Albrecht says facility improvements will continue
Utah State University plans to continue improving facilities while facing the challenges that come with declining enrollment, USU President Stan Albrecht said Tuesday at a meeting of the membership of the Cache Chamber of Commerce.
Albrecht said the university faced declining enrollment with the passage of House Bill 331, which may have cost the university as much as $8.5 million. He said the most recent Legislature passed was HB 66, which allowed some flexibility and authorized as many as 400 waivers to assist incoming students. He said 6,000 postcards have been sent to potential students and USU’s applications for the coming school year reflect 500 more than the previous year, with a 29 percent increase in out-of-state applications.
“We are letting folks get excited about USU,” Albrecht said of the Road Scholar Tour, which has taken students and faculty to promotional and recruitment activities in Sandy, Layton, Provo and southern Idaho.
Since receiving a $5.3 million gift for new buildings in the Uintah Basin, Ablrecht called this past year “our best year in terms of private giving.” He said the university will continue to focus on private giving since government cannot always be relied upon for funding.
He said the 2005-06 school year was a “year of transformation.” Albrecht pointed to the dedication of a new library and the destruction of an older library as examples. The new building taking the Merrill Library’s place, he said, will be a “signature building on campus” and will hold areas for computer science, business and other disciplines. Plans are also being finalized for improvements at Romney Stadium, which, he said, will improve athletic recruiting.
“Our football team will get better,” he said. “I have faith in that.”
Albrecht said he feels good about USU’s first year in the Western Athletic Conference. He said USU was in the “Sweet 16” in terms of graduation rates of athletes.
“We are doing a nice job, but not losing sight of the importance of academics,” he said.
The university is still working to get through the van accident that occurred last September. Concerning comments that the driver of the van was speeding, Albrecht said he has spoken with a captain of the Utah Highway Patrol who apologized for things that were stated earlier, which were “highly innacurate.” The university is completing a memorial for the students and faculty member killed in that accident, Albrecht said.
“It’s been a challenging year, but this is the best place on Earth,” Albrecht said. “I grew up with a great appreciation of the wonders and beauty of Cache Valley.”