VALDOSTA— The 2010 academic year is upon us, and on Monday Valdosta State University President Dr. Patrick J. Schloss gave his annual Fall Convocation address at the Fine Art Building’s Whitehead Auditorium.
Schloss headlined his 2010 convocation by giving five guarantees which was headlined by promising that there will be no reduction in work force at VSU and that if left to the universities discretion, no salaries will be reduced through furlough days in order to cut the upcoming year’s budget.
“If given to our discretion, we will not furlough to cut out budget,” Schloss said. “We do not have to do that like other universities do.”
Schloss’ other guarantees included increasing the safety of the university students and faculty while providing better health care through the health center by expanding hours to Saturday, and providing more on-campus counselors, along with continuing to offer rich array of academic offerings to students.
Additionally Schloss mentioned that additional budget reductions will only be made by the Planning and Budget Committee, in an open and deliberative and equitable manner. Schloss finished his five guarantees for 2010 with guaranteeing that VSU will continue to fund initiatives that support work and insure emergence of Valdosta State as a leader among its peers.
Some new organizations and additions include the reaffirmation by SACS, funding pools that allow faculty and staff to purchase equipment and develop programs not available through department budgets, the expansion of the staff at the university counseling center, the addition of more police on the Valdosta State police force, the expansion of the health center services— which will include Saturday hours— and academic support and the expansion of the new Advanced Spectroscopy and Biotechnical Facility.
Although over 19 million dollars has been cut from the 2010 budget, construction is still set to begin on the new Psychology and Counseling Building, that will replace one wing of Converse hall, and that the ground breaking for a new Health and Sciences Center on North Campus will occur in the next year to year in a half.
Additionally Schloss highlighted the construction of the new Jerry and Kay Jennett Hall—which is the new 16,000 square foot academic building that is being built in front of the Education Building— along with plans to create more campus housing while increasing the percentage of faculty holding terminal degrees, and increasing support for nontraditional students with specific focus on relationships with two-year technical schools and community colleges.
According to Schloss the growth of Valdosta State University in 2009 was over 900 students, which is the largest increase in 16 years and the same is expected in 2010.
“This year will be a comparable increase,” Schloss said. “The two-year percentage gain may be the largest in the post Vietnam era.”
According to Schloss, now over 50 percent of the VSU student body is made from students that call the Atlanta area home. Something Schloss is proud of.
“What is that, a four hour drive? So think of that, these students are driving four hours to come to school here,” Schloss said. “They have to pass a lot of other institutions to get here. They pass Georgia State, the University of Georgia, which is one of the best land grant universities in the country, they pass Georgia Tech, which is a fine engineering university, and they pass Kennesaw State and West Georgia and that list continues.”
Although VSU continues to grow at a rapid rate, Schloss admits that not all students are earning degrees from Valdosta State and are using VSU as a stepping stone to other institutions and the focus will continue to keep students at VSU.
“More students go from VSU to two-year schools rather than two-year schools to Valdosta State,’ Schloss said. “We have to work on that.”
The rapid growth of the Valdosta State community has a large economic impact on the city of Valdosta and the outlaying areas. According to Schloss, each student contributes nearly $18,000 in value to the local economy each academic year. In 2009, VSU’s total economic impact on the region amassed $537 million dollars.
“(The students) are driving commerce into Valdosta,” Schloss said. “They’re going to the mall, going to the gas stations or going to get haircuts.”