Provost’s Newsletter: News and Updates from the Division of Academic Affairs for May 3, 2023

May 3, 2023

Dear Baruch Community:

The daffodils may still appear on this newsletter, but outside they gave way to tulips—and the tulips are now giving way to bluebells. This means that the end of the semester is soon approaching. Please see important information following about final exams. Most critically, final exams may not take place outside of the time and date scheduled by the Office of the Registrar. Doing so significantly impacts the potential for our students to be successful in completing their culminating academic assessments. I encourage you to read the entire newsletter, as this is not the only important informational item.

Last week both President Wu on his blog and Marxe Associate Professor Ryan Coughlan in Inside Higher Education wrote about artificial intelligence (AI), the future of work, and impacts on higher education. Please read their essays for insightful thinking and some real guidance about how we can use AI as a tool for creativity in the classroom and beyond!

Transitioning from academic business to other news, I was recently interviewed for a podcast about artists’ livelihoods. If you are interested in taking a listen, you can find it on the Theatre.Art.Life Podcast.

Best wishes,

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

Campus Updates

Update on Search for the Vice President for Operations and Administration
The search committee for the next Vice President for Operations and Administration, which I chair, has been hard at work reviewing scores of applications. Committee members are interviewing 10 semifinalists this week. Campus visits for finalists are being planned for Monday, May 22; Tuesday, May 23; Wednesday, May 24; and Thursday, June 1, with open campus forums on each of those dates. Details will be sent out from the Office of the President once the finalist schedule is determined. I greatly appreciate the hard work and dedication of my colleagues on this committee: Hilary Botein, Interim Associate Dean of the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs; Boo Choi, Director of Administrative and Financial Services for the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences; Olga Dais, Assistant Vice President & Legal Counsel and Labor Designee; Arthur Downing, Vice President for Information Services and Dean of the Library; Marios Koufaris, Interim Associate Dean, Administration and Finance, Zicklin School of Business; Luz Liebeskind (’85, EMS ’08), Chair of the Baruch College Fund Budget and Finance Committee; Terrence Martell, Saxe Distinguished Professor of Finance and Chair of the Faculty Senate; Justyna Socha, Finance and Budget Officer, Division of Student Affairs; and Naimah Smith, Director of Advancement Services, Office of College Advancement.

Faculty Affairs

Faculty Profile Pages Tab Deactivation Request Deadline
Faculty interested in deactivating tabs (e.g., grants, teaching, service) or omitting the CV button on their Faculty Profile Pages should fill out this BCTC Help Desk form by Wednesday, May 31. During the internal review phase of the Faculty Profile Pages, the temporary faculty-personalized links are only accessible from within Baruch or using VPN. Once the pages are publicly launched in June, the URLs will be accessible from anywhere. For complete instructions and Frequently Asked Questions about your own page, please visit the Faculty Profile Pages site here or contact Associate Provost Raquel Fich.

Faculty Publications and Achievements!
As noted in my letter, Associate Professor Ryan Coughlan, along with colleagues Molly Vollman Makris and Nate Mickelson, have published an article in Inside Higher Ed titled “Readying Students for the AI Revolution.” The piece discusses their renewed commitment to pedagogical practices that will better equip students for future workforce changes due to AI.

Dr. Amitai Touval of the Allen G. Aaronson Department of Marketing and International Business has published an insightful piece in History and Anthropology: “The East German Intelligentsia and the Chronotopes of a Lost Utopia.” This work, based on interviews and observations, explores the complex narratives and ideas that the East German intellectuals held during and after the reunification of Germany.

Dr. Mahima Hada, Associate Professor and Director of the Marketing Analytics Program in the Aaronson Department of Marketing and International Business, has been named Development Editor of the Journal of Marketing. She also received the “Outstanding Reviewer” award from the journal.

Want to share your recent publications, awards, or achievements? Faculty can click here. Staff can click here. Be sure to put “For the newsletter” in the subject line of your email.

Student Success

Textbook Orders for Summer and Fall
Textbook orders for the upcoming Summer Session and Fall 2023 are currently at 70 percent and 40 percent, respectively. Submitting your textbook adoptions is important for two reasons: to help your students plan for academic expenses and as a requirement of the U.S. statute to be eligible for any federal funding, including student financial aid. Even courses that will not require textbooks need to be marked as Open Educational Resources (OER) or “no books required.”

