Reorganization of provost's office bolsters undergraduate education

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The units within the Office of the Provost have been reorganized as part of an effort to sharpen the University's focus on undergraduate student success.

The changes, which went into effect Jan. 4, are designed to provide a more organized academic home for undergraduate programs and are aligned with Pillar 1 of the strategic plan, The Wildcat Journey. They also are aligned with the University's core values, with an emphasis on compassion, which calls on the entire campus to support students by genuinely caring about their experience.

In a memo about the reorganization, Liesl Folks, senior vice president for academic affairs and provost, said the changes will "yield a whole-campus approach to enhancing undergraduate success that brings together faculty, administrators, and staff to assure students have the support they need throughout their undergraduate education to be successful and to pursue internships, different career directions, and advanced education."

Gail Burd, senior vice provost for academic affairs, teaching and learning, will take on additional responsibilities designed to bring together leaders from academic affairs and student services to improve student success in areas including graduation and retention.

Burd, a Distinguished Professor of molecular and cellular biology, will continue to oversee the Office of Instruction and Assessment along with accreditation and academic program reviews.

Greg Heileman, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and previously associate vice provost for academic administration, is now vice provost for undergraduate education. In his expanded role, Heileman will oversee undergraduate programs at the University, including the general education core curriculum. His priorities include improving retention, raising four-year and six-year graduation rates and addressing equity gaps facing students from underrepresented communities.

Under the new structure, Cynthia Demetriou, vice provost of student success and retention innovation will report to Burd. Susan Miller-Cochran, executive director for general education, will report to Heileman. Both previously reported directly to Folks.

The role of research

Heileman says one of his initial tasks is to collect baseline data on the structure of undergraduate academic programs, specifically focusing on how this structure impacts student success metrics such as how many are persisting through the first year of college, graduating in four or six years, or changing majors.

"We have been putting quite a bit of effort into collecting data around all of the academic degree programs that we have at the undergraduate level, understanding how students progress through them and seeing if we can make improvements," Heileman said. "Can we structure our academic programs in a way that students are more likely to succeed?"

Burd and Heileman also plan to gather feedback and ideas from stakeholders throughout the University.

"One thing, I think, that is important for student retention and completion is for faculty to participate in student success initiatives in their department," Burd said, adding that she hopes personnel from Student Success and Retention Innovation can connect with faculty, department heads, advisers and students to collaborate on best practices.

In addition to managing undergraduate programs, Heileman continues to seek research opportunities related to improving student outcomes.

"I want us to be very innovative in what we do here while providing a quality undergraduate experience," Heileman said. "As a research institution, we have the capability to be on the cutting edge of advances aimed at enhancing student learning and success."

Impact of the pandemic

While plans for the reorganization predated the COVID-19 pandemic, leadership in the provost's office will continue to monitor how students are being affected and work with faculty to help address student struggles, Heileman said.

"We had to come up with alternative grading policies and address big concerns about academic eligibility," Heileman explained, adding that University leaders did not want to penalize students whose GPAs slipped or who had to withdraw from courses because of the disruptions around COVID-19. "On the other side of this, we're going to have to pay close attention to how we help students whose plans have been disrupted by the pandemic."

Faculty members, he said, have been "unbelievably accommodating" in addressing student needs throughout the pandemic – and will play a key role in helping students who fell behind during the pandemic.

With the reorganization now in place, Burd and Heileman will work with the Student Success and Retention Innovation team to create an action plan to increase retention and graduation rates, with a focus on Folks' desire for a campuswide approach.

"It is the responsibility of the whole campus to support and help students reach their education and career goals," Burd said.