SUBJECT: Fall 2023 - Welcome Back!

Dear Colleagues,

Welcome back to another promising and exciting year at the University of Michigan-Dearborn!  I hope you had a great summer and have had time to relax and recharge, connect with friends and family or simply hang out!

I apologize in advance if this note is a bit long, but we want to send some reminders and important dates for events that await us this fall. Please remember that all communications coming from the Provost Office are stored so that you can easily find important information shared by my team.  As a reminder, facilities in partnership with campus leadership, is working on a Comprehensive Master Plan and has created a website to keep us all updated.

Wolverine Welcome Day

Join new incoming Wolverines at Wolverine Welcome Day to celebrate the start of the school year! Wolverine Welcome Day is an opportunity for new students to explore campus, meet fellow Dearborn Wolverines, and get an introduction to campus life at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. This experience will take place on Friday, August 25, 2023 from 12:30 to 5:00 pm! To make this day a success, volunteer support is essential, and we would love your help! Sign up to volunteer using this form, or contact Tyler Guenette ([email protected]) with any questions you might have.

Fall 2023 Course Schedule

Please remember to check your schedule (i.e., verify the correct days, times, and modalities) and make sure everything is correct! Please let your chair know immediately of any discrepancy you might encounter!

Higher Learning Commission Visit!

As a reminder, the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) will be visiting our campus on November 13 and November 14 for an accreditation review visit. Please look out for future announcements about the visit, including a forum session in October which will provide the campus community with more details about the visit.

Syllabus Template

All faculty are required to utilize the UM-Dearborn syllabus template. As a reminder, faculty can find the syllabus template here.

Conflicts Between the Academic and Religious Calendars

As you all know, UM-Dearborn is a diverse community with many of us observing and celebrating a variety of different faiths and religions. As a result, I want to remind faculty of our campus policy on Conflicts Between the Academic and Religious Calendars. The policy reads: “every reasonable effort should be made to help students avoid negative academic consequences when their religious obligations conflict with academic requirements.” Students are required to provide faculty with notice of the dates of religious holiday(s) (click here for a listing of religious holidays during the 2023-2024 Academic Year) for which they will be absent by no later than the drop/add deadline which is Monday, September 11 for the Fall 2023 semester. Faculty shall provide students with an opportunity to make up any missed work (e.g., assignments or examinations), without penalty.

CARE Reports

The CARE ( Concern, Asses, Respond, Evaluate) team’s primary concern is the health and well-being of our students. To be successful, the University relies on faculty, staff, and students' submissions of CARE reports. These reports are an excellent tool that allow the University to offer support and necessary resources to students who may be in crisis. Examples of when to submit a CARE report may include but are not limited to: threatening or erratic behavior, potential for self-harm, or noticeable decline in well-being. Anyone from our community is encouraged to file a CARE report to alert the Dean of Students Office of their concerns. These reports are monitored daily. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact Ryan Neloms at [email protected] or visit the CARE website.

Informal And Formal Reporting Processes – Academic Code Of Conduct

In September 2021, UM-Dearborn’s new Academic Code of Conduct went into effect. This new code provides faculty multiple mechanisms for handling academic misconduct matters that may arise. Informal reporting can be utilized when a faculty wishes to resolve misconduct at a classroom level, if the student has accepted responsibility, and if agreement is reached on restorative measures. Formal reporting means the student will have a record in the University’s academic misconduct database. Please don’t hesitate to contact Ryan Neloms, Assistant Director of Student Conduct at [email protected] with questions.

ChatGPT and GenAI

What should you do about ChatGPT? Whether you are concerned about academic integrity or excited to embrace this tool, there is no simple answer. Therefore the Hub invites you to conversations via Fall’s Scholar-in-Residence with Bonni Stachowiak focusing on ChatGPT and GenAI. Also, register now for interactive Hub workshops on ChatGPT, with opportunities for conversations with your colleagues, offered Friday August 18th, 11-12 and repeated Wednesday, August 23rd, 1-2. As always, Hub staff are available for any of your teaching concerns.

Furthermore, in mid-July, UM-Ann Arbor rolled out three new Generative AI services for students, faculty and staff, including a "Umich GPT" service that will be free and confidential, a "Maizey" service which will ingest and assess datasets, and a GPT Toolbox that will be focused on research and development of AI models and tools. This website gives information about the new services, as well as guidance for students, faculty, and staff on using GenAI, including advice about assessments. I invite you to visit the website to learn more about these resources!

