Faculty Success Newsletter February 2022

Message from the Vice Provost for Faculty Success  Greetings Mean Green Colleagues, Happy Black History Month! Although celebrating the many accomplishments of our Black faculty, staff, and students is not held to only February, this is always a time of intentional reflection on the many contributions and realties of Black individuals and communities. UNT’s Multicultural Center is offering an array of events and the Library of Congress and National Endowment for the Humanities developed a collaborative Web portal project celebrating Black History. On a more somber topic, February 2021 is when our campus lost a beloved mentor, leader, scholar, teacher, advocate, and for many, “sister, mom, friend” – Bertina Hildreth Combes. For many that have visited me in Faculty Success, I’ve shown them the string of wooden hearts that was on the back of my office door. Bertina left these, along with her green shawl, that signified her values of love, joy, and faith that she represented as a leader. I keep these there as a testament to her impact on Faculty Success. I reached out to colleagues close to Bertina to reflect on her legacy now. Many described her as a “servant leader, bringing humility, a quick happy laugh, sincerity through prayer, and the advancement of others at every occasion” (Dr. Nandika D’Souza, Regents Professor and academic associate dean, College of Engineering). Dr. Angie Cartwright (associate professor, Counseling and Higher Education) notes that she often thinks “What would Bertina do or say?” when facing difficult decisions and that many of the connections between faculty were the result of her influence and support. Dr. Chandra Carey (associate professor and associate dean for academics, College of Health and Public Service) and the Black Faculty Network remember her as a “transformational leader and change agent who had great dreams of what UNT could and should be.” Please share your tributes to Bertina with us on Twitter (@UNTFacSuccess) using the hashtag #CelebratingBertina. On a final note, our wings are spread wide with the news that UNT had the largest increase in our Carnegie R1 rankings than our peer institutions (moving from #114 to #86). As Provost Cowley noted, this was the result of many efforts and, most importantly, how our faculty show up every day to advance our mission in their innovative and impactful research and teaching. After all, Eagles love to soar and leave others “green” with envy!

Talons up! Holly Holly M. Hutchins, Ph.D. (she/her) Vice Provost for Faculty Success

Remembering Dr. Bertina Hildreth Combes UNT Professor, Associate and Interim Dean, and Vice Provost for Faculty Success

To honor Dr. Combes' commitment to teaching, mentoring, and leadership and her lasting impact on UNT, the College of Education established the Dr. Bertina H. Combes Scholarship fund. Read reflections on her legacy in the North Texan and donate to the scholarship fund here.

A guiding light for women faculty and faculty of color Dr. Combes (front row in yellow) and her mother, Dr. Gladys J. Hildreth (front row in green), who was the keynote speaker at the Black Women’s Initiative 2015 symposium, "Black in the Ivory Tower."

FEB 15 Disney College Program Information Session Details below

FEB 22  Virtual Workshop: Faculty Writing Panel - Productive Writing Habits FEB 24  ABCA Presents Dr. Donna Stokes: Approaches to Implementing DEI in STEM Spaces

MAR 01  Virtual Workshop: Developing a Faculty-Led Study Abroad Program MAR 04  Virtual Workshop: Fulbright Program Faculty Information Session

Disney College Program Information Session Tuesday, February 15 10:00–11:00 a.m. Sage Hall 342

Executive leadership and recruitment from the Disney College Program will be visiting UNT for a rare opportunity to share information about their program, learn more about the needs of our students, and increase their recruiting efforts on our campus. The College of Merchandising, Hospitality and Tourism in conjunction with the Career Center and Multicultural Center invite you to join this information session for faculty, academic advisors, and Career Center staff to learn about the program and how it benefits all UNT majors! Fun Fact: Did you know The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, includes 20th Century Studios, ESPN, Hulu, Marvel Studios, and Walt Disney Imagineering?

The Anti-Bias and Cultural Awareness program continues through the spring. All Academic Affairs faculty and staff must complete the required training by April 30 for merit eligibility. If you are a unit administrator or coordinator and would like your programming to be included as an ABCA option for your team, we ask that you submit your programming options before the event occurs. Please submit a request for your unit-specific training to be included as a part of the ABCA program.

Approaches to Implementing DEI in STEM Spaces Webinar Hosted by Dr. Donna Stokes

February 24 2:00–4:00 p.m. Register via Bridge Dr. Stokes is a professor of physics and associate dean for undergraduate affairs and student success in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at University of Houston. In this interactive virtual workshop, she will explore the concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as a value-added concept applicable to classrooms and other spaces. Attendees will learn how to apply DEI concepts in STEM spaces, receive specific examples of how to approach implementation, and have opportunities to share current practices while self-reflecting on future commitments to using DEI.