To order your books, visit baruch.cuny.edu/bearcatbookstore and click “Faculty” at the top of the page or “Log in” to gain access to your account. Detailed instructions can also be found on the site. Questions? Please contact account manager Weeli Ko.

Training for Department Transfer Course Evaluators
All members of the faculty who are designated by their departments as transfer credit evaluators must receive training on CUNY’s Transfer Explorer System (T-Rex). CUNY Transfer Explorer offers students, faculty, and staff an opportunity to learn how courses transfer in all directions across the CUNY system as well as how CUNY awards credits for courses taken outside of CUNY and from prior learning experiences, such as AP, IB, and CLEP exams. T-Rex also shows how courses fit into majors and minors across campuses. Have questions or want to learn about training opportunities? Please reach out to Alexandra Surillo, Assistant Director for Transfer Services and Evaluation in Baruch’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

Teaching and Learning

Final Exams
Please note that final exams may not take place outside of the time and date scheduled by the Office of the Registrar. The final exam period runs from Wednesday, May 17, to Tuesday, May 23. Although some students (and some instructors) might prefer to complete the final before the exam period begins, students should not have to study for a final that will take place on days when they are still attending and doing assignments for other classes. In addition, the New York State Education Department specifies the minimum number of contact hours per credit. We meet the minimum by including the final exam period; therefore, no final exams may be administered during regularly scheduled classes, including during the last sessions of the semester.

If you are uncertain of the time and place of your class’s exam(s), find them here.

New Digital Learning Hub Service: Video Production Open for Bookings
The Digital Learning Hub’s Studio is now open for bookings! Please see the new Instructional Media Production Studio webpage and book a time to create course content for online courses or programs with our new staff member, Tom Morgan, Instructional Media Specialist.

Research

Call for Applications for Faculty IRB Liaison
Applications are now open for tenured faculty interested in serving as liaisons between the IRB/HRPP Office and Baruch’s academic researchers (faculty and students). The main functions of the liaison are (1) to provide consultative support to researchers on the logistics of developing and submitting new protocols and amendments to approved protocols, through the IRBManager system, and (2) to conduct workshops to help researchers understand the importance of balancing participant-protective procedures with compliance considerations. The deadline for applications is Friday, May 26. For more details, visit the IRB Liaison Application page.

Undergraduate Research to Be Celebrated CUNY-Wide
The CUNY Office of Research is organizing its first CUNY-wide Undergraduate Research Celebration. The event will take place on Wednesday, May 31, at Borough of Manhattan Community College. The Baruch Undergraduate Research Committee, chaired by Provost Innovation Fellow Professor Kathy Pence, screened the students’ proposals, and 10 Baruch students were selected to represent the College at the CUNY-wide event. Many will also be presenting their work at the Baruch Research & Creative Inquiry Expo on Thursday, May 11, from 12:30–2 pm in the main Baruch gym. Please attend both events to show your support for undergraduate research at Baruch!

Faculty Input for Next Year’s Research Symposium
It is never too early to start planning for next year. In that spirit, and with a mindset of faculty consultation and continuous improvement, the office of the Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs, Research, and Innovation is seeking feedback to plan for next year’s Annual Cross-College Faculty Research Symposium. Whether you attended the March 24 event or not, please answer this short survey to inform our planning decisions and maximize participation next year.

Deadlines and Reminders

Commencement 2023
On Tuesday, May 30, Baruch College will celebrate its 2023 Commencement Exercises at Barclays Center, located at 620 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, NY. Commencement will begin promptly at 9 am. Though the deadline to order academic regalia has passed (April 27), faculty and staff who need regalia and missed the deadline will be fitted with gowns available on the day of Commencement at Barclays. Hope to see you there!

Stay Connected

Strategic Planning
You can follow progress on the Baruch College Community Strategic Planning process and submit comments and suggestions on the Strategic Planning page.

President Wu’s Blog
President Wu publishes a monthly blog. Read and comment here.

Newsletter Items?
If you have an item you would like considered for inclusion in the biweekly Provost’s Newsletter, please click here to send an email to the Provost mailbox. If you have an event for the Academic Affairs Events Calendar, published each Thursday, click here.