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The journey of a thousand miles may start with a single step, but Indiana University has taken many significant steps in support of our students in the seven-year journey of our IU 2030 strategy. Born out of the aspirations of hundreds of faculty, staff and students, it is built on three foundational pillars: student success, transformational research, and service to the state and beyond. In each area, we are pursuing clear, measurable objectives and demonstrating progress.
A key part of our student-success pillar is our commitment to ensuring graduates are ready for the 21st century, signaled by our new requirement for annual experiential learning opportunities like a common first-year seminar, a final-year capstone, internships, undergraduate research or study abroad.
The Kelley School of Business recently did its part by launching an innovative four-year co-op program at IU Indianapolis to help students maximize their education and career preparation while introducing talent to the state’s workforce pipeline. As students apply what they learn in real time, participating companies can identify high-performing students for permanent roles.
We’ve also made improvements to academic advising based on an IU study showing first-year students who receive proactive advising have higher GPAs and are more likely to continue. At the same time, we’ve been working to reduce the rate of students who receive a D or F or withdraw, knowing that DFWs that impact graduation rates have particularly plagued minority students. In one year, we’re seeing a downward trend in the DFW rate, which bodes well for our students’ success.
In transformative research and creativity, we are expanding the scope, global reach and impact of IU’s research. The National Science Foundation’s Higher Education Research and Development report shows IU research expenditures growing from $763 million in fiscal year 2021 to $942 million in fiscal year 2023.
Numbers like this bode well for the Indiana economy, as do investments like the $111 million we’re dedicating to advancing IU’s leadership in microelectronics and nanotechnology, boosting industry growth in Indiana and the United States.
For our service-to-our-state pillar, success spans economic development initiatives and expanded collaboration with civic and business partners. For example, IU Innovates, which supports student and faculty startups, exceeded its first-year goals to incubate 30 startups and launch 25 founder groups. We’re also investing more than $250 million in Bloomington and Indianapolis to fuel IU’s growth in biosciences, biomedical engineering and health research, and we’re establishing two pioneering health-related research institutes at IU Indianapolis. With the largest medical school in the nation and research investments like this, IU is building game-changing momentum in the world of medicine.
We’re also investing in the next generation. IU was awarded more than $1 million in the form of a career coaching grant from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education to help sixth- through 12th-graders make informed college and career decisions through a collaboration between IU campuses and 38 school districts. Our school district collaboration also includes “Tomorrow’s Teachers: Growing Our Own,” a program pioneered at IU Kokomo to identify, encourage and prepare individuals in the local community who are interested in becoming an educator or educational professional.
These examples are just a few of the critical indicators telling the story of a flagship university that is prioritizing its students while moving purposefully into the future. As part of IU 2030’s emphasis on transparency, you can keep tabs on our progress via online dashboards published this month.
After three years here, I can tell you that it is easy to love IU. I am deeply committed to building upon our legacy of excellence. I’m immensely proud of how faculty, staff, students and alumni are coming together to propel our university forward.•
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Whitten is president of Indiana University.
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