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Academic Planning and Alignment
Academic Program and Academic-Administrative Recommendations
As part of Focusing on Our Future, I have released my Academic Planning and Alignment recommendations to the President on academic programs and academic-administrative reviews after extensive discussions with faculty and staff from every school and the College, and after collecting feedback from the University community. There are two sets of recommendations: One for academic programs and one for the academic-administrative reviews. Town hall meetings will also be held on all three campuses. See the schedule here.
My recommendations were based on data-informed reviews, multiple conversations with deans, faculty and staff, written comments and input/ feedback provided by our university community. Based on these conversations and feedback, changes were made from the preliminary recommendations for both academic-administrative reviews and academic programs. To view the changes between the Provost's preliminary and final recommendations as well as the Dean's recommendations for their units, click here.
The President is now reviewing my recommendations and encouraging further feedback from the University's students, faculty and staff. She will announce her final decisions on May 1. You may provide feedback to the President here.
On May 1, the President will announce her final decisions in a University email as well as a noon town hall meeting in Grace Covell Hall on the Stockton campus, which will be webcast. |
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Updates from Provost Pallavicini
Dear Members of the Academic Division,
I would like to take a moment to update you all on the status of searches in our office, and some changes in leadership. Some positions are reconfigurations of existing vacant lines, others filing existing vacancies.
The search for the Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning is moving forward. Last week two candidates visited campus. The search committee is in the process of gathering feedback and will meet this week to discuss feedback, the candidates, and make a recommendation to the Provost.
The search for a Vice Provost for Distributed Learning (VPDL) is underway. The individual in this position will collaborate with multiple constituencies to develop and implement plans to advance distance learning and branch campus expansion and to oversee the development and implementation of a coordinated and distributed technology support system for all modes of instruction. The VPDL will work closely with other offices across the University to ensure students and faculty have exceptional services, regardless of their location. The VPDL will have oversight of the Center for Professional and Continuing Education and the Center for Teaching and Learning. The search committee is reviewing applications with the goal of inviting candidates to campus by late April. The job description is available here.
We are also searching for an Assistant Provost for Diversity. This 50% position focuses on faculty diversity and support and replaces a full time position that had a much broader scope. This redefined position aligns with the recommendations in the June 2012 Report of the Strategic Task Force on Diversity and Inclusive Excellence, distributing many of the responsibilities between the Academic Division, Human Resources, and Student Life. This position will be an internal appointment. The job description will be available soon. Applications will be accepted through April 25 and interviews will be held between April 30-May 6 with an anticipated start of July 1, 2014.
The other search now beginning in the Office of the Provost is the Vice Provost for Academic and Faculty Affairs (VPAFA). This position will report directly to the Provost and will provide leadership in faculty development, tenure and promotions, academic research, academic policy, university-wide academic programs and student support systems. The VPAFA leads a team that includes an Assistant Provost for Student Academic Support and Retention, Assistant Provost for Diversity, Associate Provost for Graduate Studies, and Director of International Programs and Services. Internal applications are welcomed and encouraged. The job description will be available soon.
There will be a change in leadership in International Programs and Services (IPS) as well as a reorganization of the IPS office. A sincere thanks to Ge-Yao Liu for his leadership in the office these past two years. We wish him well in his future endeavors. His last day at Pacific will be June 30, 2014. The search for a new director is underway. The job description is available here. The Study Abroad Advisor position is currently vacant with the departure of Koura Fabiny. This position will be reclassified as an Assistant Director position, and the search of this position will commence after the appointment of the new IPS Director.
At this time there will be no change in the structure of the Graduate Division. A task force will be put in place by Fall to review the current structure and operations, obtain input by all impacted constituencies, and by spring 2015 provide a set of recommendations for improvement.
Carol Brodie is leaving Office of Sponsored Programs effective April 15th. She will continue to work with us on Research and Compliance until July 31st. Please join me in wishing Carol well in her new position. Pacific is seeking candidates for Director of Research & Compliance position effective immediately. The position description can be viewed here.
Beginning July 1, 2014, the oversight of the Office of Undergraduate Research will be relocated to the Office of Research & Graduate Studies/ Sponsored Programs. This move will strengthen the support and delivery of the undergraduate research program and give the program a distinct physical location.
Thank you again for all that you contribute to make Pacific a vibrant academic environment.
Best wishes,
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Celebrating Achievements
2014 MLK Award
Randall Ogans, an EA Developer, has been awarded the Martin Luther King Jr. Peace and Justice Award from the University of the Pacific Interfraternity Council. This award is intended to recognize and celebrate social justice advocates within Pacific and San Joaquin communities. Randall also chaired the very successful Black History Month celebration this year for Pacific which required many hours of his personal time to be successful. We're very proud of his accomplishments and service on behalf of the students, staff and faculty.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Congratulations to Carrie Schroeder, Associate Professor, Department of Religious and Classical Studies, College of the Pacific for her NEH grants for Coptic SCRIPTORIUM. One is a Digital Humanities Start-Up Grant, the most cutting-edge grant awarded in the Humanities in the United States. The other is a Preservation grant to digitize and preserve text collections. Two Pacific undergraduate students were involved in the development of the prototype for the project: Alexander Dickerson in the School of Engineering, and Lauren McDermott in COP (an English major and Classics minor). To learn more about the project go to http://coptic.pacific.edu.
