As we go forward through the Spring and Summer terms, there are several important items on the agenda.  First, of course, is the finalizing of our budget for 2012-13.  We have not yet held a campus-wide Budget Forum because we really don’t have sufficient data to share from the state, but we will hold one as soon as we do.  I am hopeful that we can do this before the end of May, but there is still much discussion about performance metrics that must be resolved.  Our second agenda item is the continued work in seeking state support for the renovation of the Murchie Science Building.  We continue to work with our delegation and others in Lansing to ensure the success of this project.

Two items are new to our campus.  As I mentioned last month, we must soon begin to select our first Quality Initiative for the Higher Learning Commission.  The summer or early fall would be an ideal time to have an informal discussion about how to select that project.  Our other new agenda item is the movement of our campus toward the offering of our first Ph.D. program.  A move in this direction will be a significant one for us and will require my extensive consultation with the President and the Regents as well as with the Higher Learning Commission.  This work must begin this summer if we are to meet the timetable set forth in the proposal.  I am personally very excited about this new opportunity to move the university forward toward an even greater graduate presence.

Compete

The University of Michigan-Flint was selected as the first recipient of the “Engaged Campus of the Year Award” presented by Michigan Campus Compact.  Michigan is only the second state after Florida to have such an award for institutions of higher learning.  The Michigan Engaged Campus of the Year Award recognizes institutions of higher education for exemplary commitment to being an “engaged campus.”  Applicants were judged according to criteria expressed in Campus Compact’s Indicators of Engagement.  There were nine nominees in this year’s competition.  Judges were all from outside the state.  What a great honor for our campus, in a very competitive environment!  The award was announced on April 18 in Lansing.

Three of our students, Mario Johnson, Omotolani Alli, and JaNel Jamerson, also received Outstanding Student Service Awards at a separate ceremony on April 14 in Lansing.  Emily Doerr, daughter of our staff member Kim Doerr, was the keynote speaker at this event!

Recently I was informed by the Office of Research that UM-Flint faculty members currently hold $7,841,434 in new and active grant awards.  This is the highest level of grant funding ever recorded for our campus.  Congratulations to all!

On April 13, we honored eleven faculty and staff members who are retiring this semester (Jane Barclay, Ambakisye Eberechuku, Linda Grimshaw, Margaret Hathaway, Linda Hicks, Virginia July, Theodosia Robertson, Rajagopal Shantaram, Robert Stach, Peggy Vaughn, Tracy Wacker).  Together, they represent 319 years of service.  We salute them for their dedication to our university.

Convene

This year we had six, not five, Critical Issues – all outstanding events (as always!) that were filled to capacity.  We initiated a new feature – the Sullenger Dialogues – to honor the memory of Joanne Sullenger, who created the Critical Issues Forum speaker series and turned it into a great Flint tradition.  The Dialogues are designed to encourage a conversation between each speaker, the faculty, staff, students and the community, and take place during the morning of the day in which each forum is held.  They were a great success, and we will continue this tradition into the future as a great honor to a special person in the life of our campus.
 
In April there are always a multitude of celebratory events.  One of the newest is our Club Sports Banquet.  Our speaker this year was Sue Novara-Reber, UM-Flint Alumna, two-time World Cycling Champion Gold medalist and 1988 U.S. Olympic Cycling Coach.


                                                                               Club Sports Banquet

We also kicked off our LEAD program for faculty and staff by convening the participants with the executive officers for an all-day workshop.  This program is off to a great start!


                                                                                   LEAD Program

Connect

For twelve years, U of M has been sponsoring the Michigan Roads Scholars program.  Thirty participants from all three campuses are chosen to spend a week touring our state to connect with where our students come from.  This year three UM-Flint faculty were chosen:  Danielle De La Mare (Communication), Janet Haley (Theater), and Suleyman Uludag (Computer and Information Systems).  This trip is a great opportunity not only to connect with the state, but also to meet new colleagues.

On My Calendar