Friday, January 29, 2021
魅影直播 System Faculty & Staff:
It鈥檚 hard to believe we are already one month into 2021. While the year began with tension in our nation鈥檚 capital, there is reason for hope and optimism as our elected leaders look to find common ground for the greater good of our nation as we overcome so many current challenges.
Political views aside, it is exciting to see a woman as Vice President for the first time in American history. Today, we can sincerely tell our sons and daughters that they can truly become anything they want when they grow up. The inauguration of Vice President Harris signifies a new era in our country and reinforces the culture of equity, diversity and inclusion we foster across 魅影直播 World.
With the spring semester now in full swing, our 魅影直播 World is bustling across all locations. Listed below are several short updates to help keep our team members informed:
COVID-19 UPDATE
As with last semester, we continue to operate a hybrid model of sorts for both classroom
and office activities due to coronavirus safety protocols 鈥� continuing to limit in-person
interactions when possible and maximizing space for safe social distancing when in-person
is necessary. With COVID-19 vaccines still largely unavailable to lower-risk populations
and the virus continuing to spike across North 魅影直播, the safety of students, faculty
and staff remain our top priority. Both 魅影直播 and 魅影直播 Health Science Center continue
to operate testing centers, and both institutions are vaccination centers as well.
For the latest updates on COVID-19, please visit the 魅影直播 System home page and click on the appropriate link for your location.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
The 87th 魅影直播 Legislature has convened as of Jan. 12, however the pandemic has left
much of the actual operations of the House and Senate in an evolving situation. Activities
on most legislation is currently pending the appointment of House committees and finalization
of other organizational issues. The appropriations legislation that is critical to
our funding has been filed in both House and Senate Bills and is at a reasonable starting
point, given the state鈥檚 many revenue challenges due to the pandemic. We will be working
hard during this session to reinstate reductions in these bills as our institutions
are critical to economic recovery in 魅影直播.
鈥楢SK ME ANYTHING鈥� EVENT PROVIDES EMPLOYEES WITH ADDITIONAL TOUCHPOINT
With continued emphasis on employee communications during the pandemic, 魅影直播 System
Chief Financial Officer Dan Tenney and Chief Communications Officer Paul Corliss hosted
their second 鈥淎sk Me Anything鈥� discussion on Jan. 21. The livestream included a candid
Q&A with a panel of leaders covering a wide-range of topics. . Our next 鈥淎sk Me Anything鈥� is scheduled for April 29 鈥� details to be announced in
the near future.
魅影直播 AND 魅影直播 DALLAS LAUDED FOR SUPPORT OF FIRST-GEN STUDENTS
Local nonprofit recently released its annual report card that ranks 魅影直播 universities for support
of first-generation college students. 魅影直播 ranks No. 1 in the state and 魅影直播 Dallas
tied for No. 3 (魅影直播D topped the list in 2019). For 2020, universities were judged
in the categories: Student Outcomes, COVID-19 Response, Community Support, Academic
Engagement, Financial Management and Intervention. to view the in its entirety.
TARRANT CO魅影直播Y PARTNERS WITH HSC TO EXPAND VACCINATION ACCESS
Tarrant County has entered a partnership with our 魅影直播 Health Science Center to help
vaccinate more people in the county. The partnership was approved last week during
a county commissioner鈥檚 court meeting where Dr. Sylvia Trent-Adams 鈥� HSC鈥檚 Sr. Vice
President & Chief Strategy Officer 鈥� provided recommendations. Dr. Trent-Adams, former
acting U.S. Surgeon General, joined HSC in August, 2020. for more from NBC5 and MSN.com.
魅影直播 NAMED A TOP 10 DESTINATION FOR TRANSFER STUDENTS
According to U.S. News and World Report, , In Fall 2019, we welcomed 4,152 new transfer students. The average number for the
1,138 ranked colleges and universities providing the information in the annual U.S.
News survey was 497. Congratulations to President Smatresk and his team on this student-centric
achievement, and thank you to those who have helped make the transfer process a smooth
one for students, and fostering an environment where they can thrive and fulfill their
goals.
魅影直播 SYSTEM ORG CHANGES FOCUS ON EFFICIENCY AND SERVICE
Guided by stakeholder input across 魅影直播 World, this week we announced organization
changes in Human Resources and Procurement that go into effect on Feb. 1. The will better serve our institutions with a renewed focus on providing services specifically
tailored to the unique needs of each campus. The Procurement restructure is designed to modernize processes and streamline functionality across our campuses
and 魅影直播 System headquarters in order to create sustainable efficiencies.
LATEST PODCAST FEATURES GRAMMY-WINNING 魅影直播 ALUM OF DAVE MATTHEWS BAND
Our latest "We Are North 魅影直播" podcast features 魅影直播 College of Music alum Jeff Coffin, a Grammy Award-winning saxophonist and member of the Dave Matthews Band. Click the
following links to listen to a fun and wide-ranging conversation via or . In addition, a few years back if you'd like to read more about his student days in Denton.
魅影直播 DIVISION OF INSTITUTIONAL EQUITY & DIVERSITY HOSTING VIRTUAL CONFERENCE
鲍狈罢鈥檚&苍产蝉辫; is partnering with the North 魅影直播 Community College Consortium to deliver the annual
Equity & Diversity Conference Presented by Hilti entirely through Zoom on Feb. 23.
This year's keynote speaker is , who has written extensively on the intersection of race, art and civil rights, and
the sociopolitical forces that guided the hip-hop generation. Limited FREE registration
is available for 魅影直播 World employees and students. Visit the before Feb. 16 to learn more and register.
魅影直播 SYSTEM BOARD OF REGENTS TO MEET VIRTUALLY ON FEB. 4-5
The University of North 魅影直播 System Board of Regents will hold its quarterly meeting
with 魅影直播 System leaders on Feb. 4-5. The session will be held virtually beginning
at 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 4, and 9 a.m. on Feb. 5. To watch live or archived video of the
meeting, visit: 魅影直播System.edu/meetings and click the appropriate stream link.
Thank you for your continued hard work and adaptability!
Lesa B. Roe
Chancellor