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President MacKinnon shares progress on key initiatives and goals
During its September meetings, the Central Michigan University Board of Trustees reflected on the 2025-26 academic year and discussed new priorities for the year ahead. Over the two days of committee meetings and the formal session, trustees heard presentations from several faculty, staff and students, and voted on a number of key issues, including board leadership roles in the year ahead.
Just before Thursday’s formal session began in earnest, Trustee Ed Plawecki offered a remembrance of Dave Keilitz, who was a student-athlete, coach, athletic director and volunteer with CMU across six decades.
“Dave was a true gentleman and represented all the best that CMU had to offer,” Plawecki said. “Rest in peace, coach. You will be missed.”
In his annual report to trustees, President MacKinnon reported on the progress made toward achieving the 2025-2026 presidential priorities that the board charged him with one year ago.
MacKinnon said the university successfully reached the goals of the presidential priorities, including progress on the Strategic Enrollment Management Plan, the Online Transition Project, and the university’s Strategic Plan. He also said CMU successfully completed a facilities master plan and a risk heat map, as well as developing and initiating a Metro Detroit and Southeast Michigan Regional Growth Initiative.
“Our work on these priorities over the past year has been as fulfilling as it has been challenging. It has always focused on ways to continuously improve the university to make a greater impact on our students and the communities we serve,” MacKinnon said.
As the president concluded his look back on the university’s prior year progress, Board Chair Denise Williams Mallett shared the board’s assessment of the president’s performance.
“The Board determined that President MacKinnon met, and in several areas exceeded, the expectations established for the 2025-26 evaluation cycle,” Mallett said. “We see his commitment to our students, faculty, and staff, his emphasis on building a caring university culture, and his willingness to make difficult decisions as CMU navigates a rapidly changing higher education environment.”
The Board awarded MacKinnon a $56,000 performance incentive in recognition of his success, Mallett said; however, the president has asked that those funds be donated back to the university.
MacKinnon also shared his presidential priorities for the year ahead. He said the priorities he will develop with the Board of Trustees will be based in five areas of focus:
“We enter the coming year with strong momentum and limitless potential,” MacKinnon said. “Working side by side, guided by our values, we will set an even higher standard of excellence for Central Michigan University.”
During Wednesday’s meeting of the Academic and Student Affairs committee, trustees discussed proposed changes to the Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities and Disciplinary Procedures, now titled the Code of Student Conduct.
“This revision reflects an understanding that institutions can both care deeply about students and hold them accountable. We know meaningful student learning often occurs when accountability is paired with care, support, reflection, and opportunities for growth,” said Erica Johnson, associate vice president for student affairs. “Our goal was not simply to update language or procedures. Our goal was to create a document that more intentionally supports the university's mission, vision, values, and aspirations for students.”
Johnson said code revisions would make expectations and processes clearer and more transparent for students and their supporters. She said numerous campus stakeholders were involved in the review and revision process, and that the updated code remains a living document.
“As higher education continues to evolve, and as we learn from implementation, assessment, and emerging student needs, we anticipate returning periodically with additional recommendations,” Johnson said. “Our aspiration is not simply to modernize a document, but to continue strengthening how we support students, foster community, and advance the educational environment we are working to create at Central Michigan University.”
Johnson said the student affairs team would begin rolling out communications to students and supporters following the Board’s approval.
Donors contributed more than $82 million to CMU during fiscal year 2026, setting another new record in fundraising success for CMU, said Jennifer Cotter, vice president of University Advancement.
“This is an indicator that our donors and friends and folks at-large really believe in the university,” Trustee Sharon Heath said. “There’s no way that you raise that amount of money and people don’t believe from the heart and from the pocket, and it shows.”
Cotter also shared that the Forge the Future campaign, which launched this month, had already raised more than $237 million in its silent phase – more than doubling the goal of the university’s previous comprehensive campaign.
Trustee Jeff Stoutenburg also introduced several items for consideration on the consent agenda, including a naming opportunity and five new endowments supporting student scholarships.
The Enrollment, Retention and Student Success committee heard an update on initial fall enrollment numbers from Vice President of Student Recruitment and Retention Jennifer DeHaemers.
“Our new domestic undergraduate enrollment is up over last year; this would be new freshmen and transfer students coming to the university,” DeHaemers said. “So, we’ve had a third year of continuing to grow that population.”
DeHaemers also reported increased enrollment of new domestic undergraduate students from Michigan.
Trustee Regine Beauboeuf and DeHaemers both noted that international student enrollment was down significantly again this year, which was expected in light of national policies affecting international student visas.
DeHaemers also highlighted the strengthened retention rates for second-to-third year students and noted that first-to-second year retention rates remain above the national average.
The committee also received an update on the Central Career Guarantee, which launched this fall. To date, more than 400 students have enrolled in the program, and there is still almost a month left to register, DeHaemers said.
MacKinnon highlighted the growth in enrollment from CMU-authorized charter schools, driven by the Charter to CMU initiative, and the numerous new transfer agreements with Michigan community colleges.
In his opening report, MacKinnon also noted the strong enrollment growth of the new bachelor’s degree in nursing.
“Looking ahead to summer 2028, we expect about 200 nursing students on campus. They will become the highly skilled, compassionate care providers our state so desperately needs,” he said.
