Good morning, colleagues. Here is this week’s update from Academic Affairs.

Kudos

Xiao Qin (Civil and Environmental Engineering) has been named Director of UWM’s Institute for Physical Infrastructure and Transportation following the retirement of founding director Al Ghorbanpoor. Congratulations, Xiao!

Milwaukee Athletics

Select members of the Milwaukee Athletics staff will be participating in “Movember” all month long and fans are being asked to play a major role in the contest. Two lucky fans will each receive a fee haircut and a $250 Visa gift card from Di Carlo Salon and Barbershop.

With the health and safety of student athletes, staff, and supporters top of mind, the Milwaukee Athletic Department announced that it will not host spectators for any home men’s or women’s basketball games in the months of November and December due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Week

Monday

As usual, I start the week with the Coronavirus Management Team (CMT) Leadership meeting, followed by an Integrated Support Services Staffing meeting, a Campus Space Planning meeting, an EAB Partnership review, my weekly staff meeting, and my one-on-one with Dave Clark. Then, I will head down to campus to shoot the videos for Commencement and New Student Orientation.

Tuesday

In the morning, I’ll join Chancellor Mone and the two co-leads (Mark Harris and Kathy Dolan) of the 2030 Implementation Team for an update, I have my monthly meeting with Kaushal Chari, my standing meetings with Pat Borger and Jennifer Abele, and my weekly check-in with Dev Venugopalan and Laura Pedrick. In the afternoon, I have a Skype meeting with colleagues in South Africa on a book project, my standing meeting with Peter Sands, a CEMAT Leads meeting, I’ll provide an Academic Affairs update to the Academic Staff Senate, and I have my weekly meeting with the Chancellor.

Wednesday

Today, I have the Deans Morning Meeting, the monthly Connected Systems Institute Budget meeting, my monthly meeting with Scott Emmons, the weekly UW System Provosts Council meeting, my one-on-one with Mark Harris, my monthly meeting with Alan Shoho, my standing meeting with Trudy Turner, and an Admissions update.

Thursday

In the morning, I have another CMT Leadership meeting, an Ombuds Visitor meeting, a meeting with Mark Harris and Dietmar Wolfram, my standing meeting with Tom Luljak, Kay Eilers, and Dave Clark, an Executive Cabinet check-in, and my one-on-one with Joely Urdan. In the afternoon, I have my monthly meeting with Purush Papatla and I’ll attend the Faculty Senate.

Friday

Today, I’ll attend to administrative tasks, meet with direct reports, and provide an Academic Affairs update for the Associate Deans.

Announcements

Moon Shot for Equity 

In October, UW-Milwaukee, regional higher ed partners, and Education firm EAB announced the launch of a “Moon Shot for Equity,” a new initiative that aims to close equity gaps within regional cohorts of two- and four-year colleges and universities by 2030. The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, Milwaukee Area Technical College, Carthage College, and University of Wisconsin–Parkside comprise the first consortium of institutions to make a commitment to work together and with EAB to graduate underrepresented students of color and other historically underserved populations at the same rate as white students.

To learn more about the public-private partnership with education firm EAB, please access the 15 Best Practices that comprise the initiative and visit UWM’s Moon Shot for Equity website to keep up to date on progress.

International Education Week

International Education Week (IEW) emphasizes the importance of increasing knowledge and awareness of the world’s cultures, peoples, and languages, and affirms the critical role of international education. Here are the events being held at UWM in celebration of IEW during the month of November.

Slowing the Spread of COVID-19

Protective behavior materials on COVID-19 are being developed and there is a timely piece ready for students. The COVID-19 Self-care and Monitoring Guide is a printable PDF that explains what to do if a student either tests positive or has been exposed to the virus.

Association for Political Theory Annual Meeting 

The 2020 Association for Political Theory Annual Meeting, organized by Political Science Professor Keenan Ferguson, has moved from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst to a digital format. The conference, scheduled for November 9-13, can be attended for free by any registrant.

UWMAA Mobile Master Chats

Selected by NASA as an Airborne Astronomy Ambassador, UWM’s Planetarium Director, Jean Creighton, spent 20 hours in the stratosphere aboard NASA’s SOFIA – the largest moving observatory in the world. She’ll share her experiences as part of a UWMAA Mobile Master Chat on Wednesday, November 11 at 10 a.m. Advance registration is required for this free event.

Center for 21^st Century Studies

Neel Ahuja (UC Santa Cruz) and Aimee Bahng (Pomona College) discuss, “From Insecurity to Adaptation: Race, Human Capital, and the Figure of the Climate Refugee,” on Friday, November 13 at 3:30 p.m.

Teaching and Learning Symposium

The deadline to submit a proposal for the 6^th Annual Teaching and Learning Symposium has been extended to November 13.

SURF Deadline

The next Support for Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURF) deadline is December 1. Through this program, UWM faculty and academic staff can provide financial support to undergraduates to work as research assistants on a collaborative project. A virtual information session will be held on November 18 at 1 p.m.

Other

A smart magpie!

Take care,

Johannes