2020 State of the University Address held online
On October 27th, President Ira K. Blake shared updates on the status of the university and other things that are going on around our campuses during her annual State of the University speech.
The University of Houston-Clear Lake is entering its 46th year of existence, providing education, student services and now housing. On October 27th, President Ira K. Blake shared updates on the status of the university and other things that are going on around our campuses during her annual State of the University speech.
“This years State of the University address, utilizes technology we’ve all come to know too well, to share the past years accomplishments and our future goals.” says Blake.
Before she continued the address, she took a minute to share a few highlights from around the campus. Enrollment is currently 9,144 students, that makes it three years of record-breaking enrollment prior to 2020. National enrollment in college is taking a downturn but University of Houston-Clear Lake’s is growing.
COVID-19
“In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to support student enduring financial, emotional and logistical challenges, the Cares Act was passed by the U.S. Senate and House on march 27th, 2020,” said Blake. “University of Houston-Clear Lake received our share of Cares Act funding, over 5.5 million dollars. 50 percent of the allocation, nearly 2.8 million, went directly to students support in the form of financial aid.” The university has dedicated institutional resources of its own to help support students over five million dollars in total impact, most of which wouldn’t be covered by the Cares Act but was vital to supporting students and faculty.
“This pandemic and this time of quote unquote uncertainty has really allowed us to think outside the box,” said Dr. Aaron Hart Vice President for Student Affairs. “We started offering a hybrid model for students providing student services. They can either do it virtually or they can do it in person.”
There are student Safety Ambassadors walking around campus reminding people to social distance and to wear their masks at all time, and if the student doesn’t have one, they are offered one. There are also socially distanced classes for those that have chosen to return to school in person.
“Everybody at this university is working towards student driven solutions, which is something that I like a lot because I feel like our voices are really being heard and changes are being made,” said Student Government Association President Hiba Loya.
Administrators and faculty join students for town hall meeting and discuss a myriad of topics such as social justice, racial injustice, and just ongoing things around campus so that changes can be made if necessary.
University of Houston-Clear Lake Partnerships
The institute for human and planetary sustainability has just recently been launched and is believed to position University of Houston-Clear Lake to be a national leader in the area of sustainability.
University of Houston-Clear Lake President Blake signed a memorandum of understanding with the State of Qatar’s Minister of Foreign Affairs in July of 2020 connecting the Medical Center campus and Qatar through the Diplomacy Institute. Assistant Vice President of Global Learning and Strategy Dr. Gigi Do will be leading that partnership for University of Houston-Clear Lake.
