Tag: education

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A bid farewell to Dr. Nancy Zimpher

As I am completing the final year of my five-year program I feel compelled to write a little bit on my thoughts about the only University of Cincinnati President I’ve known. Dr. Nancy Zimpher came to UC shortly before I started my academic career there and a lot has changed since then.

The once “out of control” budget has been tamed and is on its way to be balanced. UC is no longer joked about as standing for Under Construction. Academics have improved across the board with higher enrollment standards, reformed programs, and increased achievement. The university is emerging as a major research institution as the amount of research funding continues to rise annually.

The University has embarked on its most ambitious fund-raising campaign ever, rivaling some of the most ambitious campaigns run anywhere. UC is no longer considered a one sport school as our baseball, volleyball, soccer, football, and basketball programs are all competing at the highest level in the Big East Conference.

More students are living on and around campus – shedding the long thought idea that UC is a commuter school. Dr. Zimpher helped lead the effort to freeze tuition at State universities, she has been a proponent for the proposed streetcar system, and she has worked tirelessly to make the Uptown neighborhoods surrounding the university better places to live, work, and play.

Dr. Zimpher pushed for a strategic academic plan that put students at the center of it all. UC|21 has done just that as more students are getting involved, letting their voices be heard, and shaping the way their university does business.

Dr. Zimpher has gone out of her way to make it known that academics come first, no matter what, when she is in charge. The Board of Trustees have some hard work ahead of them to fill the void she’ll leave behind, but thanks to her, UC is now on the map and should be a prime destination for another top-level talent like herself.

Thanks for everything you’ve done for our region’s largest employer, university and city. Thanks for making my five years at the University of Cincinnati great, and good luck with your new endeavor as Chancellor of the State University of New York.

Read Dr. Zimpher’s farewell letter to the UC Community here.

Photo Credit – UC Magazine

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Happy Holidays to all those who are Proudly Cincinnati

UrbanCincy will be taking a few days off for the holidays (and travel plans). In the mean time I’ll leave you with this video clip of the new television commercial that the University of Cincinnati is rolling out and will air during the Orange Bowl to an estimated 11 million viewers.

There is a corresponding radio ad, and the two will be featured prominently in not only Cincinnati, but Cleveland and Columbus as well. UC is looking to maximize their Orange Bowl exposure for their current fundraising drive themed ‘Proudly Cincinnati.’

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Business News Politics

CPS enrollment better than expected

As much bad news as inner-city school districts typically get, Cincinnati Public Schools keeps the positive news coming. In January CPS was profiled on CNN’s Lou Dobbs Tonight show for their improved graduation rates and by eliminating the achievement gap between white and black students.

At the same time construction chugs along on what will become the first and only K-12 public arts school in America. Even better news is that CPS is within reach of attaining an ‘Effective’ rating by the State of Ohio…a rating comparable to most suburban school districts and the highest rating of any urban school district in Ohio.

Photo by Randy Simes – Withrow High School

The news out today is that enrollment numbers are higher than original projections by State demographers. Maybe this is another indicator supporting Cincinnati’s claim that population projections, for Cincinnati, are actually higher than projected. It might also be a sign of CPS’ improvement and the move back towards public schools by younger families. In either scenario the news is good news.

Bottom line, the excuses for not living in the City continue to go away in Cincinnati.

Related readings on UrbanCincy:
Cincinnati Public Schools making the grade
Get off the juice

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A Model for Regional Cooperation: The Library

The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County should serve as a great reminder of what this region can accomplish if it works together. They have everything you want–Books, CDs, DVDs, Children’s Programming, et.al. Some people might complain there is no Blockbuster Downtown, but if there were it would be outgunned by a free public service.

The Library ranked as the 8th best system in the United States in 2006. It is also the ninth largest, in the country, in terms of total volumes.

Without a regional library, the citizens of Cincinnati would have a library with perhaps half the volumes, and the citizens of smaller outlying communities, like Addyston, might not even have a library at all. But through regional cooperation we have one of the best library systems in the country. Everyone benefits from the better services and lower operating costs of having a single library system for the county rather than 49 separate smaller libraries. The whole is much greater than the sum of its parts.

Imagine how we could improve services and lower taxes, throughout the county, with greater consolidation. Instead of having the 56th largest city surrounded by minor municipalities, we would be the 13th largest city in the United States and the largest in Ohio; improving our national clout and the quality of life for all of Cincinnati-Hamilton County’s residents.

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Cincinnati Public Schools making the grade

Many cite schools as a reason they don’t live within city limits (or within the CPS district). I have said before that it is more of an excuse than an actual reason, but it is what it is. Cincinnati Public Schools have been improving their state rating over the past few years, and recently have been receiving some national praise.

In a recent Education Week article (PDF) they say:

Despite being plagued by the problems that beset most urban school systems, the Cincinnati public schools have managed to increase the four-year high school graduation rate from 51 percent in 2000, to 79 percent in 2007. Perhaps more important, they have, as of 2007, eliminated the gap between African-American and white students in graduation rates. This feat was accomplished, moreover, as the state of Ohio was raising academic standards and requiring students to pass more-challenging assessments to receive their diplomas.

While a 79 percent graduation rate isn’t necessarily anything to write home about…it is a strong improvement. This strong improvement has certainly not gone unnoticed, and is going beyond an article in Education Week. CPS Superintendent, Rosa Blackwell, will be on CNN’s Lou Dobbs Tonight show this coming Tuesday night at 8pm. Blackwell will be joined with Withrow University principal Sharon Johnson to talk about the district’s improvements.

Furthermore the district has broken ground on what will become the nation’s first public K-12 arts school. Just to reiterate…crime is down, schools are improving, and you can get a property tax abatement for moving into the city. So what’s holding you back?