The Numbers Are In …
You’ve read it in the papers, heard it on the radio, and even seen reports on TV - USF St. Petersburg is growing by leaps and bounds. This semester, our student population climbed to a whopping 4,610. That’s a 9.2% increase over last year’s numbers. While this data is big news, it is also interesting to see the new statistics and trends that are emerging.

Among the most interesting trends clearly emerging from the collected data, is a dramatic increase in student course load. More of our students are signing up for more credit hours. This finding is not exclusive to USFSP. In fact, colleges and universities nationwide are reporting similar findings. USFSP graduate students increased by 15.1 percent and undergraduate (students with declared majors) rose by 16 percent.

The average (mean) age of a USFSP student is 27.9. (median is 25). and our students range in age from 17 to 72 with 63.3 percent of them being female (slightly down from last year’s 64.1 percent). The number of ethnic minority students attending USFSP rose to 21.5 percent over last year’s 20.2 percent.

Also of interest is the increase in the number of students who are taking all four years of study at USFSP. With 45 degree programs now being offered on campus, that number is projected to increase with each passing year.

USF St. Petersburg wasn’t the only USF campus that saw growth. In Tampa, they reported a 5.3 percent increase in their student body. Sarasota/Manatee added 347 students and Lakeland increased their headcount by 569. Interestingly enough, according to numbers released by the Lakeland campus, with a total of 1,890 students, they nosed ahead of Sarasota’s headcount of 1,889 - a difference of one student!

USFSP’s Plans First Academic Convocation
Academic Affairs is planning USFSP's first Academic Convocation to be held in the Karen A Steidinger Auditorium, Florida Marine Research Institute on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 4 p.m.

Paige E. Mulhollan, president emeritus of Wright State University, will be the guest speaker. There will be a reception following the convocation at the Williams/Snell Courtyard. All planning to attend are asked to respond to 3-4151 by Sept. 17.

Historic Williams House Open for Meetings
The Williams House, one of USFSP’s two historic homes gifted to the
university, is now available for academic meetings and gatherings. In the final stages of renovation, the first floor offers several rooms suitable for small student and faculty-based functions.

Renovations of both the Snell and Williams houses were funded by state historic preservation grants and will offer a unique atmosphere for USFSP academic-based gatherings.

The courtyard between the two houses can be used for open-air functions when weather permits. The second floor offices of the Williams House are occupied by USFSP Advancement (John Collins, Marti Garratt, and Danita Marie) and the Media / Public Relations Office (Pam Bellis and Sue Sietsma)

The Snell House is home to the university’s Florida Studies Program (Ray Arsenault, Gary Mormino, and Greta Scheid-Wells).

For more information about reserving the USFSP Historic Houses and Courtyard, please contact Sudsy at 3-4842 (SNL 100).

Input of Faculty and Staff Requested on Attached Drafts

All campuses of the University of South Florida have been asked to provide input on a new document reflecting the operating practices and current relationships between and among the Tampa , Sarasota-Manatee, and Lakeland campuses.  Attached [linked] are PDF copies of a draft letter from President Judy Genshaft and the May 2003 draft of the Inter-Campus Operating Procedures for your consideration.  The university-wide review process will include review by a USF Ad Hoc Faculty Committee on Inter-Campus Operating Procedures. 

The University of South Florida St. Petersburg enjoys increased autonomy and responsibility as a result of legislative mandate; and has a current Memorandum of Agreement between the USF Board of Trustees and the USFSP Campus Board that delineates that autonomy.  USFSP also has a continuing commitment to the “one university” paradigm for USF.

Karen White, vice president and CEO of the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, has asked the USFSP Faculty Council to communicate the guidelines to the USFSP faculty for consultation and to provide response to the Provost. However, all members of the university community are stakeholders in the review process and are invited to participate.  Should you wish to develop independent response to the document, please submit in writing to Sheril Gottuso in the Office of the Provost no later than Oct. 3, 2003.

<DRAFTS>

USFSP Celebrates        

                      Superbull VII 

Homecoming is just around the corner. Monday, Oct. 27 marks the beginning of a week of festivities and events sure to kindle the USFSP spirit in all of us. The week begins with a campus Blood Drive from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Faculty, staff and students are invited to attend the Harborside Kickoff, noon–7 p.m., for the introduction of the Homecoming Court and Crowing of the Duke and Duchess. Also included in the day’s festivities will be the fun-filled Cardboard
Boat Building from 1–4 p.m.

Be sure to mark your calendar for the week-long celebrations, including:

Tuesday, Oct. 28, Spirit Day:
    o Don your Green and Gold and come make a banner and a photo

       button while cooling off with an ice cream treat.
       11 a.m. - 2 p.m., and 7 p.m. - 8 p.m., Davis Lobby
    o Cardboard Boat Building, 1-4 p.m., USFSP waterfront
    o Stampede, 8 p.m., Special Events Center, Tampa

Wednesday, Oct. 29, Team Competition:
    o Be sure to sign up for his year’s team competitions, there will

       be prizes awarded. Competitions run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.,

       Harborside.
    o At approximately 1:25 p.m. – be sure to watch the Cardboard

       Boat Race along the waterfront.
    o Homecoming Parade, 6 p.m., Tampa

Thursday, Oct. 30, Festival and Ball:
    o All are invited to attend the USFSP Homecoming Festival from   

       11 a.m. to 2 p.m., featuring fun, food and games. Come take a

       ride on Rocky the Mechanical Bull, or watch students dunk their

       favorite professor, dean or administrator in the frigid waters of 

       the ever-popular dunk tank.
    o At 8 p.m., slip into costume and attend the Masquerade Ball,

       MOSI, in Tampa.

Friday, Oct. 31, Bull’s Roast and Homecoming Game:
    o All are invited to USFSP’s tent at the Gathering at the Bull’s

       Roast at 4:30 p.m. in the HCC parking lot in Tampa.

       (tickets required)
    o Raymond James Stadium will host the Spirit Patio (6 p.m.) and

       the always-exciting Homecoming Game (7:30 p.m.) between   

       USF and UC. (bus tickets available) GO BULLS!

All events sponsored by the Student Government Homecoming Committee. For more information, to purchase tickets, or reserve a seat on the bus leaving campus at 4:30 for the big game, call 3-4162.

* NEW *
   HATS OFF
Mark Walters — faculty
Dr. Walters will be a featured speaker in October at the preeminent Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington. D.C., where he will speak abut emerging epidemics and the role of journalists in increasing public awareness of and preparedness against such threats. The Center, directed by Lee H. Hamilton, former Indiana Congressman and former Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, describes itself as an "intellectual haven where scholars, policymakers, and business leaders engage in a comprehensive and non-partisan dialogue on public policy issues, their deep historical backgrounds, and their effect on national and international thought and governance."