Dear Faculty,

This week I have the privilege and honor of announcing three newly named University Distinguished Professors:

Dr. Michael Giangreco, Professor
Department of Education, College of Education and    Social Services

Dr. David Warshaw, Professor
Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Larner College of Medicine

Dr. Jianke Yang, Professor
Department of Mathematics and Statistics, College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences

The University Distinguished Professor Award is the highest academic honor that UVM bestows upon a member of the faculty. Each of these colleagues have achieved international eminence within their respective fields and are considered top scholars who have truly excelled in their disciplines. Dr. Giangreco is renowned for his work in inclusive education and his empirical work has transformed how we prepare schools to be more inclusive and just spaces for individuals with disabilities. He is described as always asking the question, “What is the purpose and value of our work?” and he is considered a “public scholar” conducting his research in the living laboratories of public schools. Dr. Warshaw is a prominent leader in molecular motor research and the development of technologies in his discipline. As a basic scientist he has focused his research on muscle and cell motility making significant contributions to our understanding of the mechanics and regulation of smooth muscle and cardiac muscle. His peers describe him as being able to illuminate “the complexity of muscle mechanics” while communicating “complex concepts in ways students, physicians and scientists without his expertise can appreciate the elegance and the impact of his science.” Dr. Yang is a pioneer in the study of nonlinear optics in complex media waves, nonlinear photonics and parity-time optics. He has contributed to our understanding of the way light beams can be shaped and redirected through interactions with nonlinear materials. His work as an applied mathematician has been described by his peers as “crucial to the development of all-optical computing systems for image processing and parallel processing problems.”

Congratulations to Michael, David, and Jianke who have been recognized for their distinguished scholarly achievements, as well as their mentorship of students and faculty and their ongoing service to our community.

As I do each week, I’m writing to share reminders and information that I hope is helpful to you.

  • Please review the UVM Forward memo Vice President Gary Derr issued on May 12. It includes summer 2021 campus operations information and provides guidance to those who are approved to be on campus this summer.
  • ETS has published an update on the transition to summer and how this will affect spring semester course Teams. Teams corresponding to spring 2021 courses will continue to be accessible through the end of May. In June, these course teams will be archived. For more information on how to access archived Teams, please review this update.
  • This week, the University Registrar sent a message to all chairs reminding them of the end-of-semester schedule for entering grades. Grades for spring semester courses must be submitted online via the Faculty Grade Assignment channel of myUVM within 72 hours after the final examination for the course. For courses with final exams on Tuesday, May 18, grades should be submitted by noon on Friday, May 21. This schedule enables colleges and schools to certify students for graduation and allows Student Financial Services to complete a prompt evaluation of Satisfactory Academic Progress.
  • CTL will be hosting two August workshops for faculty preparing submissions for new courses or revising existing courses to meet the D1, D2 or new Global Citizenship 1 (GC 1) requirements. The D1 workshop will take place on August 17, and the D2/GC1 workshop will take place on August 18. Register soon! Registration closes June 30.  And don’t forget that there are still a few spots available in the Writing and Information Literacy course design workshop being offered by WID May 26-27. These Catamount Core workshops are funded by a grant from the Davis Educational Foundation to support building course capacity in the Catamount Core, and by the Provost’s Office.
  • Reminders and recent communications:
    • Vice President Derr provided a spring and summer COVID-19 testing update on May 4.
  • You can find detailed information on COVID-19 tests administered and results on the Weekly Testing Report. Last week’s student test results included 5 off-campus positives and 9 on-campus positives out of 15,470 tests (percent of new student cases already in quarantine: 53.85%). Last week’s faculty and staff test results included 0 positives out of 667 tests. Faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to participate in regular testing.

Last week marked the end of another academic year, albeit one like no other we have experienced in the last few decades. Importantly, it is a time for acknowledging the accomplishments of our students. I hope we have shown them how to act with wisdom, acknowledged their courage, and responded to them with heart. Wisdom certainly requires us to be prudent in our efforts to make the right decisions no matter how difficult they are. Hopefully we have taught our students that true wisdom is a journey as they learn more about who they are and how they fit in the world around them. Their courage was evident in the personal sacrifices they made during the pandemic for the benefit of faculty, staff, and other students. Certainly, mistakes were made, and students experienced consequences, but we might remind them of a message by John F. Kennedy who said, “Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly.” I hope we have taught our students to have the courage to speak their minds to ensure the benefit of others while having the courage to fail—knowing the ultimate achievement will be greater. Having ‘heart’ is often what got me through the isolation and unsettledness of the pandemic. It is an important virtue I hope we modeled for our students as it is the source of our thoughts, words, and actions. Showing our heart sharpens our vision and our capacity for insight. Hopefully, we have given our students a pathway for wise understanding, courage to do what is right, and a way to use their heart to make a difference. Congratulations to our all graduates and to the families who have sacrificed to give their children this opportunity to learn, to think, and to create.

Warmly,
Patty