Publish Date

7.10.23

Happy Monday, UIS!

I hope your Fourth of July holiday was enjoyable. I feel rejuvenated after spending last week with friends and family, and I am ready to take on a new week! 

I have been reflecting on my first year as UIS chancellor and am so grateful to be a part of this amazing university community. We have achieved big things together, and more is on the horizon. Our executive team is almost fully established, as we await the arrival of Provost Designate Brandon Schwab on July 17, and we're getting ready to welcome back students and many of our faculty colleagues this August! 

As a reminder, I'm only sending updates monthly during the summer term. We will resume biweekly updates Aug. 7. Until then, check Orbit for important employee information.

New Information

SIF Proposals

Four projects have been approved for Strategic Investment Funds. Forty proposals were received with a total request for funds that slightly exceeded $6 million. As a reminder, the total amount of funding available for proposed initiatives is $2.5 million for the next two years. The proposals were excellent, and the decision-making was difficult.

Those receiving funding were:

  1. College of Health, Science and Technology: Anatomage Teaching and Learning Laboratories
  2. College of Health, Science and Technology: Online MLT-MLS Articulation
  3. College of Business and Management: High School Trading Competition
  4. College of Public Affairs and Education: SPMP-HMS-CAST Curriculum Revitalization

Summer & Fall Enrollment

Summer semester ends July 29. Thank you to everyone who made this one of our best summers yet. Total headcount was up 16 percent for a total of 1,768 students!

Fall enrollment is looking good. I encourage all faculty and staff to continue to say hello to visitors on campus, participate in admissions activities, as well as the final orientation event in August, and ask that you be available for students who are walking in for counseling and advising appointments. We can have a double-digit increase in fall with continued strong support for our incoming students especially at the freshman and transfer levels. Faculty advisors for graduate programs will need to make sure that all outstanding student applications are reviewed and a decision made as soon as possible for Fall 2023 to optimize our incoming fall graduate student numbers. 

Broken Links Report Available

Web Services has added the option to view a broken links report for your website. Site editors can log in to access the new Broken Links Report page and filter it down by unit. The report provides quick access to the page with the broken link, provides the link that failed, and shows the number of times the link has failed. There is also the option to export the report to share and view locally. Find out more about how to Check Your Site for Broken Links.

Web Trainings

As you think ahead to fall semester, the Office of Web Services is offering trainings to help you brush up on your skills and freshen up your website.

Medical Laboratory Science (MLS) Program

Featured in our most recent UIS Today alumni magazine, our UIS graduates talk about how a career in MLS can be perfect for someone who loves medicine, biology and chemistry. The article details how MLS students are an important partner to medical professionals in helping to inform important health decisions. This is a growing professional field that UIS is proud to help support! 

CSI Summer Camp

Also featured in the current edition of UIS Today is our CSI Summer Camp, held on campus last week (July 7-8). Twenty-two high school students learned to investigate a crime scene utilizing the Residential Simulation Lab.  The criminology, chemistry and child advocacy studies programs collaborated to create an experiential crime scene, utilizing interviewing skills and problem-based learning.

PowerPoint Templates

Have you seen the new PowerPoint Templates that are available on our brand page? Also featured are logos, different Zoom backgrounds and more.

Updates to Campus Facilities

This summer, Facilities & Services is working in collaboration with our campus partners to provide facility enhancements for select unit offices. The scheduled facility renovations and transitions will occur in phases, with a target of completing all project transformations by the conclusion of the fall semester. Read the latest update on Orbit to learn about the plans and progress made in UHB and HRB.

Information that Bears Repeating

New Work Order System

Facilities & Services is using a new work order system called MaxPanda. This system replaces the SchoolDude platform. MaxPanda provides a simplified and streamlined work order request form, improved email notification functionality, and a more fiscally responsible platform for requesting work orders. You can learn more here.

New Access and Equity Office Search Manual Available

The Access and Equity Office (AEO) guides and supports the search and candidate evaluation phases of the hiring processes for all AP and Faculty positions. The AEO has recently created a new AEO Search Manual, which provides guidance to the campus community members on how to conduct a search to fill an AP or full-time faculty position. You can access the new manual and training through this link.

Merit-based Salary Program

Reminder: A 4% merit-based salary program across the University of Illinois System will take effect Aug. 16 for faculty and academic professionals, and Aug. 20 for civil service staff. This represents an increase from last year and continues to be an important priority in our budgeting process. I shared details about the UIS program in June.

Celebrating our Star Power

Enjoy the fleeting days of summer,

Janet

Janet L. Gooch, PhD

Chancellor

University of Illinois Springfield

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