February 2009 Board Report

By Frank L. Messa '73, Chairman, Board of Trustees

Dear Friend of Union:

The Board of Trustees met on campus on Feb. 6 and 7 in a series of meetings focused largely on the College’s response to the current economic climate.

The Trustees and the administration have been meeting regularly since last fall to analyze and respond to factors such as reduced endowment income, increased demand for financial aid and the impact on fund raising.

I am pleased to report, as President Ainlay has in recent weeks, that it is unlikely that we will have to make drastic spending cuts in the current fiscal year. But no institution, including Union, is isolated from the effects of the downturn. In the fiscal years ahead, we expect to have to take measures to control and cut costs and augment our sources of revenue. It is important to note that we will be mindful throughout this process that we continue to preserve and enhance the educational experience of our students and the safety of our community.

I join the President in thanking the many alumni and other friends who have stepped forward in this difficult time to provide the gifts that are so critical to this College. Your generosity is inspiring, and it confirms the strength and depth of support for the mission of this College.

You can read President Ainlay’s recent letter on the effects of the economic downturn.

Mindful that the economic crisis is affecting a number of our families, the Board took measures to limit the increase in the comprehensive fee and to make available additional financial aid to keep a Union education accessible.

The Board set the comprehensive fee for 2009-2010 at $50,439, an increase of 3.9 percent over the current year. We appreciate the sacrifice that families make to send their children to Union, so we have established a financial aid budget of $33.4 million plus a contingency fund of $700,000 in case economic conditions result in an increase in need.

The Board decided to defer the approval of the final budget for the 2009-2010 academic year until the spring meeting when there will be more complete information on the impact of the national financial crisis on the financial position of the College.

Investments

As is the case with almost every college, our endowment was severely impacted by the turmoil in the financial markets. NACUBO reports that the one-year average nominal return for endowments between $100 million and $500 million was (2.9%). Union College’s return as of June 30, 2008 was 3.5 percent, outperforming the average by 6.4 percent.

As of December 31, 2008, our estimated endowment value was $292 million, down approximately 27 percent from the high point of $400 million on June 30, 2008.

The Union endowment compares very well with other peer endowments. The Wilshire endowment data shows that our endowment would rank well into the top 25 percent of endowments for both the trailing three and five year periods ending December 31, 2008.

It is also important to note that Union’s endowment has had no issues with regard to liquidity. Less that 8 percent of the portfolio consists of private equity investments and 51 percent of the portfolio could be liquidated within a month or less.

Student Affairs and Admissions

The College’s ongoing safety program lately included the installation of new security cameras along the western and northern sides of the campus. This project, which will install up to ten cameras, represents the latest collaboration with the City of Schenectady to increase safety for the campus and local communities. The City’s police and fire departments will be involved with a number of emergency response drills with the campus.

The Board is grateful for the service of Bill Sickinger, who for the last decade has headed Campus Safety. After Bill’s retirement last month, Assistant Director Chris Hayen has agreed to serve as interim director during the search.

Memorial Fieldhouse served as a Red Cross emergency shelter during the December ice storm when thousands were without power for several days. Safety Officer Janice Underwood coordinated Safety and Facility staff to work with the Red Cross. County officials were appreciative of the College’s assistance to the community.

Becker Career Center, which expects a relatively weak hiring year, has seen a doubling of internship positions due largely to the fact that our broad curriculum appeals to a wide array of employers. Clearly, during current economic uncertainty, employers are favoring the cost advantages of internships. Those internships, we should note, are a key point of entry for new graduates.

The Counseling Center has seen increased use. In the Fall 2008 term, appointments were up 55 percent over the same term in 2007. This increase is due largely to a total of 24 outreach events aimed at getting students to take advantage of services at the Center. Marcus Hotaling, director of the Center, recently traveled to Beijing, China, for a summit on best practices aimed at easing the transitions of students who study abroad.

The Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, in articulating the goals of academic excellence and diversity in the Strategic Plan, is sponsoring eight campus organizations. They are AUM (Hindu students), the Association of Atheists and Agnostics, Campus Protestant Ministry, Catholic Student Association, Hillel (Jewish students), Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, the Muslim Student Association and the Multifaith Council. The Prayer and Mediation Room, on the third floor of Reamer Campus Center, was dedicated on Oct. 23, 2008.

