Strategic Action Plan Update - Enrollment

You may remember that at the Feb. 21 forum, I announced I had appointed an Enrollment Transformation Task Force to develop and recommend a plan for both improving our institutional performance and mobilizing the campus to action. The plan will include actions that are likely to have the greatest impact on our enrollment.

As you may remember, Dr. Debbie Below, vice president for Enrollment Management and Student Success, and Dr. Erin Fluegge, professor in the Department of Management and chair of the Faculty Senate will co-chair this highly-focused task force.

As Dr. Fluegge so eloquently articulated at the event, the time for only talking has passed, and we must now act. The task force has already met twice, with additional work sessions scheduled throughout March and April. My hope is to present a series of recommended actions and timeline for their execution to our Board of Governors at its June retreat.

Dr. Below and Dr. Fluegge also shared with the attendees their approach to keep our university community informed about the task force's progress. More specifically, a toolkit with updates will be available in the mySEMO portal. Updates will also be included in the Newswire following every meeting of the task force.

At the Feb. 21 forum, we received dozens of suggestions and questions. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. Dr. Below and Dr. Fluegge are currently compiling them to review with the task force; I plan to address some of these ideas and questions in upcoming newsletters.

Please continue to offer any ideas/suggestions in the future. Dr. Below and Dr. Fluegge are looking forward to continuing to hear from you with any thoughts or advice you may have. I encourage you to do so.

Strategic Action Plan Update - Operating Budget & Financial Performance

Our next Strategic Action Plan Update scheduled for Monday, March 18 at noon will focus on our operating budget and financial performance, including a discussion on our institutional ratios. This will be an important session to keep you all informed about where we are currently, hear your thoughts, and discuss our next steps. I invite you to attend if your schedule allows.

In response to suggestions received from some of you, we will be moving the location of the forum to Glenn Auditorium in Dempster Hall, so that we can have capabilities for those who cannot attend in person. Additional details for registering and ordering a Brown Bag lunch through SEMO Dining will be shared with campus soon.

I remind you that I also mentioned during our Feb. 21 forum that we are in the final stages of identifying an interim vice president for finance and administration from outside our University to step in when Dr. Sheriff leaves at the end of March. We hope schedules will allow some overlap, but I will keep you updated on this progress. We are also in the process of launching a search to identify a replacement for Dr. Sheriff on a permanent basis.

Planning & Actions Underway

At the Board of Governors (BOG) meeting last month, we announced that SEMO will not be renewing its lease at Three Rivers College (TRC) after the spring semester. This decision was made because of several factors.

First, the evolution of learning is moving more students to online studies. We have seen far fewer students wanting to take classes in person at Poplar Bluff. Currently, only 10 students physically attend SEMO's location at TRC.

Secondly, we must prioritize and manage our resources in the most effective and efficient manner possible for the benefit for our students and the community we serve.

The purpose of being on location in Poplar Bluff was always to help students transition from TRC to SEMO. Last fall we launched a Transfer Center to better serve students by centralizing admissions and registration support. This was the very goal of having space at TRC, but now our Admissions team is providing that service to students at all our community college partner locations. We are already seeing early results with higher levels of student engagement because of this model.

Director of Regional Campuses, Shan Howard, and the Transfer Center team are working with the 10 students currently taking classes at Poplar Bluff to develop a degree plan, whether online or at a different location, that best fits their needs.

I have talked with the TRC president, and we have both agreed to have a meeting in the very near future to discuss how we can continue and simultaneously strengthen our collaboration. I am very interested in maintaining a strong partnership with TRC. We will be meeting soon with hopes of signing additional articulation agreements to serve TRC students who want to continue their education at SEMO.

The above is just one example of how we are evaluating what we do at the University to identify what we should do, what we do but should modify, and what we should no longer do. Another recent example was transitioning operation for the Apple Project from the University to an outside organization. The Apple Project assisted senior citizens with personal, legal, and medical paperwork. While it provided a service to the community, it was not core to our mission.

Each week, Executive Staff is having conversations and implementing actions regarding every facet of our operation with the goal of strengthening our institution. These conversations are not focused only on items we should cut or stop doing, but also on how we can innovate to grow revenue and strengthen the University.

The answer to the challenges we currently face will likely be a combination of many small and large transformational strategies and tactics like the ones mentioned in the above paragraphs.

Planning for the Modern Campus

SEMO's Transforming Lives campaign continues to seek support from our alumni, friends, and donors. We are currently at 70 percent of the way to our $60 million goal. Part of that effort is knowing what our needs are, so that when donors have a vision of the area they would like to impact or SEMO has an opportunity to gain other external support, we have a project in mind that fits into the University's overall strategy for the future.



The Modern Campus Transformational Project provides a comprehensive vision for the future to address aging facilities, but also to improve the student experience, academic quality, space utilization, and safety.

I want to share the main components included in this project as it stands currently.

Health Sciences Building

The Health Sciences Building is a new, multi-story, approximately 55,000-square-foot facility to be built on the site currently occupied by Dearmont Hall, which will be demolished. The new Health Sciences Building will include classrooms, laboratories, a gymnasium, offices, and meeting venues to support health, life, and allied health sciences research and academic programs. Our plan is to replace the use of offices and academic spaces currently located in Parker Hall. Pending final approval from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), work on the Health Sciences Building should begin later this year, with a targeted completion date of fall 2026.

