Board Votes to Raise Campaign Goal to $70 Million

ANGOLA, IN – Momentum continued to build at Tri-State University as the capital campaign exceeds projections, with $37 million in hand – surpassing the original goal of $45 million in five years – and an unprecedented construction boom during summer 2004. Enrollment and academic quality of entering students also continued to grow.

Major projects now being completed or underway include the new Ketner Sport Center addition to Hershey Hall, the first phase of the new TSU campus village that will accommodate its first 40 students this fall and the transformation of Sniff Hall into the new Sponsel Administrative Center.

"Success breeds success, and despite a sluggish economy, Tri-State University is exceeding the fundraising goals set only three years ago. Numerous individuals, foundations and corporations have stepped forward to move us toward fulfillment of our 10-year master plan," President Earl D. Brooks II emphasized.

In recognition of this progress, the University Board of Trustees recently issued a formal commendation of Brooks as he completes his fourth year as president. "Since his inauguration as the 16^th president of Tri-State in June 2000, President Brooks has brought both a strong academic background and substantial fund-raising experience to Tri-State," Chair of the Board of Trustees John A. Pittman noted. "His improvements in financial control and timeliness have been absolutely major."

In addition, Brooks has completely revitalized the admissions/enrollment management process, implemented the University’s first master’s program in engineering technology, developed synergistic community partnerships including the Small Business Development and the Northeastern Indiana Innovation Center, both housed on campus, and proactively driven fund raising for completion of several facility renovations, Pittman noted.

"Establishment of our first postgraduate program is a really important step in demonstrating our commitment to scholarship and academic excellence," Pittman added.

Other areas to highlight this past year include:

Lilly Endowment Key to Campaign Success

Launched in 2001, the University’s "Vision for the Future Campaign" was significantly enhanced by the generosity of the Lilly Endowment, whose $4.5 million Challenge and subsequent $750,000 initiative to retain talented young Indiana college graduates within the state netted more than $5 million for TSU in 2003-2004.

Campaign Wrap Will Coincide with 125^th Anniversary

"This campaign should forever change the face of the University," said Dr. Pittman. In light of the $37 million raised in 33 months, the Board voted unanimously to revise and increase the goal to $70 million at its April 30, 2004, meeting. The campaign will wrap up in 2009, coinciding with the University’s 125^th anniversary.

Two additional significant gifts from the Olive B. Cole Foundation and the Estate of W. Thatcher Whitney ’31 of Clifton, NY, will enhance TSU’s ability to offer technical courses by creating a new venue for their delivery at the new Technology Center in Angola while expanding the University’s endowed scholarships fund. When finalized, the Whitney Estate – earmarked for endowment scholarships – may well create the University’s largest fund of its type.

Admissions, SAT Scores Up

On the enrollment side, an emphasis by the University’s proactive admissions staff has increased the quality as well as the size of the freshman class entering in fall 2003, resulting in a 51-point gain in average SAT scores.

"President Brooks has led the development of new initiatives to serve the region and our students. He is to be commended for his emphasis on recruiting students who have the capacity to succeed and to graduate," Dr. Pittman noted.

 

New Partnership with Steuben School District

Tri-State University partnered with the Metropolitan School District of Steuben to provide college-bound high school students, especially those who are skilled but at-risk and who will be first-generation college students, to provide educational experiences in a college setting.

Middle College students attend courses on the Angola campus for one-half day (either morning or afternoon) and spend the other half in their high school classes, earning credit toward a degree at TSU or another university if they desire and are qualified. AP courses in a number of subjects are offered and may also count toward high school credit. Students benefit from experience in a college setting, and all classes are taught by TSU professors or fully qualified adjunct professors.

In addition, "The establishment of the high speed broad band internet connection to regional high schools and the Tri-State Tech Center further increases our outreach to the community," Pittman stated.

