UC President Nancy Zimpher visited RWC campus on May 8 and spoke on the newly published 10-year Strategic Plan for Higher Education in Ohio. This meeting was attended by mostly RWC faculty plus a few students and staff members. In her 40-minute speech, Zimpher delivered five themes that she wished to center her plans for UC around: accessibility, affordability, quality, economic development, and accountability. Her goals to pursue and ensure financial stability to higher education within the state of Ohio were also a main topic of discussion at her meeting.
Zimpher discussed UC recognition in Ohio’s 1st National Scholarship Program, which distributes scholarship money to students in Ohio’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) program. Only seven awards were given state wide, UC being one of them, getting an award that included $50 million for STEM students, for the reason, as Zimpher said, that STEM programs are “essential for economic development.”
Following her speech, Zimpher opened the floor for questions. The first question was a protest letter to the idea of converting UC from quarters to semesters in 2010. The letter called the conversion “bad policy for the college” and “not affordable.”
Zimpher replied by informing the audience of a forum being held on May 22, where the conversion will be discussed and debated.
Zimpher then delivered three issues that she would like to acknowledge about the conversion process: the interest of the students, the integrity of co-op programs, and finally the re-examination of school curriculum.
Another question asked at the meeting allowed Zimpher to comment on RWC’s status in relationship to the UC main campus. This question asked whether RWC was being represented and funded like a two-year institution or a four-year institution. Zimpher set the record straight by acknowledging RWC as part of UC, stating that RWC was, in fact, being represented and funded like UC, as a four-year institution.