State of the University speech wraps up the year

To wrap up what many see as a pivotal year for Seattle University— which included the first full year of Division I athletic competition, multiple construction projects and a record number of new freshman committing to Seattle U—President Stephen Sundborg, S.J. and the Associated Students of Seattle University have resurrected the annual State of the University speech.

More than 70 student leaders were invited to the luncheon, where attendees were afforded the chance to mingle with members of Seattle U's executive team, including executive vice president Tim Leary, vice president of University Advancement Mary Kay McFadden and Ron Smith, vice president of finance and business affairs.

The speech is meant to inform students of the goings-on at Seattle U from an administrative standpoint while giving a sneak peak at the moves the university will make in the future.

"This address is meant to inform the community where the university is headed and where its mission as a whole is headed," said ASSU president Jesse David in an opening address. "The idea is for student leaders to take this message back to where
they're from."

Each student in attendance was specifically invited by ASSU in order to represent the greater student body at the event.

These included representatives from ROTC, the Office of Multicultural Affairs and Housing and Residence Life. A majority of students had backgrounds in local service or were known for being active in the Seattle U community. A student government representative and a member of the executive team were present at each table.

Sundborg immediately emphasized leadership as he began his speech.

"I believe college and especially this university should be a laboratory for leadership," he said. "Anything you learn as a leader is transferable to other parts of your life."

Sundborg spoke first of the various facilities under construction around campus. He spoke of the Douglas Residence Hall and the Connolly Fitness Center addition.
Sundborg gave both of those projects a projected completion date of fall 2011.

As for the Lemieux Library project, he spoke of the new Byte café and 24-hour study areas, listing Aug. 1 as a finalized completion date for the project.

Sundborg mentioned a new residence hall project in the works. Prospectively, this new residence would occupy an as-of-yet undetermined space between Xavier Hall and the Lee Center. Sundborg gave no additional details on the project.

He continued by touching on the size of the class of 2014, citing Seattle U's growing reputation and a better system of admissions as two of the reasons for the 1,120 plus students incoming next fall.

"It was far more students than we had anticipated," Sundborg said.

"Our goal is not to have larger and larger classes. It is to have a predictable number of incoming students," he added.

Division I was the last major discussion item in Sundborg's speech. He did not mention the basketball program specifically, saying instead that it is important for Seattle U to match other Jesuit universities in terms of scope with the D-I move.

He said he was hopeful that D-I will take Seattle U forward and improve the university's
reputation nationwide.

"Athletics is a great window onto a great university," Sundborg said. "More people are going to know what Seattle U is."

Sundborg finished with a message about the Seattle University Youth Initiative, saying that it will provide an opportunity for student learning and youth justice in the local area.

During the question and answer session following the conclusion of the speech, Sundborg and other executives took questions from audience members.

The event concluded with short comments from two incoming ASSU executives. They spoke of continuity in the student government, mentioning initiatives such as the Be Heard system and the Student Savings benefits program—now renamed the SUper
Savings program.

"We're committed to starting on day one," said Mark Maddox, vice president of university
affairs-elect.

"[Our] goal is to better integrate ASSU into the community," added Kaylee Venosky, executive vice president-elect.

The State of the University speech originated as a quarterly open-forum brown bag luncheon hosted by the president. This year, Sundborg and the ASSU executives transformed it into a more formal event that is scheduled to occur on an
annual basis.

Fernando may be reached at news@su-spectator.com