Eastern Michigan University
May 27, 2023
Academic and Student Affairs
Provost Briefing
Institutional Priority #1
Promote Student Engagement and Success
The Formosa Quartet
McAndless Distinguished Professor Chair: The Formosa Quartet
The College of Arts & Sciences has been able to schedule two weeks of residency by The Formosa Quartet, McAndless Scholars for 2023-24. The Formosa Quartet will be at EMU January 14-20 and March 31-April 6, 2024. Having the Formosa Quartet on campus twice in the winter 2024 semester will enhance opportunities for instructors to integrate the McAndless workshops and concerts into classes, and for the EMU community to engage with the Quartet's "American Mirror Project," which examines the assumptions and perceptions found within American culture through the lens of music and performing arts.
Read More on the CAS Newsletter
New summer camps hosted by Engage@emu
Engage@EMU will be hosting several new open enrollment camps along with their usual lineup of creative and interest-based camps designed to develop young minds. Included in these open enrollment camps are the Math Camps and the Drama Camps—with Math Camps suiting students from elementary through high school while the Drama Camps are for elementary students.
To learn more, sign up, or connect with a staff member, visit Engage@EMU's website.
Institutional Priority #2
High Performing Academic Programs & Quality Research
EMU Theater for the Young Tour - Winter, 2023
This year's EMU Theatre for the Young Tour successfully presented 14 performances at 6 schools, 3 libraries for around 2,000 students. Directed by EMU Assistant Professor, Meriah Sage with help from graduate assistants Cameron Prevatte & Meredith Murphree. Set design by guest artist Kristin Ellert, and costumes by guest artist Renee Bell.
Special thanks goes to the Michigan Arts & Culture Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.
EMU Preservation students Jaclyn Panter, Brooke Boyst, and Taylor Williams record damage to the Malcom X House on Detroit’s east side with photographs and drawings.
Photo Credit Dan Bonenberger.
Preservation Students Document Malcolm X House
Professor Dan Bonenberger's (G&G) preservation students conducted field and archival research and recorded several places related to Detroit's civil rights heritage over the past year. They spent two weekends in April working to help preserve the Malcolm X House on Detroit’s east side, where Malcolm X lived in 1953.
Unfortunately, the Keystone house suffered a fire during the pandemic, and thus is extremely endangered. The work of the EMU preservation team provides the preliminary data needed to promote awareness and begin raising support for its complete restoration and eventual designation as a National Historic Landmark.
EMU Preservation students record the 1920s east side home of Detroit civil rights pioneers Ossian Sweet and his wife Gladys Mitchell.
Photo Credit Dan Bonenberger.
Institutional Priority #3
Service and Engagement
IPN Education Award
The College of Health and Human Services is proud to announce Melissa Kachaturoff as the 2023 recipient of the Institute of Professional Nursing Education Award. This award recognizes nursing excellence and leadership and will be presented at the organization's awards ceremony this spring. In addition to being the RN-BSN Coordinator for EMU's School of Nursing, Melissa is pursuing her PhD in EMU's Education Studies Program to support her passion for nursing education.
Melissa Kachaturoff
RN-to-BSN Program Coordinator
Faculty Development Center
Location: Zoom
Date/Time: June 19 & July 17, 2023 @12-1pm
Join Jeffrey Bernstein and Ann Blakeslee in a three-part discussion series focusing on the book Small Teaching, 2nd ed., by James M. Lang. In this book, Lang delves into strategies of small change that can be used to enhance student learning experiences.
Location: Zoom
Date/Time: Varies, check website
This three part program, hosted by the Faculty Development Center and facilitated by Kate Pittsley-Sousa, Julia Nims, and Sara Memmott, hopes to encourage, assist, and develop skills in EMU instructors related to the adoption of free or more affordable course materials.
New Beginnings Teaching Conference
Location: Halle Library
Date/Time: August 24, 2023 @8:30am-1pm
To better prepare for the fall semester, the Office of Campus and Community Writing and the Faculty Development Center will host the New Beginnings Teaching Conference. More information will come soon - stay tuned!
