Provost's Update: Friday, May 16, 2025

Office of the Provost

Friday, May 16, 2025

Good morning, colleagues. Here is this week’s update from Academic Affairs.

In this last Update of the 24-25 academic year, I’m highlighting some of the outstanding work accomplished across UWM with participation from governance groups, employees, and Academic Affairs.

In the fall of 2024, UWM enrolled our largest undergraduate class in 10 years.
The Carnegie Foundation again granted UWM R1 status, the result of the efforts of many faculty, staff and students across campus.
The Office of the Provost and the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning hosted the Student Success in the Classroom Summit involving more than 220 faculty and staff working to develop scalable action plans for improving student success and learning at UWM.
M-Cubed celebrated 10 years of impact and partnership in Milwaukee with Milwaukee Public Schools, Milwaukee Area Technical College and UWM. I am grateful for our deep community partnerships in this area.
Established the first UWM University Center in Waukesha at Waukesha County Technical College. I appreciate the collaborative spirit of WCTC and UWM leadership in this effort.
More than 300 proposals were submitted for general education courses. All of these courses will engage in high-impact practices in the classroom and have low textbook costs. This is a significant achievement for the experience of our students.

There are, of course, many more accomplishments this academic year. Too many to fit into this update. Be on the lookout for an end-of-year report this summer highlighting some of the great work at UWM.

We’ve accomplished a lot this year, and I just want to say how very proud I am of the hard work, dedication, and commitment to UWM demonstrated by colleagues across campus. My thanks to all of you for this forward progress.

Assoc. Prof. Lynne M. Woehrle and Prof. Julia Snethen (Nursing) received an Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Seed grant for 2025. Their project, “Health Videos as a Culturally Sound Approach to Integration Among Refugee and Immigrant Populations," was developed in partnership with the Catholic Charities Office of Refugee and Immigration Services. Anastassia White, academic staff in the School of Nursing, is also on the research team.

Asst. Prof Tracy N. Rank-Christman (Marketing) was selected as this year's MASSIG Emerging Scholar Winner. The Marketing & Society Special Interest Group (MASSIG) of the American Marketing Association Emerging Scholar Award recognizes a marketing academic in the early stages of their career who has made significant contributions to advancing the study of marketing and societal issues. Dr. Rank-Christman was selected for her impactful research on marginalized consumer identities, marketplace morality, social change, and social movements.

Prof. Rina Ghose (Industrial Engineering) received funding from Microsoft Corp. to support a research study aimed at determining if Wisconsin’s workforce is ready when it comes to skills in artificial intelligence. The one-year study will look at study of where vulnerabilities are in the workforce, where the training is, and how they are evolving over time. The company took an interest in the work, in part, because of its existing ties with the state and UWM. See more about this research.

Save the dates for Fall Welcome 2025! Faculty and staff are encouraged to volunteer to help welcome students to campus in August. We truly cannot do it without you!  There are over 250 shifts available. Some of these include assisting with move-in, assisting with the Class Photo and taking part in various signature events. Opportunities to support Ask Me areas will become available in the weeks ahead. Dates and more information.
The UWM Food Center and Pantry is experiencing higher-than-normal visits and needs your support. Between 300 and 350 students visit the pantry every week. This has made it difficult to keep shelves full. If you are interested in donating to the pantry, there are several ways to help, including monetary and in-kind donations. See a complete list of ways to help.
As another semester ends at UWM, many students may be looking for work and scammers see this as a great opportunity. Always be skeptical of an unsolicited job offer. Read the email carefully and be cautious when clicking links or filling out forms. Learn more about how to spot scams and get resources.
On Saturday, May 10, the UWM Honors College celebrated 115 graduating students representing 63 majors, 39 minors and 15 certificates. Many completed internships, research, study abroad, and service, with nearly all working while in college. These students exemplify the excellence and 65-year legacy of the Honors College and the strength of UWM’s broader student community. Congratulations to these students who are going on to graduate studies, positions in industry and other professional work.
The UWM Chinese Calligraphy Exhibition was successfully held at the Union Concourse from May 1–2, 2025, showcasing the culminating work of students who spent the semester exploring the rich tradition of Chinese calligraphy across various script styles. Graduating students reflected on their journeys by writing messages to their future selves, affirming self-love, embracing change, and committing to perseverance. Others used calligraphy to express heartfelt gratitude to parents, siblings, and loved ones, including those far away or dearly departed. Together, these works formed not only a striking visual celebration of Chinese calligraphy art, but also a deeply personal narrative of memory, connection, and transformation.

As the semester closes, and many employees step away from email and day-to-day work over the summer break. Please note that updates about any federal actions or significant budgetary concerns will be delivered by email over the summer.
Thank you to Professors Jennifer Doering (Nursing), John Isbell (Geosciences), Melinda Kavanaugh (Social Work), Elana Levine (English), John Reisel (Mechanical Engineering), and Natasha Borges Sugiyama (Political Science) for sharing their insights during the Promotion to Full Professor Panel held on May 13. Faculty from across campus attended the session and expressed appreciation for the thoughtful, candid discussion and the broad representation of disciplines among the panelists. Attendees valued hearing practical advice on preparing for promotion, balancing responsibilities, working with mentors, and navigating the process at UWM. The Office of the Provost plans to offer similar panel discussions in the fall and has received recommendations to introduce sessions focused on promotion from assistant to associate professor and promotion to distinguished professor.

The Northwestern Mutual Data Science Institute (NMDSI) is now accepting applications for its Fall 2025 Student Scholars Program, which seeks to engage students from Marquette University and UWM in data science research, working with NMDSI affiliated faculty and data science experts in and across disciplines to give them hands on experience in the applications of data science broadly defined. Applications must be submitted by Sunday, June 22, 2025. More information and application. Please note that students must have approval from a faculty member willing to supervise the proposed project. For questions, email nmdsi@northwesternmutual.com.