Chancellor's Report to the Board of Regents on June 13

Report to the Board of Regents
Chancellor Jay A. Perman
USM at Hagerstown | June 13, 2025

Thank you, Madame Chair. And let me thank Dr. Ashby and the USM at Hagerstown for hosting us today and for a terrific time at the ballpark last night. It’s lovely to end the academic year on your campus.

I’m grateful to the faculty panel who shared their research with us—a powerful reminder that threats to university research imperil the welfare of the American people and the strength and security of the nation itself.

LEADERSHIP TRANSITIONS
As you all know, one of the hazards of these June Board meetings is that they often come with a few farewells.

I begin my goodbyes with the regents who are leaving Board service. Regent Pope, Regent Breslin, Regent Neuberger, Regent Parker: You’ve served our System and our students with such distinction, and I’m deeply grateful for your leadership. I look forward to a proper farewell later this year.

Leonard Raley retires as president and CEO of the USM Foundation and vice chancellor for advancement. Leonard, your 20 years of USM leadership have been transformative. And in uncertain times, you leave us in as strong a philanthropic and financial position as we could hope. Thank you.

Eileen Abel is retiring this summer, after leading the USM at Southern Maryland for nearly five years and developing a strategic plan that will guide the next five. Her efforts to drive partnerships—in education, innovation, economic development—are the foundation for our work to lift up Southern Maryland. Dr. Abel couldn’t be here today, but she knows how grateful we are for her vision, her passion, and her leadership.

This is also the final Board meeting for our shared governance chairs: Dr. Haverback, Dr. Patricio, Ms. Gambhir. I know how much work goes into these jobs, and how much you sacrifice personally to do them well. Thank you for your dedication to your people, to shared governance, and to the System.
 
 

UNIVERSITY EXCELLENCE
As I turn to the excellence of our universities, I’ll remind you that my June report serves as a year-in-review. While my written report shares highlights over the past year, I’ll contain my comments today to our most recent university achievements.

I do want to share, though, that when you look at the full year of work, you see some Systemwide themes emerge: Innovation and collaboration to get more teachers into our classrooms, to build pathways and credentials that make it easier—and more rewarding—to choose teaching, to stick with it, and to excel at it. Programs and partnerships that build accessible pathways into the health professions; that ensure we’re preparing and training practitioners in the regions where shortages have, for too long, endangered health and wellness. Programs that anchor our cities and towns, that blur the line between campus and community, and engage our neighbors in the projects they say are most important. It’s a joy to see this mission-critical work in action.

So let me begin with our host, the USM at Hagerstown. This year marks the center’s 20th anniversary, and there’s a lot to celebrate: a record amount raised for student scholarships—$115,000 going to two dozen-plus learners; a collaboration with UBalt, bringing its MBA program here to Hagerstown; and strong collaborations with community partners, expanding the center’s reach and securing the funds that support its work. Dr. Ashby, thank you for your mission to serve students where they are, and to enrich the communities they call home. It’s the best of what we do.

Of course, two more regional centers have similar stories to tell. The USM at Southern Maryland is showcasing its leadership in autonomous systems. Several members of our congressional delegation just toured the center’s facilities and the Pax River Naval Air Station to see how different sectors are collaborating to strengthen the region’s workforce and economy.

The Universities at Shady Grove continues to make game-changing connections. Last month, USG teamed up with UMBC and the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research—one of our MPower initiatives—on a BioNetworking Summit—again, bringing sectors together to grow regional life sciences. Dr. Khademian, you’ve led this year in leaning into our values of fairness and opportunity, access and equity—for all learners and all leaders. Thank you.

When the University of Maryland, College Park launched its Grand Challenges program a few years ago, we were promised big investments in finding solutions to our most pressing problems. Well, those investments keep coming. Last month, alumna Marsha Laufer gave $6 million to the university’s Maryland Democracy Initiative to support civic literacy and democratic engagement across K12 and higher ed. What a timely gift. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t note the coverage of Kermit the Frog’s “Kermencement” keynote last month. A little joy we all badly needed, President Pines, and maybe your best idea yet.

After a year that saw growth at home, Salisbury University set its sights overseas. President Lepre joined Gov. Moore in Tokyo to sign an agreement with the Japan Study Abroad Foundation. Salisbury is the state’s first degree partner with the foundation, building on its existing relationships in Japan to strengthen cultural and educational ties. President Lepre, congratulations.

Like Salisbury, UMB leaned into its core missions in global collaboration and research. On that same exchange mission with Gov. Moore, UMB signed agreements with South Korea’s Chosun University to promote education and research collaborations. And back home, UMB launched its Breakthroughs Can’t Wait campaign, showcasing the impact of federally funded research and underscoring what we know to be true: that public research is a public good. Thank you, President Jarrell.

Coppin State is celebrating the largest philanthropic gift in its history—$6.2M from CareFirst BlueCross/BlueShield to improve access to quality care, to train the next generation of health care leaders, and to create a statewide coalition linking Maryland colleges and health systems to explicit pathways for students entering the health professions. Congratulations, Pres. Jenkins.

Towson University is also celebrating a philanthropic windfall. The university’s annual one-day fundraiser, The Big Give, was really “big” this year. The campaign netted close to $1 million from 2,000+ people, record highs on both counts. And a $1 million gift from TU alumna Mildred Burkman and her husband will establish Towson’s first-ever endowed professorship in nursing. Congratulations, President Ginsberg.