 

Student Life and Athletics

As part of its master plan, Tri-State University is aggressively planning and implementing building projects to meet current and future needs. Citing President Brooks’ leadership in strategic planning and leading capital projects, the Board of Trustees citation stated, "Perhaps nowhere has the (University) transformation been more apparent than in the physical appearance of our campus."
 

Thanks to the generosity of Drs. Ralph Trine ’61 and his wife Sheri of Angola, new campus villas housing 40 men and women, juniors and seniors selected on the basis of academic achievement and in good standing with the University, are under construction and expected to be completed in July. More than 90 applications for the 40 available spaces were received by University officials. These two new townhouse-style buildings at the corner of Prospect and Oakwood Streets in Angola will contain five apartments each: two with five bedrooms, two with three bedrooms and one with four bedrooms. Each will have its own separate, private entrance.
 

Trine, owner of Vestil Manufacturing and a mechanical engineering alumnus of Tri-State, sees the project as an important recruiting and retention tool for the University. "When it comes to campus residences, students today expect more than did their counterparts of 20 years ago," Trine noted. "In discussing this project with students, we heard that they wanted privacy, a quiet environment in which to study, their own room with a lock, bigger rooms and laundry facilities." The area will be landscaped with support from John and Amy Lelli, owners of The Hatchery, an Angola restaurant and the Lone Eagle Nursery in Coldwater, MI, and a parking lot will be added. Trine, who with his wife was actively involved with the buildings’ design, engineering, financing and furnishing, said the long-term goal is for Tri-State to build three or four additional apartment-style housing projects
 

With the support of Dr. Ralph Ketner ’82, work is also underway on replacing the Hershey Hall swimming pool with an all-purpose athletic room. The new Ketner Sports Complex will add much-needed space for students.
 

A $1 million gift from Dr. Clifford W. Sponsel ’31 has funded renovation on the exterior of Sniff Hall, to be re-named the Sponsel Administrative Center. One aspect of the project will create a north entrance facing University Avenue, the campus’s main drive. Once the former Sniff Hall is totally renovated, administration and institutional advancement offices now housed in Shambaugh Hall will return to the upgraded facility. The renovation will also include additional classroom space.
 

In other capital projects, work began in May on the new campus entrance from West Maumee (US 20), including expanded parking. Work is expected to be completed in July. Smaller projects underway this summer are a $2 million upgrade to Best Hall that will include an entire new HVAC system, the repaving of the Hershey Hall parking lot and the addition of a front deck to the Witmer Clubhouse.

 

New Food Services Vendor Named

To add greater value to the overall experience of attending Tri-State University, the University has retained Bon Appetit, a leading U.S. food service company based in Palo Alto, CA, to provide fresh, high-quality meals with menus changing weekly. Universities served by Bon Appetit consistently rank in the top echelons of campus food surveys profiled in annual student ratings, said Tri-State Vice President for Student and University Operations Mike Bock. The café and catering services company’s hallmark is food prepared from scratch by an executive chef, using fresh ingredients.

 

"Thunder" Transitions Into New Conference

The move of the University’s 19 athletics from the current NAIA to the NCAA Division III in 2004-2005 will align Tri-State with the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA), the oldest college conference in the nation and one of the nation’s premier Division III athletic conferences. The move reaffirms Tri-State’s commitment to both academic excellence and to athletics, and student athletes will benefit from an increased emphasis on academic concerns and less travel time, Dr. Brooks noted.

"President Brooks’ leadership in the past four years has truly been transformational," said Board Chair Dr. John Pittman in a recent Board of Trustees resolution summarizing Tri-State’s progress. "He has been a change agent for improvement. We really have made remarkable progress over the last four years!"

Tri-State University is an independent, co-educational institution offering associate, baccalaureate and master’s degrees in more than 40 programs to students in engineering, mathematics, science, computer science, business administration, teacher education, communications, criminal justice and the social sciences. Founded in 1884, Tri-State today maintains a 485-acre main campus in Angola, IN, with off-campus centers in Fort Wayne, South Bend and Merrillville, IN.

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