Sara Myers, Ph.D., Appointed Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Creative Activity
“I am so grateful and excited to be leading UNO’s Office of Research and Creative Activity. UNO’s scholarly activities are known nationally and internationally and also contribute to fulfilling our metropolitan mission here in Omaha. In recent years, we have experienced tremendous growth in campus research and creative activity, and I plan to work hard to continue that trajectory.”
John Bartle, Ph.D. is poised to step down from his position as Dean of the UNO College of Public Affairs and Community Service (CPACS) in June of 2024. He will resume his position as Professor of Public Administration. This transition marks the culmination of a tenure characterized by unwavering dedication and pioneering accomplishments.
Two Exceptional Mavericks Awarded Presidential Graduate Fellowships
The prestigious fellowships are awarded to a select group of NU graduate students each year on the basis of high academic performance and personal accomplishment. University of Nebraska System President Ted Carter has announced the recipients of the 2023-2024 Presidential Graduate Fellowships.
The Center for Faculty Excellence will be offering Faculty Search training and Search Advocate Training. All members of faculty searches must have completed Foundations of Faculty Search training in the past two years to be considered eligible to serve on a faculty search committee. Individuals can renew their eligibility by completing Advanced Faculty Search Training or Search Advocate Training. Registration for the following sessions is available via the CFE Calendar of Events on Localist. Questions? Contact Connie Schaffer in CFE.
TANDEM will be launching its third year. TANDEM is an interdepartmental mentoring program for second and third-year full-time faculty members. The call for mentors and mentees will be going out soon. Please contact Connie Schaffer if you have questions or would like to serve as a mentor.
Important Dates
Sept 7: Faculty Recognition Reception
Sept 15: Current copies of unit RPT guidelines due to Academic Affairs and memo summarizing affirmation process in the college.
Sept 28: Faculty Honors Convocation
Assessment & Accreditation
The focus of end-of-degree program assessment and general education assessment is to create a culture of continuous improvement to better assure academic quality and relevance at UNO. All academic units are required to have and execute assessment plans for each degree program and all approved general education courses they offer. The information below highlights relevant details and deadlines for the 2023-2024 end-of-degree program assessment and general education assessment cycles.
End-of-Degree Program SLO Assessment Information
Program assessment reports should be submitted through the online submission system no later than Jan 31st, 2024.
If interested in delaying the submission of program assessment reports for one year due to ongoing curricular change in the program, units may consider submitting a significant program improvement application by October 20, 2023).
Two orientation sessions for those degree programs on the 2023-24 program SLO reporting cycle will be held in September. Programs on the ’23-’24 program SLO cycle who have questions about SLO assessment or who are interested in learning more about the process are encouraged to attend one of the two sessions. These will be held via Zoom on Wednesday 9/20 from 10:00-11:00 and Tuesday 9/26 from 2:00 – 3:00. Interested individuals can RSVP here for the orientation.
General Education Assessment Information
The primary focus of the general education assessment this year is on the assessment of courses fulfilling fundamental academic skills, Social Science, and Natural/Physical Science requirements. Units will need to complete general education assessment requirements (below).If they have courses that satisfy any of these general education areas.
The General Education Committee has developed common rubricsfor each of the General Education distribution requirements. Faculty are strongly encouraged to assess the student learning outcomes using the common rubrics that are embedded in Canvas. This is the easiest and most efficient way to assess the outcomes. Instructions and video examples are locatedat this link. Units that elect not to use Canvas and instead use their own Gen Ed proficiency definitions and targets will need to use the legacy template.
It is best practice to continually assess Gen Ed learning outcomes every term a course is offered even if the course isn’t on the assessment cycle.
Please ensure Gen Ed assessment requirements are complete no later than July 31, 2024.
Across Academic Affairs
Welcome New Faculty!
Congratulations to the 37 faculty members who completed the six-week new faculty summer onboarding and the 2 members of the UNO community (representing every college and all academic ranks as well as members of the Digital Learning team and other staff) who contributed their time and expertise to the onboarding process. read more about our colleagues in the New Faculty Directory.
Flight and Hope Exhibition Lecture Series at SMBLC
The Museum will host 3 lectures that will explore various cases of forced migration. All events are free and open to the public. The first lecture is on Wednesday, September 13 at 5:30 P.M. Dr. Cristián Doña-Reveco, UNO Associate Professor of Sociology and Director of the Office of Latino/Latin American Studies, will explore exile in the context of the 50th Anniversary of 1973 Chilean coup d’état by President Salvador Allede.
We are inviting all teachers in the Omaha area to visit Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center during our K-12 Educator Open Houses on September 12 and September 19 from 4:00 - 7:00 P.M. each evening. During the open houses, the Museum will offer refreshments, an opportunity to preview the exhibition with our staff and docents, minitours, classroom workshops on educator resources, and overviews on how to access field trip grants. Please share this invitation with any K-12 teachers you know!
ORCA News
2022-2023 External Awards report--up 13.7% from last year.
Awards
- 195 total awards ($42,038,971)
Submissions
- 387 submissions ($174,925,104)
Newly awarded Nebraska Collaboration Initiative grant funding from the Nebraska Research Initiatives totaled $1,356,660, covering projects from July 1, 2023 -June 20, 2025.
UNO PI's
- Paul Ayayee (Biology) - John Hribljan (Biology) - Anastasia Desyatova (Biomechanics) - Farahnaz Fallah Tafti (Biomechanics) - Alexey Kamenskiy (Biomechanics) - Yury Salkovskiy (Biomechanics) - Deanna House (Information Systems and Quantitative Analysis) - Sajda Qureshi (Information Systems and Quantitative Analysis)
Congratulations Mary Kjeldgaard
Mary was recognized by both the AFROTC Commander (over 145 detachments nationwide) and our Regional Commander (over 34 detachments in the northwest region) for her longevity of service and mentorship to hundreds of officers over the last 30 years. She was given two Air Force recognition coins from the Commanders for "Excellence in Service".
There are several graduate fellowship opportunities available to our students through the Office of National Scholarships and Fellowships. Please share these opportunities with interested students.
Upcoming Meetings & Events
September 12: Research and Creative Activity Celebration - 2 to 4pm MBSC Ballroom
September 13: Samuel Bak Museum: The Learning Center - Meet a Bak
The University of Nebraska does not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and/or political affiliation in its education programs or activities, including admissions and employment. The University prohibits any form of retaliation taken against anyone for reporting discrimination, harassment, or retaliation for otherwise engaging in protected activity. Read the full statement.
University of Nebraska at Omaha, Academic Affairs, 6001 University Dr., Eppley Administration Building 202, Omaha, NE 68182, 402.554.2262, academic.affairs@unomaha.edu
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