Onward! The University of Colorado has been part of my life for four decades. Whether I have been a student, alumnus, donor, advocate, chief financial officer or now as president, I have seen and lived the power and the promise of our great university. I am honored to serve as your 24th president and grateful to the Board of Regents for placing its trust in me.

CU plays a critical role for our state, nation and world. We educate well-rounded students who bring highly skilled talent to the workforce. Our faculty conduct research that tackles some of society’s most vexing problems. Their work also improves our state, our quality of life and sometimes it even saves lives. And we develop the entrepreneurs of tomorrow, who deliver big ideas that drive innovation and boost the economy.

As a lifelong Coloradan, I am privileged to serve as president of CU and to be its champion and advocate. I want everyone to know about the great work happening here. CU and its four campuses are a complex enterprise, but our work starts with five core missions: 

• Teaching, learning and student success
• Research, scholarship and creative work
• Embodying the diversity of Colorado and creating a community of belonging
• Community engagement and service
• Providing top-quality clinical health care, leading biomedical research, and preparing Colorado’s health care workforce

I have met many of you in the past year, and particularly in the last two weeks when I visited all four of our campuses and met with statewide groups as part of the presidential search process. I look forward to connecting with more of you in the future. We all want to build on CU’s success and make it the best. We must work together to ensure that the University of Colorado is, indeed, Colorado’s university.

We must reflect the diversity of people and ideas of this great state. This requires more than just recruiting diverse students, faculty and staff. We will work to build a culture where everyone is respected, valued and included. Not only is it a moral imperative for us to serve ALL of Colorado, it is also critical to the state’s vitality.

The regents and I are excited to continue our renewed outreach efforts around the state to listen to Coloradans and tell our story. CU provides incredible value to our state and its citizens. Yet a number of people don’t see themselves on our campuses or believe they can afford a degree. We must ensure that everyone who wants a CU education has an opportunity to earn one. We must do our best to keep tuition in check, so a CU degree remains affordable. 

State funding is a critical component of affordability. Despite recent and impressive increases from the state, Colorado still ranks 47th nationally in higher education funding. It would take nearly $950 million just to get us to the national funding average of our peers.

Perhaps there is a path forward in the coming years. Colorado is forecasted to have billions in excess tax revenue over the next decade. One option would be to use a small portion of those excess funds to pull our state out of the higher education funding basement. It would keep tuition in check and lead to more financial aid for students, better pay to allow our faculty and staff to deal with the rising cost of living, and more resources to keep Colorado’s universities, colleges – and our state – competitive.

We have the potential to do this if we work together. This past year, we united our voice with our colleagues at Colorado’s other public colleges and universities to advocate for more funding for higher education statewide. We succeeded together – the legislature and governor approved 11% more funding for higher education. We would like to express our gratitude. I look forward to continued work with you and our partners to continue showing that higher education is an investment worth making for the state.

Speaking of investments paying off, you’ll be proud to know the CU system is ranked 10th in the nation among public universities for research and development expenditures. That’s an extraordinary feat and a testament to the creativity, tenacity and expertise of our amazing faculty and students.  And as we celebrate our science, let’s also shout from the mountain tops about the outstanding scholarship and creative work being done by those in the arts, humanities, and social sciences.

We have a lot to be proud of. And we also have a lot of work to do, too. I am committed to collaborating with our students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and business and community leaders to move CU forward. I’m eager to meet with you, our stakeholders, (and skeptics too) to hear what you want and need in Colorado’s flagship university system.  

Spring is a time of renewal, and it always gives me hope for the future and reminds me of why we are here. I love seeing our students’ faces at commencement when they receive their degree. It’s an amazing moment for them, and for me. My CU education has served me well and I know theirs will do the same for them.

I’m excited for our graduates and the future of our great university. Onward!