Colleagues:
The first of two Accepted Student Days occurred this past Saturday. Over 100 members of the faculty and staff were on campus to welcome over 500 accepted students and their families. The number of newly paid deposits was up significantly from last year. As President Wheeler and Vice President Turk have emphasized repeatedly, every one of us has a role to play in the recruitment of new students, and I believe our collective efforts are making a real impact. The second Accepted Student Day will occur this coming Saturday, April 5. I give my thanks in advance to everyone who will be on campus to represent your program and welcome students to what could be the best decision of their lives.
Given the number of transitions in the Division of Academic Affairs this year, it seems every report this semester has included updates on new people in new positions. This month is no exception. As was announced on all-fs last week, Amy Nitza will step down from her position as executive director of the Institute for Disaster Mental Health (IDMH) effective April 8 to pursue a new opportunity. She will be succeeded by Robin Jacobowitz, director of education projects at the Benjamin Center and longtime collaborator with IDMH. I’m happy to report two additional appointments. David Cavallaro, associate chair of the Art Department and assistant to the dean of the School of Fine & Performing Arts has taken on the role of special assistant to the provost for accreditation, effective immediately. In this role, he will serve as the University’s accreditation liaison officer (ALO) to Middle States, and he will manage all accreditation and program review processes. Finally, Rendesia Scott will bring a wealth of knowledge and experience from her many years as director of the Center for Business Advising to her new role as senior director for transfer and returning students. In this new role beginning later in April, she will oversee the increasingly important task of yield and retention of transfer students into the New Paltz community.
The search for the dean of the School of Science & Engineering has reached its final and most public stage. The pool was large and extremely strong, and each of the three candidates who will visit campus has extensive academic and administrative experience. As was announced on all-fs March 28, the first candidate will speak and answer questions at open forums scheduled for tomorrow, April 2. The forums are scheduled for faculty & staff (1 – 2 p.m. in Lecture Center 102), students (2:15 – 3 p.m. in Science Hall 272), and all (4 – 4:45 p.m. in Lecture Center 102). Please watch for a survey link to share your comments and reactions, which are very much encouraged as these will help inform the final decision. Information on each of the candidates can be found by logging into my.newpaltz.edu and clicking on School of Science and Engineering Dean Search in the left menu of the Faculty/Staff tab. Please note that the second and third candidates will visit campus on April 7 and April 9; information on the schedules for those visits is forthcoming. A dean is a very important person in our community, and I thank each of you in advance for your participation in the selection process.
Last month I announced that we will schedule two convenings on the topics of (i) sustainability and environmental-related fields of study and (ii) health-related fields of study. The purpose of each convening is two-fold:
(i) To identify and catalog our resources (scholarly, programmatic, and experiential) to develop a shared understanding of what we offer;
(ii) To develop a statement of mission.
Please use the links below to indicate your interest in one or both of these convenings.
Health
Wednesday, May 7, 12:30 – 2 p.m. in Lecture Center 104
Please respond even if you are not sure you’ll be able to attend. Again, a main goal of this exercise is to identify and catalog our resources to develop a shared understanding of what we offer. Information collected as part of the RSVP will help us to understand the full range of those resources.
I remind everyone that today is the deadline for faculty Discretionary Salary Increase (DSI) applications as well as submission of faculty annual reports to your department chair. Separately, the reappointment, tenure and promotion (RTP) process is moving ahead as scheduled. Additionally, I have shared previously a new process of program evaluation that we are beginning this year. This year’s process concludes with a series of meetings with me and the chair or director of every one of our 38 academic departments and interdisciplinary programs. A program evaluation will consider multiple aspects of each degree program to ensure the overall quality of a New Paltz education. The results of this year’s evaluation will then be used to inform questions and goals for next year. At New Paltz, we strive to offer the very best education possible, but we must never forget that the best, the most relevant, and the most effective education is ever evolving. Exploration and development are as important for the faculty and staff of SUNY New Paltz as they are for our students.
Finally, there are many different ways that we celebrate the accomplishments of our faculty, staff, and students. One of the most satisfying is the Celebration of Faculty Authors & Artists hosted by the faculty and staff of the Sojourner Truth Library. This year’s list of those who will be recognized includes: Mona Ali, Katelyn Clark, Dan Daly, Aurora de Armendi Sobrino, Heinz Insu Fenkl, Kristopher Jansma, Gowri Parameswaran, Jonathan Raskin, Lou Roper, Usha Vishnuvajjala, Chris Whitaker, Reva Wolf, and Jason Wrench. The event will take place tomorrow (April 2) from 4 – 6 p.m. in the Library.
As always, I’ll be happy to address questions on this report as well as any other topic at the Faculty Senate meeting on Wednesday, April 2.
William McClure
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
