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Syracuse University received over 41,000 new student applications for the fall 2022 semester — an all-time high — according to Gretchen Ritter, SU’s vice chancellor, provost and chief academic officer.

The proportion of students of color has risen slightly while the percentage of international students has dropped, she said.

On Thursday, SU announced it will not require SAT or ACT scores throughout the fall 2023 and spring 2024 admissions process. Ritter said the university hopes it will provide enough data to analyze its ability to admit students without testing information and plans to see what’s happening in terms of trends among peer institutions.

Ritter also debriefed the senate on the progress of the search for the new vice president of research. In February, she announced a search committee for the next vice president of research, who leads SU’s research enterprise and reports directly to the provost. Ramesh Raina, a professor in SU’s biology department, has served as interim vice president of research since his appointment on Jan. 7, 2020.

During the meeting, Ritter said there are about 40 candidates so far in the pool for the next vice president of research. The position has been “broadly advertised” and the priority date for candidates to submit materials was March 21.

Robert Van Gulick, a senator and professor of SU’s philosophy department, asked about the university’s plan for faculty salaries for the next year. He said it is a big concern for the young faculty who are “still very much at the low end of the salary ladder.”

“Our raises this year will be well under the cost of living increase given the inflation that is happening in the world,” Van Gulick said. “It’s impossible to raise salaries without raising tuition in most cases, and we don’t want to do that either.”

Chancellor Kent Syverud said in response that the current inflation rate requires the university to look differently at how it raises and manages its revenue, which includes tuition. Ritter said given the data she has seen, the university needs to do better overall on faculty salaries, which is crucial to elevate faculty excellence and being able to succeed in both recruiting and retaining great people.

During the meeting, Syverud started his remarks by reflecting on the university’s Service of Commemoration held on Tuesday at Hendricks Chapel. He thanked those who helped with the ceremony and recognized that there were a lot of SU community members who passed away this year.

“Many of the names I read this year are people I knew personally. Their friends and family attended this event, and it was meaningful to them,” Syverud said.

Syverud also introduced two new university leadership appointments. Craig Stone will start as the new associate vice president and chief of Campus Safety and Emergency Management Services on April 1. Mary Grace Almandrez will start as the new vice president for diversity and inclusion on June 1.

Syverud also debriefed the search process for the new chief financial officer. The search committee has almost finalized the position description. Korn Ferry, a consulting firm, is working with the university on the search, Syverud told the senate. He anticipates the university will fill the position this summer.

Published on March 24, 2022 at 12:13 am

Contact Francis: [email protected] | @francis_towne