All these events are graphic illustrations that we are a university on the move. But if you are the type who needs to see concrete differences to realize change, watch out for this spring, summer, and fall. By the end of the fall, we will have completed almost $30 million of construction on campus, which will make a major dent in our deferred maintenance and change the appearance of campus for generations of University of Hartford students to come.

I'd like to describe these dramatic changes soon to come to our campus.

Most of you know we are now on track to complete the construction of the University of Hartford Magnet School, just south of East Hall, by September. I am thrilled to watch the school rise out of the ground on a daily basis, and I am deeply indebted to C. R. Klewin, the construction manager, for the job they've done in the face of one of Hartford's most trying winters.

The Magnet School is being financed with $21.6 million in funding from the state of Connecticut, which includes $2.2 million in road and entrance improvements to campus. To that total, we are adding $1.5 million from an anonymous gift to extend the ring road to include East Hall and to redo the three parking lots closest to Bloomfield Avenue, thereby increasing the available parking by over 50 spaces.

We began construction in March and hope to conclude in the early fall. When we are finished, two new, two-way entrances (one south of South Cottage, one north of Bates House) will replace the current entrance, and all of our roads will be two-way. This will allow us to close the road that runs through the center of campus, which will create, for the first time in our history, an unbroken green space at the center of our campus. I suspect that green space will become a campus hallmark in the years to come.

We have also begun a less noticeable but equally important project - replacing the central heating plant on campus with a series of satellite heating and cooling units for the academic side of campus. During the summer of 2002 we will also replace the heating and cooling units of E and F complexes. This project is being funded by a $6.1 million capital lease from the Connecticut Higher Education Funding Authority. When it is completed, we will have deleted millions of dollars worth of projects from our deferred maintenance list, ensured the efficient heating and cooling of the majority of our campus buildings, and made the current heating plant available for other uses.

Please excuse the pun, but these changes will mark in a very concrete way the amazing transformation taking place at our University. None of this would be possible without the great work of our faculty and staff, the strong leadership of the board of regents, and the steadfast support of our alumni and friends. The result will be a striking and visible improvement to our campus.

I thank you all, and I ask for your continued support. Amid all the construction work this summer, we'll be seeing the future of our University taking shape before our very eyes. Thank you all for making that future possible. In every sense, the future belongs to you.