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Quarterly e-News: Volume 1, Issue 3

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Dear Colleagues,

Now that I've had a chance to settle in a bit to my new role as VP for External Affairs, I'd like to share some thoughts about how our office hopes to contribute to the ongoing success of this university.

I see two primary areas of emphasis:

  1. Better integration: We can make tremendous gains in influencing perceptions of the UW when our whole external affairs team works in tandem with campus partners on our most important strategic priorities. We saw this in action when our tuition-increase legislation was approved last session as a way to partially mitigate mounting state funding cuts. During the final hectic weeks of the session, I heard more than one legislator say they wouldn't have voted for the increases if we hadn't shown them how we would still make a UW education accessible to those who couldn't afford the increase. That's a testament to the hard work of our government relations, media relations and marketing teams.
  2. A strong customer-service mentality: I want our partners across the University to know that our top priority is to help make your value and successes known to and appreciated by the public. We're here to serve the interests of the University and that means all of you.

Among the assets the Office of External Affairs has at its disposal, I am pleased that UWTV is now part of our organizational family. We believe there is great potential for UWTV to act as a window to the campus, reflecting the diverse activities and excitement of discovery that takes place here.

We're all excited about the academic year ahead of us and the potential it offers for greatness, not only now but in the months and years to come.

Sincerely,

Image of Randy Hodgins's signature



Randy Hodgins
Vice President, Office of External Affairs

Table of contents

 

Key Dates

Talking Points

Here are a few points of emphasis Pres. Emmert is using in public appearances this quarter:

  1. Degree productivity in the state of Washington:
    • Our four-year institutions are No. 1 in the nation in completion and degree productivity relative to funding per FTE student.
    • Our public research institutions award more bachelor's degrees per FTE student than research institutions in any other state.
    • The state of Washington is second in the nation in degree productivity at the graduate level.
    • The state's six-year graduation rate for first-time freshmen ranks third in the nation and has improved by 9% in the last decade. The UW's six-year graduation rate increased from 71% to 81% during the last six years.
  2. Undergraduate statistics:
    • 1 in every 4 current UW undergraduates from Washington state have their tuition and fees fully covered by the Husky Promise. This makes our University one of the most economically diverse in the nation.
    • 1/3 of students in this year's entering freshman class are the first in their families to go to college.
    • 1/3 of this year's freshmen come from families whose income is below the state median.
  3. National recognition for our environmental sustainability efforts:
  4. Research: ScienceWatch.com recently ranked the UW fourth in a listing of the most-cited academic institutions by published journals.
  5. MacArthur winners: 4 of our "genius grant" recipients are from our creative writing program -- which is more MacArthur Fellows than many universities have in their entire faculty.

Marketing the UW

Image of taglineAs this new academic year unfolds, we are excited to usher in a new era of proactively managing and building this great institution's reputation. Our goal is for people who interact with the UW to come away with the same impression: Extraordinary things happen here. Things that change the way the entire world thinks, works and lives. It's a notion we call The Washington Way.

It's this anchoring idea that you'll begin to see portrayed in various ways, including:

Photo of graduatesHusky Promise Promotion Refreshed
This fall, nearly 7,000, or 25%, of our undergraduate student body will come to the UW and pay no tuition and fees because of the Husky Promise program. External Affairs is taking the initiative to reinvigorate our efforts to promote this critical program and all other financial aid opportunities that support qualified Washington students. This renewed focus is a response to a recent statewide public opinion poll in which 37% of respondents didn't know (and 12% didn't agree) that the UW educates qualified students regardless of economic background.

UW Marketing is already working with partners from all three campuses, admissions, financial aid, the honors program, and the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity to develop tools all of us can use to promote the Husky Promise. Questions? Contact Senior Marketing Manager Dawn Weyant at weyantd@uw.edu or x57060.

To stay up to date on University-wide marketing efforts, subscribe to Marketing Matters, a monthly e-newsletter produced by UW Marketing. You can do so by sending a request to mktg@uw.edu.

Update from Olympia

State Revenue Forecast
Photo of WA state CapitolThe state economic and revenue forecast released in mid-Sept. shows projected tax collections down $238 million for the remainder of the 2009-11 biennium, putting the state's budget balance sheet in a $185 million negative position. These data along with mandatory supplemental spending needs and the need to rebuild the state's budget reserves have a number of Olympia budget officials alluding to a 2010 supplemental budget “problem” of about $1 billion.

