Provost’s Newsletter: News and Updates from the Division of Academic Affairs for May 15, 2025

May 15, 2025

Dear Baruch College Community:

Baruch College Commencement 2025 is just two weeks away! In this run-up to Commencement, the campus is abuzz with celebrations, award ceremonies, and, of course, final exams. Please remember that final exams can only be scheduled during the official final exam period. The period of exams includes class contact hours required by the New York State Education Department.

Among the many year-end activities of note is the annual Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Expo. Walking into the Main Gym on Tuesday, May 6, the energy was palpable. Also remarkable was the increase in size and scope of the Expo relative to the last couple of years. There were more than 200 poster presentations (an almost 60% increase over last year) and a performance by Lexington Music, Baruch’s homegrown jazz/pop student band. The increased engagement is an indication that the College is on track to fulfill its strategic priorities to increase both experiential learning opportunities and student engagement in research. The College initiated its Office of Experiential and Community Engaged Learning (ExCEL) last year to provide additional support for these efforts (joining the Starr Career Development Center and the Study Abroad Office). Many thanks to ExCEL Director Anthony Maniscalco for organizing this successful event. The Expo would not exist without the many faculty from across all three academic schools and almost every department who mentored students on the design, execution, and completion of their original research and creative projects. Thank you all!

In my last newsletter, I shared information about the new Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education. In a letter last week from Timothy Knowles, President, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and Ted Mitchell, President, American Council on Education, President Wu and I were informed that Baruch College is “one of just 33 remarkable institutions nationwide that earned both Research College & University (RCU) and Opportunity College & University (OCU) designations in the new Carnegie Classifications” [emphasis added]. This distinction is thanks to the excellence and hard work of Baruch’s exceptional faculty and staff, and that of the more than 20,000 students who have chosen Baruch College.

I look forward to seeing you at the Barclays Center for the 2025 Baruch College Commencement on Wednesday, May 28, to celebrate more than 5,000 of those students who are completing their degrees this year.

Best wishes,

Dr. Linda Essig
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

Campus Updates

Announcing the 2025 Presidential Excellence Award Recipients
A total of 57 faculty across all three schools as well as the Newman Library were nominated for the Presidential Excellence Awards in Teaching (both full-time and part-time), Scholarship, and Service. Three selection committees reviewed 39 dossiers submitted by nominees. I am pleased to announce the 2025 recipients of the Presidential Excellence Awards:

• Presidential Excellence Award for Teaching (full-time): Erica Richardson, Assistant Professor, Department of English

• Presidential Excellence Award for Teaching (part-time): Curtis Izen, Adjunct Lecturer, Chook Department of Information Systems and Statistics

• Presidential Excellence Award for Scholarship: Robert Smith, Professor, Marxe School of Public and International Affairs

• Presidential Excellence Award for Service: Stephan Dilchert, Associate Professor, Loomba Department of Management

These faculty will be celebrated at the annual Faculty Convocation to be held Thursday, Sept. 25, 12:30–2:00 pm. Faculty will receive an invitation when they return for the fall semester.

Weissman Dean Search Listening Session with Provost Essig
As the search for the next dean of the Weissman School gets underway, faculty and staff members of the Weissman community are invited to meet with Provost Essig at an in-person meeting on Tuesday, May 20, 11:30 am–12:30 pm in the Newman Vertical Campus (NVC), 14th Floor, Room 14-250. Search consultants from Isaacson, Miller will be conducting deep-dive listening sessions via Zoom with specific school constituencies (e.g., untenured faculty, tenured faculty, students, etc.). The May 20 meeting will provide an opportunity for Provost Essig to hear directly from the Weissman community. The discussion will focus on goals for and desirable characteristics of the next dean. Search chair Dean Sherry Ryan will also be in attendance.

May Coffee Chat/Tea Talk Celebrates Jewish American Heritage Month
May is recognized nationally as Jewish American Heritage Month. All faculty and staff are invited to enjoy coffee, tea, bagels, and conversation to celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month at the last Coffee Chat/Tea Talk of the semester on Thursday, May 22, from 9:30 to 10:30 am in the Newman Vertical Campus (NVC), 14th Floor, Room 14-269.

Faculty Affairs

Call for Participation: Interdisciplinary Research Clusters 
All full-time faculty are invited to join any of the College’s three strategic research clusters: Data Science, Climate Studies, and Entrepreneurship and Innovation, for the upcoming academic year. Through in-person meetings during the year, these clusters provide a collaborative space to explore cutting-edge research, exchange ideas across disciplines, and build meaningful partnerships. Whether your research involves analyzing complex datasets, tackling environmental challenges, or pioneering new ventures, your expertise and insights can help shape impactful initiatives. For more information or to get involved, please contact Associate Provost Raquel Fich.

