Stephen Jordan’s vision to improve Metropolitan State College begins with a new batch of minority professors, a remodeled admissions building and $3.5 million in technology advances.
The new president drew cheers from faculty, staff and students Wednesday as he laid out a 10-year plan to make the Denver university the “pre-eminent public urban baccalaureate college.”
Jordan spoke in front of a row of historic Ninth Street homes preserved for office space when the campus was built 40 years ago.
Jordan said he has authorized the vice president for academic affairs to recruit 60 new tenure- track faculty to start next fall.
Salaries for the new professors will cost about $1.7 million and will come out of next year’s budget.
He urged professors helping with recruitment to find minorities, saying the university has “an unprecedented opportunity to change the face of our faculty to more closely mirror that of our student body.”
Jordan also announced a raise for adjunct faculty, from $788 to $960 per credit hour starting in the spring. The raises will cost $1.75 million annually.
And Jordan asked trustees to spend $3.5 million on technology and $1.5 million on renovations and remodeling. Of that, $500,000 will go toward updating the first floor of the Central Classroom Building, which houses admissions and financial aid and is often the first place prospective students and their parents see.
Funding for Jordan’s proposals already was in this year’s budget but wasn’t tagged for specific projects.
The university’s board of trustees approved the proposals Wednesday, with the condition that state Referendums C and D pass in November. Lawmakers will have to cut about $400 million from the state budget if the referendums fail.
The board also discussed worst-case scenarios if the referendums don’t pass, saying Metro State would lose $18 million, or 50 percent of its state funding, in the worst case.
Metro State, which had been without a permanent president since 2003, has been damaged by budget reductions, a decline in core teaching faculty, and stress between the board and the college, Jordan said.
“It is no secret that over the past several years, the college has endured a number of difficulties,” he said. “It is now time to declare that this period is past us.”
Hal Nees, president of the faculty senate, said professors are pleased with Jordan. “He has brought some energy and revitalization to the college,” Nees said.
Jordan said he will work to create better partnerships with Denver businesses so students get hands-on experience. He said the business community will help shape the college’s curriculum.
Staff writer Jennifer Brown can be reached at 303-820-1593 or jenbrown@denverpost.com.