IntelliWriter

UM-Dearborn faculty now have access to IntelliWriter, to use if they so chose in their courses. IntelliWriter is a grammar support tool available via Canvas to students if faculty elect to turn it on for their course(s). For more information about IntelliWriter, please review a short slide deck that provides not only an overview of the tool, but how you can access training to ensure you feel comfortable to use it.

International Travel

Whether you are traveling overseas for business or pleasure, you need to keep your information technology safe and secure. As a general rule, if you don’t need to take a piece of technology with you, just leave it home. If you need to take a computer with you, please get a loaner laptop that does not have any personal or university data on it. Strongly consider changing your UMICH password to one that will be used only during your trip. Please follow the IT Security Guidelines for Domestic & International Travelers which includes guidance on Taking Tech Devices Across International Borders.

DAS Info/Workshop

As a reminder, Disability and Accessibility Services (DAS) has a website dedicated to supporting faculty. Please take a moment to review this website, which includes information about how to utilize DAS services, how to make the classroom more accessible, captioning, and adaptive technology. In addition you can find more information and resources on the University of Michigan’s Accessibility website specifically on Your Role as an Instructor and tips on creating content.

In addition, DAS, in partnership with the HUB, will be hosting Dr. Margaret Price, an associate professor of English at The Ohio State University, who specializes in disability studies and rhetoric/composition/literacy. She will be presenting a webinar on November 1st from 1 - 2pm focusing on accessibility in the classroom, followed by an in person workshop on November 9 from 12:30 - 2pm to expand on this important topic. Please mark your calendars as registration information for these important professional development opportunities will be emailed out soon. For more information, please contact DAS Director Dr. Sara Byczek at [email protected].

Emails From External Vendors

With the fall semester almost upon us, you may notice an increase in email communications from external vendors who would like you to adopt their product in your course.  In an effort to sell to more people, some vendors might use somewhat misleading language like “many of your UM-Dearborn colleagues are using this product” or “I am the UM-Dearborn representative for…”.  Please read these types of emails carefully, and keep in mind that unless someone from UM-Dearborn has communicated with you about the product or vendor, we may not have a partnership with that vendor at all.  If you are interested in trying a new tool, please see the UM-Dearborn Use and Procurement of Digital Education Platforms, Tools, or Other Technologies webpage for details about the steps that may need to be taken and details about starting the process.

Future Events

• Thursday, August 24, Chancellor’s picnic
• Friday, August 25, New Faculty Orientation breakfast
• Friday, August 25, Wolverine Welcome Day, 12:30 to 5pm
• Monday, August 28, Classes Begin
• Monday, September 11, Add/Drop Deadline (without penalty)
• Thursday, September 14, SURE Showcase, 4-6pm, Mardigian Library
• Saturday, September 30, Open House (Prospective Undergraduate)
• Monday, November 13 and Tuesday, November 14, Higher Learning Commission Visit
• Saturday, November 18 - Sunday, November 26, Thanksgiving Recess,  (Campus will be closed)
• Friday, December 8, Last day of classes
• Saturday, December 9 and Sunday, December 10, Study Days
• Monday, December 11-Friday, December 15, Final Exams
• Sunday, December 16, Commencement

Provost Fellow

As previously announced, we are very excited that Dr. Amanda Esquivel will be working closely with the Provost team this academic year. She brings a wealth of experience and knowledge and will focus mostly on PBL, Urban Futures, course modalities, and expanding the opportunities for undergraduate research.

Our Two New Deans

Our two new deans, Dr. Dagmar Budikova (CASL) and Dr. Frédéric Brunel (COB) have been hard at work in their colleges since July 1st. Please make sure to reach out to them to welcome them to our warm campus community. They bring diverse and considerable administrative and academic experiences, are eager to know and work with all of us and look forward to engaging with the community!

I apologize for the interruption and  hope that you continue to enjoy the rest of the summer but also that you look forward to the beginning of the new academic year and activities that many of us are planning for the whole campus. As always, please feel free to contact me and my team should you have any questions or concerns.

With all best wishes,

Gabriella

Gabriella Scarlatta
Provost & Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs