We are enjoying a beautiful fall season here in Vermont. The trees are starting to turn and the weather has been nothing short of paradisical. I recently delivered my annual "State of the College" address and would like to share some of the important highlights.

First, after international searches, we are very proud to welcome the following distinguished scholars:

»	Bernard (Chip) F. Cole, (Ph.D., Boston University) Professor/ Director of Statistics Program, Dept. of Mathematics & Statistics; joins CEMS from Dartmouth, where he was a faculty member.
»	Jane Hill, (Ph.D. Yale) Assistant Professor, School of Engineering; joins CEMS from Yale where she was a post-doc in chemical engineering.
»	Paul Hines, (Ph.D., Carnegie-Mellon) Assistant Professor, School of Engineering, joins CEMS from CMU where he was a post-doc in electrical engineering; and
»	John Voight, (Ph.D., UC-Berkeley), Assistant Professor, Dept. of Mathematics & Statistics, joins CEMS from University of Minnesota, where he was a visiting scholar in mathematics.

I am also delighted to report that undergraduate applications have increased by 66% compared to the 2004 academic year to a total of 1554. And our matriculating students are up 54% over the same time period to 200 students, bringing our total enrollment to 738 undergrads. The entering students claimed a combined average verbal and math SAT of 1212, which is 46 points above the University average. I am certain that much of this success can, in large measure, be attributed to the major curriculum reform efforts that are on-going in the College — providing the Vermont advantage for the 21 century.

There are many more exciting accomplishments that can be attributed to our outstanding faculty, students, and staff, and you may read about them in my full address.

On a final note, we are hoping to use Spire as a vehicle to help CEMS alums and Vermont firms better connect around career opportunities. Starting with our next issue, we welcome CEMS alums who are looking to return to Vermont and Vermont firms who are seeking graduates to submit notices of employment that we will publish in forthcoming newsletters. Please send employment information to dan.harvey@uvm.edu.

Thank you for continued interest in and support for our fine College. Together we will build on our proud traditions to lead the way in creating a wonderful future for Vermont and the Nation.

Sincerely,
Domenico Grasso, Dean

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