The Houck Project

The Houck Project is a collaboration between SEMO, the City of Cape Girardeau, the state, and private donors. The Houck Project includes a dual role, multi-use, multi-facility, comprehensive development which will redefine the front porch of the SEMO campus and revitalize the gateway connecting the University and downtown Cape Girardeau.

Vehicular & Pedestrian Safety Enhancements

Vehicular and Pedestrian Safety Enhancements are necessary to increase and improve parking, pedestrian safety, and vehicular wayfinding throughout campus. Initial focus is being placed on considerations related to Normal Ave. and parking near and around the new Health Sciences Building and the Houck Project.

Demolition of Buildings

The University’s 2018 Master Plan recommends that several buildings on the main campus be demolished due to their physical condition. Demolition of these buildings would result in financial savings for the University in future years in the form of reduced utility, insurance, and maintenance and repair costs.

Repair & Replacement of Campus Utilities & Utility Tunnels

The Cape Girardeau campus has an underground utility tunnel system that includes 66 tunnels spanning over 2.2 miles, with the oldest tunnels dating back to the early 1900s. The tunnels house steam distribution pipes for heat and domestic hot water, chilled water pipes for cooling, domestic water, fire suppression mains, internet fibers and electric feeder lines. In 2019, a Utility Tunnel Assessment and a Campus Integrated Energy Master Plan identified 15 of the 66 tunnels as high priority due to their condition and the potential impacts for safety and to the functionality of campus. Work on five of the high priority tunnels is complete, and work on additional high priority tunnels is ongoing. In addition, the University needs to replace aging equipment and improve distribution of utilities on the south end of campus. This would be accomplished by relocating chillers from Kent Library and constructing a new South Loop Chiller Plant.

In addition to the components outlined above, we know there are other projects like the Kent Library steps and portico that need attention. The University has engaged the Lawrence Group to develop a Modern Campus Transformational Plan that will help us prepare to plan for addressing these, and potentially other projects in the years ahead depending on available resources.

The various components of the Modern Campus Transformational Project will be funded by University and Southeast Missouri University Foundation funds, external sponsorships and donations, and local, state, and federal investment. To date, the University has received $39.5 million in appropriations or commitments from local, state, and federal sources to support the Health Sciences Building and the Houck Project. Additional resources are being pursued through the state’s capital appropriation process, as well as the Transforming Lives comprehensive campaign being led by the Southeast Missouri University Foundation.

We will continue to keep you informed of developments.

Legislative Update / FY'25 Budget

This will continue updates from November and December that I provided regarding the 2024 Missouri Legislative Session. I have been personally involved in advocating for SEMO during the legislative session. On Nov. 6, we held a session at the Show Me Center where we presented to local and regional legislators our priorities for this year. I have met individually with local legislators in Cape. I have traveled to Jefferson City multiple times since the session began in January to advocate for SEMO, and I will continue to do so through the middle of May, when the legislative session adjourns. On January 24, Governor Parson delivered his State of the State address and formally released his FY 2025 Budget proposal. In it, the following recommendations were included for SEMO:

• A three percent increase in core operating appropriations for state colleges and universities. For SEMO, this would equal an appropriation of $55,541,091.
• Additional capital funding in the amount of $18.5 million for Southeast’s Modern Campus Transformational Project, which would be new investment in addition to the $11 million appropriated in FY23 and $18.5 million in FY24. 

The Missouri House Budget Committee and its Appropriations Subcommittees will soon begin to debate all budget bills, after which the bills will go to the full House for consideration. The bills will then have to be considered by the Missouri Senate. The Legislature has a constitutional deadline to pass a budget by early May.

In addition to the budget, over 1,400 bills have been filed in the Missouri House, and nearly 800 have been filed in the Missouri Senate. The University is monitoring more than 60 of these that address such topics as transfer of credits; scholarships; diversity, equity, and inclusion; student organizations; advancement placement scores; matters concerning public employees, the Sunshine Law, and several others. As a reminder, if you are asked to engage with legislators on these or other matters, or if you have a question about a piece of legislation, please contact Mr. Chris Martin, chief of staff and general counsel, in the President’s Office, prior to taking any action.

Lastly, please know that our advocacy extends to the federal level too. In early February, I traveled to Washington, D.C. to participate in the American Association of State Colleges and Universities 2024 AASCU On the Hill event. During this trip, I had the opportunity to meet with members of Missouri’s Congressional Delegation including Rep. Sam Graves, Rep. Jason Smith, and Sen. Eric Schmitt, as well as legislative staff in several offices including Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer and Sen. Josh Hawley.



I will continue to keep you updated on the University’s legislative advocacy efforts.

Board of Governors Meeting

SEMO's Board of Governors met on Feb. 23 and acted on several motions, including setting fiscal year 2025 room-and-board rates, updating the alcohol policy, and approving changes to several academic programs. You can find details on the Board's actions at semo.edu/news.