Welcome to the 2024-25 Academic Year

Welcome back, Bulldogs!

I hope you all had a wonderful summer and are feeling refreshed as we kick off the 2024-25 academic year. It’s great to see everyone back on campus!

We are excited to welcome our fall class, currently comprised of 1,045 new students (our largest cohort of new students in four years), 664 of whom are new undergraduates! Within our newest class of first-year Bulldogs, 46% are first-generation, over 13% have a family connection to the University of Redlands, 38% are recruited student-athletes, and an additional 3% are recruited esports student-athletes.

A special thank you to our enrollment, marketing, and student financial services teams, who worked around the clock to respond to the unprecedented headwinds due to the FAFSA fiasco to recruit this class of students. Their work marks a tremendous achievement, and I couldn’t be prouder of their student and family-centric approach and dedication.

Another special thank you to our Student Affairs teams, including Athletics, for their excellent work in preparing for new student orientation, athletic training, and student programming.

Facilities has also been working hard to get our campus ready for our students, and it looks as beautiful as ever. Thank you!

It’s been a busy and productive summer with several exciting campus initiatives, both inside and outside the classroom.

• We’ve expanded our academic offerings by introducing new undergraduate degree programs in GIS and Kinesiology.
• We’ve added women’s flag football as a club sport.
• Several new construction projects have been completed across campus, including:
• The revitalized Bulldog Fitness Center features cutting-edge equipment and durable sport-impact flooring.
• Holt Hall updates include a re-designed first-floor kitchen, updated bathrooms, new laundry facilities, and a refreshed all-gender dorm room, all of which are now fully accessible.
• Hall of Letters rooms 101 and 103 have been combined into a single, technology-enabled classroom featuring augmented and virtual reality experiences, funded by a grant from the Fletcher Jones Foundation.
• The Train Station Plaza is nearly complete, pending some final work near the entrance of the Loewe Theater walkway.
• North Hall has been renovated with new flooring, paint, energy-efficient lighting, and the addition of both exterior and interior ADA ramps, along with upgrades throughout the first floor, making it fully accessible.
• Accessible bathrooms are now available across campus, including the first-floor men’s restroom in the Hall of Letters, which has been transformed into two all-gender restrooms, one of which is fully accessible.
• The Truesdail Center has been updated with new exterior paint, a new shade structure over the playground area, and renovations to the restrooms, making them all gender and ADA-accessible.

Budget Update and Faculty and Staff Town Hall

Because of the inability to project our incoming class size in May due to the FAFSA challenges, the Board of Trustees decided in May to hold off on approving the 2024-25 budget until we had clearer enrollment numbers.

Our Cabinet has been working diligently to finalize the budget, which will be presented to the Board in September. Once approved, we’ll have a plan for the restoration of employee compensation and a phased restoration of employee retirement. Additionally, nothing in the current budget contemplates additional cuts in compensation or staffing.

Join us at the first town hall of the year on Wednesday, September 18 from 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. in Casa Loma. This town hall will be a key opportunity to learn more about the budget and receive other important updates from across campus.

Bulldog Sundae Funday

We hope you’ll join us to kick off the new year with a delicious ice cream social featuring treats from Redlands-based Happy Camper Creamery! A big thank you to our URSA partners for co-sponsoring this event with the President’s Office. This event qualifies for the 1.5 hours of approved release time for URSA-related events.

Date: Wednesday, August 28
Time: 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Location: Valencia Room

Thank you for everything you do to make the University of Redlands the amazing place it is for our students!

Sincerely,

Krista L. Newkirk

President