Enhancing student recruitment and retention are two major goals ISU President Gregory Geoffroy stressed during his presidential address at the faculty convocation Monday.

Three committees have been formed to meet the challenges, he said – an Enrollment Leadership Council to help attract students, an Articulation Council to improve communication between community colleges and Iowa State and a Retention Task Force to ensure students stay.

The recruiting of students must increase, particularly in Western Iowa, where students are tempted to go across the border for school, Geoffroy said.

A full-time recruiter will be added in Chicago, to better tap into the potential market there, he said, and will give access to more diverse students. Alumni will also be pushed to lobby for Iowa State.

“I think we need to continue to bring in a diverse body of students – the plan for Chicago is right on,” said Steve Mickelson, associate professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering, who attended the ceremony. “It’s a good place to start; there are a lot more students in Illinois.”

“We truly have tremendous momentum on many fronts,” he said.

Geoffroy also said Iowa State should continue its priorities of increasing staff and faculty salaries to more competitive levels, along with more scholarships for students.

“There must be a strong emphasis in investing in people,” he said.

Geoffroy also reviewed several accomplishments Iowa State has seen in the past year – the new strategic plan finalized in 2005, the creation of the new College of Human Sciences and the decision to reinstate Veishea, as well as several completed building projects.

“Iowa State has much to be proud of,” he said.

The Convocation Ceremony was a good venue for the president to lay out his priorities, said John Anderson, assistant to the president.

“I think his message was well-received.”

Geoffroy also focused his address on utilizing the university’s newly implemented strategic plan.

The university has to “strategically invest resources” in those areas by maximizing state appropriations, grants, private giving and tuition money, he said.

The financial situation is improving for the university, Geoffroy said. Sponsored funding for faculty reached $287 million last year. More than 55,000 private donors raised $82 million, which was up 33 percent from last year and 112 percent from two years ago, he said.