2014 Outstanding Dean
Let's help celebrate our own Dean Phil Oppenheimer of Pharmacy and Health Sciences who has been named 2014 Outstanding Dean by the American Pharmacists Association's Academy of Student Pharmacists. This prestigious award recognizes Phil for promoting the education of student pharmacists through community service, leadership and professional activities.
Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award
Joan and Geoff Lin-Cereghino, Department of Biological Sciences, are the recipients of the inaugural 'Excellence in Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award.' In their fourteen years at Pacific, they have mentored over eighty students in their lab. This research has led to twelve peer-reviewed publications with student co-authors. Two of their students were awarded Pacific Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships and two received the Fred and Marguerite Early Award for Undergraduate Research. One student they mentored commented, "Drs. Joan and Geoff Lin-Cereghino possess one of the most important qualities a mentor should have - the willingness to get to know their students. They genuinely care about all their research students and as such, they knew what kind of guidance each student needs. The Lin-Cereghino lab was truly a second home for me at Pacific."
United Methodist Church Scholar/Teacher of the Year Award
Todd Davenport, Associate Professor, Department of Physical Therapy, School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences has been awarded the 2014 Division of Higher Education of the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church Scholar/Teacher of the Year Award. This award recognizes an outstanding faculty member for his/her dedication and contributions to the learning arts and to the institution. Congratulations to Todd.
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Academic Affairs Happenings
Lou Matz, Assistant Provost
Honors Program
Dr. Balint Sztaray, Associate Professor of Chemistry, has been appointed Director of the Freshman Honors Program for 2014-15. Dr. Sztaray will build on the current freshman honors program by developing intellectually rich programming to expand students' educational experience and foster a close-knit honors community. Dr. Sztaray brings past honors program experience, thoughtful ideas, and great energy to the position.
At its March meeting, the Academic Affairs Committee approved the School/Program-based honors program revision. Academic Council will take final action at its May meeting. The projected timeline for the development and implementation of the School/Program-based programs is the following:
| Aug - Nov 2014 | Development of School/Program-based programs based on sharing of ideas across Schools/programs | Nov 26, 2014
| Schools/Programs submit catalog descriptions of their honors programs toAcademic Affairs Committee for action at its 12/4/14 meeting | | Dec 11, 2014 | Academic Council reviews and takes action on catalog descriptions | | Feb 2015 | School/Program-based program catalog descriptions submitted for 2015-16 University Catalog revision
| Fall 2015
| School/Program-based Honors Programs implemented
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Undergraduate Research
The Annual Pacific Undergraduate Research & Creativity Conference (PURCC) takes place in April and May, composed of the Senior Art & Design Show (4/14 - 5/9), Oral presentations/ Poster Sessions/Drama performances (4/26), Composers Club Concerts (4/29 & 4/30), Engineering Senior Project Day (4/30), and Student Film Festival (5/6). For more information, contact Lydia Fox.
Exploring Data Analytics
Join industry data science experts Ken Collier and Suman Bhattacharya to learn about the vision and plans for a M.S. in Analytics at Pacific. Ken is the Director of Advanced Analytics and Suman is a Lead Data Scientist with ThoughtWorks, the tech firm that is helping Pacific shape a competitive analytics degree program. This session is intended to help you understand the competitive landscape in analytics, Pacific's competitive advantages, the student demand, the graduate profile, and the vision for how the program will be delivered. This is chance to have your questions answered and to gain some insight into the university's plans for being part of this exploding field. Interested faculty members are encouraged to attend.
When: Thursday, April 17 at noon in the Presidents' Room, Anderson Hall
Fellowship Program
John Langdon, a history major, has been selected for a 2014-2015 Fulbright U.S. Student Award to India. The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program of the United States. John will research the history of Jazz in India, from its beginnings in the 1920s through the 1960s, including American jazz musicians who performed as part of the US State Department sponsored tours to India during the Cold War and African American Jazz musicians who fled racism and segregation in the US to perform to integrated audiences in luxury hotel ballrooms.
University Writing Programs
The search committee for the Director of University Writing programs met this week to formulate its ratings of the three final candidates who interviewed on campus in March. Its ratings will be forwarded to the Provost this week via the Assistant Provost of Academic Affairs. |
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Faculty Affairs
Berit Gundersen, Assistant Provost
Promotion and Tenure Guidelines
As we are moving quickly through this academic year and looking towards the 2014-15 academic year some of you are beginning to put together your Promotions and Tenure Dossiers and others are preparing to serve on a review committee. Last fall (October 10, 2013) changes were approved to the University Promotions and Tenure Guidelines. The full document can be found here. |
Office of the Provost
University of the Pacific | 3601 Pacific Avenue | Stockton, CA | 95211
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