We sat down with Chancellor Philip P. DiStefano to talk about his sixth State of the Campus Address, which will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 14, in Grusin Auditorium in the Imig Music Building. Doors open at 7:30 a.m. and the speech begins at 8 a.m.
Chancellor, what are the major themes of this year鈥檚 State of the Campus address?
Chancellor DiStefano: I鈥檓 going to talk first and foremost about how we are aligning our efforts around supporting student success. I鈥檓 going to update our community on the major steps we鈥檙e taking in that direction and will discuss how every person on campus can play a part in supporting our students. I will emphasize that a welcoming, inclusive climate is the first step in creating an environment that supports student success. And of course, I鈥檒l have some updates on some achievements and milestones achieved by our students, faculty and staff. I hope everyone can attend.
Without giving away too many of the details of the speech, what concerns you about the campus climate?
Chancellor DiStefano: I鈥檝e been here for 40 years and I can tell you that the positive energy and sense of possibilities that the campus community exudes have never been more pronounced. We have a more diverse group of faculty, staff and students than CU-麻豆影院 has ever had. And yet, if you were to ask many people on campus, they would tell you that there are many barriers to inclusiveness. Too many in our community don鈥檛 feel welcome, and in fact, feel marginalized, by their differences. This can be based on race, on ethnicity, on gender, on sexual orientation and even based on religion and personal politics. It鈥檚 never been more important for us to address this 鈥� precisely because our community is becoming more diverse all the time, because we want it to be moreso, and because among all institutions, a university must live up to the values of our nation. I鈥檒l offer some ideas about how we can do that and solicit ideas from our community on how we can do that.
What would you say your top three priorities are for the coming year?
Chancellor DiStefano: I think ensuring student success is number one and I鈥檒l talk a lot about that. I think creating a sustainable financial future with diverse revenues is a huge challenge, and I will of course address that. And our reputation is right there at number three. Each of these follows closely upon the another, and I will discuss that inter-relationship further.
What鈥檚 the best piece of news about the semester so far?
Chancellor DiStefano: That we鈥檝e enrolled the most academically qualified and most diverse freshman class in CU-麻豆影院 history. We鈥檝e seen significant increases in our esteemed scholars and a big increase in our international enrollment 鈥� we are truly a world-class university with a reputation that extends across the globe. And that means, of course, we have an immense responsibility to offer a world-class education that will provide a big return on investment for our students 鈥� and I believe we鈥檙e doing that.
What鈥檚 the biggest change you鈥檝e seen at CU-麻豆影院 in your 40 years of service?
Chancellor DiStefano: You mean besides my hair? I would say it follows on what I just said: we鈥檙e now a global university. When I arrived, we had fewer than 10,000 students. We had emerging research programs in space science and of course we had institutes like JILA, but they didn't have the international acclaim they have today. Today, we have a budget of over a billion dollars, we have five Nobel Prize winners, we won more than $400 million in sponsored research funding last year alone, and we have more than 30,000 students. Back then, we were a strong regional university and we made a huge difference in Colorado, but today, we鈥檙e not only transforming the state of Colorado, we鈥檙e transforming the world.
What do think the audience wants to hear from you?
Chancellor DiStefano: I hope they want to hear a truthful assessment of where we are regarding both our successes and our challenges. I think that people want to know what we need to do to manage the university as a united team to really make it a successful institution for the long term. I think people want to hear what we鈥檙e doing to build a more inclusive environment, a safer campus, and to improve our reputation with the people of Colorado and with all our stakeholders. I鈥檒l be enthusiastically addressing all these issues, so I want to invite our entire campus community to come and bring a friend.
Can't join us in person? You can watch the address live at听