The University of Texas at El Paso President Heather Wilson presented the annual State of the University address on Tuesday.
In Wilson's address, she detailed UTEP's recent success including strong fundraising, a record number of sponsored research projects and healthy student engagement during her annual state of the university address at the 2021 Fall Convocation ceremony, a news release from UTEP stated.
"This was an important year for advancement, even in a pandemic. We have restructured development and strengthened it to support our mission,” Wilson said during the 2021 Fall Convocation ceremony. “It’s already starting to show results Last year was one of the top three fundraising years in the history of UTEP – and possibly the top fundraising year ever.”
Major fundraising milestones included:
- UTEP raised more than $26 million during FY2021 to support scholarships and fellowships, facilities and faculty.
- Managed by The University of Texas Investment Management Company, UTEP’s endowment is now at a record $315 million.
- UTEP received five seven-figure gifts in FY2021
UTEP also broke several research records in FY21:
- A record number of UTEP research proposals were funded, a nine percent increase over last year.
- For the second year in a row, UTEP set a record in grant proposals submitted by faculty, with 679 grant applications submitted over the past year.
- The number of doctoral students at UTEP increased eight percent over last year's numbers.
- UTEP now has more than 800 Ph.D. students in 23 programs.
"UTEP is a public research university. We don’t just transmit knowledge; we create new knowledge,” Wilson said. “That’s why our strategic goal is to advance research, scholarship and artistic expression with emphasis on areas of current and emerging strength.”
In the address, Wilson described new student-centric university initiatives targeting student success, including holistic advising and enhanced campus activities, designed to improve student persistence to graduation, the news release stated.
“Every student who persists to graduation at UTEP changes the course of a life, and the life of a family,” Wilson said.
The enhanced holistic advising program is paid for in part with Federal aid.
As part of the program:
- Every undergraduate student will have a dedicated professional advisor.
- Advisors will use a research-based model that works to increase student persistence.
The program also included the presentation of the President’s 2021 Meritorious Service Awards and a recognition of the 2020 award recipients.
The awards recognized and honored outstanding achievements by staff and faculty members in the pursuit of UTEP’s mission.
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