Making Strides

DISTINGUISHED UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS: A second cohort of Distinguished University Professors was honored at this year’s convocation. This is the highest honor the university bestows upon a professor. There are now 13 faculty members who have received this distinction. More information on all appointees can be found here.

FACULTY DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL: A Faculty Development Council (FDC) has been established to help realize the goals of the university’s strategic plan, which calls for “developing a strong, vibrant and diverse university community” by recruiting outstanding individuals, recognizing and rewarding excellence and offering high-quality mentoring and career-development opportunities. The council’s mission is to provide a comprehensive framework for all faculty development initiatives and to establish campuswide priorities for improving faculty recruitment, advancement, retention and performance.

The council is creating an agenda for fiscal year 2012 and beyond to address issues found in the Climate Survey.

Each school has a representative on the council, which first met in January. Diana Bilimoria, professor of organizational behavior at Weatherhead School of Management, is FDC chair. For more information, view the council’s newly launched website.

OFFICE OF DIVERSITY, INCLUSION AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY: This year the ODIEO will focus primarily on addressing issues that emerged both from the diversity climate survey as well as the development of the draft of the Diversity Strategic Action Plan (DSAP). The results of the climate survey have been posted. OIDEO will continue to seek feedback on the draft of the DSAP to increase buy-in, engagement and commitment to advancing diversity at CWRU. The office will conduct focus groups, campus forums and meetings with multiple constituencies about the content and expectations of the DSAP.

Throughout the year, attention will be focused on the three goals identified in the DSAP:

• Creating a welcoming campus climate
• Increase retention, recruitment and support of underrepresented minority faculty, students staff
• Greater coordination of efforts to advance diversity

After securing endorsements from the campus community, the official DSAP will be presented to the Board of Trustees.

STUDY ABROAD: This fall, students returning to campus found a newly established Office of Education Abroad. The office appointed its first study abroad adviser, Lisa Brown, moved to renovated space on the first floor of Tomlinson Hall and held its first fair in September. The office offers more than 700 study abroad opportunities for students, including short-term faculty-led options, exchange programs, provider partners and direct-enroll programs. Additionally, students can take part in on-campus international experiences.

UNIVERSITY BUDGET COMMITTEE: One of the Budget System Review Committee’s (BSRC) recommendations was to create a University Budget Committee (UBC) to serve as an advisory group for the provost and CFO. The provost convened the UBC on a trial basis, and it has met almost weekly since January.

A top priority was to develop a multi-year financial planning calendar to allow the university to create and evaluate three-year projections during the fall and winter that will roll into the next year’s budget in the spring. The model launched earlier this year. Look for more details when the UBC launches its website.

For now, the UBC reviews all budget assumptions and plans at all stages of the process for administrative and academic units, including the annual budget preparation and rolling financial plans.

The committee is also expected to recommend to the provost and CFO changes in the processes, rules and exemptions governing allocations, funding, initiatives, indirect cost recovery and tuition sharing among and across the university and its constituent units. It will take a universitywide rather than school-focused viewpoint in all of its deliberations and recommendations.