A Note from the Provost

Dear Colleagues, 

Welcome back from the long weekend—I hope you enjoyed the official start of summer! As campus settles into its summer rhythm, important work continues across Academic Affairs and throughout the university. 

This is our season to reflect and prepare, as well as to continue our teaching and scholarly activities. Across our colleges and support units, faculty and staff are advancing work connected to student success, experiential learning, strategic planning, faculty support, and enrollment efforts that strengthen our foundation for the future. 

I also want to acknowledge that shared governance work continues throughout the summer months. Several faculty committees are still actively engaged, including the University Curriculum Committee, and last week the University Academic Senate held its first of two retreats focused on planning and priorities for the coming academic year. I am grateful to our faculty leaders and governance partners for their continued engagement, thoughtful dialogue, and commitment to our shared work. 

Within Academic Affairs, teams continue implementing elements of the Academic Affairs Strategic Plan while learning new ways of working together following recent organizational changes. I continue to be encouraged by the collaboration, flexibility, and care our colleagues show as we move this work forward together. 

Thank you to everyone teaching summer courses, supporting orientation and advising, preparing for new students, and helping keep our campuses and operations running smoothly during these months. Your work matters deeply and is appreciated. 

Best, 

Jen 

We are pleased to announce three important faculty leadership appointments within Academic Affairs. Their work will help shape and strengthen key areas across the division and the university in the years ahead.

Director of General Education
Chris Haven, Professor of Writing, will be the new Director of General Education following the retirement of the long-time Director, Carol “Griff” Griffin. Chris brings a wealth of experience as an accomplished educator, scholar, and contributor to the Grand Valley community. Chris recently completed two terms on the Executive Committee of the University Academic Senate, has been active locally and nationally around digital literacy, and received the 2025 University Outstanding Teaching Award. Chris served as Interim General Education Director in 2023 as a sabbatical replacement for Griff. While the program is now housed in the Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center, the best way to get in touch about the General Education program is still gened@gvsu.edu. 

Director of Assessment and Accreditation
Kim McKee, Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, will serve as the Director of Assessment and Accreditation. Kim steps into this new role bringing her experience as a vibrant contributor to the Grand Valley community. She most recently served as the director of the School of Interdisciplinary Studies and previously served as the director of the Kutsche Office of Local History. An accomplished scholar, she remains active in the fields of Critical Adoption Studies and Asian American Studies. In 2023-2024, she was a US Fulbright Scholar to South Korea and taught at Sogang University in Seoul.

Assistant Vice Provost for Research and Innovation
Jennifer Moore, Professor of Biology, will serve as the Assistant Vice Provost for Research and Innovation. Jen will be joining the Center for Scholarly and Creative Excellence after serving as the Associate Dean of The Graduate School. Since joining GVSU in 2012, she has proven to be an accomplished teacher and researcher.

Updates

During Winter semester, the Office of the Provost held two public sessions to discuss moving forward with the Blue Dot ecosystem at GVSU. Through curriculum, student-centered opportunities, research and applied innovation, and other activities, Academic Affairs has been and will continue to be the heart of the ecosystem. The Blue Dot ecosystem features (1) digital literacy for all students, (2) expansion of the pipeline for tech talent for Michigan’s future, and (3) using the power of academia to solve real-world problems for businesses and the community.

Slides from the Blue Dot sessions are now available. The Qualtrics survey link in the slides is still active, if you wish to provide further feedback.

Several years ago, the Office of the Provost agreed to a request from faculty governance to provide an annual report on faculty reassigned time. The latest report, for the 2025-2026 academic year, was published this summer and is available on the Office of the Provost website. Reports from previous years are also available.

Ongoing updates and resources related to new executive orders, federal memos, and other important federal actions are available on Division of People, Equity, and Culture website. Updates on executive orders impacting federally-funded projects can be found on the Office of Sponsored Programs website.

Engaged Scholarship

Congratulations to Megan Woller-Skar, Professor of Biology, on a grant from the Worldwide Indigenous Science Network. This award will support bringing Indigenous experts to contribute to Biology 280: Indigenous Science Seminar in fall 2026.

Congratulations to Emily Bemben, Assistant Professor of Nursing, on a grant from the Association of Community Health Nursing Educators for "Mothering the Mind and Minding the Mother: Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner-Led Approaches to Perinatal Community Health." The purpose of the project is to identify barriers that impact access to perinatal mental health care, specifically for underserved groups.

Ashley Rosener, Senior Librarian, edited Slow Librarianship: Reflections and Practices. This edited book compiles chapters from librarians working in many different libraries throughout the United States, Canada, and Italy. The authors describe what slow librarianship means to them in their work and share concrete practices. Click here to learn more about this book.