President Scholz delivered the following remarks to the Board of Trustees on September 17, 2024:

Good morning.

Even though school still hasn’t started I feel like we are already in full swing as we step back into the rhythm of the academic year. I can’t wait to get started.

I want to use my time this morning to highlight a few important updates and firsts.

New leadership team

I am especially pleased and excited to welcome important additions to the leadership team:

• Provost Chris Long joined us right before graduation last year, coming from Michigan State. His leadership will be particularly critical to our success in elevating our scholarship through the strategic plan I discussed yesterday.
• Vice President for Student Life Angela Chong started August 15, joining us from Florida State. She is an experienced leader who is a champion of student success and a leader in building inclusive campus communities. Angela has already made substantial contributions as we prepare to welcome students back. 
• University Secretary and Advisor to the President Kody Kelleher also started with us August 15, joining us from the University of Arizona. Most of you have met him by now since he started a month ago and this is his first board of trustees meeting. These events don’t run without him and his team, and I am thankful he’s here.
• Chief Auditor Anta Coulibaly joined us August 19, having spent five and a half years as the director of Internal Audit and Enterprise Risk at the University of Montana. Over the course of her first year with us, one area of focus for her will be rebuilding the internal audit team. 
• I’d also like to acknowledge Jim Brooks for graciously agreeing to serve as interim VP for enrollment management. We will be opening a search later this year and, in the meantime, I know we will benefit from Jim’s steady leadership and stewardship. 

Recent events

We have played host to a few important events in the last month. We welcomed National Science Foundation President, Doctor Sethuraman Panchanathan, to campus. It was the first time in the 74-year history of the foundation that it has visited Eugene. 

We also hosted the inaugural conference of the Global Sport University Network Summit. We are especially proud because the vision for GSUN first started to take shape at the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact in 2022 during the World Athletics Championships. It builds on strong ties across the university, including our participation in Wu-Tsai Human Performance Alliance. 

Finally, we held the fall meeting of the Native American Advisory Council. This relationship between the university and the nine Tribes of Oregon is one I’m proud of. I’ve learned a lot about its significance and the NAAC’s unique standing among university-tribal relations. It’s something I’m dedicated to keep growing, and we had a great conversation followed by hosting them in the President’s Box for the football game against Boise State.

Portland

We have invested significantly lately in our connection to Portland. Just in the last week I’ve made three visits. On September 6 I met with legislative leaders on our Portland Campus and gave them an update on our strategic plan and presented an award. 

Last Monday I was on the campus of the University of Portland for a conversation with other university leaders and Portland Police Chief Bob Day. Then on Wednesday we were at a luncheon for Oregon Business and Industry.

In a couple of weeks, I will be at the all-campus welcome reception to greet people to our newly expanded Portland Campus and to greet the first cohort of the Ballmer Institute for Children’s Behavioral Health new undergraduate program. These represent huge steps forward in fulfilling the opportunities to serve students and the community in Portland and advancing our goals in the critical area of youth behavioral and mental health.

Excited for new school year

I can't help but be hopeful and excited at the onset of another school year. Fall sports are already in full swing. Our football team has been well covered, and our women’s athletics teams are thriving as they also transition to the Big 10. Our women’s cross-country team is ranked No. 4, and our volleyball team is ranked and just had a fantastic weekend. The soccer team is playing well and both or men’s and women’s golf teams are doing great. I look forward to watching us compete this fall. 

Free speech

The university has a long and proud history of engaging with the issues of the day and supporting members of our community to exercise their right to free speech, using any of the several means available to them to make their voices heard. We also take seriously the responsibility of providing education in an environment free from harassment, threat or bias.  

Transparent communication, thoughtful policy, and a shared sense of care for one another are the cornerstones of a thriving community. Our campus rules are designed to foster an inclusive, healthy environment. 

We have taken several steps ahead of the academic year, designed to help safeguard the rights of individuals to peacefully exercise free speech, but to do so in ways that align with our values as a university community.  

• First, we have reviewed all relevant policies. The upshot of this review is that our policies are in good shape. Hence, we are taking steps to educate our students, faculty and staff ahead of the start of school about our policies. This includes a poster campaign, programming at student orientation, outreach to faculty and staff.  
• Second, we have created a standardized approach to providing notice and enforcement of policy violations, creating greater clarity and additional tools to support those charged with addressing policy violations both in the moment, and in any following adjudication, if relevant 
• In line with our educational mission, we have created significant additional resources and training, focused on fostering dialogue, preventing bias and facilitating civic discourse.  
• Finally, we have a coordinated approach to ensure consistent and proactive communication over the fall. Provost Long, VP for Student Life Chong, VP for Equity and Inclusion Alex-Assensoh and I have all engaged in personal outreach over the summer to student groups, our faith-based communities, and others and will continue to do so. Student Life is also developing a comprehensive communication plan to inform families about resources available to their students. Finally, we will be centralizing all information on an updated site that will act as the single source of truth for resources, education, policy and updates. We will consistently point back to this site through the fall. 

As you can tell, there’s a lot going on. 

The strategic plan work especially has been a focus of this meeting, and we know that we are, at this point, at the beginning of our real work. 

Communications

I want to go back to Amy’s question yesterday about how we “get the word out” about the strategic plan priorities.

We have some significant plans to create and share more stories — to more people — about our university and about the impact of our work to society, the state and beyond. 

To that end, I’m happy to share, starting yesterday, we have launched Oregon News, a new weekly digital publication focused especially on stories that reflect our people, our scholarship and our larger aspirations. Thanks in part to the UO Foundation's investment in securing Salesforce/Marketing Cloud, this publication will reach a quarter million faculty, staff, students, civic leaders, alumni and parents. 

This represents nearly a six-fold increase in distribution and is the first significant effort to go beyond campus to reach key stakeholders. 

You should all have received our first edition in your inboxes, and I hope you will read and share the stories in this publication. At the December meeting, we will share additional plans to publicize our work and increase reputation in Oregon and beyond.

I again want to express my appreciation for the board of trustees for the great dialogue we have had these two days. We are at an important moment and I’m confident we have the right team and plan in place to rise to meet it.

Thank you.