Visits to our Web site more than doubled, and there were thousands of media mentions and hundreds of feature stories about Hofstra programs, student engagement, and faculty expertise. The media monitoring estimate of potential viewership for the stories and related mentions of Hofstra was almost 13 billion people worldwide. It is, of course, impossible to fully assess the public relations impact of the debate. Some of the impact is not immediately measurable, but will hopefully be reflected in long-term reputational gains and enhanced name recognition. No one could argue, however, that the debate and surrounding programming and media coverage exceeded all expectations and truly put Hofstra on the map, while providing our students with a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Educate ’08, our unprecedented, yearlong program of academic courses, events, lectures, conferences, exhibits and performances focused on the election and the history of the American presidency, was an outstanding success, attracting thousands of students, alumni and community members to the Hofstra campus to become involved in the 2008 presidential campaign. Guests included James Carville and Mary Matalin, George Stephanopoulos, Robert Rubin and Paul O’Neill, Gloria Steinem, Ari Fleischer and Dee Dee Myers, Maureen Dowd and William Kristol, Mario Cuomo and Richard Haass, and dozens of respected journalists, historians and policy makers. Students came out in large numbers to hear the speakers and for the Hofstra Rocks the Debate concert with Jason Mraz and the Comedy Central Indecision ’08 tour. And last year, despite the economic downturn, we announced the completion of our most successful capital campaign ever, having raised $110 million to fund student scholarships, faculty scholarship, technology and facilities. Generous alumni, friends and other donors provided Hofstra with the resources needed to enhance its place among nationally renowned institutions of higher education. The success of Hofstra University belongs to each of us – to our outstanding faculty, who place an equal value on research and teaching; to our more than 110,000 alumni, who are leaders in public service, business, the arts and media, education and health and human services, and law; to our students, who for the seventh consecutive year had increasingly excellent academic credentials, with an average SAT score of 1182, a more than 100-point increase in less than a decade. Students from across the country continue to enroll at Hofstra, and for the second year, more than half our students came from states other than New York. We continue to invest in scholarship and financial aid for our students, state-of-the-art facilities, and small classes. We continue to place an emphasis on public programs, such as our renowned “Great Writers, Great Readings” series; the annual Shakespeare Festival; a world-class Division I athletic program; conferences and exhibits hosted by the Hofstra Cultural Center and Hofstra University Museum; performances by the Departments of Music and Drama and Dance, and Hofstra Entertainment; and the many events and programs
Hofstra President Stuart Rabinowitz offered by Hofstra’s Breslin Center for the Study of Real Estate, the Scott Skodnek Business Development Center, and Continuing Education. The University recently launched Define ’09: New Challenges, New Solutions, a yearlong series of programs that will examine the new presidential administration, its policies and initiatives, the challenges we currently face, and ways to address our country’s most pressing issues. Designed to keep our students and our community engaged in politics and civic involvement, this program builds on the success of Educate ’08 and the hosting of the October 15 debate. We already have presented several successful programs as part of Define ’09, including appearances by Anderson Cooper, Donna Brazile and David Plouffe, and look forward to an interesting and engaging year. Through prudent management and careful stewardship, Hofstra University remains a stable and excellent institution, even in the current economy. Student interest and alumni engagement is stronger than ever, and we continue to grow to meet the needs of our varied constituents. As we prepare to commemorate our 75th anniversary, beginning on September 23, 2010, we have much to celebrate. A constant in our history has been our continuous momentum. Hofstra University has always placed an emphasis on respecting our great academic traditions while forging new paths and moving forward – utilizing new technology, creating new academic programs, and enhancing academic quality. Our momentum continues, and our University is better positioned than ever. With your support and involvement, there is no telling how far Hofstra University, and our alumni, faculty and students, can go. Sincerely,
Stuart Rabinowitz President Hofstra
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