End-of-Year Faculty and Staff Celebration—Monday, May 19
All faculty and staff are invited to attend an end-of-year celebration hosted by the General Faculty Committee on Social Affairs on Monday, May 19, from 12:30 to 2 pm in the Newman Vertical Campus (NVC), 14th Floor, Room 14-266. Please join us for coffee, tea, and sweets to celebrate the end of the academic year!

Teaching and Learning 

Getting to Know Brightspace: Reviewing the Gradebook
As the semester wraps up, now is the perfect time to do a thorough review of your Brightspace Gradebook before finalizing and posting grades. Start by reviewing your grading system (points vs. weighted); this determines how final grades are calculated. Verify that your maximum points or weight values for each grade item accurately reflect the grading scheme in the published syllabus. Ensure all grade items are included in the final grade calculation, double-checking that any optional or extra-credit items are set up correctly. Confirm that your final grade release option is set to the appropriate grade (Calculated or Adjusted). Also, take a look at hidden grade items—anything hidden will not be visible to students unless manually released. Lastly, check your grade display settings to ensure students are seeing the correct format (points, percentage, letter grade, etc.). You can use the “View as Student” option to preview how students see their grades or export the gradebook as a CSV to catch any discrepancies in calculation. Instructors can find information on setting up groups by watching these videos on the Grades Tool Settings as well as Setup Wizard. For additional guidance, instructors can also read these articles on Grades Tool Settings and Setting Up Gradebook. For any questions, please reach out to Brightspace Support 24/7 by clicking the blue-and-white dialogue box in the bottom right corner of any Brightspace webpage or via phone at 1-888-895-2511.

Research  

Faculty and Staff Achievements 
Allison Deutermann, Associate Professor, Department of English, has been selected to receive one of the 2025 Sandi Cooper Awards for Outstanding Research for Associate Professors in CUNY.

Clemente Diaz, Associate Director of the Starr Career Development Center, and his team have been selected as the Technology winners for the 2025 Alva C. Cooper Awards.

Professors Don Waisanen and Jessica Greene, both of the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, just published “Marketing Gas Leak Reporting and Safety with the Extended Parallel Processing Model” in Social Marketing Quarterly.

Congratulations, all!

Do you want to share something you published, exhibited, performed, or presented with the Baruch community? Submit your information to facultynews@baruch.cuny.edu.

Assessment, Accreditation, Institutional Effectiveness

Assessment Spotlight Series: Financial Aid Services Office
The Assessment Spotlight Series aims to acknowledge individual faculty and staff engaged in outstanding assessment efforts across the campus community. We are dedicated to showcasing the impressive work of our colleagues, as we collectively continue to ensure success for all Baruch students. Last month, we recognized Elizabeth Riquez, Director, and John DelValle, Associate Director, of the Financial Aid Services Office. Read this interview to learn more about how they are working to improve student success.

Reminders

Update Your Interfolio Faculty 180 Account
The Office of Academic Administration (OAA) asks all full-time faculty to update their profile and enter their honors and achievements regularly in Interfolio. The College uses reports generated from Interfolio for many purposes, such as school reaccreditations, information for the Faculty Convocation program, award nominations, and responding to requests from the CUNY Central Office. OAA encourages faculty to update their scholarly activities in Interfolio at the start of the Fall and Spring semesters and to add noteworthy events (article or book acceptances or honors/awards received) as soon as they happen. Your cooperation ensures that OAA can provide accurate evidence of the excellence of our faculty. For questions about Interfolio, please contact Maria Burgos, Director of Academic Administration, or Sherina John, Administrative Coordinator.

Now Open: Faculty Mentoring Network Mentor and Mentee Applications for AY 2025–26
The Baruch Faculty Mentoring Network supports faculty across the College with opt-in, needs-based mentoring at all career stages. If you would like to sign up to be a mentor or a mentee next year, applications are now available through the Mentoring Network’s SharePoint site. Faculty can use this online portal to view areas of support and identify a preferred mentor. Additionally, faculty can stay updated on upcoming Mentoring Network events, workshops, faculty interest groups (FIGs), peer mentoring/networking opportunities, and other resources designed to support faculty. For more information regarding the Mentoring Network and any questions, please contact Norene Leddy, Director of Faculty Affairs.

Stay Connected

Share Your Research and Creative Activity
Keep the College up to date with your research and creative activity by emailing facultynews@baruch.cuny.edu with the what, where, and when of your publication, exhibition, or award.

President Wu’s Blog
Read President Wu’s blog and join the conversation.

Event Listings
Submit an event for inclusion in the Academic Affairs Events Calendar, published each Thursday during the academic semester.