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Mass E-Mail Archive 2009-10

Go to archive for 2008-09

Fall 2009

[UnivAdm] Changing the Culture of High-Risk Drinking

Dear faculty and staff colleagues,

Our short opinion piece on "Changing the Culture of High-Risk Drinking" is also available at http://provost.uiowa.edu/docs/essays/alcohol.htm. Reducing the harms of excessive alcohol consumption--to the safety, health, and academic success of our undergraduates--is essential to our educational mission.  It's also a shared responsibility.  We invite your involvement and welcome your ideas: PAS@uiowa.edu

Thank you.

Sincerely,
 
Wallace Loh and Tom Rocklin

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[UnivAdm] Academic vision and planning, 2010-15 - September 29, 2009

Dear faculty and staff colleagues,

Now that we're settled into the fall semester--my second in the stewardship of the University's academic affairs--I'd like take a few moments to (1) reflect on the past year, (2) survey today's landscape of higher education, and (3) envision the future of the University: Where we're heading, academically, over the next 5+ years and how we're going to get there with all deliberate speed--in spite of, or perhaps because of, our changing economy and society.

I invite you read my letter to you at http://provost.uiowa.edu/docs/misc/ltr_fall09.pdf

As always, your thoughts are welcomed and appreciated.

Sincerely,
 
Wallace D. Loh

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[DDDEO-MEMO] DEO/Academic Administrator Workshop Series - Fall 2009 - September 9, 2009

MEMORANDUM

To:       Deans, Directors, and Departmental Executive Officers

From:  Diane Finnerty, Coordinator of Faculty Development Programs

Date:   September 9, 2009

Re:      DEO/Academic Administrator Workshop Series – Fall 2009
The Office of the Provost is pleased to announce its Fall 2009 calendar of events for the DEO/Academic Administrator Workshop Series:  http://www.provost.uiowa.edu/faculty/administrator.htm .

The Fall 2009 DEO/Academic Administrator Workshop Series features workshops on several topics of interest to DEOs, including: 

  • DEO Overview of the Year, 9/14/09, 3-5:00 p.m.,
  • Time Management:  Balancing Time and Task as a DEO/Administrator, 10/15/09, 8:30-10:30 a.m., and
  • DEO Budget Workshop, 11/3/09, 3-4:30 p.m.

As part of the series, the Office of the Provost is also offering a “First Friday DEO Book Discussion” group to discuss the widely-acclaimed book, The College Administrator’s Survival Guide (Gunsalus, 2006).  Group participants receive a copy of the book and meet on the first Friday of each month (8:00-9:15 a.m.) to discuss specific chapters, such as “Know Your Colleagues,” “Bullies,” “Complaints.”  The First Friday DEO Book Discussion is designed to provide an informal environment for peers to discuss the challenges and share strategies for departmental leadership.  All workshops are voluntary and require pre-registration.

For additional information about these workshops and other faculty development opportunities, please also see the Office of the Provost Campuswide Faculty Development Workshops Calendar at: http://www.provost.uiowa.edu/faculty/docs/Calendar.pdf . 

To suggest additional programs or request information, contact Diane Finnerty, Coordinator of Faculty Development Programs, Office of the Provost, 335-3991 or diane-finnerty@uiowa.edu.

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[DDDEO-MEMO] Faculty Development Calendar - Fall 2009 - August 27, 2009

MEMORANDUM

To:        Deans, Directors, and Departmental Executive Officers

From:    Diane Finnerty, Coordinator of Faculty Development Programs

Date:    August 27, 2009

Re:       Faculty Development Calendar – Fall 2009
The Office of the Provost is pleased to announce the posting of its Campuswide Faculty Development Calendar – Fall 2009:  http://provost.uiowa.edu/faculty/docs/Calendar.pdf   The calendar features workshops offered by numerous campus offices to support faculty excellence across the career span. 
Highlights of upcoming Office of the Provost Faculty Development programs include:

