By Judie Wexler September 15, 2018
Greetings from CIIS. We are already deep into the Fall semester, having welcomed new students and new faculty to the University and having ACTCM@CIIS students taking classes in the Mission Street building for the first time. There is a lot of happy energy and interesting talk in the halls. While the somewhat slower pace of summer is always welcome in June, it is great to see students and faculty all over the building again.
The end of the summer is always busy and exciting as we celebrate the official start of the new academic year with our annual faculty/staff gathering and the multiple new student orientations. This year the gathering was focused on the major goals of the strategic plan and the ways in which the various parts of CIIS contribute to the plan and its success. Faculty and staff were invited to submit acknowledgments of people who they felt had made important contributions to the University so that these comments could be shared with everyone. The acknowledgments were read during the gathering along with presentations about some of the work being done to achieve the goals. It was an inspiring community day.
We received good news from WSCUC this summer as they renewed the CIIS accreditation for six years. The Commission commended CIIS for the following:
- Exhibiting best practices in data-driven decision making
- Reorganizing the administration, decreasing silos, and increasing accountability
- Renewed Board commitment and the addition of new members
- Dramatic progress in fiscal monitoring and oversight. The Commission has asked that CIIS continue to work on the strategic plan, establish clear and consistent metrics, and emphasize the central role of the faculty in planning and assessment.
We are starting this academic year with a strong enrollment of new and continuing students. The preliminary financial statement for the last academic year shows that it was a very strong year for CIIS, with a contribution to reserves of over $1 million. This financial showing reflects the work of the entire CIIS staff and faculty. Working together, we have been able to focus on educational quality and support for our students while increasing income and improving efficiency, all values expressed in our strategic plan. Surplus years are important as signs of financial health because they contribute to our ability to increase scholarships and support programs.
Thank you for your ongoing interest in, and support for, CIIS.
