UMR is poised to help solve nation’s two most critical challenges, says UMR
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In his Dec. 3, 2007, State of the University Address, University of
Missouri-Rolla Chancellor John F. Carney III told UMR faculty, staff and
students that the university is uniquely qualified to tackle the world’s energy
and environmental issues. This was Carney’s fifth State of the University
Address.
Citing these two areas of critical importance, Carney gave examples of UMR
research that covers a broad range of environmental issues as well as all
phases of the energy supply and demand system.
“UMR has a lot to offer in these areas," Carney said. In addition, he
said, UMR is the only university in the United States that offers 16 different
engineering bachelor’s degree programs and the only one with a combination of
energy-friendly programs that includes geology and geophysics and
environmental, geological, mining, nuclear and petroleum engineering
fields.
In the future, Carney hopes to increase the “greenness" of the campus to
demonstrate to students how a sustainable future can work. As a first step, the
campus has begun a project to replace 10,000 light fixtures in 21 campus
buildings with new energy-saving bulbs. This will result in an annual savings
of $220,000 in energy costs or 6 percent of the campus’s annual electrical
usage.
In his address, Carney also discussed advances in sponsored research,
student design team success and gave an update on campus capital improvement
projects like Toomey Hall, which is scheduled for completion in summer 2009,
although the new construction portion will be completed in May 2008; and the
Residential College II, which was opened in June 2007. He also applauded
successes in UMR’s Career Opportunities Center, which hosted the university’s
largest Career Fair in history this fall; the university’s enrollment, which
has increased 33.3 percent over that of 2000; graduation and retention rates,
which continue to rise; and the university’s Advancing Excellence Campaign,
which has raised $128.9 million toward its goal of $200 million by 2010.
Citing a list of 10 quality indicators that includes data like the number of
national merit scholars and National Academy members, doctoral degrees awarded
per faculty member, and student-to-faculty ratio, Carney asserted his belief
that UMR has achieved its goal as one of the top five technological research
institutions in the nation. Based on this ranking, UMR is ranked fifth. The
other four are Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1), California Institute
of Technology (2), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (3), and Georgia Institute
of Technology (4).
On Jan. 1, 2008, UMR will become Missouri University of Science and
Technology, or Missouri S&T.