  • UI Write-on-Site Faculty Writing Community for Junior Faculty:  A “write-on-site” group provides a consistent space for early career faculty members to come together on a weekly basis to write in community while working on their individual projects.  This program was developed as a result of the Spring Rockquemore workshop series (see below).  “UI Write-on-Site” groups will be held Friday mornings (8:30-11:30 a.m.) and Friday afternoons (1:30-4:30 p.m.)  For more information, please visit http://provost.uiowa.edu/faculty/docs/writeonsite.pdf
  • DEO First Friday Book Discussion Group:  The DEO Book Discussion Group is designed as a fairly informal environment for DEOs to come together and apply best practice research to the issues of their day.  The discussions begin on Friday, September 4th, 8:00 - 9:15 a.m. and will be facilitated by Charles Connerly, Chair and Professor, Urban and Regional Planning.  Registered participants will receive a copy of the book:  Gunsalus, C.K. (2006). The College Administrator’s Survival Guide.  Cambridge, MA:  Harvard University Press.  To register, go to http://provost.uiowa.edu/deoworkshops
  • Rockequemore Teleworkshop Series for Junior Faculty [with emphasis on faculty of color]:  These monthly tele-workshops are led by Kerry Ann Rockquemore, Associate Professor of African American Studies and Sociology at the University of Illinois-Chicago, and founder of Blackacademic.com.  Professor Rockquemore specializes in supporting the success of faculty of color and other underrepresented faculty members.  She conducted highly acclaimed workshops on campus last year and we are pleased to offer this teleworkshop series again this year.  To register, go to http://provost.uiowa.edu/newfaculty
  • New Faculty End-of-Semester Reception: Mark your calendars now for the annual New Faculty reception on December 9, 2009, 4:30-6:00 p.m.  New faculty and their mentors are invited to enjoy an end-of-semester social event to close-out the Fall semester.  More formal invitations will be sent as the date nears.

Registrations are required for most workshops and can be completed on-line using the URLs listed on the calendar:  http://provost.uiowa.edu/faculty/docs/Calendar.pdf  For more information, feel free to contact myself (diane-finnerty@uiowa.edu) or Sue Moore (susan-moore@uiowa.edu, 335-0256) in the Office of the Provost.

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[UnivAdm] 2009-2010 Call for Involvement - August 24, 2009

Dear University of Iowa Faculty and Staff Members,

Do you knit?  Speak Welsh?  Have a favorite movie you'd like to share?  Students in the residence halls are eager to meet faculty and staff in informal settings, and University Housing has a program that makes that happen.  The 2009-2010 Call for Involvement initiative pairs interested faculty and staff with residence hall students in informal and personal interactions that can include sharing a hobby, discussing politics, attending a concert, or simply having a meal together.  I invite you to participate. 

This is a volunteer opportunity with a minimal time commitment, offering the chance for you to meet some terrific students, and for them to make connections with some adults on campus.  You suggest a program (the typical length is 45-60 minutes) and University Housing lists that program in their database.  Residence hall leaders can request a particular program from the list; if yours is chosen, University Housing contacts you to make arrangements.  University Housing provides all of the supplies and coordinates the event.  They will also provide a letter of recognition for your involvement.
 
Thank you for considering this program.  Please complete the linked form to participate.

http://housing.uiowa.edu/rain/forms/hsg-callforprograms.pdf

I encourage you to spread the word about this initiative with your colleagues.  Feel free to contact University Housing--Office of Residence Life at 335-3700 for additional information.

Associate Provost Beth Ingram

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[UnivAdm] ARRA Competitive Awards Selected - August 14, 2009

Dear Colleagues:

The University of Iowa received $35.5 million in non-recurring federal stimulus dollars under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for use in fiscal year (FY) 2010.   The University allocated $20 million of this sum to assist colleges and GEF-funded administrative units to help cushion---on a one-time basis only in FY10---the reductions in state appropriations that went into effect on July 1, 2009.  These monies minimize educational disruptions for students and immediate layoffs, and help the University transition to FY11.

Of the remaining $15.5 million in ARRA funding, the University has approved plans to allocate $14.0 million to proposals submitted on a competitive basis by colleges and administrative units (with $1.5 million held for allocation later this year).  A faculty/staff committee reviewed more than 200 proposals, totaling over $100 million in requests, and recommended for funding those projects that best fulfill the stated purposes of ARRA and the University's strategic priorities.  Based on the committee's recommendations, we submitted our recommendations to President Mason, who made the final decisions. 

Four of the proposals include infrastructure components of $500,000 or more, and are therefore subject to approval by the Board of Regents, State of Iowa, or by the Board Office.  The Board of Regents is expected to consider those proposals that require formal action at its September meeting.

