RADFORD – Radford University President Penelope W. Kyle reported to the Board of Visitors during its meeting today that Radford University achieved all of its targets on State Council of Higher Education for Virginia’s Institutional Performance Standards, the only institution in the Commonwealth to do so. Targets measured include enrollment, affordability, degrees awarded, progression and retention rates and K-12 partnerships, among others. RU is ranked second in the state for degrees conferred per full-time faculty member.  “We are very proud of this accomplishment.  It is a testament to the strength and dedication of our faculty and staff,” says Kyle.

(Read the full transcript of President Kyle's report to the Board.)

In other business, the Board elected Thomas E. Fraim, Jr. as its rector and Nancy Artis as its vice-rector. Fraim is a 1987 Radford graduate with a bachelor of arts degree in marketing and is President and CEO of MASA Corporation.  He resides in Virginia Beach.  Artis is a 1973 Radford graduate with a bachelor of science degree in biology and is Vice President and Co-Owner of Performance Associates, Inc.  She resides in Pagosa Springs, Co.

The Board approved the RU Emergency Operations Plan.  The plan assigns responsibility for responses to emergency situations and is based on federal emergency guidelines. Virginia law requires that the Board of Visitors of each public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth develop, adopt and keep current a written crises and emergency management plan. 

The Board also adopted the National Incident Management System (NIMS) standard in preparing and managing emergency situations.  “RU takes the safety of our students seriously.  We are doing everything in our power to maintain a safe and secure environment in which to learn,” says Kyle.

The Board approved the policies and procedures for RU to be granted authority and autonomy from the state to manage its information technology affairs more efficiently and effectively.  Regarding technology, Kyle informed the board that RU is one of only three Virginia higher education institutions to implement the eVA e-procurement system for requisitioning and receiving of goods and services to Banner integration and is one of the first to deploy the integration to university departments.

Board member and RU Foundation Board liaison Mary Ann Hovis informed the Board that the RU Foundation witnessed a 166 percent increase in unrestricted fund gifts over the past year. 

The Board received a comprehensive update about the progress being made on RU’s new core curriculum proposal.  “This summer, faculty have put in hundreds of hours of work to create a solid Core A group of classes, the classes all RU students will be required to take,” says RU Provost Wil Stanton. “Our goal is for our curriculum to be a model for other institutions across the country to follow,” adds Stanton.