Editor's Note: UTSA President Taylor Eighmy sent this email to UTSA faculty and staff today.
(Dec. 12, 2018) -- Dear Roadrunners,
I am writing to share some changes to our Academic Affairs division.
Last March I created two Interim Vice President positions to stand up Presidential Initiatives on Student Success and Strategic Enrollment and establish new campus divisions dedicated to these areas. Dr. Rhonda Gonzales and Dr. Lisa Blazer have done outstanding jobs in these interim roles.
With our Integrated Student Success and Strategic Enrollment plans now in place, the time is right to evaluate the best organizational location for these two important units. Over the last several months it has become clear to me that full integration into our academic enterprise is key to maximizing our effectiveness in these areas.
As a result, I have decided to transition these two positions to report to Dr. Kimberly Andrews Espy, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. In January we will embark on national searches to fill these two roles, and I have encouraged both Rhonda and Lisa to become candidates. Both positions will continue to serve on UTSA’s Senior Leadership Team.
Academic Affairs, Student Success and Strategic Enrollment already work very closely together due to their multiple points of intersection. This new organizational structure—a common model found at many UT System and peer model institutions—formalizes their relationship as a cohesive team, facilitating broader faculty engagement throughout these areas and full alignment across academic program delivery.
I am proud of the excellent work Lisa and Rhonda have done with their teams over the last nine months. Under their leadership, we have already made significant progress toward our ambitious enrollment, retention and graduation rate goals. I am looking forward to their ongoing contributions as we continue to move the dial in these areas that are so vitally important to UTSA’s future.
With appreciation,
Taylor Eighmy
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Professor Swisher is Chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of Texas at San Antonio. He received his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His research focuses on risk factors in adolescence and the transition to adulthood (e.g., neighborhood poverty, exposure to violence, parental incarceration) and their consequences for health and well-being across the life course. Recent work has focused on educational mobility and, in particular, challenges faced by first generation college students.
Virtual EventJoin UTSA for a virtual screening of “Hap Veltman’s San Antonio Country” with the filmmaker Noi Mahoney. See the story of the extraordinary life of Hap Veltman and the nightclub that kick-started San Antonio’s gay civil rights movement. Professor Derek Robertson will lead a discussion with the filmmaker, followed by audience Q&A. Free and open to the UTSA and entire San Antonio community.
Virtual EventJoin us this summer as we showcase innovative and interesting topics from each institution of the UT System. Register and Join
Virtual EventSecure your vaccine ahead of time by registering for an appointment. Walk-in appointments will also be available while supplies last. The vaccines available are the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson/Janssen.
Denman Ballroom (SU 2.01.28)San Antonio Pride Parade featuring make-up tutorials, Peace Love Pride Wedding, special guests. More details to come.
Virtual EventUTSA Campus Recreation will be doing a giveaway in celebration of Pride Month. The first 51 patrons to come to the Rec will win a free t-shirt!
Campus Rec, Main CampusSecure your vaccine ahead of time by registering for an appointment. Walk-in appointments will also be available while supplies last. The vaccines available are the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson/Janssen.
Denman Ballroom (SU 2.01.28The University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.
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UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education.
The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to ending generations of discrimination and inequity. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.