We invite you to visit the strategic initiatives web site for a summary of the successful proposals that emerged from this competitive process:  http://provost.uiowa.edu/work/strategic-initiatives/docs/ARRA-selected.pdf (pdf 68kb).

We want to thank the many individuals who invested time and energy in preparing and submitting ARRA proposals.  We are deeply impressed with the number and quality of the proposals, which taken together make a powerful statement about the talent and creativity of the faculty and staff of the University.  The meritorious proposals far exceeded the ARRA funds available, but we are excited about the funded projects, each of which will help us become a stronger University.

Sincerely,

Wallace D. Loh and Douglas K. True

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Summer 2009

[UnivAdm] Faculty Cluster Hires - Sustainability - June 24, 2009

Dear colleagues:

I'm pleased to announce ten new faculty positions for interdisciplinary "cluster hiring" to advance research, education, and outreach on sustainability, an area of strategic emphasis identified by President Mason.

A University-wide competitive award process resulted in this winning proposal to create a faculty alliance on "water sustainability" in CLAS, Public Health, Law, Engineering, the Graduate College, and the Public Policy Center. The ten new hires will enhance our existing faculty strengths and new campus assets--the $1.3M Iowa Flood Center, the Office of Sustainability, the undergraduate certificate in sustainability--to galvanize an initiative for national excellence in an area of global importance: The quality, remediation, regulation, and health impacts of water. For details, please see the Office of the Provost web site:
http://provost.uiowa.edu/docs/misc/SustainabilityCluster.pdf.

Sincerely,

Wallace D. Loh

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[UnivAdm] ARRA Competitive Awards - June 15, 2009

Colleagues:

Through their deans or vice presidents, faculty and staff have submitted the first round of applications for competitive ARRA awards (federal stimulus funds).   The available funding for these awards is $15M.

The titles of these proposals and the amounts requested are available from the University's strategic initiatives website (http://provost.uiowa.edu/work/strategic-initiatives/arra.htm#submitted) and from the University's budget website (http://budget.uiowa.edu/arraproposals).  Also posted are the faculty and staff members of the ARRA awards review panel and the selection criteria for the awards.  The review panel's recommendations will inform our recommendations to President Mason, who will make the final award decisions. 

The announcement of the awards will be made by early July.

Thank you to all the colleagues who have submitted proposals and to those who are engaged in the review process.

Sincerely,

Wallace Loh, Executive Vice President and Provost and Doug True, Senior Vice President and Treasurer

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[DDDEO-MEMO] AP for Faculty Position Announcement - May 22, 2009

The Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost invites interested faculty members, holding the rank of full professor, at The University of Iowa to apply for the position of Associate Provost for Faculty.  This is a full-time, 12-month appointment, starting January 1, 2010.  Screening will begin on August 1, 2009 and continue until the position is filled.  The position announcement can  found at: http://provost.uiowa.edu/docs/misc/apfaculty.pdf.

Inquiries regarding this position may be directed to:

Raul Curto, Search Committee Chair
Phone: 335-3994                             
raul-curto@uiowa.edu                               

Application materials should be sent to:

Search Committee for Associate Provost for Faculty
Raul Curto, Chair                             
c/o Amy Kirkey                               
Office of the Provost                          
111 Jessup Hall                                 
Iowa City, IA  52242                           

The University of Iowa is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.  Applications from women and minorities are strongly encouraged.

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[DDDEO-MEMO] Associate Provost for Faculty - May 22, 2009

MEMORANDUM

TO: Deans, Directors, and Departmental Executive Officers

FROM: Wallace D. Loh, Executive Vice President and Provost

RE: Associate Provost for Faculty

DATE: May 22, 2009

Susan Johnson, associate provost for faculty and professor in the Carver College of Medicine, has announced that she will leave the position of associate provost as of December 31, 2009.  She will have served in that capacity for four and a half years, and she has done so with dedication, thoughtfulness, and skill.  I would like to say THANK YOU to Susan for her service and accomplishments on behalf of deans, DEOs, directors, and faculty.  There will be an appreciation reception for her later in the fall semester, to which you will all be invited.

You’ll be receiving an announcement of a search for her successor.  My hope is that the new appointee will be available in the latter part of the fall semester for part time, on-the-job training by Susan, prior to starting full time on January 1. 

Sincerely,

Wallace Loh

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