SRU President Karen Riley addressed the university community Tuesday during common hour, delivering updates on SRU’s strategic planning and internal transitions in addition to how SRU will adapt to a changing national political climate.
Political climate
Riley lead the hour-long assembly reassuring the university community of quick and open communication among President Donald Trump’s first batch of executive orders and federal restructuring.
“I don’t know another word except we are in a big state of transition right now,” Riley said. “During transitions, we need to over-communicate, we need to stick with our values and we need to come together.”
Riley asked for “a little bit of grace” considering the vagueness and lack of interpretation yet to come for many changes in the federal government.
For example, Trump’s executive order 14173 titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” cuts Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives from federally funded programs but does not have specific downstream effects for universities. For example, The Equal Protection Project, a 501(c)(3) non-profit focusing on “the fair treatment of all persons without regard to race or ethnicity,” sent a letter to the Department of Education criticizing certain National Science Foundation (NSF) awards. Riley explained that SRU applied for and received grants from the NSF and reassured the university it would not face scrutiny for receiving the grant. The specific fund at SRU is the The Keystone Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation program.
“This was a letter written by an organization that has written many letters about many schools,” the SRU president said. “It’s not a lawsuit, it’s not a complaint, they wrote a letter to the Department of Education saying ‘please look into this program’…now if they are upset with anybody it will be they’re upset with NSF.”
Riley also emphasized the importance of avoiding proactive approaches to federal changes considering the volatility and unpredictability of downstream federal changes.
“We are not going to try and change things now in anticipation of what might happen,” the SRU president said. “That’s a dangerous game and most of the universities are not doing that. We are going to stick the course, if we are violating some kind of rule we are going to figure out and we are going to work with you.”
Riley also emphasized SRU’s place in public education and the requirement to work across political boundaries to ensure SRU’s future success.
“We are a public institution and the governor is my boss,” she said. “I have to have a good working relationship with every single elected official in this state.”
Associate professor of psychology Catherine Massey spoke on behalf of the President’s Commission on Gender Identity & Expression and Sexual Orientation (GIESO), responding to Riley’s statements during an open question period at the end of the assembly.
“GIESO leadership is a little bit disappointed in SRU leadership right now, because with the executive order the President Trump put out two weeks ago, it attacked our transgender community, our community of nonbinary people…it’s also attacking DEI,” Massey said. “And that’s very concerning and very anxiety-provoking and fearful not only for faculty and staff, but also students.”
“I also want to mention I understand that you’re in a position to welcome legislatures to campus but Mike Kelly, you know, is very anti-LGBT and he’s a sponsor of many anti-LGBT legislation,” Massey said. “So, when he’s on campus that speaks really loudly to us.”
Riley said she already has meetings scheduled with various leadership to discuss the implications on marginalized groups and what SRU can do to support them, encouraging the university community to bring forth suggestions.
Riley once again emphasized the difficulty of balancing requests of the campus community with harnessing support of local politicians, especially regarding the criticism of Mike Kelly by Massey.
“I don’t always feel comfortable with the line I have to walk and I am open to hearing what that line might need to be,” Riley said. “The only group that matters to me are you all, if I fight with people it ends up hurting us overall.”
Enrollment, admissions and messaging updates
Vice President of Enrollment Management Micheal May revealed positive updates for admission regarding student retention.
Both undergraduate and graduate persistence is up 2.1% and 2.2% respectively compared to spring of 2024. The total number of students increased 2.1% or 166, totaling 7,961. The 2022 junior cohort is up 1.9%, 2023 sophomore up 2.5%, and 2024 freshman up 1.5% compared to spring of 2024. This is a continuation of fall 2024 which saw an all-time record for the twenty years of modern record keeping.
“In the fall we reported being up in enrollment by 34 students and we are up by many more students for the January term,” he said. “I really think this is a reflection of our in-demand academic program, excellent faculty and top-notch student experience, so thank you to all of you because you are the ones that make this happen.”
Riley emphasized enrollment statistics as SRU is staying ahead of the “enrollment cliff,” noting SRU is staying ahead of the national downward trends for enrollment. Riley stated this is being achieved with earned and placed media efforts through a coordination of SRU admissions, communication and marketing.
Comprehensive funding campaign and job searches
Riley announced updates to SRU’s comprehensive campaign for funding assistance and university advancement.
The campaign’s goal pertains to focused fundraising versus general fundraising, Riley said. The monetary goal of the campaign, starting in 2024 and lasting to 2029, is $30 million.
$14.5 million has been reached since the campaign started when combining all types of fundraising. Estate gifts and planned giving account for 5.1 million and the cash total is $5.3 million. The remaining balance is made of “other” funding and roughly $200,000 of pledges not yet paid.
Updates for structural changes include the near conclusion of the job search for the Associate Provost for Academic Innovation and the Dean of Graduate Studies and Continuing Education. Riley stated one more interview was underway before a decision will be made.
Riley stated the search for the Dean of the College of Business is running and will host candidates on campus in March. Riley stated no changes are immediately underway for the recently renamed office for Campus Climate and Culture, citing the unpredictability of PASSHE due to its structure without an official chancellor.
