SIU-C Chancellor Austin Lane laid out his vision and goals in his state of the university address Monday.
The theme of Lane’s address was “imagine.” He discussed his vision for the school and reflected on the impact of the past year. And he pointed to good news about enrollment.
“Enrollment for first-time college students was up by 31% enrollment of new students. That was big for us. In the Southern Illinois region we’re up 32%. Our retention rates from freshman to sophomore year increased to 80%, the highest in 20 years,” Lane said.
Lane spoke about the way the pandemic changed life for everyone. He also recognized the university’s contributions to fighting COVID.
Lane identified five areas to focus on for the future of SIU: student success and engagement; diversity, equity and inclusion; research and innovation; sustainability; and branding and partnerships.
