The President's Column

I write this article to you on Thursday, October 11, 2001. I am dictating this article as I travel on I-89 at 6:30 a.m., heading towards a meeting of the Vermont Technology Council, on which I serve as the Vice Chair. It is remarkable how beautiful our State is at this time of the year. The sun is coming up over the mountains, and the hills are absolutely stunning.

We have just concluded a three-day meeting with representatives from our six Senior Military Colleges and our one associate member. The Presidents, Commandants, and representatives of these military institutions visited for the annual fall meeting. We are on a rotation, so we can visit each other's campuses and witness firsthand what is happening. I want to say I could not have been more proud or pleased with the comments I heard from the other representatives about the quality of our students, faculty and staff and how beautiful the campus looked. The list of Senior Military Colleges includes Texas A&M, North Georgia State College and University, The Citadel, Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Virginia Military Institute, the Virginia Women's Institute for Leadership at Mary Baldwin College, and of course, the nation's oldest private Military College - Norwich University!

We discussed issues that relate to the military portions of our campuses, and, in particular, spent time discussing Cadet training programs, academic integrity and honor systems, physical training programs, retention and recruiting. A special thank you to the students who served as hosts and tour guides and who attended the various meetings and meals with the guests.

Parents' Weekend is this coming weekend, and Regimental Ball is the following weekend. It is generally a very exciting time and a particularly important time for our Rooks and Freshmen. It is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy yourselves and enjoy campus life. It is also a high risk time: high risk in areas such as inappropriate use of alcohol, acquaintance rape, and sexual assault. These are career-ending and life-changing risks. Although the vast majority of you will have a fabulous time on both weekends, some of your classmates will struggle in this area. This is when Norwich's true colors must shine - caring for our rook buddies and classmates, watching out for each other, and defending and supporting each other. Karen Pelletier has been organizing a number of awareness sessions relating to these important topics, and you need to know that I take it very seriously and that she has my complete support.

We have a real opportunity to meet one of Norwich's most acclaimed and well-regarded alumni, General Gordon R. Sullivan, retired Chief of Staff of the United States Army and presently President of the Association of the United States Army. General Sullivan has agreed to be our guest speaker at the Regimental Ball. We will also have a number of other trustees present who will be on campus that weekend, as well. I have invited them to attend the Ball, and they are looking forward to it. I ask that our student body extend a hand of welcome to them and thank them for their service as trustees. These are men and women who give up their time, talents, and energies in your behalf. They are also the men and women who support us financially to provide some of the scholarship, programmatic funding, and facilities that you enjoy every day. You need to thank them for that. Please introduce yourselves to them, thank them for serving as trustees, and tell them a little bit about why you are at Norwich. The Regimental Ball is a night to celebrate the Regiment, our magnificent Corps of Cadets! I am sure each of you will make us proud.

RWS:jab

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