A Letter from Dr. Karen Riley
Good afternoon Regis,
This is an exciting time of year filled with anticipation and excitement. Our calendar in many ways begins anew with Ignatian Heritage Day. During this day of celebration, we were reminded of our mission and were tasked again with the foundational question – How ought we live? As I contemplated this statement I thought of additional questions related to our individual and collective roles at Regis - How ought we teach? How ought we lead? How ought we engage with one another? Our lives do not restart at the beginning of each week, each month, each year or each academic year, however these temporal markers can provide us with an opportunity to reflect, reset and recommit.
There is a mounting excitement as we prepare ourselves to engage with our new and returning students both physically and virtually. This past weekend our traditional commuter students were on the Northwest campus for an orientation dedicated to their unique needs, as well as those of their parents/supporters. A special thank you to Dave Law, Sarah Foley and Jason Taylor for all their work welcoming them. We are now gearing up for Ranger Welcome Days! Thank you to the many folks who have already volunteered to help August 18-20. There are still a number of slots available if you are able to lend a hand.
Thank you to all of the faculty who have updated their WorldClass course shells. ID&T is here to support implementation of these expectations. Here are two resources:
March 31, 2022 communication with ID&T supports
Ten Quick Steps to Make Your Course Student-Ready
For those not familiar with these new expectations for faculty, it is to support implementation of My Regis, an Ellucian Experience portal being rolled out this Fall to provide a clear and accessible view of critical information for our students. This is an initiative stemming from the Student Thriving Task Force. Implementation is going well and the feedback thus far has been positive. Please feel free to share any feedback you hear from students with us at provost@regis.edu.
Faculty contracts are out. I know it has been quite a process and I appreciate your patience. Please reach out to provost@regis.edu or to Liz Whitmore if there are any additional questions or concerns.
A number of faculty and staff attended the Zoom conversations I held for Academic Affairs about the budget. I appreciate the candor and the questions. There were many questions about travel and faculty development. Given the current financial situation, travel and professional development opportunities have been restricted. We are not eliminating travel, but rather restricting the use of operational funds to support these efforts. Please make all travel requests with your respective Deans. The Deans have been asked to utilize discretionary funds within their respective colleges to fund travel and professional development. If you have any questions regarding the approach please feel free to reach out.
Please join us on August 15th for the 4th Annual Academic Excellence Workshop: Creating Inclusive Spaces. I have no doubt that the keynote address and workshop presentations will provide an excellent and thought-provoking start to the academic year. Many thanks to Nicki Gonzales, Stephanie Colunga Montoya and Fredricka Brown for organizing the day and to all of the presenters as well.
The 2nd Annual Provost’s Picnic will kick off soon after the conclusion of the workshop — at 3:30pm in front of the Student Center. Thanks to the generosity of our community, we have some great prizes lined up so do not miss it! If you are able, please plan to bring a non-perishable food item to supplement The Cupboard!
As always, I am grateful for all you do to create the transformational education we provide to our students. What a privilege it is do this work alongside each of you.
Karen
P.S. Don’t forget: MarCom is hosting another photoshoot for faculty headshots on Friday, August 12, from 9-11 a.m. If you need a headshot, please come to Main Hall 424 during this time. You will find us at the top of the stairs, or, if you are coming off the elevator, take a right and head straight through the Academic Records and Registration doors.