WKU News

President Timothy C. Caboni presented the Spirit of WKU Award to Dr. Marko Dumančić. (WKU photo by Clinton Lewis)

Western Kentucky University President Timothy C. Caboni addressed faculty and staff during his annual Convocation address Monday (August 12) in WKU’s Van Meter Auditorium. During his address, he summarized the University’s accomplishments from the 2023-2024 academic year and previewed the 2024-2025 year.

He began by revealing a milestone in WKU’s philanthropic endeavors, sharing that the University has achieved its goal of raising $100 million for the Opportunity Fund. Originally announced at President Caboni’s Investiture in 2018, the fund was established to support students facing financial difficulties and had an initial goal of $50 million. In just three years, the fund surpassed that goal, leading to the announcement of a new $100 million goal in 2021. In his Convocation address, President Caboni noted that the Opportunity Fund total now stands at more than $102 million and has enabled the creation of 267 new endowed scholarships. “Altogether, during the Opportunity Fund campaign, we provided 20,205 students with private scholarship support,” he shared. (More: Opportunity Fund surpasses $100 million goal)

President Caboni also recapped some of the institution’s successes from the 2023-2024 academic year, including another national championship season for WKU Forensics and the 31st consecutive finish in the top eight nationally in the annual Hearst Journalism Awards Program. Additionally, WKU was recognized by both the Gilman Scholarship and Boren Scholarship programs as a top producer in the nation. WKU again had more Gilman Scholarship recipients than all other Kentucky institutions combined.

He also highlighted the success of the University’s efforts to reach and engage its first-generation students, noting that roughly one-third of WKU students are the first in their family to attend college. “These students often face distinct challenges, including financial constraints, lack of familial guidance and a limited understanding of the resources available to them,” he stated. During the 2023-24 academic year, the University reached more than 700 first-generation students, President Caboni noted, and WKU will continue to provide initiatives targeting this population this academic year.

Additionally, the president discussed the University’s increased investments in Living Learning Communities (LLCs) during recent years. He shared that among first-time, first-year students, fall 2023 LLC participants returned in spring 2024 at a rate that was 4.5 percentage points higher than first-time, first-year non-LLC participants. He also shared that preliminary data for this fall indicates a retention rate 8.1 percentage points higher among LLC participants compared to non-LLC participants. President Caboni noted that 782 students, nearly one-third of the University’s incoming class, will participate in an LLC this fall.

He also discussed the future of the Mahurin Honors College and paid tribute to Dr. Craig Cobane, the former Executive Director of the Honors College, who passed away in May of this year. “Since his arrival at WKU in 2005, Craig Cobane served as a respected colleague, mentor, advocate, teacher and, most importantly, a cherished friend,” he said. “He led the transformation of what was our Honors Program into the Commonwealth’s first true Honors College in 2007.” President Caboni shared that he will appoint a task force this year to consider revisions to the Honors College and its curriculum and programming that might reinvigorate course offerings and increase interest and availability to an even wider range of WKU students.

President Caboni discussed a number of improvements to WKU’s campus, noting the important role campus plays in student recruitment. “Many of our students share with us that it was their campus visit that confirmed their decision to choose WKU,” he said.

He shared that since 2017, the University has invested $649 million in campus improvement projects. Most recently, the University dedicated a new home for its Soccer and Softball teams, and work continues on a new building to house the Gordon Ford College of Business, made possible by a $74.4 million capital allocation from the Kentucky General Assembly. In 2023, WKU broke ground on the Hilltopper Fieldhouse, which will serve as the home of Forensics and Esports and will provide rehearsal and practice space for the Big Red Marching Band and WKU Athletics. President Caboni also highlighted upcoming renovations to Cherry Hall and discussed a new building to replace the Academic Complex, which will be funded by a $160 million capital project appropriation, the largest such appropriation in WKU history. “As guardians of this remarkable space, we have a responsibility to both maintain our picturesque campus and to constantly reimagine how it might support the needs of tomorrow, ensuring that it serves our students, our faculty, our staff and our broader community for generations to come,” he said.

Since 1926, WKU has been accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), and in 2025 SACSCOC will assess the university as part of its ten-year reaffirmation of accreditation process. Accreditation is vital to ensuring the quality of education students receive and can affect an institution’s ability to offer federal financial aid and transfer credits to other institutions.

