UNT has experienced another great academic year, one that started off with landmark gifts and was full of transformation and achievement. This spring alone, I took pride in reporting that UNT leads all Texas universities in the number of Goldwater Scholars for science, math and engineering. I congratulated a new group of alumni award honorees who embody the best of themselves and UNT. And I celebrated the May graduation of more than 4,000 bright, eager students who are ready to share their talent and passion with the world.

Taking another bold step forward, we announced that UNT is moving to a new athletic conference — Conference USA — and has new men’s and women’s basketball head coaches. These advances will make for another exciting season of Mean Green sports.

UNT also has opened its new Zero Energy Research Lab, which will be a premier testing ground for technologies that use little to no energy and reinforces our standing as a hub of green research.

I took time to enjoy UNT’s creative culture when I watched our students awe crowds as dancing horses in Soundsuits, or wearable sculptures, in a performance piece created by nationally acclaimed artist Nick Cave, the 2011-12 artist-in-residence for UNT’s Institute for the Advancement of the Arts.

These milestones reflect every aspect of the UNT experience, where academics, research, the arts and athletics are all important. We’re intent on being great across the board because providing a top-quality experience enriched by knowledge, culture, competition and community is what makes a university stand out.

The breadth of these milestones also reminds me that UNT is a place where the sky is the limit, no matter what your direction. We help our students tap into the greatness that lies within and, through them, we achieve greatness as a university.

You can read more about the wonderful year UNT had in the President’s Annual Report 2011.

 

Sincerely,

V. Lane Rawlins
President