While it’s been almost three years since Dr. Gregory Postel became president of the University of Toledo, he continues to experience many firsts in the role.
His third State of the University address on Wednesday was no different. Dr. Postel did not sugarcoat the challenges ahead for the university such as enrollment declines and the need to upgrade campus facilities. But he also said that faculty, staff, students, and community members have much to be proud of and to look forward to. The school’s future will depend on them, he said.
“This is indeed a pivotal moment for our university, requiring each of us to be a part of the solution,” Dr. Postel said as he stood before a small crowd in the University Hall Doermann Theatre. “Please bring your great ideas forward [and] let us face challenges head-on together.
“So today, let us learn from our past, celebrate our present, and look forward to our future,” he added.
Despite the challenges of the past three years, Dr. Postel highlighted a series of accomplishments that include the University of Toledo Medical Center’s financial turnaround since 2020, which included more than $20 million being invested in upgrading the former Medical College of Ohio Hospital.
He also highlighted how UT was included for the first time last fall among the top universities in the country in the 2022-23 U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings. UT was listed in the third tier at 285 out of a total of 440 national universities. The university is also ranked 150 of 381 listed on the report for best online programs, an increase from 153 the previous year.
More recently, the university was selected to lead the U.S. Department of Energy’s Cadmium Telluride Accelerator Consortium to advance domestic manufacturing of solar cells while alumni and other donors set a new record during the Day of Giving campaign in late March by raising more than $2 million from 3,177 donors.
Dr. Postel also discussed aspects of the university’s latest five-year strategic plan that addresses goals related to student recruitment, keeping college education accessible and attainable, distinguishing the university regionally as well as internationally, and providing innovative academic programs.
That last goal will involve reviewing the university’s degree programs and potentially eliminating those that are no longer relevant to ensure the university's limited resources are being properly utilized. Dr. Postel said following his speech that no final decisions have been made and that officials have been reviewing the university’s programs for roughly a year.
Meanwhile, he said the more immediate goals to tackle in the coming year will involve meeting students’ needs.
“I'm hoping this time next year that we can talk in real detail about some of the new student success initiatives that we've put in place to make sure that those students we do recruit have the highest probability of success and are more likely to graduate,” he said. “Because that's the main reason we're here and so I'm anxious to be able to tell success stories about that.”
The speech came as UT celebrates the 150-year anniversary of the university’s founding.
Among those in attendance Wednesday was Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz.
He said he enjoyed hearing Dr. Postel highlight the university’s many accomplishments over the past few years, adding that it’s important for the community to know all the good things that are coming from one of the city’s main assets.
When the city is strong, the university is strong, and when the university is strong, the city is strong, Mr. Kapszukiewicz said.
“The city and the university are linked,” he said. “We share a name, we share an identity, and we share a future.”
It marked the first time Dr. Postel had presented the annual university address in-person. The past two were held virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic, which itself presented many firsts and challenges throughout his early tenure.
Dr. Postel’s address was scheduled on the backdrop of 419 day, the annual grass-roots event where northwest Ohioans celebrate living within the 419 area code. Food trucks were on campus, and evening fireworks planned as part of the Rocket Spring Festival in UT’s Centennial Mall.
First Published April 19, 2023, 11:26 p.m.
