Greetings faculty colleagues,
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The Office of Faculty Affairs provides faculty and academic staff with the tools and opportunities needed to succeed at all stages of their careers. And we appreciate the numerous faculty contributions as session facilitators, panelists, and program designers in our programming efforts. As we look ahead to the fall semester, we are excited to grow and expand our offerings to better support your professional journey.
In May, we welcomed Katie Williams to our team as our Program Coordinator. Additionally, our three faculty development program fellows have curated dynamic programming opportunities that reflect their unique areas of expertise—adding even more depth to our portfolio.
Whether you are new to KU or part of a leadership team, we hope you are able to see yourself in our offerings and join us in building a vibrant community of learning this fall. Our new faculty will soon be on the Lawrence campus for New Faculty Orientation, and this fall we will continue to support them in their new roles with our New Faculty Mentor Groups and Early Career Foundations Fall Development Day. New and Early Career Faculty will receive invitations to attend both of these events in the coming weeks.
This fall, we will also focus on tools and resources to help you achieve success in whatever your goals may be. Our Faculty Learning Circle, Academic Productivity: Balancing Time to Get Things Done, will explore a productivity framework to help you engage more effectively with tasks and commitments, create more mental space, and focus on what matters most. And if writing is your priority, join us as we partner with NCFDD for a 14-day Writing Challenge after fall break — details are outlined below in our NCFDD section.
For those new to leadership roles at KU, earlier this week we hosted a New Associate Deans, Chairs and Directors Orientation, and in September, we will host our Fall Associate Deans, Chairs and Directors workshop, bringing timely topics to the broader leadership community. And for those looking to expand their leadership, please consider applying for our Senior Administrative Fellows Program in early spring. Our 2025-26 Senior Administrative Fellows cohort is just getting started, and we are excited to see where this program will take them!
We are looking forward to a year of growth, collaboration, and shared learning. While challenges may arise, we believe that coming together as a community is the best way to meet them. We hope you’ll join us this fall as we learn and grow — together.
With gratitude,
Mary Banwart
Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Development, Mentoring & Growth
Professor, Communication Studies
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Faculty Development Academies Week
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5 days of focused learning and collaboration took place during Faculty Development Academies Week 2025! Over 31 hours of programming, with 92 faculty and staff participating, representing 29 units went into the week. See more photos from this event and go ahead and block May 18-22, 2026 on your calendars now for next year's Academies Week!
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Guidance on Disruptions of Faculty Evaluations
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Faculty work has been affected in recent years by various external circumstances, including those related to COVID-19 and to actions on behalf of the federal government that have impacted funding for scientific research. In order to enable faculty members to document impacts arising from these events, the Office of Faculty Affairs, with feedback from United Academics of KU (UAKU), has provided guidance on how to address disruptions to faculty work in evaluation processes. This guidance applies to all types of faculty evaluation including Annual Evaluation, Instructional Faculty Comprehensive Review and Promotion, Progress Toward Tenure Review, Promotion and Tenure Review, and Post-Tenure Review. You can find this guidance on the Guidance on Disruptions of Faculty Evaluations page.
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Update to Syllabus Policy
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As you prepare your fall coursework, please review the syllabus policy and the recent email sent from Academic Affairs regarding syllabi submissions to Simple Syllabus. Additionally, please review the syllabus policy's required elements as the KU Statement on Diversity and Inclusion has been retired from the Policy Library and is no longer listed among the required elements in the policy. Please remove any link to the Diversity and Inclusion Statement from your syllabus or course materials. If faculty would like to include information about KU's values in their syllabi, they may choose to include a link to the IRISE culture charter page if they wish.
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Early Career "How to at KU": Setting up your benefits
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The Office of Faculty Affairs invites all New & Early Career Faculty to attend our August "How to at KU" session, which will train you on setting up your benefits featuring Melissa Cole, Director of Benefits for KU Human Resources. This training is remote, allowing you to join from anywhere!
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Thursday August 7 from 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Online
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Faculty Learning Circle: New faculty mentor groups
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Join your new faculty colleagues this fall for small group connections and discussions centered on what it means to be a new faculty member at KU. We will host four groups who will each meet three times during the fall semester. We encourage you to sign up for the group with the times/dates that work best for you! Each group is facilitated by one of our Faculty Affairs Program Fellows and will be sharing and exploring resources and advice, and will be introducing you to our campus and faculty community.
Find the session that works best for you and join in on the conversation this fall to get started on your faculty journey and career-long connections!
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Program dates:
Group A - Mondays from 1:00-2:15 p.m. on Sept. 8, 29, and Oct. 27
Group B - Tuesdays from 12:30-1:45 p.m. on Sept. 9, 30, and Oct. 21
Group C - Wednesdays from 9:00am-10:15 a.m. on Sept 3, 24, and Oct. 22
Group D - Thursdays from 2:00-3:15 p.m. on Aug. 28, Sept. 18, and Oct. 9
Stay tuned for meeting locations and details for joining!
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Faculty Learning Circle: Productivity: Balancing time to get things done
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Over several sessions throughout the semester, we will explore a productivity framework that supports behaviors that allow us to engage more effectively with our tasks and commitments, create more mental space, and focus on what matters most. Join Dr. Marilu Goodyear, Associate Professor in the School of Public Affairs and Administration and Coach for David Allen's: Getting Things Done, who will facilitate each of the FLC sessions and provide optional coaching sessions that will support you in applying the framework and concepts.
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Monday, Sept. 15; Monday, Oct. 6; and Monday, Oct. 27; from 3:00-4:30 p.m. (all sessions take place in 145 Strong Hall)
Online coaching (optional): Monday, Sept. 29; Monday Oct. 20; and Monday, Nov. 10 from 3:00-4:30 p.m.
