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Introduction
by
Dr. Floretta
McKenzie
Vice
Chairperson
Howard University Board of Trustees
Mr.
President, Reverend Jackson, members of the Howard community,
guests, friends, and especially the class of 2003.
On
behalf of the Board of Trustees, I am pleased to welcome you to
this convocation marking the formal opening of Howard
University’s 132nd academic year.
First,
I would like to thank and commend Reverend Jackson, a stalwart
of the civil rights movement.
His commitment to reconciliation and role as the
“conscience of the nation” are exemplary. He
plays an instrumental role in world affairs and has worked
tirelessly to help resolve numerous potentially volatile
situations throughout the world.
He is a “one man” united nations. He
has been a special friend to Howard University, and advocate for
our initiatives.
I
also want to take this opportunity to commend and thank our
President, Pat Swygert. His
tireless leadership and vision continue to serve as the catalyst
for our evolution into the millennium.
He has provided dynamic and visionary leadership. He
has proceeded with dispatch and precision in implementing the
strategic framework for action, our blueprint for the future
direction of the university.
Pat,
we continue to commend ourselves for such good judgment in
recruiting you to serve as our leader.
Our
respect, appreciation, and support for you have grown over the
past four years as you have undertaken the transformation of alma
mater. Thank
you.
Also,
let me salute Sonja Swygert.
She has been his helpmate and steward in her own right,
particularly with the friends of
Moorland-Spingarn, the
University Library, and the Howard University
Hospital.
Thank you, Sonja.
Greetings
and appreciation to our scholars, the faculty.
Special
acknowledgement to my colleague, Undergraduate Trustee
Louis
Sterling. The Board
of Trustees joins with President Swygert in expression of
congratulations and commendation on your selection as a 1999
Truman Scholar. Your
exemplary academic performance serves as an inspiration to the
university community.
I
extend an especially warm welcome to the students, staff,
alumni, and retirees who are with us today. To our freshmen students and new faculty, you have chosen to
become a part of the Howard family, the Howard tradition, and
indeed, the Howard legacy.
Each
September, we pause to celebrate the beginning of a new academic
year. We celebrate
the vision of our founders and our success in spite of the odds.
We recommit to the mission and the pursuit of excellence.
That is true today as it was when I entered the masters
program here at Howard.
Mr.
President and members of the university community, as we begin a
new chapter in the history of our great institution, I want to
share with you the continuing resolve of this board, to ensure
that Howard University maximizes its potential and fulfills its
historic mission consistent with its “legacy of excellence.”
We solicit all members of our great Howard University
family to join us in this commitment. As
we race toward the new millennium, we must accentuate
performance and achieve excellence in all that we do.
as a world-class institution of the 21st
century, we can do no less.
The Howard University family must commit to continuous
improvement, innovation, and the quest for excellence.
In
keeping with this belief, in June 1997, the board of trustees
initiated a board governance review. The purpose of the review was two-fold: (1) to undertake the same rigorous review within the board
that the university is taking in all areas of its operation
pursuant to
The
Strategic Framework for Action, and (2)
to be certain that the board is appropriately aligned with the
transition implicated by the framework and for effective board
leadership for a university of academic distinction.
Last
year, we implemented the reforms recommended by the governance
review, thereby raising the bar in our effort to provide
stewardship of the university.
In concert with the president, we are working to ensure
that the board dedicates its time to matters of strategic
importance. We
identified four strategic issues of focus:
-
Academic
excellence–-distinction in academics is our key to survival
and market dominance.
-
Private
support–-Howard must strengthen its fundraising
infrastructure. Howard
cannot sustain or improve its current position without
increasing its ability to attract significant private support,
we cannot secure a world-class status without sufficient capital
to undergird continuous innovation and academic vigor.
-
Howard
University Hospital–-Howard university hospital must
implement entrepreneurial strategies to position the hospital as
a key player in the dynamic “business” of managed health
care; and
-
Strengthening
the Board–-we must continue to build and structure, a board
consistent with that of a research level one, world-class
institution.
We
believe this focused attention of the Board coupled with the
dynamic leadership of H. Patrick Swygert will reap unparalleled
success for the University.
In
closing, I want to direct my comments to the freshman class. For 132 years, young men and women have entered the doors
of Howard and exited armed with knowledge, skills, wisdom, and
humanity to make a difference in this world.
Indeed,
you, the students of Howard University, serve as living
testimony to the University’s theme:
“Leadership for America and the global community.
By
virtue of the excellence you have committed to achieving in your
respective pursuits, you will become our leaders for tomorrow. You should feel confident that you have chosen well in
selecting Howard University as the situs of your
matriculation, for it is this University’s exceptional and
legendary faculty that continues to contribute, in large
measure, to your unique wisdom and strong leadership ability.
It
is imperative that we all–-faculty, students, staff, alumni,
and trustees work together in the pursuit of excellence, for
excellence is the epitome of strength.
It
is our strength that enables us to excel, to beat the odds. Through collective support, we can only be victorious in
our mission to provide leadership for America and the world.
On
this day, the formal opening of our 132nd academic
year, at the threshold of the millennium, we have a formidable
challenge and opportunity before us. In true Howard spirit, let us all commit to work and
ensure another successful and accomplished academic year.
Good luck!
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