September 1990 ­ President Mertz appoints a Strategic Planning Commission, representative of the entire University community, to evaluate FDU and develop a long-term vision.

October 1990 ­ The first theme semester, focusing on Islam, is held on the Florham-Madison Campus.

October 1991 ­ Strategic Plan is approved and implementation begins with the development of specific educational missions for each campus, increasingly selective admissions requirements, intensified efforts to recruit and retain minority students, creation of an Office of Minority Affairs (now called the Office of Multicultural Affairs) and an increased emphasis on cooperative education.

January 1992 ­ FDU's Public Administration Institute is awarded a grant from the New Jersey Department of Health to serve as the Region II Local Health Advisory Board (LAB II) for Bergen and Hudson counties.

June 1992 ­ FDU's Board of Trustees presented with a balanced budget for fiscal year 1992-93, the first of three consecutive balanced budgets.

Summer 1992 ­ Enhanced continuing education efforts begin with the appointment of a dean to oversee that area.

September 1992 ­ Average combined SAT score for freshmen rises 50 points, exceeding the national combined SAT average and the New Jersey average.

September 30, 1992 ­ Francis J. Mertz is officially installed as the fifth president in the history of Fairleigh Dickinson University.

April 1993 ­ University College: Arts Sciences Professional Studies dedicated. The new college combines the College of Science and Engineering with the College of Liberal Arts on the Teaneck-Hackensack Campus. The college later would be restructured into eight schools.

August 1993 ­ The Board of Trustees votes to merge FDU's operations at the Rutherford Campus with those of the Teaneck-Hackensack and Florham-Madison Campuses, beginning with the 1994-95 academic year. The board also approves $27 million in capital initiatives, including the renovation of Dickinson Hall on the Teaneck-Hackensack Campus and the construction of a recreation center on the Florham-Madison Campus.

September 1993 ­ The Samuel J. Silberman College of Business Administration is accepted into candidacy for accreditation from the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).

September 1993 ­ The Maxwell Becton College of Arts and Sciences implements a discipline-based honors program.

October 1993 ­ Junior gridiron star Vic Moncato becomes the first Devil player to be featured in Sports Illustrated.

December 1993 ­ Working with the New Jersey Educational Facilities Authority, the largest bond sale in the history of FDU ­ $40 million ­ is completed in three days with more than $120 million in orders.

December 1993 ­ FDU's Division I basketball team competes in the prestigious ECAC Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

February 1994 ­ Results are announced from the Franklin & Marshall College study, in which FDU ranked 29th in the nation and first in New Jersey in the number of graduates who went on to attain doctoral degrees since 1981.

July 1994 ­ Construction begins on the Florham-Madison Campus on a $9-million recreation center, an 82,000-square-foot facility featuring a swimming pool, basketball and racquetball courts, an elevated jogging track and weight-training and aerobic facilities.

August 1994 ­ FDU incorporates a new logo, which depicts a strong, indivisible institution with forward momentum.

September 1994 ­ Dickinson Hall reopens, housing several academic programs in a state-of-the-art facility and adding more than 170,000-square-feet of space to the Teaneck-Hackensack Campus.

September 1994 ­ A Living-Learning Model is implemented at Edward Williams College.

September 1994 ­ The George Rothman Institute of Entrepreneurial Studies is named one of the top 25 entrepreneurial studies programs in the country by Success magazine.

March 1995 ­ The Board of Trustees approves a values statement, FDU CARES, that will serve as a guiding set of principles for the University community.

May 1995 ­ As part of the recently announced administrative restructuring effort, campus executives are appointed and have authority over campus operations on both the Teaneck-Hackensack and Florham-Madison Campuses.

August 1995 ­ To implement various forms of assessment and improve the collection and analysis of data, a full-time director of institutional research is hired.

October 1995 ­ The recreation center, later named the Roberta Chiaviello and Thomas G. Ferguson Recreation Center, opens.

October 1995 ­ The first University Day brings together the FDU community for a celebration of the institution's past, present and future.

December 1995 ­ FDU officially kicks off a two-year, $8-million capital campaign to help fund four vital projects, including the renovation of Dickinson Hall, the construction of the Ferguson Recreation Center and a new academic building, and an endowed fund for the George Rothman Institute of Entrepreneurial Studies.

March 1996 ­ For the first time in FDU history, the current president of the United States visits the University. Accompanied by Vice President Al Gore, President Bill Clinton appears on the Teaneck-Hackensack Campus to discuss the environment.

June 1996 ­ A new mission statement is adopted to guide the University into the 21st century and provide a road map for the development of campus mission statements.

July 1996 ­ Following an intensive self-study and an evaluation visit, FDU's regional accreditation is reaffirmed by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (CHE/MSA).

September 1996 ­ Four-year freshman enrollment is up more than 33 percent from the previous year, marking the largest increase in recent history.

September 1996 ­ The international student population exceeds 700 students, a more than 50 percent increase since 1990.

September 1996 ­ SAT scores of incoming full-time freshmen average 1050, up more than 100 points since 1991.