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Distinguished Professor Lecture: Raj Bhala
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Please join us for, “Deceitful Destruction of International Trade Law: America First and Xenophobic Autarky", an inaugural lecture presented by University Distinguished Professor Raj Bhala, J.D.
Please register in advance for this lecture. Reception to follow. The event will be live-streamed and recorded for those who cannot attend in person.
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Monday, September 15 at 5:30 p.m.
Kansas Room, KU Memorial Union
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| NCFDD membership and programming |
Finding time to write can be a real challenge, but we know that time is valuable for the work we do as faculty. That’s why, this fall, we are partnering with NCFDD to offer a 14-day Writing Challenge to keep you going strong after fall break. Watch for a link to sign up in our September newsletter — we hope you can join us!
As a reminder, KU is an institutional member of NCFDD, which ensures all KU academic faculty and staff can register for an NCFDD membership at no additional cost. To join the NCFDD community, be sure to sign up here.
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Calls you don't want to miss |
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Dates to be aware of and share with students
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Wednesday, August 13: Freshman/Transfer Orientation and Enrollment
- Thursday, August 14: Open enrollment for student who have not attended orientation
- Monday, August 18: First Day of Classes (first day of Late Enrollment + enrollment fee)
- Friday, August 22: Last day to add and change sections on-line and without written permission, last day to enroll online, last day for 100% refund
- Saturday, August 23: First day for 50% refund
- Monday, August 25: Petition late enrollment and add/change of section begins (off-line), form available at student's school
- Monday, September 1: Labor Day – no classes
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All dates above apply to full semester courses. Some deadlines may exclude certain schools and colleges. See the entire Fall 2025, Summer 2025 and Fall 2025 calendar on the Registrar’s website.
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| Congratulations, Sean Hill - July KU Employee of the Month!
Our very own Sean Hill was recognized recently as a July KU employee of the month! Sean serves as a faculty appointment coordinator in the Office of Faculty Affairs, where he is responsible for managing executive-level leadership searches as well as faculty appointment data and timelines, and requests and approvals in partnership with with numerous units across campus. Read more about Sean's work. If you see him around, be sure to congratulate him!
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KU Faculty Members Awarded Keeler Intra-University Professorship
Four faculty members have been awarded a KU Keeler Family Intra-University Professorship, which was established in the early 1980s to support faculty in their pursuit of collaboration across disciplines. The 2025-2026 Keeler Professorship recipients are Alyssa Appelman (William Allen White School of Journalism & Mass Communications), Meredith Bagwell-Gray (School of Social Welfare), Luis Corteguera (Department of History), and María Velasco (Department of Visual Art). Learn more about the professorship plans in the 2025-26 academic year.
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KU Professors Awarded Big 12 Faculty Fellowship for Upcoming Academic Year
Six University of Kansas faculty members have been selected to participate in the Big 12 Faculty Fellowship program during the summer and upcoming academic year. The 2025-26 recipients are:
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- Zarko Boskovic, assistant professor of medicinal chemistry
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Francesco Carota, assistant professor of architecture
- Eungsik Kim, assistant professor of economics
- Kelly Kindscher, professor of environmental studies
- Ian Lewis, associate professor of physics & astronomy
- Erik Perrins, University Distinguished Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
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KU Faculty Awarded Distinguished Professor Status
Congratulations to five University of Kansas faculty members, who were recently named University Distinguished Professors.
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- Raj Bhala, School of Law
- Jeffrey Burns, School of Medicine
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Hyunjin Seo, William Allen White School of Journalism & Mass Communications
- Debra Sullivan, School of Health Professions
- Russell Swerdlow, School of Medicine
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New Accessibility Tool in Canvas
KU has transitioned to a new accessibility tool, YuJa Panorama, now integrated directly into Canvas. Panorama automatically scans your course materials and provides feedback to help make content, including PDFs, Word documents and PowerPoints, more accessible to all students. Read more here.
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Faculty Academic Year Pay Reserve for Summer Disbursement now Available
Enrollment in the Faculty Academic Year Pay Reserve for Summer Disbursement program for the 2025-26 academic year is now available. Eligible faculty members can enroll in the program at HR AY Reserve until 5 p.m. on August 22. If you participated last year and want to participate in this coming academic year, you must sign up again. The Summer Disbursement program reserves a portion of after-tax pay from every full pay period during the academic year and then evenly disburses those funds to the participating faculty member during the summer. It is open to all academic year faculty, tenured and tenure-track faculty, unclassified academic staff and lecturers hired for the 2025-26 academic year.
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New Report Showcases How KU Drives Economic Development in Kansas
Lightcast study quantifies KU's annual statewide impact at $7.8 billion, supporting nearly 88,000 jobs (one in every 23 jobs in the state). This study measures the activity of all KU campuses, including Lawrence, Edwards, and KU medical Center's locations (Kansas City, Wichita, Salina), as well as The University of Kansas Health System. Visit impact.ku.edu to see additional metrics and the full report.
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The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, and genetic information in the university’s programs and activities. Retaliation is also prohibited by university policy. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies and procedures and is the Title IX Coordinator for all KU and KUMC campuses: Associate Vice Chancellor for the Office of Civil Rights and Title IX, civilrights@ku.edu, Room 1082, Dole Human Development Center, 1000 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045, 785-864-6414, 711 TTY. Reports can be submitted by contacting the Title IX Coordinator as provided herein or online and complaints can be submitted with the Title IX Coordinator or online.
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