No matter where I've gone on campus the last few weeks, I've had similar greetings from people that go something like this: "I heard the news that your college is getting a new building. Congratulations!" I expected to hear such remarks from people in Postle Hall, but I never thought faculty and staff from other colleges would be so congratulatory about our future.

 

Our campus is huge! Ohio State is the largest university in the Big Ten, and it's one of the largest universities in the country. The fact that so many people know about our plans for a new facility is truly remarkable. It speaks volumes about the attention we are getting and the interest that others have in our college. This is something we can all feel good about and be proud of.

 

The university-wide attention we're getting is something that will benefit our college and our profession. It will cause people from all sorts of backgrounds to want to know why we are the university's newest priority for capital funding. They will read newspaper reports, see website postings, and get promotional materials that describe why this is "our time" to receive such unprecedented university support.      

 

As I have said to so many, the big story about our new facility is that it signifies the value that senior leaders on our campus have for the ways our college contributes to the university's mission. It is this recognition that will cause others on campus to stop and take notice, to partner with us when the opportunity presents, and to reach out when they think we can help. Our responsibility will be to capitalize on this special time in our college's history so that dentistry can continue to maintain its priority status at Ohio State for decades to come.

 

I hope your sense of professional and personal pride is beaming from you now as brightly as it is from me. This is truly "our time!"