Trustees praise Ramsey for 'exceptional year'
July 12th, 2007
The UofL Board of Trustees praised President James Ramsey for an "exceptional year" in 2006-07 and predicted that his accomplishments will move the university toward national preeminence "more quickly than at any time in the past."
The board gave Ramsey a glowing review at its monthly meeting July 12 and noted that he and his leadership team had accomplished 21 of 23 goals set by the trustees last year.
Ramsey's achievements include:
- For the third straight year, UofL met all eight state diversity goals set by the CPE in its Kentucky Plan—the only university to do so
- UofL set a record graduation rate of 41 percent, a jump of nine percentage points since the start of the Challenge for Excellence
- Increased faculty salaries, enabling UofL to compete for top scholars from around the nation
- More than half of UofL's athletic teams played in NCAA championships, including the football team's Orange Bowl win and the baseball team's first appearance in the College World Series
- The university celebrated the conclusion of the Challenge for Excellence nearly two years early
- The upcoming freshman class once again is expected to set records for academic achievement and for diversity. Twenty-eight percent of the class will enter with ACT scores of 27 or above, and 58 percent will be from outside Jefferson County.
"And there are many more accomplishments that made the board very proud to have Jim Ramsey at the helm of the university," said trustees chairman Chester Porter.
The board awarded Ramsey a 5.5 percent salary increase. It also agreed to recommend a similar increase in salary paid to him by the UofL Foundation and a performance bonus based on achievement of his 2006-07 goals. The foundation will consider the trustees' request next month.
The board also recognized Ramsey's wife, Jane, for her leadership in beautification efforts on and around the Belknap Campus.
