11/5/96
CONTACT: Stanford University News Service (650) 723-2558
STANFORD -- Stanford must continue to build upon its assets in order to remain competitive in the future, President Gerhard Casper will tell members of the Stanford community on Thursday, Nov. 7, when he delivers his State of the University address in Kresge Auditorium.
The annual speech is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. and faculty, staff and students are welcome to attend. In addition, Channel 51 will broadcast the speech live and will re-air it that night at 9 p.m. It will be broadcast a final time on Sunday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m.
To make his case, the president will focus on four key assets: people, financial resources, the physical plant and reputation. He will use statistical information measuring Stanford's relative strengths and weaknesses in these areas as a jumping board to discuss the university's current and future plans to strengthen teaching, learning and research.
Casper will explore Stanford's complexity as an institution "with the language of quantity" according to an advance text of the speech: "I shall try to 'say it with figures' some familiar, some surprising, many a cause for pride, all a catalyst for continued effort."
The president will begin by talking finances focusing primarily on the university's $1.4 billion budget and $3.6 billion endowment. These figures often lead people to conclude that Stanford is wealthy, says Casper, who will explain why more fundraising is necessary in order to maintain quality and improve the university's competitiveness in attracting the best faculty and students.
Casper also will discuss the unprecedented pace of construction on campus. During the next five years, the university will spend an estimated $600 million for construction and another $100 million for utilities, infrastructure and deferred maintenance. The ambitious five-year plan is not the result of mindless expansion, the president says. Rather, it has been carefully planned and has a clear purpose, which he will outline during his talk.
Casper will cite statistics highlighting the demonstrated excellence of faculty, students and staff at Stanford and discuss initiatives to build upon their accomplishments.
In the last part of his speech, Casper will focus on Stanford's reputation, using information derived from the National Research Council, which conducts the most extensive study of the nation's doctoral programs.
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