It’s finally here!
We made it to the first week of fall classes! It has been nice seeing so many of you at our opening events. Just to catch you up, I provided some timely updates at the annual Welcome Back event (more below in case you missed it) and enjoyed chatting with lots of new and long-time employees; joined many of you, trustees and students to help move in our newest Eagles and their carloads of stuff (I pulled the Margaret Nance assignment again – those stairs…whew!); and welcomed our new Eagles at yesterday’s Convocation. I must say, it was very moving and poignant to see more than 1,000 candles glowing in unity as we started a new tradition, “Lighting the Winthrop Way.” Thank you for participating in these opening events! They were a fitting start to what we know will be a special fall semester. Now, let me fill you in on the following:
Welcome Back Recap
In case you missed the Aug. 18 Welcome Back, I reiterated that over the last three years we have pushed back against a dated negative narrative and taken great strides. I shared that we have more than 1,000 freshmen and around 350 new transfers who are now on campus and that we have utilized all available beds, including Roddey and Walk2Campus, to house all of those who wanted on-campus accommodations. We’ll soon begin looking into when is the best time to start building a new residence hall. I went on record saying that we had our second-highest fundraising year ever at $7.95 million – truly incredible! We’ve introduced first-in-the-state academic programs, balanced our budget, lowered our tuition via the multi-year Tuition Transparency Initiative, just last week opened our new interior design center at The Thread, increased the number of student organizations and expanded the Greek Life community, and too much more to mention here. Thanks to everyone for helping us shift the narrative. We are certainly on the rise.
Strategic Plan
As promised, I wanted to share our final report on our strategic plan’s phase 1 initiatives. You can view the attached summary of how we successfully implemented our initiatives. Thanks to everyone who helped make phase 1 a success. The vice presidents and I have identified nine initiatives that will make up phase 2 of the strategic plan. I’ll share more about those soon.
Policy Repository
Did you know that Winthrop has a policy repository that houses policies that have been through the official university development and approval process and have university-wide application? Policies are organized in 16 categories that cover Human Resources, Academics, Campus, and more. I encourage you to check out the site that this summer converted over to our web content management system.
9/11 Remembrance
On Thursday, Sept. 11, there will be several remembrance events occurring on campus.
The first gathering will take place at the Tillman fountain plaza beginning at 8:30
a.m. Presentation of colors, patriotic music, some brief remarks, and a moment of
silence at approximately 8:46 a.m., the exact time a plane struck the World Trade
Center North Tower, are among the plans. Other events will be held throughout the
day at the Coliseum. At 9 a.m., inside the Coliseum, the Rock Hill Fire Department
will lead a silent Memorial Stair Climb to pay tribute to the brave first responders
who climbed the many stairs of the World Trade Center towers. Everyone is invited
to climb as many stairs as you are able. Finally, at the front entrance of the Farm
will be a Flags for Heroes display. The Boy Scouts of America, Palmetto Council, is
honoring local heroes by displaying American flags and dog tags of military veterans
in our area in appreciation of the service and sacrifice of these individuals in our
community. The flags will be on display Sept. 6-11.
Fall Sports and Homecoming Tailgate
I encourage you to support our fall sports teams – soccer, volleyball, basketball
– at some games this season. Even more of an incentive to attend is that the athletic
department offers free admission to employees and their immediate family members to
all regular season home events! Check out the teams’ schedules, and best of luck on successful seasons. Also, be sure to mark your calendar for
Saturday, Nov. 15, for two special Homecoming games. At 2 p.m., the men’s basketball
team will play Mercer, and the women’s basketball team will follow at 4:30 p.m. with
a game against Queens. If you plan to tailgate before these games using a tent, reserved tailgating spots go on sale Sept. 4.
Garnet and Gold Fridays
I hope you’ll continue to join me on Fridays by wearing Garnet and Gold! Sport that
Winthrop sweatshirt/T-shirt/hoodie to show off your Eagle spirit! If you need some
new Winthrop apparel, check out the bookstore and use your employee discount in the store to score some new swag or you may purchase
items online here and here.
As you can see, we’re off to a busy start to this academic year. Let’s work together to have a great semester!
Always an Eagle,
Edward
Edward Serna
President
