Dear Colleagues,
With the return of classes earlier this month and the first two sessions of Camp War Eagle completed, summer has officially arrived on the Plains. Whether you are working, finding an opportunity to relax, traveling, or engaged in other activities, I hope your summer is off to a good start.
Of course, summer is a time of transformation for our campus when we undertake numerous construction and renovation projects. Just last week, we celebrated a significant milestone with the completion of Auburn in Birmingham, our institution’s newly opened, permanent home in downtown Birmingham. Following several years of careful renovation, the building provides resources for faculty who frequently engage in work in downtown Birmingham and the surrounding areas. In addition to providing a new home for the College of Architecture, Design, and Construction’s Urban Studio and programs in the Harbert College of Business, the building offers reservable spaces for our faculty, including workstations, temporary offices, conference rooms, and classrooms. As we continue to expand Auburn’s influence across our state, Birmingham remains a vital part of our success.
Earlier this month, I announced the appointment of two key academic leaders who will join us this summer. Prof. Dawn Finley will assume the role of Dean of the College of Architecture, Design and Construction on July 1, and Dr. Laura Stevens will commence her tenure as Director of the Honors College on July 15. Please join me in extending a warm welcome to these new leaders and in expressing gratitude to Dr. Karen Rogers and Dr. Chris Lepczyk for their exceptional interim leadership of the CADC and the Honors College, respectively.
We will open our Faculty Awards on June 7, providing ample time for faculty to nominate themselves or deserving colleagues for our institution’s most prestigious awards. This year’s awards will include several new awards to recognize and honor faculty contributions. I am particularly pleased to share an update regarding the Leischuck Endowed Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching. While these awards were originally created to honor two tenured faculty members, the award criteria have now been expanded to include a full-time non-tenure track faculty member as a possible recipient.
Finally, it was with great pleasure that I joined our colleagues in the Office of International Programs earlier this week when Auburn received the esteemed Simon Award for Comprehensive Internationalization from NAFSA, the National Association of Foreign Student Affairs. As one of a select trio of SEC universities to earn this prestigious honor, it was wonderful to witness this well-deserved recognition of our comprehensive and robust international programs and initiatives.
I wish you a great summer.
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