Outgoing Missouri State University President Clif Smart gave his final state of the university address Friday afternoon at Hass-Darr Hall on the Missouri State University-West Plains campus.
Before that, however, MSU-WP Chancellor Dennis Lancaster opened with an overview of the local campus’ 60th anniversary year, beginning with a slideshow presentation of the history of MSU-WP. He recalled the very beginnings of the university with three classrooms at the high school before making a move to Kellett Hall at the corner of Minnesota Avenue and East Main Street, then expanding the campus to the former Central High School building. Finally, Lancaster recapped the most recent additions of a student recreational facility and storm shelter, Hass-Darr Hall and Gohn Hall.
The address then turned to the West Plains campus numbers for enrollment and degree offerings over more recent years, with an emphasis on areas that need improvement and plans for the future.
Earlier that day, a medical simulation classroom named for the late Kennoth Gammill was dedicated at Looney Hall and attended by members of the Gammill Family, nursing students, Smart, members of the MSU board of governors, and MSU-WP faculty, staff and community supporters.
The faculty at MSU-WP is currently comprised of 41 people, thought to be the highest number MSU-WP has ever had.
Lancaster did comment on the near-future need for replacement of faculty and staff, as the average age of employees is 51 years.
Of the seven-county service area MSU-WP focuses on, 68% students are from those counties, while 27% hail from elsewhere in Missouri, 5% from other states and 6% from other countries. There are 1,692 students from Missouri, with 1,207 of them from the seven-county area, 56 international students, 23 students who are residents of other states, and six foreign countries represented by the international demographic.
Lancaster pointed out, in an enrollment chart covering the last 60 years, there were 111 students in 1963.
There has been growth in the licensed practical nurse to registered nurse and viticulture programs, Lancaster said, and the campus continues to work with 23 school districts in the area to help recruit students.
Key moments in enrollment growth over the last 60 have been the addition of men's basketball and women's volleyball teams and housing, from 1993 to 1995, with the opening of Grizzly House. That led to an enrollment increase over the next seven to eight years, said Lancaster. The events of and aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, and an economic recession in the early 2000s led to a leveling of enrollment that grew again in the mid to late 2000s, he said.
There has been a drop in dual credit hours from 2020 to present, and strategies to bolster those numbers include trying to create programs designed to bring students to West Plains rather than Springfield or the University of Missouri in Columbia, including agriculture, allied health, welding, sports and student programs like Autism Support Can Empower New Directions (A.S.C.E.N.D.), aimed at providing support services to students with autism.
The average student age was about 26 in 1995 trending down to about 21, closer to traditional age, but Lancaster noted the institution needs more nontraditional students wanting to change careers or get additional job training, and more attention needs to be paid to that in enrollment strategies.
He added the college retention rate is concerning and has seen a recent drop of about 15%. One of the most cited reasons is cost and inflation has affected that, he commented, but campus staff will continue to connect to students to try to improve that trend. However, the A+ Program, is still a big thing, he said, and participating students have a higher retention rate and are also more likely to complete their program of study. A+ is a merit-based scholarship program established by the state for qualifying high school graduates attending in two year vocational/technical schools or public community colleges.
Lancaster pointed out there had been a 100% graduation rate in the nursing program for three years running, and a 100% NCLEX licensure exam pass rate for the program's current cohort.
Of the university's more popular programs, agriculture saw a jump in enrollment from 45 students to 73, and there has been growth in the welding program and registered apprenticeships.
When speaking about retention, Lancaster noted there's "no silver bullet to that. I really don't think there's any silver bullet to that. I think we have the right people in place and the right ways of doing that. We just need to be a little more concerted. That can go across all offices. The way we interact with someone, with a student, that can make all the difference if they come back the next semester or not."
Lancaster also addressed the closure of the Grizzly Lofts, a residential student housing complex with a dining hall off of Missouri Avenue and formerly known as the Shoe Factory Lofts, and told the audience the university needs to have that resolved soon.
For now, students who would inhabit that complex are being housed in a hotel, but MSU-WP hopes to have an answer and a better idea of what direction to take regarding the residence hall by the end of October.
The university is anticipating the gift of a farm to help grow its agriculture program, and there will be a groundbreaking ceremony for the new A.S.C.E.N.D. program building, to be located near the amphitheater off of Main Street, on Nov. 7.
Also new are the men's baseball program, to begin in 2024, and a rodeo team attached to the agriculture program.
Financially, the university continues to work ahead to secure funding and keep the balance between program costs that attract and keep students and the keeping those programs paid for.
Before reflecting again on all the changes that took place over the last 60 years, Lancaster emphasized that students needed to remain the focus of university efforts.
Smart, in his last address to the MSU-WP campus as university system president, gave an overview of the general financial and program health of the university, describing both as healthy and robust despite challenges faced during the COVID pandemic, and finished by talking about the search for a new MSU president.
The search committee will include MSU-WP representative Crockett Oaks III, associate vice chancellor for business and support services.
Smart announced his retirement Sept. 6 and will end his tenure about the end of June or by mid-July.
