In advancing ASU, we focus on quality and access. In that regard please watch what we do and who we impact.

When I arrived in 2002, the West campus was defined as a satellite campus, subordinate to the main campus in Tempe. I knew this model would not provide the kind of educational programs and academic excellence that would serve fast-growing West Valley communities.

I commissioned a task force that recommended a different organizational model, called “One University in Many Places.” Under this model, each of ASU’s campuses is expected to achieve the same level of academic and research excellence as the rest of the university. Each was encouraged to develop its own unique mission and identity so that it could attract students not only locally, but from the rest of the state, nation and world.

I also initiated a comprehensive development plan for all campuses in order to determine what types of facilities we would have to build in order to meet our mission of providing access to higher education for all Arizona students who are qualified to do the work

I will let the results speak for themselves. The West campus is no longer a second-class satellite to a main campus in. The core college on the campus, the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, is now led by a world-class academic dean who has both an outstanding academic record and a first-class academic leadership record.

We opened the Las Casas residence hall in 2003, bringing resident student life to a previously all-commuter campus, and we have issued a request for proposal to build additional student housing. We opened the second half of the CLCC (Classroom Lab/Computer Classroom) Building in 2004, providing much-needed additional classroom, science lab and computer classroom facilities. We are currently renovating and expanding the West campus bookstore, expanding the student health services center and adding a student union.

When I arrived, the West campus’s total state operating budget was $42 million. Before the recent state budget cuts, we had grown the budget to almost $80 million, a 91 percent increase. Research expenditures by faculty on the campus, which directly impact the economy of the West Valley, were $2.5 million when I arrived. We have more than doubled research expenditures to $6.7 million in FY2008.

We increased financial aid by more than 60 percent and doubled the number of undergraduate and graduate degrees offered on the West campus. We also invested in hiring exceptional faculty, representative of the communities we serve.

From Fall 2001 to Fall 2008, the number of tenured/tenure track faculty on the West campus increased by 26 percent, and the percentage of minority tenure/tenure track faculty increased by almost 50 percent, as shown in the chart above.

As a result of these actions, student enrollment has accelerated. As you see in the chart above, student enrollment was flat or grew slightly in the 10 years from 1992 to 2001. In the last seven years, enrollment on the West campus has grown by 44 percent.

Not only has enrollment grown significantly, but the student population on the West campus is also now more representative of the demographics of Arizona, as you will see in the chart below.

To summarize, we have: 1) repositioned the West campus to provide the kind of undergraduate and graduate education programs the West Valley needs; 2) doubled the number of undergraduate and graduate degrees offered; 3) significantly increased the number, academic quality and diversity of both its faculty and students; 4) built and opened new facilities of all types (residence halls, classrooms, science labs and offices); 5) almost doubled its operating budget; and 6) more than doubled its research expenditures. If you have any questions about any of this information, please let me know.