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Cynthia Anderson Bids YSU an Emotional Farewell
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- Cynthia Anderson bade an emotional farewell to Youngstown State University Tuesday, the institution where she has been a student, professor, administrator and, the last three years, president.
Her focus throughout, she reminded her audience of well-wishers and staunch supporters, has been on helping students succeed. “The most memorable moments for me have always been our students and their achievements,” she said. “Our students as they proudly walks across the stage at graduation, as they receive awards from their communities as well as from across the nation. Our students compete, excel and win competitions literally across this entire country.”
Spending 15 years as vice president for student affairs, her first concern has been academic excellence, a point she made and one reinforced by the provost, Ikram Khawaja, in remarks following her address. Upon taking office, he disclosed, Anderson put repairs and maintenance of Kilcawley Center, the student union, on hold so work on the academic halls could be financed.
And Anderson reinforced her belief that the purpose of a university is “education – not training -- that leads to wisdom,” she emphasized, to prepare graduates for whatever paths they pursue after graduation.
During her tenure as president, YSU confronted one financial challenge after another, from declining enrollment and reduced subsidies from the Ohio Legislature to the need to stay abreast of and incorporate the latest technology.
“We’ve streamlined processes,” Anderson noted, “have begun to make much better use of technology, left [teaching and administrative] positions vacant, taken positions out of the budget and reduced our base university budget by over $2.5 million. Vice President [for finance and administration Gene] Grilli tells us that thus far the impact of our decreased revenues has been manageable.”
Regardless, the university continues to contend with restoring and increasing enrollment and retaining those who enter. To that end, her administration is marketing YSU well beyond the Mahoning and Shenango valleys.
“We created a student one-stop where academic customer service is correlated with retention,” the president stated. “We’ve revitalized student activities programs” so students spend more time on campus and commuter students become more involved in campus life. “Student involvement correlates with retention, higher grade point averages and improved graduation rates,” Anderson stated.
Realizing that not all students who commute will have the opportunity to do more than park, attend classes and leave, Anderson pointed to the online courses of study initiated, citing a master’s degree in engineering, opportunities in the graduate business program, the master’s program in criminal justice and master’s in respiratory care.
Two programs, she added, “will be migrated under the distance-learning umbrella, a master’s in early childhood education and a baccalaureate in public health.
During her watch were added a doctoral program in materials science and engineering, three master’s programs (in gerontology, interdisciplinary communications and respiratory care) and two bachelor’s programs (in dental hygiene and dance management).
Fundraising to offset reduced state support has enjoyed success, Anderson said. University Advancement set a record for raising funds in only the first half of fiscal 2013 (began July 1, 2012) with nearly $6.7 million raised or committed and close to $9 million as of yesterday.
The YSU Foundation changed its funding formula so more scholarships can be granted, she said.
Whether because Anderson is the first graduate of YSU to become its president, her far greater involvement in student life and student activities than her six predecessors, the high profile she developed by championing students as vice president for student affairs, or her extroverted personality, the outgoing president has enjoyed a sizeable, loyal and devoted following.
This was reflected in the remarks delivered by the outgoing president of the Student Government Association, Cory Okular, who will go on this fall for a doctorate in economics at the University of Notre Dame. Okular was one of nine students Anderson had “every reason to brag about,” as she put it in her address.
Okular spoke for many in describing “Cyndy Anderson as always a giver, never a taker, who embodies the values this community holds.”
He always found the outgoing president to be “friendly, hospitable … always loving, always caring and not afraid to show emotion.”
So did the audience as they gave her a prolonged standing ovation.
“A while back I was asked, ‘When you leave the presidency and YSU, what do you want to be known for? How do you want people to remember you?’ “ Anderson said toward the conclusion of her address.
“I finally have an answer,” she declared. “I just want people to remember Cyndy Anderson as a good and capable person whose career passion was to serve students in any way she was capable. What could possibly be a better legacy than that?”
Copyright 2013 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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