We continue to see increases in the academic and cultural programs at the Minerva Houses. During the weekend of the Trustees meetings, Minerva Programs sponsored the popular annual Minervas/Unitas Winter Ball to raise money for the Foundation for Hospices of Sub-Saharan Africa, an initiative directed by Phil Di Sorbo ’71 to bring care to the AIDS-ravaged region. As one example of Minerva activity, the week of Jan. 23 through 29 included a French presentation and crepe tasting; the screening and discussion of Religulous, the popular Bill Maher documentary on popular religion; a student-led discussion on faith and religion; the Wold House Winter Foreign Film Series; and a student-faculty “Wine and Cheese” sponsored by the sisters of Sigma Delta Tau and Breazzano House.

The College has committed to a second-year of the Minerva Fellows program, which this year sent eight stellar graduates to Cambodia, Southern Uganda and other foreign destinations. For 11 months, these new alumni get a first-hand look at the human side of poverty. The program is designed to instill in new graduates an entrepreneurial approach to social problems and a lasting commitment to the poor. Tom McEvoy, associate dean of students and director of the Minerva programs, visited with five of the current fellows over winter break. When the students return, by May 1, they will engage in a three-day retreat and then co-teach Prof. Hal Fried’s class on Social Entrepreneurship. This is an exciting program, and we look forward to the contributions our Minerva Fellows will make.

During the afternoon session, the Board heard a presentation on the Posse Program. The Posse Foundation is an organization that identifies, recruits and trains promising student leaders from largely disadvantaged urban public high schools to form multicultural teams called “posses.” Union has had great success with this program and we expect to continue to recruit quality students through this program. In the fall we will welcome our fourth class of Posse Scholars to Union.

Admissions

With the economic downturn and the impact this has had on families’ assets and job security, this is a challenging year for our admission efforts, but not one without good news and reasons for optimism. Like many of our peers, applications for the class of 2013 are down (9%), but 4,725 still represents the third most applications Union has ever received. Applications to early decision Plan 1 were up 6 percent from last year’s record high. Roughly 25 percent of our targeted 565 first-year class size has been filled by Early Decision 1 students. The quality of this group is notable with a SAT average 40 points higher from last year’s ED1 group (1280 v. 1240) and a significant increase in the students representing the top ten percent of their class (48% v. 32%). This group also showed improvements in the percentage of multicultural students, students outside New York State and the percentage outside the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions of the country. Early Decision 2 is in process, but is tracking slightly behind last year’s numbers. Moving forward, our Regular Decision applicant pool looks promising (average SAT 1280 v. 6-year average 1260; 50% in the top ten percent of their high school class v. 6-year average of 44%) and more diverse.

Financial aid expenditures for 2008-2009 (current students) are tracking slightly under budget, but we will be responsive to changes in families’ financial circumstances to continue to meet full financial need. Early Decision spending for next year’s class is on budget. The challenge for Regular Decision will be anticipating families’ perception of their own financial need relative to our historic behavior models.

Academic Affairs

Planning for the Peter I. Wold Science and Engineering Center, to be located at the southwest corner of the Science and Engineering complex, is moving ahead on schedule. The schematic design phase was completed in December, and construction is to start this summer with completion by early 2011 and full use by the 2011-12 academic year. This is a wonderful project, made possible by John Wold ’38 to honor his father, a long-time professor at the College. The building will be a focal point for the intersection of disciplines and solidify Union’s role as a leader in the integration of science, engineering and the liberal arts.

The College is also planning for a major renovation of the Social Sciences building. An architect has been working closely with Social Sciences faculty and administration to develop a design that meets the needs for classrooms and offices while providing an improved experience for students and faculty.

The Board approved the conversion of three part-time faculty positions to tenure track lines. These new tenure track positions will be in modern languages (Chinese), geology, and psychology. These additions will enhance the overall quality of our faculty and move Union closer to the mid-point of our peer institutions in terms of the percentage of our faculty who are either tenured or on tenure track.

In athletics, we were treated to a thrilling sweep of RPI in men’s hockey over the weekend. Among other winter sports, women’s swimming and diving won their fourth straight Liberty League Championship. Women’s basketball was off to the program’s best start since 2002. Last fall, the sports teams combined for an impressive win percentage of 72 percent with 83 wins, 32 losses and two ties. Three teams participated in Liberty League playoffs, and women’s soccer and volleyball advanced to NCAA tournaments. Perhaps most notable last fall, volleyball registered the most wins in a season in Union College history (which began with a baseball game in 1860), finishing at 36-6.

Union is the lead institution on a $40,000 grant from the Teagle Foundation to explore high performance computing in liberal arts colleges. Union will host three workshops with five other colleges to explore high performance computing applications in humanities, social sciences, science and engineering.

