A Message to the Campus Community from President Shirley Strum Kenny
To All Faculty, Staff and Students:
I am writing to let you know that I have reached the decision to retire in June 2009. My years at Stony Brook have been richly rewarding. I am enormously proud of what we have achieved together and grateful for the opportunity to work with you. Now I have made this decision because I believe it is the right time; my husband and I are ready for a new chapter in our lives.
I take great satisfaction in Stony Brook's achievements over these past fourteen years. Stony Brook was elected to AAU, undertook the successful management of Brookhaven National Lab, and expanded the campus to include Stony Brook Manhattan, Stony Brook Southampton, and the new research and development park. New buildings, from the Ambulatory Surgery Center and Cancer Center to the Heavy Engineering and Humanities Buildings to the football stadium have improved our campus facilities, and the landscaping program has transformed the appearance of the campus.
Improvements in undergraduate education through research opportunities, the undergraduate colleges, freshman seminars, and other innovations have produced a 33% increase in enrollment accompanied by strikingly increased SAT scores and greater student diversity. Now more students apply to Stony Brook than to any other SUNY campus.
But we still have a lot to accomplish during 2008-9. Finalizing the research alliance between Stony Brook, Brookhaven, and Cold Spring Harbor is high on the list, as is the completion of the Capital Campaign. The academic programs must continue to flourish and our research efforts increase.
I know all of us will continue to work together for the good of Stony Brook, because the quality of the institution is integrally linked with the future of New York and our nation. Together we must make the State understand the importance of funding Stony Brook to compete with other great state universities.
Thank you for all we have done together--and let's make 2008-9 a great, memorable year!
