Updates from Academic Affairs

May 11, 2022

Dear Baruch College Community:

I write again with news and updates from the Division of Academic Affairs as well as two important calls for letters of interest. Starting Fall 2022, these updates will come to you in the form of a biweekly “Provost Newsletter.”

Interfolio Faculty 180

Baruch is upgrading our faculty support infrastructure in several ways. Over the past months, I have updated you on the sunsetting of our contract with Digital Measures and our licensing and configuration of Interfolio’s Faculty 180 software module as the new system for faculty activity reporting. In addition to a more user-friendly interface, Faculty 180 will generate CVs that feed into the existing Interfolio Tenure and Promotion module that we have been using since 2019 to manage faculty personnel actions. Faculty 180 will also be essential to the creation of discoverable and searchable faculty profiles, which can be linked to departmental websites.

On Tuesday, May 17, we will reach a major milestone in this project: The Faculty 180 module will move from development to a live environment and become available to all faculty. This will be a ‘soft launch,’ meaning that, while it is important that the system be available to you prior to the summer, the timing of your engagement with the system is at your discretion between now and the start of the Fall 2022 semester as we finalize the configuration. On Monday, May 16, you will receive a more detailed email from Associate Provost Patricia Price with information and online support resources. This will be followed by a ‘firm launch’ in the fall semester, which will be accompanied by a robust set of virtual trainings, drop-in clinics, and rolling directed interaction with each piece of the Faculty 180 system.

I want to thank Associate Provost Price, Vice President Arthur Downing and the BCTC development team as well as the members of the College-wide Faculty Pilot Group, whose input across the configuration process has been critical to ensuring the development of an inclusive digital environment for faculty activity reporting. These faculty colleagues have been instrumental in ensuring that the Faculty 180 interface meets faculty needs as well as administrative ones. The pilot committee is drawn from across the three academic schools and the library in a variety of disciplines and ranks and includes Sarah Bengston, William (Casey) Boland, Albert Croker, Andreas Grein, Vera Haller, Asli Leblebicioglu, Charles Terng, Valerie Watnick, and Joshua Whitehead.

Update on the Marxe Dean Search

The search committee for the next Dean of the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs reviewed additional applications for the position and identified three finalists to bring to campus. There will be a Zoom-based public forum on each of three dates (see below) as well as in-person meetings with school leadership, faculty program directors, senior staff, students, President Wu, Cabinet members, and me.

Zoom-Based Public Forums

Dates: Today, Wednesday, May 11; Monday, May 16; Wednesday, May 18

Time: 1:30–3 pm

RSVP: Pre-registration is required. Visit the Marxe Dean Search news page for registration and scheduling details.

Note: Please check this webpage for access to candidate CVs in advance of their visits, and please be sure to fill out the feedback survey after the forum, the link to which will also be available on that page.

Thank you all for your participation in this important process!

Call for Applications: Faculty Director of Honors Programs at Baruch College

The Office of the Provost invites letters of interest for the position of Faculty Director of Honors Programs at Baruch College to work in collaboration with the Director of Honors Programs, which includes local Honors programs, Macaulay Honors College at Baruch, and National and Prestigious Fellowships.

Among the responsibilities of this position are recruiting and scheduling colleagues to teach the interdisciplinary Macaulay Seminars every semester; offering faculty development for the seminars; collaborating with the Director of Honors Programs to organize admissions to the honors programs, including coordinating and training faculty readers and meeting with admissions to finalize decisions; collaborating on the resolution of student academic advisement concerns; chairing the Honors Faculty Advisory Committee; sitting on the Macaulay College Council; and supporting National and Prestigious Fellowships.

The Faculty Director of Honors Programs receives six hours of reassigned time and 1/9 summer salary.

Preferred qualifications:

A commitment to access and excellence
Experience teaching Macaulay Seminars and Honors courses
Experience reading admissions applications in a holistic review process
Service experience with the Honors Faculty Advisory Committee
Knowledge of best practices to prepare students for nationally competitive fellowships

Submit your letter of interest and CV in a single PDF file to Provost@baruch.cuny.edu no later than Wednesday, June 1.

Call for Applications: Provost’s Innovation Fellow

Three Provost’s Innovation Fellows work directly with the Provost on core strategic priorities. Fellows may lead faculty working groups, design or implement programs, develop community partnerships, or other projects as determined in collaboration with the Provost. Two fellows are continuing through May 2023. One new fellow position will be available for 2022–23, with the possibility of renewal. (See description following.) Each fellow receives six units of reassigned time and up to $5,000 in support to advance their projects during the academic year.

Provost’s Fellow for Research, Innovation, and Special Initiatives. The Provost’s Fellow for Research, Innovation, and Special Initiatives will work directly with the Provost to promote strategic partnerships, build community relationships, and advance external funding opportunities. Toward that end, this fellow may convene faculty interested in expanding their research productivity through external support; expand on or develop new industry, community, or public sector partnerships; serve as a liaison on behalf of the Provost with external consultants; and meet regularly with the Provost Fellows group. All fellows will be expected to make a public presentation about their work to the Baruch community at the conclusion of the fellowship year at the Cross-College Faculty Research Symposium

To apply to the Provost’s Fellows Program: Submit (1) a letter of intent of no more than two pages outlining your interest in the fellowship opportunity and how, specifically, you intend to use the fellowship to advance the goals of the fellowship program; (2) a current CV; (3) a budget for how you would spend the $5,000 to support the projects of the fellowship; (4) a letter of support from your department chair or, for Marxe faculty, dean; and (5) a brief endorsement from your dean (Weissman and Zicklin). Applications will be reviewed by the Academic Council (Deans and Provost senior staff), and finalists will be interviewed by the Provost or designee.

Submit your application materials in a single pdf file to Provost@baruch.cuny.edu with the subject heading “Innovation Fellow Application” no later than Friday, May 20, noon.

You can read the final report of the Provost Innovation Fellow for Engaged Hybrid Teaching and Learning Don Waisanen here. Titled, “A Future for Community Engaged Learning at Baruch College,” it provides a comprehensive overview of the field, what we currently do, and how we can advance community engaged learning in the future.

Center and Institute Recertification

In 2020, CUNY’s Board of Trustees amended the policy on Centers, Institutes, Consortia and Special Programs, the results of which were summarized in a memorandum issued by then–Executive Vice Chancellor José Luis Cruz. The amended policy sets forth a recurring five-year cycle of formal recertification that commenced in December 2021 with each campus submitting a list of centers, institutes, consortia, and special initiatives to be considered for recertification.

Baruch center and institute directors have been meeting with Associate Provost Price throughout the spring semester. They are currently developing strategic plans for each unit’s operations, finances, staffing, leadership, and assessment; their draft plans are due to the Office of the Provost on Thursday, September 1. After a process of internal review, we will forward for consideration the materials for those centers and institutes deemed candidates for recertification to CUNY. The Chancellor will make a final recertification determination in the late summer of 2023.

A Busy Week Ahead

The last day of classes for spring semester is just one week away! Whether you are a member of the faculty or staff or a student, please remember to attend to your well-being during this particularly busy time of the academic year. I will be reaching out to you again next week to share some thoughts and reflections on my first year as provost. I’m looking forward to seeing many of our faculty and professional research staff at the Inaugural Cross College Research Symposium this Friday.

Until then, wishing you all the best,

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