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Dear Colleagues,

Reflecting on the major transformations that continue to make �鶹��ý an even better institution, we can see many significant changes that have occurred relatively recently. Consider the following:
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• Three years ago, �鶹��ý did not have a medical school. With the creation of the Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at �鶹��ý, we are now home to the largest health sciences center in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
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• Two years ago, our newly introduced strategic plan, Forward-Focused: Where Innovation Meets Possibilities, called for every student graduating in 2027 to complete at least one internship or related form of work-based learning before they graduate. Many wondered whether we could accomplish such a feat. Yet, mere months after the plan was approved by the Board of Visitors, we created the Monarch Internship and Co-Op Office (MICO), which has been hailed as a national model for promoting and supporting internships and work-based learning. A few months after the office was created, we secured five million dollars from the Mellon Foundation, under the leadership of President Brian O. Hemphill, Ph.D., to develop the Monarch Humanities Internship Academy, which is housed in MICO and provides paid internships for humanities students.
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• Less than a year ago, we introduced the Mobility Mindset as a framework and strategy for creating a learning environment that accelerates degree completion through eight-week asynchronous courses, the award of badges, and the integration of stackable certificates into degree program. In total, 189 courses yielding 5,663 student registrations were offered in an accelerated format this year.

Additional examples of change – from general education reform to the expansion of our commitment to artificial intelligence – could be identified as highlights of our collaborative work. It is important to note that we will continue our efforts in each of these areas in order to create greater levels of opportunity and success for our entire campus community.

Amidst these changes, our resolve to deliver the best possible education to our students has remained constant, while also evolving in its manifestations, as we embrace new pedagogies and expand the accessibility of courses for a wide array of current and prospective students. Our collective commitment, as well as our shared institutional values, will not change! �鶹��ý has long been an institution that uses innovative strategies to serve students from all walks of life. That has been our legacy and continues to be our mission!

Aligning our values with broader technological, structural, and organizational changes allows us to evolve in ways that cultivate resiliency as we move forward to become a much different institution in the future. Michael Crow and William Dabars argue in The Fifth Wave: The Evolution of American Higher Education that research institutions embracing accessibility will produce greater societal outcomes than those relying on a traditional approach. The authors provide a framework for developing what they describe as the New American University. Drs. Crow and Dabars note that research institutions are judged by whom they exclude in their admissions processes rather than whom they include, educate, and graduate. Because research institutions have the information infrastructure needed to produce and disseminate knowledge, they are in a unique position to foster societal growth.

Taking a closer look at our scholarly environment of learners, educators, researchers, and the broader community, we have an opportunity to become a premier research institution that links knowledge production and knowledge delivery together for a broad range of our population. Having world-class scholars develop knowledge and creative work that we, and others, will co-create with learners in our physical classrooms and online spaces will place us among a handful of institutions committed to serving a large number of learners who would otherwise be unable to engage and benefit directly from a research institution.

Change compels growth. As we change our institution, we also change the lives of our students, their families, and the communities in which they live, learn, and work. Being a catalyst for both change and growth adds to our sense of purpose. In the words of Nelson Mandela, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Thank you for being part of the change, because without you it would not be possible.

Regards,

Brian K. Payne, PhD
Interim Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice