[VPAAEtal] Provost Update - 3/24/2026

Tue Mar 24 07:36:06 CDT 2026

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March 24, 2026

Colleagues,

As we move through the heart of the spring semester, I want to begin by recognizing the exceptional work taking place across Academic Affairs. The energy, focus, and commitment you bring to our students and to one another continue to define the strength of this division. From the classroom to advising, from research to service, I see daily evidence of a community that is deeply invested in student success and institutional progress. Thank you for the care and professionalism you demonstrate in all that you do. I have a number of updates to share:

  *   Civil Discourse Day - April 7. I encourage you to support and participate in Civil Discourse Day on April 7, a university-wide initiative hosted at the Rayburn Student Center and supported by the Texas A&M University System, which has selected East Texas A&M as one of three pilot campuses for this important work. Designed as a student-centered learning experience, the Civil Discourse Symposium will focus on developing essential skills across disciplines-critical thinking, respectful dialogue, active listening, and thoughtful engagement with differing perspectives-while providing opportunities for students to interact with public officials and apply these skills in real time. The day will feature Texas state representatives, leaders from the A&M System Chancellor's Office, and nationally recognized voices including ABC News journalist John Quiñones and PBS's The Open Mind host, Alexander Heffner. I invite you to consider ways to integrate the symposium into your courses through discussions, reflections, assignments, or extra credit opportunities tied to communication, civic engagement, or leadership outcomes, and I hope you will join us alongside your students. Your engagement is essential to the success of this initiative and to advancing our shared commitment to preparing students for informed, constructive participation in civic life. Additional details and the full schedule are available at https://www.etamu.edu/civil-discourse-symposium/.
  *   Strategic Plan Action and Accountability Team (A Team). I want to express my sincere appreciation to the A Team for their thoughtful and sustained work this year under the leadership of Co-Chairs Dr. Beth Jones and Autumn Johnson, alongside committee members Sarah Baker, Brittany Beck, Jennifer Faunce, Stephen Harwell, Dr. Daniel Hsiao, Gina Lowe, Arthur Lumzy, Donna Russell, and Dr. Dan Su. The team has made meaningful strides in advancing the implementation and visibility of our strategic plan. A key accomplishment has been the comprehensive redevelopment of the Strategic Plan website, which now clearly aligns institutional metrics with their respective strategic goals. This work enhances transparency and provides a more coherent framework for understanding institutional priorities. Equally important, the team has established meaningful, measurable outcomes for each metric by analyzing historical performance data and setting annual benchmarks across the life of the plan. These metrics and targets will soon be shared through an internal platform, further strengthening our culture of evidence and continuous improvement. Collectively, this work positions departments and individuals to better understand their contributions to institutional goals while reinforcing accountability for results.
  *   AI Learnathon. As you might know, the Texas A&M University System's AI Learnathon launches on March 27, providing all East Texas A&M faculty and staff access to three Google AI certificates at no cost. This initiative represents an important opportunity for our institution to build foundational AI capabilities across academic and administrative units. The three certificates are practical, beginner-friendly, and can be completed in approximately 21 hours by April 30. Watch for more information to come!
  *   Provost Fellowship. You should have recently received an email with this year's call for applications for the Provost Fellowship. Now in its fourth year, the Provost Fellowship is a strategic faculty development initiative designed to cultivate leadership capacity, advance institutional priorities, and support high-impact academic innovation. Through a competitive application process, selected fellows will engage in a structured experience in the Provost Office that includes mentorship, applied project work aligned with divisional goals, and opportunities to contribute to key academic and administrative initiatives. The program is intended to both recognize emerging and established leaders and to build a strong pipeline of talent prepared to take on future leadership roles within the university. See the recently released call for applications with additional details on eligibility, expectations, and timelines. The deadline for submission is March 31, 2026.
  *   D2L Access for Tenure and Promotion (T&P).  In an effort to support faculty and your success in the tenure and promotion process, plans are moving forward to provide all tenure and tenure-track faculty with access in D2L to their individual tenure and promotion portal. This early access will allow faculty to begin developing and organizing dossiers well in advance, helping to ensure a more thoughtful, thorough, and streamlined preparation process. Additional details and timelines will be shared soon. Although for now we will continue to work in D2L, I have asked Dean Lanee Dunlap to begin exploring digital platforms that may be better suited for this process, along with the potential cost. I'll make sure to keep you updated as we learn more.
  *   Vice President for Research and Economic Development (VPRED) Search Update. As you most likely are aware, Dr. Brent Donham will be retiring this fall. The university is working with WittKiefer to conduct a national search for this position; I am pleased to be chairing the committee. The deadline for application submissions was last week, and the committee is beginning their review of applicants, with April 14-15 currently planned for first-round zoom interviews. We are on schedule to invite finalists to campus the last two weeks of April and possibly the first week of May. Make sure to watch for updates, as it will be important that Academic Affairs has a strong voice in this process. The committee and I will want to know your feedback on each of the candidates that visit our campus. More to come!
  *   Department Head (DH) Council Initiatives. Under the leadership of Dr. Maria Carlson, the DH Council continues to make important progress on several fronts. Current efforts include the development of a comprehensive Department Head Handbook as well as the design of a structured mentoring program for department heads. These initiatives are intended to strengthen leadership capacity, promote consistency in practice, and support both new and continuing academic leaders in their roles.
  *   Department Head Policy Update. Please note that the newly revised Department Head<https://inside.tamuc.edu/aboutus/policiesproceduresstandardsstatements/rulesProcedures/12faculty/general/12.99.99.R0.08.pdf> procedure has been finalized and posted. I encourage all department heads and faculty to review the revised document to ensure alignment with current expectations and practices.
  *   Faculty Advisory Council (FAC). Following consultation with FAC leadership, Dr. Tami Morton as the presiding officer, recommended that the current FAC membership terms transition to a calendar-year cycle rather than the academic year. This would require the current FAC members to continue through December of 2026. I am supportive of this adjustment, and agree that this will help to improve continuity of work and alignment with institutional planning timelines. Elections and new appointments will take place in the Colleges during Fall of 2026, with newly constituted membership beginning February 1, 2027. Please reach out directly to Tami with any questions. My appreciation to the current FAC members for their dedication to this work on behalf of all of us.
  *   Post-Tenure Review (PTR) Procedure. I want to thank the PTR Review Committee, chaired by Dr. Maria Carlson and including members Drs. Bryan Rank, Cynthia Ross, Jeff Kopachena, and Ruiliang Yan, for the revision of this important procedure.  As a reminder, faculty had an opportunity to give feedback at a recent zoom meeting, and still have an opportunity to provide feedback on the current policy revision through a brief survey<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdSSIvmb6dvifzHeNyj-MVpvsMk-PSL_lXQX5zS0OT43ach5g/viewform> that will remain open until April 3. Make sure to participate in this procedure review process; your voice matters.  If there are questions, please contact Dr. Webster Garrett or Michelle.Woodard at etamuc.edu<mailto:Michelle.Woodard at etamuc.edu>.
  *   Faculty Success Center - Navigate Workshop. The Faculty Success Center will host Michael Gulden, Program Director of Student Success Analytics and Academic Testing, for the first session in the EAB Navigate Series. This workshop will provide both a technical overview of the platform-particularly alert reporting-and a discussion of the underlying philosophy and pedagogy supporting its use in advancing student success.

Faculty and staff who are new to Navigate are especially encouraged to attend.

Date: April 1, 2026

Time: 3:00 PM

Location: BA 343 (with Zoom option available)

  *   Leadership Transitions and Recognitions. Please join me in thanking Dr. Sri Beldona, our inaugural Chief Academic Officer at Dallas, for his leadership and commitment over the past year. Sri has played a critical role in advancing the Dallas campus, and we are grateful for his many contributions. He will be leaving us on May 8 to serve as Dean of the College of Business at another institution. We wish him continued success in his next chapter.

I am pleased to welcome to the Lion Family Aaron Bryant as our new Chief Marketing Officer. Aaron has already begun to elevate the visibility of our faculty and academic programs, and I look forward to his continued partnership with Academic Affairs.

And of course, I looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow at the Spring Convocation, Wednesday, March 25, honoring Dr. Tracy Henley, Regents Professor!

Thank you again for the dedication, expertise, and care you bring to this work. The progress we are making as a division and as an institution is a direct result of your efforts. As we continue through the semester, I encourage you to stay focused on what matters most: supporting our students, advancing our mission, and working collaboratively to build a stronger future for the university.

It is good to be a Lion!

tvh
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