Campus Food Pantry to be renovated
Swoop's Food Pantry, which continuously provides the Eastern Michigan University community with both food and non-food item assistance, has received a $130k donation from alumni group GameAbove. This donation will allow Swoop's to renovate and enhance their space, expanding its reach and giving the pantry the attention it needs.
As many of us know, inflation has had an effect on grocery items and this can create an additional stressor for students. However, with support from community members like GameAbove, Swoop’s is able to provide some financial relief to students. Visit the Swoop's Website to learn more about them and how to donate to their cause.
History Alumna Kelly Haas Named Teacher of the Year
History alumna Kelly Gilbert Haas (BA, Secondary Education Social Studies, 2006) has been chosen the Huron Valley Schools Teacher of the Year for the middle school level. Haas teaches 6th grade Social Studies and 8th grade ELA, and is the Web Leadership and National Junior Honor Society co-sponsor at Oak Valley Middle School. Oak Valley Principal Shawn Durso says, "Oak Valley Middle School would not be what it is today without Mrs. Haas. She sets high expectations for her students and herself. She is an innovator who is truly dedicated to provide the best to our staff, students and families."
Kelly Haas with students and colleagues
EMU College of Business Summer 2023 Professional Development Book Read
Designing Your Life: How to Build A Well-Lived, Joyful Life
by Bill Burnett & Dale Evans.
The EMU College of Business invites the community—faculty, staff, students, community members, friends, neighbors—to participate in their Summer 2023 Book Read, featuring the book Designing Your Life: How to Build A Well-Lived, Joyful Life by Bill Burnett & Dale Evans.
Registration is free, but participants will need to register for each session they wish to join to receive the Zoom link (listed below). Once more, this is a free opportunity to build & grow your professional skills, you just have to buy or check out the book!
Please contact Kimberley Barker at kbarker4@emich.edu for additional information on the book read or questions. EMU students will get Learning Beyond the Classroom credits for participation.
Part One - July 12, 2023, at noon E.T.
Part Two - July 27, 2023, at noon E.T.
Part Three - August 15, 2023, at noon E.T.
Institutional Priority #4
Institutional Effectiveness
A rendering of the upcoming $7.5 million Windgate Arts Complex in the School of Art and Design at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti.
EMU Breaks Ground on Windgate Arts Complex
On April 20 EMU began construction on the $7.5 million Windgate Arts Complex. Part of the School of Art and Design, the 24,000-square-foot facility will house studios for sculpture, ceramics, furniture design, digital fabrication, 3D design, and metalsmithing.
University officials hope the complex enhances partnerships across Washtenaw County, including organizations such as the Riverside Arts Center. Potential statewide partnerships include Michigan teachers participating in a summer institute led by EMU art faculty, officials said.
In Memoriam
James H. Conley
Professor Emeritus, Department of Management
School of Business, Eastern Michigan University
James “Jim” H. Conley, PhD, died May 22, 2023, at Henry Ford Hospital Wyandotte at the age of 91. Jim was a professor in the Department of Management, School of Business from 1969 until his retirement in December 1998. Jim’s major teaching areas, both undergraduate and graduate, included organizational communication, corporate social policy and business ethics. In 1973, Jim co-authored the Marketing Department’s graduate program proposal for a Master of Science in Human Resources and Organizational Development. During his tenure at EMU, this master’s program was approved and became widely recognized for excellence. Jim served as the interim head of the Management Department 1986-88 and chaired the College of Business Faculty Council for eight years. Jim was a charter member and past president of EMU’s chapter of Phi Kappa Phi. Jim also received several EMU honors, including EMU’s Distinguished Faculty Award for Service (1991), EMU’s College of Business “Most Valuable Professor” award (1994), and EMU Alumni Association’s Teaching Excellence Award, College of Business (1997). In January 1999, following his retirement from EMU, Jim was awarded the status of Emeritus Faculty.
Prepared by: Andi Pontiff & Karen Peacock
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Office of the Provost
Academic and Student Affairs