Bendapudi to Penn Staters at one-year mark: 'our future is bright'

Dear Penn State community,

May 9 officially marks my first anniversary as president of this remarkable institution, and I want to take a moment to express my sincere gratitude to each and every one of you. When I stepped foot at Penn State, bringing four generations of my family with me, I hoped I had found my home. When I traveled across the commonwealth and saw firsthand the passion and dedication of Penn Staters making a positive impact on the world, I knew that I had found my home. I continue to draw inspiration from each of you — and even in the face of challenge and change — you are building on Penn State’s tradition of excellence. We are better for it, and our future is bright.

I knew there would be a tremendous amount to learn. There still is and will be. There is truly no other university like Penn State in the entire country when you think about our unique 24-campus model and how we serve the commonwealth, the country and the world, as Pennsylvania’s sole land-grant university.

There have been challenges we have faced together. For example, faced with an unforeseen and highly challenging budget situation, my team and I had to make some difficult and needed changes in service of our access and affordability mission. We also created a transparent budget model, with faculty and staff governance leaders as active participants. On our campuses, we have continued to grapple with similar questions as those at many institutions of higher education around the country. How do we support our students, faculty and staff as university citizens and affirm our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging? How do we, as public institutions of higher education, stay fiercely protective of the First Amendment right to free speech even when — and perhaps especially when — we disagree with the speech in question? How do we remain agile in light of the “demographic cliff” (the projected decline in the traditional college-age population in the U.S.), and shifting enrollment trends? How do we deliver on the value of higher education and work vigorously to keep access and affordability at the fore of all discussions? How do we articulate the value of higher education across all fields — the broad base of arts, liberal arts, humanities, questions of curiosity, basic sciences, as well as those that are more easily seen as translating to workforce needs? How do we share the demonstrable impact of higher education not just on making a living but on the making of a good life? And if we in higher education are not ready and willing to create understanding and goodwill across the myriad divides of intersecting identities, who will?

I am in awe of how you showed up and all that we have accomplished this past year. There is no way to capture every accomplishment across our campuses, but the following are just a few memorable highlights.

To our students: You made a difference in our communities while pursuing passions in and outside the classroom.

• You raised a record $15 million in the fight against pediatric cancer.
• You propelled Penn State into leading the way among all U.S. institutions for number of undergraduates pursuing STEM degrees, and two have earned the 2023 Goldwater Scholarship for their exceptional potential as leaders in natural science, mathematics or engineering.
• You are excelling in your sports with six teams and eight individuals winning conference titles, 15 teams participating in the NCAA or bowl postseason, one team winning the USCAA national title, and 30 student-athletes named as All-Americans. What’s just as impressive is that 27 of the 31 teams maintained a 3.0 GPA or higher in the fall semester.
• You are being recognized for your service. Three students received the Fannie Lou Hamer and W.E.B. DuBois Service Scholarships for academic excellence and active service to the African American community.
• You are helping us celebrate the 25th anniversary of Penn State World Campus, which now offers more than 175 degree and certificate programs.

To our faculty: You have served the greater good with dedicated teaching, scientific advancements, a commitment to interdisciplinary work, and contributions to statewide economic development.

• Your prolific work led to the University reaching a record $1.034 billion in research expenditures, with 19 programs ranking in the top 25 nationally and 12 ranking in the top 10.
• You are being recognized as the best-of-the-best in your fields of study, including one individual winning a MacArthur Fellowship (known by some as a “genius grant”); three named as fellows of the National Academy of Inventors; five elected as American Association for the Advancement of Science fellows; one named a Guggenheim Fellow; and one named a Sloan Research Fellow.
• You are advancing with well-deserved recognition. Seven new distinguished professors were named in 2023 for outstanding academic contributions, and we recognized two professors with the Milton S. Eisenhower Award for Distinguished Teaching and six faculty members with the George W. Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching.

To our employees, especially our staff: You served as the connective tissue at this University and showed up every single day with an unwavering commitment to student success and to serving communities across the state.

• Nearly 40 of you — faculty and staff members — were recognized with university-wide awards for teaching and excellence, for your meritorious service and for going above and beyond.
• A deserving individual received the 2023 Forum on Black Affairs Humanitarian Award for outstanding service to African American citizens of Pennsylvania, particularly in communities around Penn State’s campuses.
• Our forward-thinking Carbon Emissions Reduction Task Force led us to announcing the bold goal to become a carbon-neutral university by 2035.

To our community: You lived out our mission every day.

• You have launched careers and nearly 300 new businesses all over the state through our entrepreneurial network.
• You are contributing to finding solutions to shared international concerns as Fulbright scholars, and Penn State was the top producer last year.
• Your collective effort to advocate for funding — through Advocate Penn State — will enable us to better fulfill our purpose.

I express my deepest gratitude for all that you have accomplished, and I am truly honored to be part of such an extraordinary community. I learned from you. And I look forward to learning from you in the years to come.

You have my full commitment as the leader of Penn State to operate our organization with integrity and accountability — as we continue delivering a world-class education and growing our ranks as a leading research institution.

With gratitude and a WE ARE!
Neeli