Among the initiatives aimed at promoting diversity and awareness, the Office of Campus Diversity and Multicultural Affairs has sponsored a number of programs around the commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr. Among them was the popular Human Race Machine, in which members of the Union community got to view themselves as members of another race. We are about to embark on an exciting series of programs exploring the College’s role in the abolitionist movement. Some of the programs are to focus on Moses Viney, an escaped slave whose freedom was secured by President Eliphalet Nott. Founders Day will include the unveiling of a portrait of Viney by renowned painter Simmie Knox, and a talk by historian James McPherson. The Office of Campus Diversity and Multicultural Affairs also in launching a project called the “Union Unity Quilt,” in which we will celebrate the 215 years of the Union family history by encouraging everyone to design a square to reflect their background, beliefs, culture or values.

College Relations

Like most institutions, the economic downturn has impacted the Union Fund. At the mid-way point for fiscal year 2008-2009, the Union Fund continues to focus on opportunities and strategies that will allow us to reach our goals of $4.8 million and 43 percent alumni participating. To date we have raised $2,097,928 ($655,333 less than last year at this time) from 4982 donors (137 fewer than last year at this time). In order to encourage increased participation for the Union Fund, we will be announcing a challenge from the Board of Trustees in the form of additional contributions for increased participation.

As of Jan. 16, the You Are Union campaign stands at $158.5 million, and we intend to meet the campaign goal of $250 million by 2012. While we are not immune to the effects of the global economic crisis, we remain committed to the goals of the campaign. To help reach them, we have realigned staff responsibilities. Jill Hungsberg joins us as senior director of communications and marketing. Jill, who joined the College last June as special assistant to the president for communications, will lead a number of initiatives to foster a culture of communication with Union’s many audiences and to steward the College’s reputation. Nick Famulare has been promoted to director of development and alumni relations, to lead both the annual giving and alumni relations programs. Mike O’Hara, director of development, has assumed responsibility for initiative-based fundraising projects, New York City fundraising and leading philanthropic families. Scott Rava, director of leadership gifts, is reporting directly to the vice president to provide integration of field activities with prospective donors and other campus offices. Despite the economic downturn, we are optimistic about the year ahead for College Relations. With the support of President Ainlay, the Board and Union’s many friends, we are well positioned to bring to Union the recognition and resources it needs.

