a century,Westlake Hall’sclock tower has silently kept time as Bradley has grownfrom an academy and two-year college into the outstandingcomprehensive university of today. As a symbol of LydiaMoss Bradley’s goal that students learn practical skills, such aswatchmaking, the clock reminds us of our past, just as it pointsto our future.We restored the condition and appearance of theclock this year, but now is the time to do evenmore.WestlakeHall no longer adequately serves the College of Education andHealth Sciences andmust be renovated and expanded. Newclassrooms, training areas and labs will help us better preparestudents to teach in the essential areas of science, mathematics,language arts and reading. They will provide the space to traincounselors and educational leaders. Plans for the newWestlake,which will retain its classic architectural features, include over85,000 square feet of office and learning space. Once expandedand renovated,Westlake will also be home to the Institute forPrincipled Leadership in Public Service.
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DEMAND 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Freshmen Applications
Received 5,203 5,757 5,503 5,187 5,720
Acceptance Rate 68.6% 64.3% 69.4% 68.8% 67.2%
CONTRIBUTION RATIOS
percentage of current fund revenues
Tuition and Fees 56.0% 58.9% 60.5% 60.6% 57.7%
Contributions 7.1% 5.2% 2.5% 2.9% 2.6%
Investment Return
for Operations 7.6% 7.7% 8.3% 8.4% 10.5%
Auxiliary Income 16.5% 16.5% 16.6% 16.7% 15.5%
MARKETVALUE OF INVESTMENTS ($000S)
Endowment
Funds 163,886 185,450 208,089 245,507 242,512
Annuities & Funds
Held inTrust 9,205 9,285 10,301 11,462 11,857
LIQUIDITY INDICATORS
Cash &
Cash Equivalents 6,569 4,148 7,569 11,641 17,901
Cash & Investments
to Operations 166.2% 182.0% 204.0% 231.4% 216.6%
Debt to Equity 21.8% 20.5% 16.4% 34.6% 32.7%
OTHER SELECTED DATA
Full-time Equivalent
Enrollment 5,480 5,497 5,560 5,537 5,508
Total University
Assets, Net ($000s) 249,166 268,624 310,331 366,473 386,135
Total Gifts ($000s) 13,682 10,288 10,136 10,736 18,312
Copies of the University’s audited 2007-2008 annual financialreport and additional information are available from the
Office of theVice President for Business Affairs,1501W. Bradley Avenue, Peoria, IL 61625.
FINANCIAL INDICATORS
President’s Repor t 1 2007-08 1 13
Office of the President1501West Bradley AvenuePeoria, Illinois 61625
NON-PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE
PAIDPEORIA, IL
PERMIT NO. 688
Since opening in October 2008, the Markin FamilyStudent Recreation Center has become the socialand recreational hub of campus. Nearly 1,600students, faculty and staff use it each day.