Race is, Race Ain't: Creating Racially-Engaged Campuses & Classrooms Webinar Hosted by Dr. Nolan Cabrera

March 25 9:30–11:00 a.m. Register via Bridge Dr. Nolan Cabrera is an associate professor in the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Arizona. His workshop will challenge instructors to critically engage race in their everyday classroom practice by providing an in-depth overview of what racism is and its relevance to educational space. He will also reflect upon the controversy surrounding his co-authored article in the Journal of Higher Education on white undergraduates' use of racial slurs.

Skills for Inclusive Conversations Asynchronous via Bridge/LinkedIn Learning Learn how to better understand yourself and your team, tactics to go from polarization to common ground, and discover practical techniques for discussing difficult topics. Attending at least two sessions in the 2022 UNT Equity and Diversity Conference counts toward completion of ABCA. Registration closes March 9, but spots fill up fast!

International Affairs

Deadline extended for Faculty-led Study Abroad Program proposals! Submit your proposal for a 2022-2023 Winter Session study abroad program by February 28. Want to learn more? Register for the faculty director preparation virtual workshop on March 1 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

UNT Fulbright Faculty Week February 28–March 4 UNT Fulbright Faculty Week will include several events to inform faculty about opportunities available through Fulbright, provide guidance on applying to Fulbright Programs, and celebrate UNT’s Fulbrighters. Check out the calendar of events and save the dates!

Spring 2022 Fulbright Specialist Application Deadlines March 9 & May 11 For additional information and application assistance, contact Fulbright@unt.edu.

DSI CLEAR

Research suggests that designing courses for student success and satisfaction may increase retention. In fact, a recent study found course design to be the third most common reason why students dropped out of an open online education program. Read more about Course Design for Student Retention best practices DSI CLEAR's faculty development team.

UNT Libraries

OER Grants and UNT Open Texts The Libraries and UNT Press are pleased to offer continued support for faculty through UNT Open Texts and Open Education Resource (OER) Grants, two complementary programs for supporting the adoption, adaptation and creation of openly licensed course materials. This year both programs will review applications on a rolling basis.   Contact ScholarlyCommunication@unt.edu to discuss your idea with experts who can help you determine which program is right for your project and find existing OER that might form a basis for your work.

Recent Online Database Acquisitions Some recent acquisitions at UNT Libraries have great primary source content on social justice issues, including Black history and gender inclusivity. African American Communities Slavery, Abolition, and Social Justice Gender: Identity and Social Change

Writing a letter of recommendation? The Modern Language Association's guidelines include suggestions that may be helpful to faculty members writing letters of recommendation.

Faculty Spotlights

Congratulations to our 2022 faculty award winners! We were honored to surprise the UNT Foundation winners in their classrooms with the help of academic leadership and UNT Foundation President Mike Mlinac. Visit the Faculty Success website to read about this year's winners, who will be celebrated at the Salute to Faculty Excellence on April 19.

UNT Foundation Eminent Faculty Award Dr. James Kennedy Regents Professor, Biological Sciences Read his interview with the College of Science

UNT Foundation Faculty Leadership Award Dr. Christy Crutsinger Professor Merchandising and Digital Retailing

UNT Foundation Outstanding Lecturer Award Leslie Roberts, J.D. Principal Lecturer Public Administration

UNT Foundation Community Engagement Award Dr. Camilo J. Ruggero and Dr. Jennifer L. Callahan Professors, Department of Psychology

Dr. Tao Zhang named an AKA Leadership Institute Fellow Dr. Tao Zhang, associate professor and director of the Pediatric Movement and Physical Activity Laboratory, has been named a Leadership Institute Fellow in the American Kinesiology Association. The AKA Leadership Institute is an intensive 12-month mentoring program for emerging faculty leaders and only accepts around 10 participants per year. Congratulations, Dr. Zhang!

Newsletter Suggestions

We want to hear from you! Faculty Success oversees numerous programs designed to support faculty at all levels in their teaching, scholarly, and leadership endeavors. If you have questions for our team or news that you would like featured in our newsletter, we invite you to share it with us at Faculty.Success@unt.edu. You can also follow @UNTFacSuccess on Twitter!

CONTACT US 940-565-3987 @UNTFacSuccess facultysuccess.unt.edu