Dear colleagues,
We finally got our taste of winter this week. I hope you all had a chance to enjoy the snow a bit. As we near the last month of the academic year, I have a variety of updates for you from across campus.
Chancellor Search
I am excited to welcome Dr. Charles Nies as our next chancellor, effective July 1, and am confident in his ability to lead UMD forward. One of my top priorities now is to work with Dr. Nies to support a smooth and successful leadership transition.
I want to give my sincere appreciation to the search committee members for their work in this process. I am grateful for the leadership from co-chairs Lori Carrell, University of Minnesota Rochester chancellor and our own Lisa Erwin throughout this search process. The campus engagement was strong in both the chancellor and president searches and I appreciate your interest and investment in this critically important process.
Academic Program Array Analysis (APAA)
We are on track with our timeline this semester for APAA. Upon completion of the data and narrative review last semester, each college was provided program-specific feedback. The departments are working with their deans on review and this action planning will continue through the semester. Visit the APAA website for more information.
Chancellor’s Council for Campus Culture (4C)
The 4C group has been working collaboratively and effectively this semester to prepare recommendations by the end of the semester. To date, they have:
- analyzed the campus climate survey,
- advocated with University leadership to share the survey results with the UMD community to enhance the input received in the data, and
- reviewed past reports and recommendations (2017-2023) to improve campus climate.
Engagement Survey
We have received results of the fall 2023 engagement survey. I encourage each unit to review and discuss their report and utilize the variety of tools and resources available from the Office of Human Resource to help interpret results and identify improvement areas. Overall we had a strong response rate of 80% for staff and 56% for faculty. I appreciate your participation in this survey, which helps us improve the work experience in order to pursue our mission effectively and increase faculty and staff satisfaction.
Development
I want to express my gratitude to Susan Taylor, from the U of M Landscape Arboretum, for extending her time and talents to UMD as our interim development leader this academic year. As originally planned, Susan completes her time with us today. I am pleased to announce that beginning Monday, Jan Sickbert will serve as our interim executive director of advancement. Jan served as associate vice president of college and campus programs at the University of Minnesota Foundation (UMF) until her retirement in December 2023 and worked with UMD for 15 years in that capacity. We are fortunate to welcome her back. Alumni Relations will be moving to the new advancement unit and I’m energized by the potential synergy and good outcomes for UMD in the new alignment.
PEAK
The PEAK implementation continues. This project has sound principles and a foundation of building a continuous improvement mindset and toolkit. The changes have not been without difficulty. We really appreciate all of the staff who have worked hard to find success within these changes. We continue to work with the operation centers and the PEAK office to build a better understanding of the roles and responsibilities on each side and to improve our work within those roles. We expect to continue to use these principles for ongoing efforts here at UMD.
Reminders and closing:
April is a busy month every year, and that is particularly true this year. There are many great events coming up and two I will highlight here are the faculty and staff awards and years of service recognition event on Tuesday, April 23 at 3 p.m. in the Kirby ballroom. And, my favorite event of the year, commencement on Saturday, May 4. I hope to see you around and at these events.
I am very thankful to the campus community who will, no doubt, put in extra time between now and the end of the semester. We are almost at another finish line and this part of the year can be both overwhelming and inspiring. As we graduate another brilliant class this year, please be sure to take time to engage in the variety of events on campus and enjoy time with our campus community.
Thanks for your continued support of UMD and our students,
