FRANCO: New school year brings changes to UNL

I want to welcome our new and returning students to UNL. After a long and relatively quiet summer, it is great to have you on campus. Nothing brings life to campus like students returning for classes.

 

Much has happened over the last several months at UNL. On June 11, 2010, it was announced that UNL would be leaving the Big 12 to join the Big Ten Conference. The national attention we received  before, during and after the announcement was priceless.
 

While the move to the Big  Ten will have a significant impact on athletics, the move is already being felt on other areas of campus. Several departments have already been invited to meet with their Big Ten counterparts. Collaboration on research projects is expected to increase dramatically. Our student government (ASUN) leaders have already met with student leaders in the Big Ten.

 

Over the last two years we have been busy implementing a new student information system (of which MyRED is a part of). Most of the system is working now and other features will be added in the next few months. The new system is requiring that we do things differently (for example, how students register and check their account) and we ask for everyone's patience as we go through this transition. It is expected that with time, this will be a much better system than what we have had.

 

Some new buildings (e.g. The Jackie Gaughan Multicultural Center and the Knoll Center) have opened with great fanfare. These buildings bring needed services to our students.

 

This year students hope to begin a new tradition of hosting fun-filled tailgate parties before home football games. Since this is the inaugural year, it will be held on a trial basis before three home games: Idaho (Sept. 11), Texas (Oct. 16) and Missouri (Oct.30). You will hear more about the time and location later on.

 

In the weeks to come you will be hearing about a new campaign we are launching called Operation RED. This is a campaign designed by students for students with the intent of helping to identify and recognize true Husker traits. Be careful, you may be caught "showing your RED."   More on the campaign to come later.

 

This year has been designated as "The Year of Civic Engagement at UNL."  Several things have occurred or will be occurring that support this designation. For example, this summer, Student Affairs, in partnership with the Office of Undergraduate Studies, CASNR and the College of Education and Human Resources, received a grant to help implement a Civic Engagement certificate. Operation RED will be launched and this month we will host a meeting of senior administrators representing private, public, two- and four-year institutions from Nebraska, South Dakota, Kansas and  Iowa to explore the establishment of a multi-state Campus Compact office. Campus Compact is a national coalition dedicated to integrating civic and community-based learning into the curriculum.

 

We look forward to a great year and I hope you enjoy your association with UNL as much as I do. If you have any questions feel free to contact me at jfranco2@unl.edu.

 

Juan Franco is the vice chancellor of Student Affairs at the
university of nebraska-lincoln.