On Tuesday, Feb. 23, the DU Undergraduate Student Government (USG) held a general meeting where they were joined by DU Chancellor Jeremy Haefner and Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Mary Clark. The two administrators gave a presentation on where DU compares to its peer institutions, as well as how the university plans to navigate the changing field of higher education and continue to meet the needs of its students.
In recent years, DU has experienced a decreasing yield rate, meaning the number of students applying to the university is far greater than the number of students who actually enroll. Issues such as high cost of attendance, school brand recognition and perception of degree value were also points of discussion to the USG senators.
Haefner and Clark began the presentation by introducing the five strategic imperatives which are part of the wider, long-term goals of DU IMPACT 2025. A vision set by former Chancellor Rebecca Chopp in 2015, DU IMPACT 2025 is a multi-faceted project that hopes to create a deeper sense of belonging among DU’s communities of the past, present and future. It led to the creation of new buildings such as the Community Commons and Dimond Family Residential Village.
“DU’s commitment to the public good is a big part of what drew the Provost and I to the University of Denver,” Chancellor Haefner said. “It is a real thing—it is not just lip service.”
Haefner used Northeastern University in Boston as an example of DU’s competition. He believes DU has made huge strides in recent years in many areas, but there is room for improvement in categories such as racial diversity among the student body and second-year student retention.
After their presentation, the Support Team Assisted Response (STAR) program was introduced by Senators June Churchill and Seher Puri. STAR is a Denver program where mental health professionals respond to non-violent 911 calls, particularly those involving substance abuse, gender-based violence or other mental health crises. The program saw great success in its first six months in the city, as it responded to 748 calls without any arrests.
Churchill and Puri pointed out the demographics of campus safety officers in their proposal, noting that staff is 70% male and 90% white, which is far from being reflective of the student body and faculty.
The senators then formally requested that the Department of Campus Safety implement a program where during each shift there is at least one on-call trained social worker or mental health professional available. They would respond to any calls relating to mental health, substance abuse, gender-based violence or other requests for assistance relating to equal opportunity or Title IX. The amendment was unanimously approved by the senate, and USG will formally present their proposal to Campus Safety.