In his opening report to the Board, MacKinnon highlighted several awards and recognitions garnered by the university since the last Board meeting. He noted the $30 million in state support approved for the Brooks Hall renovation, as well as nearly $6 million in federal grants received for education, training and research programs.
MacKinnon also gave a special shout-out to student-athlete Gracie Merrick, who was recently chosen to represent CMU and the Mid-American Conference at an event in Washington, D.C., to discuss the future of college athletics.
He also highlighted recent accolades for CMU’s Counseling program, which received the 2026 Association for Counselor Education and Supervision Robert Frank Outstanding Counselor Education Program Award.
“Graduates of CMU’s program have a positive impact on the lives of their clients and their families,” he said. “Our students – who become our graduates – are our most significant success story.”
Other programs were recently acknowledged for excellence in the U.S. News & World Report Best College Rankings, including CMU’s undergraduate engineering program, which climbed 11 spots to become 71st in the nation.
In the Finance and Facilities committee, trustees discussed the need for replacement and facility reprogramming related to the Central Energy Facility’s Boiler No. 4, which provides critical steam support across campus.
Trustees also voted to increase the overall project cost of the women’s and men’s golf facility. The overall cost has been driven up by significant increases in the costs of building materials, such as copper, said Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services Mary Moran Hill.
Finally, trustees voted to grant MacKinnon permission to negotiate and execute a lease of property owned by CMU, which may provide a new revenue stream for the university.
“I can assure you, serving as chair of finance and facilities for the last six to seven years, that CMU’s financial condition is currently very strong, and our credit rating is very high,” Plawecki said. “That is due to the responsible actions of the administration and the board...I can also assure you that our facilities on campus are well managed. CMU is, and will remain, well-prepared to address whatever future challenges we encounter.”
During the Trustees-Student Liaison committee, representatives from Program Board, Residence Housing Association and Student Government Association shared updates on their planned activities and goals for the fall semester.
All emphasized a focus on helping students find their place at CMU and persist to graduation.
Student London Hill, president of CMU Program Board, said getting involved on campus was what kept her confident and engaged when she encountered challenges in her first year at CMU.
“Involvement is so important... I can say that in my first year, I had my doubts,” Hill said. “I didn’t think I’d be sitting in a room with the Board of Trustees and the President! If I never joined clubs or organizations – that's why I returned, because I found something that I like to do.”
During the Academic and Student Affairs committee, Trustee Heath reported that eight new programs launched this fall, including offerings in digital strategy, cybersecurity, healthcare communications, advanced historical studies and applied world languages.
Trustee David McGhee, who chairs the Access, Belonging and Community Impact committee, led a discussion about how CMU defines access.
“Access isn’t simply whether a student can enroll in CMU, or whether a faculty member can apply to become part of the CMU family,” Trustee McGhee said. “Access is also whether students and faculty have what they need to fully participate and succeed once they get here.”
Trustees had a robust discussion about how programs like IMPACT and Leadership Safari contribute to belonging and community, and how the university might make those programs more readily available to all students.
Board Vice Chair Todd Regis provided updates from the Athletics Affairs Committee, which is working with CMU Athletics staff and the Huron Consulting Group to assess the sustainability of CMU Athletics in the rapidly changing field of Division I athletics. He also spoke about new initiatives launched this year to better support holistic wellness for student-athletes.
Regis also gave an update on the Policy and Bylaws committee, which is reviewing and revising the Board’s guiding documents.
The Trustees-Faculty Liaison Committee featured a presentation on CMU’s Leadership Safari and the Leader Advancement Scholarship by Dan Gaken, director of the Sarah R. Opperman Leadership Institute; Emma Powell, faculty in Public Administration; and Grace Boykin, a student in exercise science and a Leadership Safari Guide.
Gaken shared that approximately half of all incoming students have participated in Leadership Safari since it launched in 1997.
“We’re talking now about almost 45,000 students. That is not a program – that is a movement,” Gaken said. “This campus is changing the world by making sure students know not just that they can lead, but they have a responsibility to lead.”
Ninety-five percent of students who participated in Safari said they connected with at least one person who cares about their wellbeing, and 94% said it helped them feel a sense of belonging at CMU, Boykin said.
And a CMU faculty member researching the impact of Leadership Safari found that first-generation students who participate in the program graduate at the same rate as students who have one or more degree-holding parents.
“This truly levels the playing field for student success,” Gaken said.
A virtual version of Leadership Safari will launch next month for students unable to attend in person, including CMU Online students.
Gaken also spoke about the Leader Advancement Scholarship. CMU is the only school in the nation that pairs a scholarship with a leadership development curriculum, and that does not consider high grade point averages when selecting students to participate, he said.
Powell, who partners with Gaken on curriculum and programming for the LAS, said that faculty have many ways to support students and their leadership development.
In new business, Vice Chair Regis submitted a slate of nominees for Board leadership positions beginning January 1, 2027. The trustees unanimously voted to elect Denise Williams Mallett as the board chair, and Trustees Jeff Stoutenburg and David McGhee as vice chairs.
The CMU Board of Trustees also approved several other items Thursday, including:
An electronic copy of the president’s report will soon be available on the Office of the President web page, and meeting minutes will be added to the Board of Trustees webpage following their approval at the next meeting.