Dr. Arun Raha, the state's chief forecaster, indicated that the state's economy has likely bottomed out and will soon be on the mend. However, because consumers continue to pay down debt and are guarded about spending for large-ticket items (e.g. houses, cars, etc.), Washington state's recovery will take longer than other states.

In Defense of the Four-Year System
During legislative debate on tuition increases this past session, the state's public baccalaureate system took some pointed criticism about not being efficient or effective enough with state taxpayer dollars or student tuition. At the time, we didn't have enough national comparison data to prove otherwise.

Earlier this month, however, the Council of Presidents presented facts that paint a very favorable national picture of Washington's four-year institutions. Some of the highlights are cited in the Talking Points section above. You can download the full analysis (PDF) from the State Relations Web site.

Other News
The search for a new director for State Relations is currently under way. For the latest information on that search as well as other updates from around the state, visit the State Relations blog.

Update from Washington, D.C.

Financial Aid Update
Photo of U.S. CapitolIn August, the full House of Representatives passed the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 (HR 3221). The legislation would connect future Pell Grant increases to the Consumer Price Index plus 1%. The UW Office of Student Financial Aid and Office of Federal Relations are actively working with the Washington Congressional delegation on HR 3221 to make improvements, particularly to its provision for a College Access and Completion Fund. If passed, funding provided to states could result in increased regulatory control by states over institutions of higher education. The bill is now in the Senate and is expected to receive full consideration later this fall or early in 2010.

Appropriations Update
The House has passed all twelve of its FY10 spending bills. However, progress in the Senate has been slow, largely due to negotiations over health care reform. Congress has approved the FY10 Energy & Water spending bill, which includes support for two important UW projects: $880,000 for the Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center (PDF) and $1 million for the Washington Biofuels Industry Development project (PDF).

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Funding Update
As of Oct. 11, the UW had federal funding award letters totaling $141 million. These grants include:

  • A five-year $126 million grant to help build an ambitious undersea observatory in the Pacific Ocean.
  • $40 million to Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to fund 60 research grants.
  • $25 million to launch the nation's first genomics center in a decade, dedicated to the search for genes linked to heart, blood and lung diseases.

Also, we have been notified of forthcoming grants that will bring the University's ARRA funding to more $200 million. And it is growing each week.

Call for FY11 Project Proposals
Please submit Fiscal Year 2011 project proposals for congressionally directed appropriations (earmark funding) by Monday, October 26, 2009. Instructions and a submission form are available online.

To keep track of UW-related federal funding and policy developments, visit:

Update from Our Local Community

Image of the Seattle skyline at nightUW Hosts Metropolitan Prosperity and Regional Sustainability Discussion
On Wed., Oct. 14, the UW welcomed regional leaders to our Seattle campus for a roundtable discussion on metropolitan prosperity and regional sustainability. The gathering kicked off with opening remarks from Seattle Mayor and Sound Transit Board Chair Greg Nickels and Brookings Institution Vice President for Metropolitan Policy Bruce Katz. A discussion followed featuring Katz and panelists:

  • Denis Hayes, President and CEO, Bullitt Foundation (moderator)
  • Gene Duvernoy, President, Cascade Land Conservancy
  • Daniel Friedman, Dean, UW College of Built Environments
  • Joni Earl, CEO, Sound Transit

Joining the UW as event sponsors were:

  • Puget Sound Regional Council
  • Cascade Land Conservancy
  • City of Seattle
  • Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce

Image of SR520SR520 Replacement Update
We are actively working with campus stakeholders to identify the potential impacts of proposed replacements for the State Route 520 corridor. Also we have hired wetland and traffic consultants to analyze technical documentation for the Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS), which will be published December 2009. When a Westside design is chosen, these proactive efforts will put the UW in a strong position to mitigate negative impacts to the campus and surrounding properties such as the UW Botanical Gardens.

Meanwhile, we will continue to monitor the SR 520 Legislative Workgroup as it strives to accomplish its dual mission: to pick a Westside design option and create a financing plan to fund the project at the legislatively mandated $4.65 billion. The committee's work is scheduled to wrap up by December and be presented to the state Legislature in January.

Husky Neighborhood Assistants Program
To get students more involved in the North of 45th neighborhood, our office worked with the Office of Community Standards & Student Conduct and the Carlson Center to create the Husky Neighborhood Assistants program. Participants act as liaisons between the Seattle campus, city, neighbors and students living off campus to enhance communication, collaboration and problem-solving. In exchange for this work, students can earn a $1,000 AmeriCorps scholarship.

