Deaton addresses Board of Curators on MU's collaboration
Chancellor Brady Deaton spoke to the UM system Board of Curators this morning about MU's accomplishments over the last year and highlighted collaboration between colleges and departments across the campus.
This year's enrollment settled at a record 31,324 students, a 3.7 percent increase from last year, Deaton said. This freshman class' composite ACT scores are ranked fourth in the Big 12. Deaton emphasized the increase in retention and graduation rates.
"The cheapest way to recruit is to keep the students you’ve got," he said.
Deaton also emphasized the diversity among students across the campus, explaining that MU currently has students from every county in Missouri, every state in the US and over 100 countries worldwide.
Among the other topics discussed, Chancellor Deaton addressed the issue of federal stimulus money, explaining that, of MU's proposals, there is a 32 percent funding success rate and that 64 of the 108 proposed projects are already being funded.
Deaton talked about MU's initiatives to make improvements to science education across the state, like the $5 million project in conjunction with ninth grade teachers to improve physics classes in Missouri high schools.
Deaton went on to commend the collaboration of administration, faculty, staff and students across the campus.
Later in his speech, Deaton explained the importance of the five Mizzou Advantage initiatives, which he identified as Food for the Future, New Media, One Health-One Medicine, Sustainable Energy and Understanding and Managing Disruptive and Transformational Technologies.
"We’re trying to move outside the narrow disciplines of colleges," Deaton said.
In his speech's conclusion, Deaton commended the faculty and students at MU and said he wishes to continue to see progress and improvement across the campus over the next few years.