Sincerely,

Frank L. Messa '73
Chairman of the Board of Trustees

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About Union Mission Statement History of Union Office of the President Board of Trustees Presidents of Union College Union Notables Exhibit Traditions of Union What to do AroundU? The Union Campus Great Grads of Union	By Frank L. Messa '73, Chairman, Board of Trustees Dear Friend of Union: The Board of Trustees met on campus on Feb. 6 and 7 in a series of meetings focused largely on the College’s response to the current economic climate. The Trustees and the administration have been meeting regularly since last fall to analyze and respond to factors such as reduced endowment income, increased demand for financial aid and the impact on fund raising. I am pleased to report, as President Ainlay has in recent weeks, that it is unlikely that we will have to make drastic spending cuts in the current fiscal year. But no institution, including Union, is isolated from the effects of the downturn. In the fiscal years ahead, we expect to have to take measures to control and cut costs and augment our sources of revenue. It is important to note that we will be mindful throughout this process that we continue to preserve and enhance the educational experience of our students and the safety of our community. I join the President in thanking the many alumni and other friends who have stepped forward in this difficult time to provide the gifts that are so critical to this College. Your generosity is inspiring, and it confirms the strength and depth of support for the mission of this College. You can read President Ainlay’s recent letter on the effects of the economic downturn. Mindful that the economic crisis is affecting a number of our families, the Board took measures to limit the increase in the comprehensive fee and to make available additional financial aid to keep a Union education accessible. The Board set the comprehensive fee for 2009-2010 at $50,439, an increase of 3.9 percent over the current year. We appreciate the sacrifice that families make to send their children to Union, so we have established a financial aid budget of $33.4 million plus a contingency fund of $700,000 in case economic conditions result in an increase in need. The Board decided to defer the approval of the final budget for the 2009-2010 academic year until the spring meeting when there will be more complete information on the impact of the national financial crisis on the financial position of the College. Investments As is the case with almost every college, our endowment was severely impacted by the turmoil in the financial markets. NACUBO reports that the one-year average nominal return for endowments between $100 million and $500 million was (2.9%). Union College’s return as of June 30, 2008 was 3.5 percent, outperforming the average by 6.4 percent. As of December 31, 2008, our estimated endowment value was $292 million, down approximately 27 percent from the high point of $400 million on June 30, 2008. The Union endowment compares very well with other peer endowments. The Wilshire endowment data shows that our endowment would rank well into the top 25 percent of endowments for both the trailing three and five year periods ending December 31, 2008. It is also important to note that Union’s endowment has had no issues with regard to liquidity. Less that 8 percent of the portfolio consists of private equity investments and 51 percent of the portfolio could be liquidated within a month or less. Student Affairs and Admissions The College’s ongoing safety program lately included the installation of new security cameras along the western and northern sides of the campus. This project, which will install up to ten cameras, represents the latest collaboration with the City of Schenectady to increase safety for the campus and local communities. The City’s police and fire departments will be involved with a number of emergency response drills with the campus. The Board is grateful for the service of Bill Sickinger, who for the last decade has headed Campus Safety. After Bill’s retirement last month, Assistant Director Chris Hayen has agreed to serve as interim director during the search. Memorial Fieldhouse served as a Red Cross emergency shelter during the December ice storm when thousands were without power for several days. Safety Officer Janice Underwood coordinated Safety and Facility staff to work with the Red Cross. County officials were appreciative of the College’s assistance to the community. Becker Career Center, which expects a relatively weak hiring year, has seen a doubling of internship positions due largely to the fact that our broad curriculum appeals to a wide array of employers. Clearly, during current economic uncertainty, employers are favoring the cost advantages of internships. Those internships, we should note, are a key point of entry for new graduates. The Counseling Center has seen increased use. In the Fall 2008 term, appointments were up 55 percent over the same term in 2007. This increase is due largely to a total of 24 outreach events aimed at getting students to take advantage of services at the Center. Marcus Hotaling, director of the Center, recently traveled to Beijing, China, for a summit on best practices aimed at easing the transitions of students who study abroad. The Office of Religious and Spiritual Life, in articulating the goals of academic excellence and diversity in the Strategic Plan, is sponsoring eight campus organizations. They are AUM (Hindu students), the Association of Atheists and Agnostics, Campus Protestant Ministry, Catholic Student Association, Hillel (Jewish students), Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, the Muslim Student Association and the Multifaith Council. The Prayer and Mediation Room, on the third floor of Reamer Campus Center, was dedicated on Oct. 23, 2008. We continue to see increases in the academic and cultural programs at the Minerva Houses. During the weekend of the Trustees meetings, Minerva Programs sponsored the popular annual Minervas/Unitas Winter Ball to raise money for the Foundation for Hospices of Sub-Saharan Africa, an initiative directed by Phil Di Sorbo ’71 to bring care to the AIDS-ravaged region. As one example of Minerva activity, the week of Jan. 23 through 29 included a French presentation and crepe tasting; the screening and discussion of Religulous, the popular Bill Maher documentary on popular religion; a student-led discussion on faith and religion; the Wold House Winter Foreign Film Series; and a student-faculty “Wine and Cheese” sponsored by the sisters of Sigma Delta Tau and Breazzano House. The College has committed to a second-year of the Minerva Fellows program, which this year sent eight stellar graduates to Cambodia, Southern Uganda and other foreign destinations. For 11 months, these new alumni get a first-hand look at the human side of poverty. The program is designed to instill in new graduates an entrepreneurial approach to social problems and a lasting commitment to the poor. Tom McEvoy, associate dean of students and director of the Minerva programs, visited with five of the current fellows over winter break. When the students return, by May 1, they will engage in a three-day retreat and then co-teach Prof. Hal Fried’s class on Social Entrepreneurship. This is an exciting program, and we look forward to the contributions our Minerva Fellows will make. During the afternoon session, the Board heard a presentation on the Posse Program. The