Dear Red Wolves:
Good morning and welcome back from fall break. I hope everyone had a wonderful time celebrating Thanksgiving with your family and friends.
It is my honor to continue our conversations about campus climate and our efforts to build trust and respect throughout our campus community. I want to thank each of you who took time to participate. The panelists and I heard many different perspectives and we took copious notes, including many great suggestions to help continue making progress. I am encouraged that so many of you showed your commitment to improving our campus community, building respect for each other, and recovering from the effects of the pandemic.
The issues we face here at A-State are not isolated to our campus, but are similar to the problems facing our state and nation. Recently, while I was representing A-State at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), I heard from universities across the country who are struggling with very similar concerns. Other institutions are beginning to make progress in these areas and I am confident that we will be successful as well. Our Pack Pact is based on the idea that Every Red Wolf Counts and these conversations have emphasized how much we need the pack, and how much the pack needs all of us.
I am encouraged by so many who challenged us to leave our echo chambers, do our best to listen, understand people with different perspectives, and ensure that everyone feels valued and knows that they belong at A-State. I am confident that we will work together to reach these goals and create a strong campus community.
These goals will take time – there are no easy or quick fixes. Our efforts will continue and we welcome your input. If you were not able to join us, the replays of the employee and the student sessions are available online. We are also planning another meeting with our A-State Online students. Finally, please don’t forget that our first session to discuss initial action plans is scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 12, at 1 p.m.
Improved communication was a point raised by many people during our conversations and I’d like to share with all of campus some important news. Recently, Dr. Alan Utter informed us that he is stepping down as provost and will return to faculty at the end of this fall semester. He plans to take time during the spring 2023 semester to prepare for teaching in the fall. Here is a link to today’s media release. We sincerely thank Dr. Utter for his service and his commitment to A-State.
As this change comes at the end of the semester, I will be acting provost during the final few days prior to the holiday break while we formulate next steps for a potential interim and the details of a search for a new provost. Please keep an eye on your email and our Daily Digest for updates.
Before we know it, it will be time for final exams and Fall Commencement. As a reminder, we are at First National Bank Arena for the ceremony on Saturday, Dec. 17, at 10 a.m. If you have questions about commencement, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Registrar’s Office, or go to their commencement website.
In closing, I want to take a moment to recognize the work of the dean of the Griffin School of Business, Dr. Jim Washam, and his outreach to our Griffin College of Business students. In this most recent Take Five video, I visit with Jim while he’s conducting office hours at the new Griffin House Living-Learning Community.
