Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont State Colleges (VSC) Board of Trustees voted today to support a focused effort to position the Vermont State Colleges as a more comprehensive, cohesive, and interconnected system comprising multiple distinct institutions. This decision is seen as essential to expanding educational opportunities, achieving operational efficiencies, and ensuring long term viability.
“A higher level of collaboration will result in more opportunities for our students and greater cost efficiencies, ensuring a bright future for all of our institutions,” said Board Chair Martha O’Connor.
In support of the Castleton’s strategic plan to continue to grow opportunities for enrollment and funding, the approved resolution included the renaming of Castleton State College to Castleton University.
Castleton President Dave Wolk expressed his gratitude to the Board of Trustees for their unanimous decision to modernize Castleton's name: "Due to the hard work of our faculty and staff, and the loyal support of our alumni and other friends of Castleton, our college has emerged into a university for the benefit of our students, the Rutland region and the State of Vermont. I am very thankful that the place we love will continue to provide a personalized, high quality educational experience for our fortunate students, with continued reinvigoration of our campus, expanded graduate programs, a new international focus and newly developing entrepreneurial programs in Rutland and statewide. We are brimming with Spartan Pride!"
Chancellor Jeb Spaulding affirmed that “our effort to create more cohesiveness among our colleges and university will provide students with greater access to the resources of the whole system: from a vibrant community college with presence around the state, to a technical college with degrees closely connected to Vermont’s growing economy, to two four-year colleges combining professional and liberal arts that prepare students for careers, and now to a small public university with a multitude of degree and experiential programs.”
The adoption of today’s resolution, copied below, follows a unanimous recommendation from the VSC Board of Trustees’ Long Range Planning Committee, which has been considering innovations to expand student learning opportunities and to enable the most cost effective operation of the individual institutions and the system.
The full Board will consider revising the name of the system to better reflect the new relationship among its institutions, a step it will likely consider during its fall meeting cycle.
Vermont's state colleges include Castleton University, Community College of Vermont, Johnson State College, Lyndon State College and Vermont Technical College. The Office of the Chancellor is in Montpelier.
Source: VSC July 23, 2015, photo of Castleton above. More details regarding the change to Castleton University can be found here: www.castleton.edu/university
VERMONT STATE COLLEGES BOARD OF TRUSTEES RESOLUTION
Endorsement of the Strategic Decision to Become a More Comprehensive, Cohesive, Interconnected System With Multiple Distinct Institutions and Renaming Castleton State College to Castleton University
WHEREAS, The mission statement of the Vermont State Colleges reads, in part: For the benefit of Vermont, the Vermont State Colleges provide affordable, high quality, student centered, and accessible education; and
WHEREAS, The best interests of our students and the state of Vermont require that the Vermont State Colleges system functions at the highest levels of collaboration, effectiveness, and efficiency in all aspects of its operations and programs; and
WHEREAS, The Board of Trustees of the Vermont State Colleges engaged in a strategic inquiry process with the VSC community in 2013-2014 and in doing so identified a primary goal of a unified system with strong collaboration between institutions; and
WHEREAS, The Board has determined that a focused effort to allow the Vermont State Colleges to become a more comprehensive, cohesive, and interconnected system, comprising multiple distinct institutions, is essential to expand educational opportunities, achieve operational efficiencies, and ensure long term viability; and
WHEREAS, The future success of such a system will require renewed dedication to exploring multiple avenues of change, including innovation, consolidation, new partnerships, and new identities; and
WHEREAS, The Board recognizes that in moving the Vermont State Colleges forward as a more comprehensive, cohesive, and interconnected system that is greater than the sum of its parts, it must allow for changes within the component parts of the system to better accommodate new directions; and VSC Board of Trustees Long Range Planning Committee Meeting 39 July 16, 2015
WHEREAS, One of the system’s component parts, Castleton State College, is prepared to take a well-considered and strategic step forward by changing its name to Castleton University; and
WHEREAS, The Board, having considered Castleton’s request and explored its implications and consequences, agrees this name change will benefit Castleton and the system, and not be a detriment to the other colleges in the system; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Board of Trustees affirms its support for a focused and ongoing effort allowing the Vermont State Colleges to become a more comprehensive, cohesive, and interconnected system, with multiple distinct institutions within it, thereby providing students access not only to the resources of their particular college or university, but to the resources of the system as a whole, and enabling the most cost effective operation of the individual institutions and system; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Board of Trustees will, without delay, consider revising the name of the system to better reflect a comprehensive, cohesive, and interconnected system and to better accommodate the changing needs of its component institutions; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the Board of Trustees approves the request of Castleton State College to change its name to Castleton University.