Bowie State’s nursing program is celebrating, as well. A $2.2 million award from MHEC—the largest grant in the nursing department’s history—will grow the number of PhD nursing students. These are the students who go on to become nursing faculty, and this is so important because a shortage of nurse educators is the No. 1 reason for our nursing shortage overall. Thank you, President Breaux.

The University of Baltimore just released its annual Vital Signs report, a closely watched indicator of the state of Baltimore’s neighborhoods. The report links progress in a number of key domains to policy initiatives aimed at ending health and wealth disparities across Baltimore. The authors herald “unequivocal signs of a city in recovery.” So good to hear, President Schmoke.

Here’s another report card: UMCES just released its annual report on the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed, revealing a short-term slide, but long-term improvement. The report is an essential resource guiding policies around Bay health. And as UMCES celebrates 100 years in service to the environment, a vision is coalescing around the next 100 years—a vision that includes relocating its headquarters from Cambridge to Annapolis, raising UMCES’s profile among funders, policymakers, and the public; better connecting UMCES’s facilities; and setting the stage for future expansion. Congratulations, President Miralles-Wilhelm.

Pres. Anderson, I know it was a coup when UMES clinched Gov. Moore as your commencement speaker last month. It was an even bigger win when he used your stage to announce that he’s returning to the Shore next week—on Juneteenth—with plans to end the state’s racial wealth gap. I know every leader in this room looks forward to collaborating in this work. Congratulations.
I often talk about universities as anchor institutions—how we drive employment and economic growth, how we build capacity and resilience. Sometimes being an anchor is simply being a good neighbor.

So let me turn to Frostburg State. When western Allegany County suffered flash flooding last month, Westernport Elementary was hit so hard that students and staff had to evacuate by boat. With the school unable to reopen, Frostburg brought these students in to finish out the school year on its campus, providing learning space for students, office space for administrators, and gathering space for meals. It’s emblematic of the work Frostburg does year-round. Thank you, President Smith.

Over the past several months, I’ve talked about distinctions won by UMGC—many of them for its dedication to serving military-affiliated learners. A new distinction—the Champion Award from the Fulbright Association—recognizes another point of reputational pride: UMGC’s longstanding support for international exchange and global citizenship. And it’s not only the university that’s being recognized. President Fowler was named a 2025 Innovator of Color at the Arizona State University/Global Silicon Valley summit, celebrating his visionary leadership and lifelong commitment to reshaping higher ed. Congratulations, Dr. Fowler.

UMBC began the year welcoming its largest-ever incoming class, and ended the year graduating its 100,000th student. One of them was Jayo Adegboyo, a track and field star, who earned a bachelor’s in biochemistry and molecular biology—and a GPA of 3.952. Jayo was named Diverse magazine’s 2025 Arthur Ashe Sports Scholar of the Year for his performance in the classroom and on the track. A born-and-raised Marylander, he picked a university close to home so he could continue helping his twin brother, who has learning and communication challenges. This is why we’re in this business, President Sheares Ashby. Thank you.

USM RISING
I want to mention a few efforts and accomplishments that span our System. I mentioned at our last meeting that the Carnegie Foundation revamped its research classifications, creating a new category for non-doctoral institutions that conduct a significant amount of research. Bowie, Salisbury, Towson, UBalt, and UMES won that distinction.

There’s another new Carnegie classification, Opportunity Colleges, recognizing schools that excel in student access and in post-graduation earnings—two things that matter a lot to those who want us to prove our value. I congratulate three of our universities for making the list: Frostburg, UMES, and UMGC.

Seven of our universities have joined the new Maryland Statewide Transfer Intensive, a project to improve transfer outcomes for community college students. Thank you, Frostburg, Salisbury, Towson, UBalt, UMBC, College Park, UMGC.

Five universities have joined Gov. Moore’s $1 million initiative to expand teaching pathways, with a special focus on preparing former federal workers for the classroom. Bowie, Salisbury, Towson, UMBC, and College Park have pledged training, licensure support, and school district partnerships.

And finally, all 12 of our universities are joining a special partnership with Google, which we’ll announce next week. I’m sworn to secrecy, but the project advances our goal to be Maryland’s No. 1 source for reskilling and upskilling the state’s workforce. I hope to see many of you at Tuesday’s launch. Kurt, thank you for hosting it.

BUDGET CHALLENGES
Before I conclude, I have to acknowledge, again, the many uncertainties we’re facing, with significant funding cuts at the federal level—which I addressed at our last Board meeting—and with serious budget challenges at the state level.

At this extraordinary time, our universities must make some difficult decisions as they close their budget gaps.

And so I sent a video message yesterday to our faculty and staff, explaining the shortfall and the choices we must make from here. I’d like to share it with you now.

………

I thank all of you for your leadership and support throughout this challenging year, and for your unshakable faith that we have—in our universities and our people—the vision, talent, and power to come through these challenges even stronger, even more committed to our goals, to our ideals, and to the values that guide us.

Madame Chair, this concludes my report.

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Contact: Mike Lurie
Phone: 301.445.2719
Email: mlurie@usmd.edu