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Dear AU Community,
Seven years ago, when I joined 69传媒 University, I met with more than 1,000 AU community members and asked them what makes AU special. I discovered what has long existed but had yet to be directly stated: We are a community of changemakers.聽 Together, in 2019, we developed the聽Changemakers for a Changing World聽strategic plan to define who we are and detail our call to action for the future. The plan was built on three pillars鈥搒cholarship, learning, and community. In the years since, this strategy鈥攚hich builds on our legacy of leadership, scholarship, and service鈥攈as anchored us 69传媒 periods of uncertainty that never seem to subside.聽 Today, as we share聽, a comprehensive review of the first five years of our聽Changemakers聽plan, our strategy is more important than ever. As you read through story after story of our community鈥檚 incredible accomplishments, you will see that when we combine clarity of mission, learning, scholarship, community, a passion for changemaking, and great people with a recognition and appreciation for the significant shifts happening in our world, we can make dramatic progress鈥攅ven amid challenging times.聽 And we have made incredible progress because of your hard work, talent, and commitment.聽 This progress has also been fueled by the $500 million Change Can鈥檛 Wait campaign, which is 92 percent of the way to the finish line. Developed to support the聽Changemakers聽strategy, the campaign creates transformative educational opportunities, advances research with impact, and helps to build stronger communities locally, nationally, and globally.聽 To date, the campaign has bolstered each pillar of the strategic plan, creating eight endowed faculty positions; establishing or naming four pioneering centers and institutes; creating or expanding 150-plus scholarships; and enabling us to make the largest investment in student thriving in our university鈥檚 history, including the $109 million Student Thriving Complex (which breaks ground next month!). This impact will continue to grow and resonate across generations of Eagles.聽 As you review聽Five Years of Impact: A Look at AU鈥檚 Changemaking Work, I hope you will feel the same sense of pride that I do in who we are and what we鈥檙e doing to make the world a better place. And, I want to extend a special thank you to our strategic plan implementation directors and teams, who have worked so hard to bring this plan to life. There鈥檚 no question in my mind that our community of changemakers is stronger and more purpose-driven than ever before. And I鈥檓 confident that the accelerator phase of the聽Changemakers for a Changing World聽strategic plan will set us up for continued and growing success in the future. Onward,
Sylvia