Six UW students are working as neighborhood assistants this year. This fall, they are focusing on safety education and improved communications for students living north of campus. Future projects will focus on:

  • Rental housing issues
  • Safe party planning
  • Increasing volunteer participation
  • Developing a greater sense of community

For more local information, visit the Regional Relations Web site or contact Assistant Vice President for Regional Relations Theresa Doherty at tdoherty@uw.edu.

The UW in the News

Noteworthy accomplishments, discoveries and UW experts continue to populate the media (print and online) and the airwaves. One measure is the frequency of appearing in the largest circulation national newspaper, The New York Times. In the first half of 2009, stories featuring the work of UW faculty appeared on average more than twice per week, a frequency consistent with that of 2008.

On the video front, the University's YouTube and iTunesU sites continue to grow in popularity and breadth of subject matter. iTunesU serves about 16,000 downloads a week in five categories: Arts, Sciences, Medicine, Humanities and Husky Life. Our YouTube presence works like a hub and spokes with youtube.com/uwhuskies at the center linking to 24 individual unit-driven channels.

Below are a few noteworthy examples of recent media coverage of the UW:

Seattle Times (Sept. 22, 2009): Giving genius its due
"Seattle filmmaker James Longley and poet Heather McHugh are among 24 people nationwide receiving $500,000 'genius grants' from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation."

The Online NewsHour, PBS (Sept. 22, 2009): MacArthur Winner McHugh Serves Up the Weekly Poem
Poet Heather McHugh reading her poem "The Gift" from her forthcoming book Upgraded to Serious, which is due be published by Copper Canyon Press next month.

Photo of a squirrel monkey
Photo provided by Neitz Laboratory

New York Times (Sept. 21, 2009): With Genetic Gift, 2 Monkeys Are Viewing a More Colorful World
"Dalton and Sam are male squirrel monkeys, about a foot tall. Their ancestors lived by eating fruit and insects and dodging falcons in the forest canopy of Central and South America. Dalton and Sam lead a more protected life in the laboratory of Jay and Maureen Neitz at the UW, Seattle. Recently, the Neitzes endowed them with a new genetic gift: the ability to see the world with full color vision."

Seattle Times (Sept. 16, 2009): UW student discovers precious gemstone
"A UW student on an archaeological dig in Israel has unearthed the find of a lifetime -- a gemstone engraved more than 2,000 years ago with a portrait of Alexander the Great."

ABC News (Sept. 10, 2009): Community Programs Help Teens Resist Risky Behaviors
"Giving communities a menu of proven programs to choose from is an effective way to help reduce risky behaviors among young teens, new research shows." Note: J. David Hawkins, professor of social work, is quoted.

Seattle Times (Sept. 4, 2009): University of Washington to explore the planet from the ocean floor
"A UW oceanography professor's tenacious pursuit of research grants will yield an undersea observatory of extraordinary capacity and potential."

Seattle Times (Aug. 3, 2009): Seattle Google boss terrified by education funding, VC situation
"Every year the UW doesn't hire 100 faculty, that's 500 graduate students who don't get formed five years from now. Say 5 percent of those grad students went off and did a startup, that's 25 startups that aren't happening."

To stay up to date on other media coverage of the UW, subscribe to UW in the Media, a daily e-mail message from the Office of News and Information. You can do so by sending a request to uwnews@uw.edu or calling x32580.

Did You Know?

79% of Washington state residents surveyed say the UW is vital to the state's economy.
Source: Cocker Fennessy, Inc. and Moore Information Public Opinion Research (UW NetID required), conducted in June 2009

Key Contacts

Randy Hodgins
Vice President, External Affairs
Director, State Relations
x37604, rhodgins@uw.edu

Norm Arkans
Associate Vice President, Media Relations and Communications
x32560, arkans@uw.edu

Theresa Doherty
Assistant Vice President, Regional Relations
x12603, tdoherty@uw.edu

Christy Gullion
Director, Federal Relations
202-624-1424, cgullion@uw.edu

Key Nuttall
Acting Associate Vice President, Marketing
x56410, keyn@uw.edu
Note: UW Marketing Associate VP Tricia Thompson will be on parental leave through Feb. 2010. Director of Strategy and New Media Key Nuttall will be filling in for her during that time.

Questions? Contact eaupdate@uw.edu.

Key Links

THIS NEWSLETTER WAS SENT BY:
UW Office of External Affairs, Box 351232, Seattle, WA 98195
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