With two months at the University under his belt and time to immerse himself in the community, Chancellor Michael Martin has made plans to help improve the state’s flagship institution.In a broadcast e-mail sent Wednesday to students, faculty and staff, Martin broke down what he observed needs change during his tenure at the University.Martin said in the e-mail the Flagship Agenda has been under the microscope.”The Flagship Agenda is a brilliant idea for lots of reasons,” he said. “But we have to develop within the Flagship Agenda some ways of demonstrating that we’re getting meaningful outcomes from the investments we are making.”Martin said the initial agenda was oriented around “increasing the number of inputs,” but the University has to go back and explain to legislators and donors what the institution has accomplished.”We want to measure where we have come and then determine whether or not there are additional incremental improvements that may not have been included initially that we want to include now,” he said.For example, Martin wants deans of each college to express their opinion and help modify the agenda “so it’s consistent with their philosophy and the direction they want to take their college.”Martin praised the work of the University’s Emergency Operations Center before, during and after Hurricane Gustav. He also showed his appreciation to the Faculty Senate for providing open forums for University community members to express their concerns.Martin said the University needs to be more involved with the federal government.”LSU has not played an active role on the D.C. scene with the Congress, the non-profit sector or federal agencies in driving new resources to our [campus],” he said.Martin said one way to accomplish this goal is to work with the state’s delegation, so when the time comes, they can appropriate funding to the campus.”I’d like to be able to utilize connections in D.C. to heighten the visibility of our faculty and students by getting them to testify in front of Congressional committees, quoted in important national publications, etc.,” Martin said.With only $190 million left to raise for the Forever LSU campaign, Martin said he’s been connecting more with donors.He has been in Lafayette and Lake Charles the past few days meeting with donors and networking with them to meet new ones.”The task is to get me more involved so when we sprint to the end, I can be a better vehicle for helping us complete the campaign,” he said.He said he already knew the University was great before he came, but it’s a lot better than he thought.”I want to give people a forewarning that I may dance a little close to the edge on some stuff from time to time,” Martin said. “But I’ll do it in the best interest of LSU and the people they serve.” —-Contact J.J. Alcantara at [email protected]