In his Convocation address, President Caboni outlined the timeline for the University’s reaffirmation of accreditation. Currently, WKU’s SACSCOC leadership team is finalizing the off-site compliance certification, an overview of the University’s administration, including policies and procedures. That work will wrap up in November, and the University will receive feedback and questions to which it can respond. In March, an on-site review committee will visit the main campus in Bowling Green, as well as two of WKU’s regional campuses. Finally, in December 2025, the SACSCOC Board of Trustees will meet to make its decision on WKU’s reaffirmation of accreditation.

President Caboni provided an overview of WKU’s research successes from the previous academic year. In fiscal year 2024, the University received nearly $28.7 million in external funding to support basic and applied research, public service projects, student services, instructional awards and equipment acquisition. That figure represents an increase of almost $6.5 million, or 29%, compared to the previous fiscal year.

Increasing research activity is an important component in WKU’s goal to become Kentucky’s first Carnegie classified R2 institution. President Caboni noted that this classification provides multiple benefits to the institution. “We pursue this designation not for the recognition it conveys,” he said. “We pursue it because to achieve that classification requires us to evolve, grow and stretch; to continue to enhance our research capacity; to grow the percentage of faculty successfully pursuing federal grants; to invest in select trans-institutional research pilots; to build relationships with external partners; to address together pressing regional and national challenges; and to integrate even more of our students into basic and applied research activities.”

President Caboni noted that to reach R2 status, a university must have at least $5 million in annual research and development expenditures. He shared that in recent years, WKU’s research expenditures have exceeded $10 million. Additionally, a university must award at least 20 research doctorates annually. Central to the University’s push to meet that threshold is the ability to offer PhD degrees. He noted that this year the University will work closely with CPE and an external organization to determine WKU’s path toward offering PhDs, focusing heavily on the programs the University could offer that build upon its existing resources and successes.   

The president discussed the important role of WKU’s 285,000-square-foot Innovation Campus in connecting students, staff and faculty with entrepreneurs and industry leaders to create jobs, develop talent pipelines and advance the region’s economy. Notably, he highlighted the increased partnership between the University and Holley Performance Brands. Recently, Holley relocated its research and development and engineering teams to the Innovation Campus headquarters on Nashville Road. As part of WKU’s partnership with Holley, the Innovation Campus now has a second location in a 35,000-square-foot portion of Holley’s facility on Russellville Road in Bowling Green.

The president spoke about the importance of each of WKU’s regional campuses, located in Elizabethtown, Glasgow, Owensboro and Somerset. “These campuses make possible opportunities for students who cannot come to our Hill – those who would otherwise not have access to a college experience – offering a place, within reach, to achieve their WKU degrees,” he noted.

Among the accomplishments of the regional campuses, President Caboni highlighted the development of Signature Regional Programs, launched last fall. This initiative represents a collaboration between each regional campus location and WKU’s five academic colleges and defines 11 degree programs available in full at the regional campuses. These programs will respond to the greatest demands within WKU’s service area. He shared that each regional campus location is on track to increase their on-campus enrollment this fall. 

Spirit of WKU

President Caboni concluded his Convocation address with what he called his favorite part of the morning, announcing the recipient of this year’s Spirit of WKU Award winner. This year’s recipient, Dr. Marko Dumančić, came to WKU in 2013 and currently serves as Director of the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning and Assistant Provost for Faculty Development and Human Success.

In announcing him as this year’s recipient, President Caboni highlighted Dr. Dumančić’s commitment to supporting all students. “He works to ensure that all students know they belong at WKU, and he has an unwavering commitment to student success,” President Caboni said. 

Dr. Dumančić is actively involved with WKU’s Living Learning Communities and the university’s initiatives to support first generation students. As a faculty member, he transformed the History Department’s teaching and curriculum to make them more inclusive. He received the 2017 Faculty Award for Teaching for his student-driven, student-focused content. He has published numerous research articles and authored Men Out of Focus, an award-winning book on the cultural history of 1960s-era Soviet film.

Contact: Jace Lux, (270) 745-4295

-WKU-

Western Kentucky University prides itself on positioning its students, faculty and staff for long term success. As a student-centered, applied research university, WKU helps students expand on classroom learning by integrating education with real-world applications in the communities we serve. Our hilltop campus is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, which was recently named by Reader’s Digest as one of the nicest towns in America, just an hour’s drive from Nashville, Tennessee.