Posse Foundation is an organization that identifies, recruits and trains promising student leaders from largely disadvantaged urban public high schools to form multicultural teams called “posses.” Union has had great success with this program and we expect to continue to recruit quality students through this program. In the fall we will welcome our fourth class of Posse Scholars to Union. Admissions With the economic downturn and the impact this has had on families’ assets and job security, this is a challenging year for our admission efforts, but not one without good news and reasons for optimism. Like many of our peers, applications for the class of 2013 are down (9%), but 4,725 still represents the third most applications Union has ever received. Applications to early decision Plan 1 were up 6 percent from last year’s record high. Roughly 25 percent of our targeted 565 first-year class size has been filled by Early Decision 1 students. The quality of this group is notable with a SAT average 40 points higher from last year’s ED1 group (1280 v. 1240) and a significant increase in the students representing the top ten percent of their class (48% v. 32%). This group also showed improvements in the percentage of multicultural students, students outside New York State and the percentage outside the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions of the country. Early Decision 2 is in process, but is tracking slightly behind last year’s numbers. Moving forward, our Regular Decision applicant pool looks promising (average SAT 1280 v. 6-year average 1260; 50% in the top ten percent of their high school class v. 6-year average of 44%) and more diverse. Financial aid expenditures for 2008-2009 (current students) are tracking slightly under budget, but we will be responsive to changes in families’ financial circumstances to continue to meet full financial need. Early Decision spending for next year’s class is on budget. The challenge for Regular Decision will be anticipating families’ perception of their own financial need relative to our historic behavior models. Academic Affairs Planning for the Peter I. Wold Science and Engineering Center, to be located at the southwest corner of the Science and Engineering complex, is moving ahead on schedule. The schematic design phase was completed in December, and construction is to start this summer with completion by early 2011 and full use by the 2011-12 academic year. This is a wonderful project, made possible by John Wold ’38 to honor his father, a long-time professor at the College. The building will be a focal point for the intersection of disciplines and solidify Union’s role as a leader in the integration of science, engineering and the liberal arts. The College is also planning for a major renovation of the Social Sciences building. An architect has been working closely with Social Sciences faculty and administration to develop a design that meets the needs for classrooms and offices while providing an improved experience for students and faculty. The Board approved the conversion of three part-time faculty positions to tenure track lines. These new tenure track positions will be in modern languages (Chinese), geology, and psychology. These additions will enhance the overall quality of our faculty and move Union closer to the mid-point of our peer institutions in terms of the percentage of our faculty who are either tenured or on tenure track. In athletics, we were treated to a thrilling sweep of RPI in men’s hockey over the weekend. Among other winter sports, women’s swimming and diving won their fourth straight Liberty League Championship. Women’s basketball was off to the program’s best start since 2002. Last fall, the sports teams combined for an impressive win percentage of 72 percent with 83 wins, 32 losses and two ties. Three teams participated in Liberty League playoffs, and women’s soccer and volleyball advanced to NCAA tournaments. Perhaps most notable last fall, volleyball registered the most wins in a season in Union College history (which began with a baseball game in 1860), finishing at 36-6. Union is the lead institution on a $40,000 grant from the Teagle Foundation to explore high performance computing in liberal arts colleges. Union will host three workshops with five other colleges to explore high performance computing applications in humanities, social sciences, science and engineering. Among the initiatives aimed at promoting diversity and awareness, the Office of Campus Diversity and Multicultural Affairs has sponsored a number of programs around the commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr. Among them was the popular Human Race Machine, in which members of the Union community got to view themselves as members of another race. We are about to embark on an exciting series of programs exploring the College’s role in the abolitionist movement. Some of the programs are to focus on Moses Viney, an escaped slave whose freedom was secured by President Eliphalet Nott. Founders Day will include the unveiling of a portrait of Viney by renowned painter Simmie Knox, and a talk by historian James McPherson. The Office of Campus Diversity and Multicultural Affairs also in launching a project called the “Union Unity Quilt,” in which we will celebrate the 215 years of the Union family history by encouraging everyone to design a square to reflect their background, beliefs, culture or values. College Relations Like most institutions, the economic downturn has impacted the Union Fund. At the mid-way point for fiscal year 2008-2009, the Union Fund continues to focus on opportunities and strategies that will allow us to reach our goals of $4.8 million and 43 percent alumni participating. To date we have raised $2,097,928 ($655,333 less than last year at this time) from 4982 donors (137 fewer than last year at this time). In order to encourage increased participation for the Union Fund, we will be announcing a challenge from the Board of Trustees in the form of additional contributions for increased participation. As of Jan. 16, the You Are Union campaign stands at $158.5 million, and we intend to meet the campaign goal of $250 million by 2012. While we are not immune to the effects of the global economic crisis, we remain committed to the goals of the campaign. To help reach them, we have realigned staff responsibilities. Jill Hungsberg joins us as senior director of communications and marketing. Jill, who joined the College last June as special assistant to the president for communications, will lead a number of initiatives to foster a culture of communication with Union’s many audiences and to steward the College’s reputation. Nick Famulare has been promoted to director of development and alumni relations, to lead both the annual giving and alumni relations programs. Mike O’Hara, director of development, has assumed responsibility for initiative-based fundraising projects, New York City fundraising and leading philanthropic families. Scott Rava, director of leadership gifts, is reporting directly to the vice president to provide integration of field activities with prospective donors and other campus offices. Despite the economic downturn, we are optimistic about the year ahead for College Relations. With the support of President Ainlay, the Board and Union’s many friends, we are well positioned to bring to Union the recognition and resources it needs. Sincerely, Frank L. Messa '73 Chairman of the Board of Trustees
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