President Madeleine Wing Adler welcomed faculty and students to a new school year and praised the university’s accomplishments Thursday afternoon in Emilie K. Asplundh Concert Hall. Throughout her speech, President Adler mentioned several of the accomplishments achieved by WCU’s students and faculty. According to President Adler, WCU students pledged numerous hours of volunteerism in the last year. Students contributed nearly 150,000 hours of volunteer service to Chester County and the Commonwealth.
She also commended the Hurricane Katrina relief effort led by the Office of Service Learning and Volunteer Programs. The organization is collecting food and monetary donations from people who want to help those in need. Members of the University have also excelled in other areas, such as the arts. For example, during a summer camp held at the university, students had the opportunity to teach art to young people.
President Adler went on to say that for the Fall 2005 semester, WCU received more than 11,000 applications for places in the first-year class. “West Chester is lighting the way in public education,” she said. She also emphasized that WCU reaches out to prospective students in Philadelphia by offering day-long trips to the university, so the inner-city middle and high school students can experience what WCU has to offer. President Adler also applauded the grant awards the University has received from external funding agencies.
While listing the University’s accomplishments, President Adler also recognized difficulties the university has faced. The University’s budget is shrinking, and President Adler stated that less than 1/3 of WCU’s budget comes from the state. “Here at WCU, we can expect to be pushed… but we are at our best when we are pushed,” she said. She also outlined her goals for the new school year. She said faculty and administrators must respond to the changing relationship between the state and the school. She plans to listen to suggestions from faculty and administrators in order to resolve the budget problem and other issues.
She went on to say that the University’s faculty and administrators must continue to respond to the needs of students and fund new projects beneficial to students. President Adler also wants to coordinate entrepreneurship efforts in order to connect with people from across the world. “Our entrepreneurships serve the present as well as the future,” she said.
During her address, she also recognized new faculty and new administrators: she welcomed 36 new faculty members and 25 new administrators to the university by stating their names and departments.
Madeleine Wing Adler is serving her 14th year as president of the university. She is part of several civic groups in the area, including the Big Brother- Big Sister Association in Philadelphia, which is a group that provides mentors to children. She is also part of the Chester County Historical Society and several other groups.
President Adler has won numerous awards, including the Chester County Citizen of the Year award in 1998.