Where do we find the faculty who can accept this challenge? I have said all along that we will find them on our campuses today. Our faculty know the challenge. They need only the resources to respond and to succeed in the new role that is demanded of them.

Where do we find the faculty who can accept this challenge? I have said all along that we will find them on our campuses today. Our faculty know the challenge. They need only the resources to respond and to succeed in the new role that is demanded of them.

Each year, we provide $1.5 million - more than any university I know of - to support faculty efforts to learn about technology, to explore new subjects, to catch up on the real world, to develop off-campus partnerships, and to revise the courses they teach. (These awards are beyond our normal support for travel, equipment, sabbaticals, etc.)

This money is not a handout. It is awarded competitively, and the results have been amazing. More than 600 of our 2,000 full-time faculty have participated in Faculty Development activities during the past three years. Here are some examples:

• Business and Engineering faculty studied supply chain management at the Siemens Corporation and designed new courses on integrated manufacturing.

• A music professor studied with leading brass instructors, videotaping their lessons and interviewing them about methodology.

• The entire communication department examined the impact of technology in the field and has added technology requirements to every course.

"I regard the past year's project as having effectively launched me in a major new professional direction and profoundly thank the university for this opportunity and support," wrote Charles Sidman, professor of molecular genetics.

While technology inspires innovation, learning about technology is often a barrier for faculty. Each year the university sponsors the Faculty Summer Institute on Instructional Technology. During a two-week session, competitively selected faculty receive an introduction to technological tools, create a project related to their course work, and earn a voucher for equipment or software.

"The aggregate knowledge I have gained attending conferences, meetings, and mini-courses over my 20-year tenure at UC does not equal the positive effect that this two-week course had engendered in me," wrote Randal Morris, professor of cell biology.

Our funding of Faculty Development is a solid investment in faculty of quality. To give but a few examples:

• Two faculty of the University of Cincinnati College of Education were named "Friends of Early Childhood Education" by the Ohio Department of Education in October 1997. Lawrence Johnson and Debbie Zorn were recognized for their dedication and service to young children in Ohio.

• Maybe it was his use of cartoons in class or lab experiments that stimulate thinking. Whatever the reason, William Heineman of the University of Cincinnati McMicken College of Arts & Sciences has distinguished himself as a teacher of national reputation. Heineman earned the American Chemical Societyís 1997 Award for Excellence in Teaching.

• The Air and Waste Management Association awarded University of Cincinnati Professor Timothy Keener its 1997 Ripperton Award for excellence in education. Keener was recognized for "inspiring students to achieve excellence in their professional and social endeavors." Keener is on the faculty of UC's College of Engineering.

• The Society of Automotive Engineers has selected University of Cincinnati engineer Robert Wynn Jr. as one of the nation's top engineering educators. Wynn, on the faculty of UC's College of Engineering, is the 1997 recipient of the society's Ralph R. Teetor Award. Wynn's nomination was supported not only by UC but by Virginia Tech where he earned his doctorate.

• Additionally, the University of Cincinnati is one of just 15 institutions nationwide chosen to participate in the Preparing Future Faculty Program as part of a $1.9 million grant by the Pew Charitable Trusts. Through mentors and campus visits, doctoral students at UC will learn about faculty careers at different types of institutions.

As you can see, our faculty are leading the race from the "pail" to the "fire." There is no place for obsolescence at the University of Cincinnati.