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When Bob Carothers moved to Rhode Island from
Minnesota in 1991 to become the University of Rhode Island's tenth
president, he discovered an institution poised at the edge of a new era.
The vision and courage President Carothers has brought to the URI campus has
resulted in a series of progressive, transformational changes in the
University's structure, infrastructure and curriculum.
A visit to any one of the University's campuses will make it clear that
things are happening at URI. The newly renovated Providence Campus,
located in Rhode Island's capital city, is a showcase for some of the
University's most popular instructional and community outreach programs On
the Narragansett Bay Campus, the spectacular new Coastal Institute is
testimony to the University's pre-eminence in the field of marine science.
The Multicultural Center's location in the heart of the main campus
symbolizes the centrality of diversity to campus life. The Chester
Kirk Engineering Complex, with its high-tech classrooms and interactive
auditorium, leaves little doubt that URI is a player in the new Information
Age.
The fact that these projects were viable during challenging economic times
speaks to the creativity of the fiscal policies put in place during Dr
Carothers' presidency. Along with focusing its efforts, URI has benefited
from successful programs designed to enhance traditional revenue streams and
tap untapped revenue sources
The University's first Capital Campaign exceeded the original campaign goal
by nearly $17 million. About $67 million in gifts and endowments were
realized through fruitful reconnections with the institution's alumni and
friends. On President Carothers' watch, the University also has experienced
a renewed commitment from the state's executive and legislative branches.
Support has come to URI in the form of increased base funding, allocation of
state resources to protect the school's physical assets and the recent
passage by Rhode Island voters of two bond referenda -- one which will
support the renovation of aging academic buildings and another which has
funded the implementation of a campus-wide electronic technology network
along with the necessary hardware, software and support services.
The most exciting hallmark of President
Carothers' vision for the University of Rhode Island has been his goal to
shift the focus of the student experience from teaching to learning. The
initiative begins with a focus on undergraduates--particularly the freshmen.
URI 101, Traditions and Transformations, is a required freshman course that
introduces students to the values and culture of the academic community.
These values have been clearly articulated outside of the classroom as well
through President Carothers' "no tolerance" policy toward violence, drug use
and alcohol abuse. These bold stands have brought national attention
and recognition to Dr. Carothers and to URI.
Further enhancing the student learning experiences was the establishment of
Focus Areas and Partnerships. In order to maximize the efficient use
of the University's limited resources, four broad areas of programmatic
focus were identified as those areas where resources will be invested:
Health, Marine and Environmental Studies, Children, Families and
Communities, and Enterprise and Advanced Technology.
Within these areas, a small number of problem-based partnerships have been
funded to provide experiential learning opportunities for students while
supporting the work of faculty and stall on research and application of new
knowledge to community problems.
Focus areas and partnerships are not constrained by the traditional
boundaries of colleges and departments. Colleagues in a partnership
are defined as anyone who wishes to tackle a particular problem together.
Partners may be from within or outside the University--the wider the net the
greater the catch. Simply put, the partnerships are the Focus Areas in
action.
From 1986 to his arrival in Kingston, Dr. Carothers was chancellor of the
Minnesota State University System, a system with seven universities, 64,000
students and a campus he helped create in Akita, Japan. Before becoming
chancellor, Dr. Carothers served as president of Southwest State University.
He earned his bachelor's degree in English from Edinboro University in
Pennsylvania, his doctorate from Kent State University and his law degree
from the University of Akron. He has the unique distinction of being a
poet, a lawyer, scholar, and administrator. Dr. Carothers is also active on
the boards of many civic and professional organizations, including Bradley
Hospital, The National Council of Christians and Jews, Citizens Bank, The
Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra, the Newport Music Festival, the Rhode
Island Economic Policy Council and the Leadership Council of the American
Council on Education.
For more information about Dr. Carothers or
the University of Rhode Island, please visit the
President's Office.
Updated January 31, 2000 |
