Can you guess what I’m thinking?
I’ll tell you. I’m thinking about the remarkable year we had. The caliber of all our endeavors in FY 2010 was truly extraordinary. In all parts of our life here at Boston University, we achieved new levels of excellence. One quick measure of this success can be seen in these numbers:
- Our endowment was up 12.7 percent.
- Research awards to the University totaled more than $407.8 million.
- We hired 74 outstanding new faculty members on the Charles River Campus and 35 on the Medical Campus.
- We welcomed an incoming class of over 4,400 freshmen in fall 2010.
- We had a record 15 percent increase in year-to-date giving.
- Our $84 million in formal pledges set a new standard for the University.
All in all, a very impressive snapshot of the University. Those numbers and the many other positive ones you’ll find on this website are the direct result of a lot of smart people doing some very solid thinking over the course of a year.
So in this year’s Annual Report, we wanted to pursue that raw, cerebral energy, try to isolate it, and examine it more closely. If you get your head around all the thinking we do here in a year, you’ll understand Boston University in a very comprehensive way.
What were we thinking in 2010?
What’s up with all the backwards question marks?
Do you know what this kind of question mark is for? It was crafted by English printer Henry Denham in the 1580s for use at the end of rhetorical questions.
Why me?
Are you crazy?
The use of rhetorical question marks died out in the 1600s—which is a good thing for this year’s annual report. That’s because we’re turning the rhetorical question on its ear and actually answering this: What were we thinking in 2009—2010?
The best way to find the answer is to poke around and check out our videos. Guaranteed you’ll find something fascinating, illuminating, shocking, or just plain cool.
Think you know BU? Bet you don’t.