From the President – December 11, 2024

A little ray of sunshine

Dear EOU Community,

As I write, the sun has just popped over the mountain leaving a crest of bright orange, red, and yellow; it’s a beautifully peaceful moment. And honestly, it’s just what I need after a couple of crazy hectic weeks. 

By the time you read this, we’re just about done with finals, and there’s grading, advising, accounting, auditing, inspecting, cleaning, and reporting to be done. Phew. Yet, we’re also almost there. (I’m looking at you Staircase!)

I hope each of you is looking forward to our shared time of rest and relaxation over the winter break. It’s well earned, and I know many of us are desperate for it.

We’ve had some crazy fun as well as deeply engaged work that I’m hopeful will continue our momentum. I remain grateful for all the partnerships that help us push forward as well as the daily work and struggles to serve students, our mission, and each other. I’d really like us to spend some time in the next year reviewing our progress on Ascent ‘29 as the work has been moving. I also hope we can talk more about our culture and where we want that to be.

I’ve had some beautiful moments at our university that have closed out the winter term, including our end of the year celebration and Koffee with Kelly series. All the students, faculty, and staff in attendance came in good spirits and lifted me up on both occasions. I visited Dr. Paul Nauert’s class to watch students engage in a mock trial related to the War on Terror. I had fun playing a judge and witnessing the students debate with each other. Dr. Kelly McNeil gave a fascinating presentation about the effectiveness of avalanche safety training to a packed house at Side A. I closed out last week with a meeting with the President’s Commission on Student Success and Belonging. They are making great headway with an impressive student engagement action plan for next year. Finally, I’ve begun work with a talented array of staff, faculty, and administration to assess our OPM contract.

As you’d expect, I’ve also been in our larger community quite a bit. VP Seydel and I have spent the better part of the current and last week in Portland and Salem, working with the Oregon Council of Presidents, the business community, and lobbying alongside our students to press for additional funding. I’ve also been in community with our region, working with the Northeast Oregon Regional Solutions Advisory Committee, the Intermountain Education Services District, the Grande Ronde Hospital, the La Grande School District, and attending the Soroptimist’s Festival of Trees. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the talented performances of the EOU Chamber Choir, 45th Parallel Ensemble, our African Drumming Group, EOU’s Fiddle Ensemble, the Grande Ronde Symphony Orchestra, and the Grande Ronde Music Association Community Band and Choir at The Observer’s 32nd Annual Holiday Music Festival. 

EOU volleyball finished the year as one of the NAIA top programs. I am so proud of our volleyball coaches and players who advanced to the quarterfinals of the NAIA Women’s Volleyball National Championship. Congratulations to EOU Track & Field coaches as well. The meet on Saturday resulted in many athletes placing in the indoor season opener held at EOU with Sara McKen breaking the all-time program 60 meter record finishing in 7.73 seconds. Wow!

It’s been a whirlwind that makes this morning’s sunrise all the more beautiful. I’m wishing you a few moments of brilliant peace.

Sincerely,

Kelly A. Ryan, Ph.D.