[VPAAEtal] Provost Update - 4/8/2025

[Academic Affairs]

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Good afternoon, Academic Affairs!
The spring semester is going by quickly! As we work toward May graduation, I have just a few updates for you:


  *   Academic Affairs is working to review and update campus-wide procedural documents. As we analyze each document, we have considered how we might streamline our operations. More specifically, many of our campus procedures contain content that is described elsewhere, are no longer required, and/or for which there is a System policy we should be following instead of creating our own stand-alone procedure. While there is a lot of work yet to be accomplished, we would like to send this preliminary list of campus procedures that will sunset as of Fall 2025. Please note, these are procedural documents, not policies.

The following procedures will be sunset and the contents will be absorbed into the new Faculty Handbook (coming Fall 2025):
*        12.99.99.R0.11 Annual Evaluation of Adjunct Faculty and Graduate Assistants with Teaching Responsibilities
*        33.99.05.R0.01 Staff (non-faculty) Teaching Assignment
*        12.99.99.R0.09 Ad Interim Appointments
*        31.01.01.R0.02 Salary Upon Returning to Full-Time Teaching
*        12.01.99.R0.05 Guidelines for Content and Distribution of Syllabi: Roles and Responsibilities of Faculty
*        13.99.99.R0.07 Grade Changes
*        33.99.99.R0.01 Office Hours
*        13.99.99.R0.14 Undergraduate Advisement / Degree Plans

The following procedure will be sunset and the contents will be added as addenda to other documents:

  *   12.99.99.R015 Affiliated Faculty: Contents will be synthesized and added as an addendum to 12.07.99.R0.01 Full-time Non-Tenure Track Faculty

The following procedures will be sunset for various reasons:

  *   12.02.99.R0.02 Transfer of Tenure and Rank Between Academic Departments. Transfer of tenure is not discussed or required in System Policy 12.01 or 12.01.01 and rarely occurs on campus. The stand-alone procedure document will sunset and any requested transfer will be addressed on a case-by-case basis.
  *   12.02.99.R0.01 Convert Non-Tenure-Track Appointment to Tenure-Track Appointment. The procedure creates a "back-door" for persons hired in non-tenure-track lines to obtain a tenure-track position without formal vetting through an external search process. The procedure will sunset.
  *   11.04.99.R0.02 Basic Skills Requirement: All admissions requirements are published online and in marketing materials, so the stand-alone procedure can sunset.
  *   13.99.99.R0.26 Career Development: The document is outdated and does not describe anything policy or procedure-related. In addition, all information is now contained on the Career Preparedness website. The stand-alone document will be sunset.
  *   11.02.99.R0.01 Centers and Institutes: TAMUS-related policy does not require a campus rule. ETAMU will sunset the stand-alone procedure and defer to System policy if/when the need arises

You will receive additional procedural revisions and recommendations in upcoming Provost Updates. Feel free to reach out to Dr. Eric Branscome with any questions.


  *   You may have noticed an increase in phishing campaigns recently. As a reminder, this is when hackers/scammers trick you into disclosing your university information, whether that is through email or a fake DUO login. It is especially difficult on a mobile device to differentiate between the real and a fake DUO login page. Granting these threat actors access to your university info allows them access to Workday and they can then alter bank routing and contact information. This is a reminder to stay vigilant and contact IT or Payroll Services if you notice anything out of the ordinary. Thank you to our Chief Information Officer, Jeremy Gamez for bringing more attention to this!


  *   The Faculty Salary Project continues to advance as we work toward addressing salaries and implementing a more equitable and data-informed compensation structure. As part of this ongoing effort, our consultant from Evergreen Solutions will be on campus on April 21st  to share key findings and facilitate important discussions. Her visit will begin with a meeting with the academic deans, during which the consultant will provide a high-level overview of the study's methodology, data analysis, and preliminary results, including benchmarks and market comparisons. Following this, the consultant will participate in a two-hour session with members of the Faculty Senate. This meeting will offer a deeper dive into the findings, focusing on specific trends, salary disparities, and recommended adjustments. Faculty Senators will have the opportunity to ask questions, seek clarification, and begin formulating informed recommendations for the distribution of available funds in alignment with institutional priorities and equity goals. This marks a critical step in the collaborative process toward meaningful and transparent salary enhancements and I encourage you to contact your Senator with any questions or comments.

In this period of dramatic change-whether across the nation, within the state of Texas, or at our own institution-there can be a great deal of uncertainty. The issues before us are layered and multifaceted, with unknown contours or lacking clear solutions. We are confronted with dynamic challenges that defy simple explanations or straightforward responses. There is no doubt that we are operating in a VUCA environment: one that is volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous.

But in moments like these, it is more important than ever that we stay grounded in our collective mission: transforming lives. We must continue to move forward, providing what our students and colleagues need through education, leadership, and innovation. And now more than ever, clear and consistent communication is vital.

I encourage you to stay connected, ask questions, share concerns, and support one another. Let's continue to communicate openly and often- with one another, with our students, and with our broader community. We must communicate, and then communicate some more. My office door remains open, and I welcome your thoughts and perspectives. Please know that I am here; I am here to listen, and I am committed to navigating these times alongside each of you. Together, we will meet this moment with resilience and resolve, and we will move forward- stronger and more unified than ever. I believe that we are better together. Stay steady. Stay hopeful. And let's keep moving forward, as one Lion Family with purpose.

tvh

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