BOG Notebook: Campus investment and a home for the emerging school of public health, enrollment and research growth highlight October meeting
Wayne State University’s Board of Governors approved a five-year capital renewal plan and received updates on record enrollment, student success and growing research activity during its Oct. 2 meeting at the Integrative Biosciences Center.
Record enrollment and Student Success 2.0 momentum
Ericka Matthews-Jackson, senior director of undergraduate admissions, shared an update on the ongoing strategies and partnerships behind this fall’s record enrollment. Wayne State welcomed its largest incoming class of full-time, first-year students in university history this fall and marked its strongest total enrollment since 2021. Full-time first-year enrollment increased 4.8% over last year, while transfer enrollment grew 3.3%. The university also saw gains among new international students.
Matthews-Jackson highlighted community partnerships, financial aid and coordinated marketing efforts as key drivers of continued growth. Those efforts include the Warriors on the Rise early assurance program with Detroit Public Schools Community District and a streamlined Kalamazoo-to-WSU transfer pathway.
Vice Provost for Student Success, Support and Engagement Dr. Darryl Gardner highlighted the connection between enrollment growth and continued momentum within the Student Success 2.0: Every Warrior Rises initiative, which seeks to ensure students have the academic, financial and personal support they need to succeed. Recent efforts include enhancements to The W Wardrobe and the W Food Pantry and the launch of Open Door, a partnership connecting students with community resources to address basic needs.
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Christina L. Bloebaum underscored the broader mission behind the work.
“We have the privilege of doing work that truly matters, helping our students achieve their educational and career goals and, through them, transforming lives, families and communities,” Bloebaum said. “That’s at the heart of Wayne State’s mission.”
WSU advances campus investment, plans for emerging school of public health
The board also approved a five-year capital renewal plan totaling $135.2 million, continuing a multiyear effort to strengthen facilities and infrastructure across campus. Among the numerous approved capital projects is a proposed $42 million project to transform the Emma Lazaroff Schaver Building – located at 5451 Cass Avenue — for the emerging school of public health initiative. Wayne State will seek $30 million in state capital outlay funding for this project.
Other investments to enhance campus experience and comfort include renovations to the Art Building and Matthaei swimming pool, improvements to Parking Structures 1 and 2, HVAC and mechanical upgrades in several academic buildings, and campus roof and facade work, among others.
Preparing for the HLC visit
Dr. Darin Ellis, vice provost for academic programs, assessment and accreditation and Wayne State’s Higher Learning Commission (HLC) accreditation liaison officer, also provided an update on the university’s reaffirmation of accreditation through the HLC. Through a highly collaborative process that included more than 160 members of the campus community and nearly 1,000 pieces of evidence demonstrating the university’s work, Wayne State has submitted its assurance argument and federal compliance filing. All members of the campus community are encouraged to attend a series of upcoming forums focused on accreditation criteria ahead of the Oct. 26-27 campus visit.
Collaborative approach drives research growth
The board also received an update on WSU’s growing research enterprise and the progress of its Grand Challenges initiative. Research and development expenditures increased 16.3% to a record $291.7 million, helping Wayne State rise to No. 112 nationally and No. 75 among public universities in research and development expenditures.
Dr. Ezemenari M. Obasi, vice president for research & innovation, said Wayne State’s research strategy is increasingly focused on bringing expertise from across disciplines together to address complex problems and translate discovery into meaningful impact.
“We’re not just doing research for research’s sake, but doing research to actually be thoughtful of how we can make society better, how we can help people live fuller lives, longer lives, healthier lives,” Obasi said. “There’s an intentionality to the science beyond just getting grants.”
In the year following the launch of the Grand Challenges initiative, Wayne State has funded seed and development grants designed to build interdisciplinary research teams and position them to compete for larger external awards.
Dr. Lauren M. Hamel, professor of oncology at the Wayne State University School of Medicine and the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute, highlighted one of the inaugural Grand Challenges projects as an example of that approach. Hamel is part of an interdisciplinary team combining expertise in patient-provider communication, clinical psychology, systems science, oncology, computer science and engineering to improve cancer care, and said the collaborative approach could improve patients’ quality of life, accelerate the work and strengthen the team’s pursuit of additional external funding.
Dr. Gil Mor, scientific director of the C.S. Mott Center for Human Growth and Development, also spoke about a new $7.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish a Specialized Center of Research Excellence, or SCORE. The highly competitive award brings together researchers to study sex differences in early immune programming and builds on the Mott Center’s broader research portfolio, which includes 20 investigators, 17 NIH-funded grants and 58 active clinical trials.
“Because of this team of top leaders working together, we were able to compete with Ivy League universities and get this grant to Wayne State University,” Mor said.
President’s Report
President Richard A. Bierschbach highlighted the energy surrounding the start of the fall semester and shared several experiences from his first Warrior Welcome Week as president, including welcoming new students and their families during move-in, Convocation and FestiFall. He also reflected on recent visits across campus, WSU’s highest-ever public university ranking in the latest U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings and the implementation of WSU’s strategic plan, Our Moment Is Now. He also recognized student, faculty and staff accomplishments, including T’Emi Oshin’s selection as Wayne State’s first Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholar for Public Service, as well as national honors earned by faculty and students across the university. The full President’s Report is available online.
“None of this happens without the partnership and guidance and support of the board and of the entire campus community,” said Bierschbach. “I think we’ve got a big year ahead of us, and an enormous amount of potential as an institution. I look forward to going forward and realizing that potential together.”
Other business:
The meeting also included the formal approval of the appointments of Dr. Christina L. Bloebaum as provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs and Dr. Lisa Prosser as inaugural dean of the emerging school of public health initiative. Bloebaum and Prosser began their roles Aug. 10 and Oct. 1, respectively.
The Board of Governors will next meet on Friday, Dec. 11, 2026.
