Much of my attention has been focused on the Quad this week. We began with a meeting with landscape architects who have been working with us to develop a plan to refresh the Quad. This will include planting some trees, trimming others and removing a few that have reached their end of life. We are planting more noble trees to ensure that our Quad remains as special for future generations of students as it has for us over the past few decades. Our plans are also looking to the extended Quad that will ultimately reach to Memorial Gym as recommended to us by our master planners. We also plan to refresh Keeny Circle soon and are coordinating these plans with trees that will be planted around the new housing and the streets between the housing and the Quad. At the same time, we are upgrading our lighting by putting LED lights in the Quad and along major pathways while also addressing drainage and walkway enhancements. We welcome the help of anyone who might want to support our plans for “Pleasant Walks and Noble Trees”. I also enjoyed a number of visits with students and prospective students this week. And I thoroughly enjoyed a visit from the legendary Voice of the Bulldogs, Dave Nitz.  Dave came to Tech about the same time that I did, and we have been so blessed to have such a dedicated professional calling our athletics games. On Tuesday, I joined Mayor Ronny Walker, our Chamber of Commerce and our community leaders in dedicating the new Rock Island mural that was painted by Tech Art Professor Nick Bustamante and his students.  The mural is located under I-20 at the old Rock Island Railroad underpass.  This was a major task for the class to do in 10 weeks. It contributes much to the beauty of our community and reflects the strong relationship between our campus and the community. Later Tuesday, Kathy and I enjoyed attending the Shreveport Chamber of Commerce banquet where I saw so many of our alumni, corporate partners and friends.  Ed Crawford, ULS Board member and friend, was recognized by the Board as Business Leader of the Year. Later in the week, I made a visit to Tech Pointe with our partners with Pierry, Inc. where they were sharing plans about future growth thanks to the support of their global parent company Wunderman. We are excited about the opportunities all of our corporate partners are providing to our students and graduates here in North Louisiana. And this week was made most special with the announcement of our new Bulldog, Tech XXII. This beautiful bulldog was introduced in a traditional welcome at the Marbury Alumni Center on Saturday. He was introduced to our students, alumni and fans at the Bulldogs basketball game later that evening. He has been making his rounds across campus this week and even stopped by 16th floor on Thursday. I am sure that Tech XXII will be quite visible around campus for several years, and I appreciate the leadership of our students, alumni, faculty and staff who have helped continue the Bulldog tradition and will help in caring for Tech XXII in the future. Here are a few of my favorite pics for the week: