Weekly Letter from the Provost—Feb. 6 Edition

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Author(s)

Elizabeth Loboa, PhD

Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor

Announcement •

Internal •

February 6, 2026

Dear colleagues,

This weekly newsletter will serve as one of many tools my office will use to keep you informed and engaged as we make progress toward our three goals for Academic Affairs. We are grateful for your interest and support. Previous newsletters can be found on the provost’s communication center on the University’s website.��

If you have suggestions for what we should include in future communications, please submit your ideas or stories here. Suggestions received before noon on Monday will be reviewed and considered for publication in that week’s newsletter. Others will be held for consideration until the following week. Today’s update falls into four categories: ��

Campus news and happenings ��
Goal 1: Shape enrollment and improve retention and graduation rates for all students ��
Goal 2: Improve career outcomes and better prepare our students to succeed and lead in an AI-transformed workforce��
Goal 3: Strengthen academic excellence

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Campus News and Happenings

Chair Advisory Board (CAB) Fireside Chat

On Monday, the CAB invited me to their winter fireside chat. During that meeting, I answered questions across a broad range of topics, including this year’s budget process, ��AV’s efforts toward academic transformation, and the role of chairs and directors in supporting student application yield. I appreciated this group’s efforts to develop a better understanding through transparent conversation about the challenges ��AV is facing; this dialogue helps ensure we are best positioned to bring forward solutions that will benefit the University in the short and long term.��
Staff of Color Association (SOCA) Meeting Recap

On Tuesday, Chancellor Jeremy Haefner and I participated in February’s SOCA meeting to answer questions and engage in conversation about some of the group’s areas of greatest concern, which included insights from last week’s Board of Trustees meetings, the Cable Center purchase, engagement opportunities with my three Academic Affairs committees, and a status update on the potential merger between Morgridge and either the Graduate School of Social Work (GSSW), or the Graduate School of Professional Psychology (GSPP).

Teacher-Scholar Celebration

On Tuesday night, I, along with over 70 faculty and staff members, came together for the 10th Teacher-Scholar lecture to celebrate the achievements of teacher-scholars at the ��AV. This year’s honoree and invited lecturer was Frédérique “Sister Fred” Chevillot, and I could think of no finer example of the teacher-scholar ideal that makes ��AV such a special place. Drawing on more than 35 years of teaching, Sister Fred’s talk considered the ways education and scholarship, particularly in the arts and humanities, call us to take the risk of shaping students’ intellectual, emotional, moral, and professional lives without fully knowing the outcomes. In this spirit, she invited us to explore why we tell ourselves stories, and how those stories help us understand the meaning and impact of our work. ��

Provost Loboa stands and poses with Teacher Scholars who are being celebrated.

Four of the previous Teacher-Scholar Lecture honorees were also in attendance. Pictured above from left to right, these remarkable individuals include: ��

Roberto Corrada, professor and chair of modern learning and law ��
Frédérique Chevillot, professor of French and Francophone studies��
Julie Morris, teaching professor of biological sciences ��
Deb Ortega, professor of social work and director, ��AV Latino Center for Community Engagement and Scholarship��

Introducing Our New Name: Office for Faculty Success

I'm pleased to announce that the Office for Faculty Affairs is now the Office for Faculty Success. The new name better captures the role of the office—to support ��AV faculty at every stage of their careers. The team, mission, and commitment have not changed. To coincide with the name change, the office has with resources, toolkits, and guides to support your professional growth.��

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Save the Date: ��AV Employee Town Hall

Please join us on Wednesday, Feb. 18, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. in Anderson Academic Commons 290, or . Please note: last week’s issue of The Bridge inadvertently included a set-up period for staff supporting the ��AV Employee Town Hall event. The correct start time is 2 p.m. ��
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Preceding the town hall, University leadership will share key updates via video and email about budget updates, enrollment trends, services for community support and engagement, cabinet committees, and current capital projects. To maximize time for questions, a recap of these presentations will not be provided at the beginning of the town hall event. ��
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Goal 1: Shape Enrollment and Improve Retention and Graduation Rates

Updates from the Goal 1 Committee

The Goal 1 Committee has established three subcommittees, with subcommittee co-chairs, which will inform their efforts: you can review the revised committee and subcommittee assignments on the .��

The committee reviewed progress across subgroups and affirmed strong forward momentum. Updates highlighted ongoing work to strengthen undergraduate and graduate student recruitment, expand partnerships and pathways, improve student retention through enhanced orientation, advising consistency, degree planning, and targeted support infrastructure. Members also discussed opportunities to close remaining gaps, including better coordination across committees, clearer graduate marketing and progression strategies, and potential structural enhancements within graduate education to support retention and revenue goals, while preserving program diversity.��

My continued thanks to committee chairs Corinne Lengsfeld, Todd Rinehart, and the entire Goal 1 Committee for their efforts.��

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��AV’s Online Programs Receive High Marks from U.S. News & World Report Rankings

Every year, the U.S. News & World Report ranks the best online programs, and ��AV earned “Best” status for seven of our online offerings.��

�ճ�� ��earned several top rankings, including #32 for its bachelor’s degree in business, #38 for its bachelor degree completion program (#22 for veterans), and #53 for its master’s in information technology (#25 for veterans).��

The Daniels College of Business’ online ranked #93. For veterans who can enroll tuition-free through the Yellow Ribbon program, it ranked #56. ��

U.S. News has been publishing school rankings for online degree programs since 2013. For 2026, they evaluated 1,850 undergraduate and graduate programs for several general categories, including student engagement, faculty credentials and training, peer assessment, services and technologies, and student excellence. To view the complete rankings, .
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Goal 2: Improve Career Outcomes and Better Prepare Our Students to Succeed and Lead in an AI-transformed Workforce

Goal 2 Committee Updates

The Goal 2 Committee has established three subcommittees, with subcommittee co-chairs, which will inform their efforts: you can review the revised committee and subcommittee assignments on the .��

This week, the committee has been working diligently to complete the discovery and benchmarking phase. The information gathered on career outcomes, AI workforce trends, student experiences with AI, and exemplar academic AI initiatives has been reviewed and synthesized to inform strategic recommendations and related key performance indicators (KPIs). ��

I offer continued thanks to committee chairs Liz Lierman, Lorenzo Patelli, and the entire Goal 2 Committee for their efforts.��
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Goal 3: Strengthen Academic Excellence

Goal 3 Committee Updates

As a reminder, the Goal 3 Committee has established three subcommittees, with subcommittee co-chairs, which will inform their efforts: you can review the revised committee and subcommittee assignments on the .��

The Goal 3 Subcommittees are meeting weekly in February to review data, finalize criteria, and develop preliminary recommendations. Parallel meetings with deans, chairs, directors, and associate deans have clarified the committee’s charge, focus, and timeline. Using an iterative approach, the Goal 3 Committee will engage potentially affected academic units before and after sharing recommendations in the May 1 report. The report will propose strategies to strengthen academic programs, identify opportunities for growth or restructuring, and consider programs for potential closure, all following University policy processes.��

I express continued thanks to committee chairs Leslie Hasche, Jennifer Karas, and the entire Goal 3 Committee for their efforts.��

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Lamont Director Elected President of the College Music Society

Brian Pertl, director of the Lamont School of Music, is the new president of the College Music Society (CMS), a national organization committed to the advancement of music in education. One of his first activities was to gather with 150 other CMS colleagues in Houston on Jan. 16 for the Think-Tank Summit.��

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��AV–Denver Inter-Neighborhood Cooperation Partnership Selected as 2026 Weaver Awards Community Host

We are excited to announce that the Aspen Institute’s Weave: The Social Fabric Project, founded by David Brooks, has selected the partnership between the ��AV’s Center for Community Engagement (CCESL) and Denver Inter-Neighborhood Cooperation (INC) to serve as a community host for the 2026 Weaver Awards.��

The Weaver Awards are part of a constellation of activities designed to celebrate and support weavers—everyday neighbors who are building relationships, strengthening belonging, and developing trust into the social fabric of their communities. ��

The partnership between CCESL & INC, called the Denver Civic COLab, is matching ��AV students with neighborhood-identified projects and priorities through the INC. Through Signature Work projects, students integrate and apply their learning to benefit neighborhoods, with faculty mentorship provided by Stefan Chavez-Norgaard, a teaching assistant professor of public policy in the Korbel School’s Douglas and Mary Scrivner Institute of Public Policy.

As a community host for the Weaver Awards, the partnership has received $225,000 in startup funding, along with training, tools, technical assistance, and ongoing support from Weave. This partnership represents a four-year commitment to the Denver and ��AV community, signaling the Aspen Institute’s belief in the strength, creativity, and leadership already alive here. The first cycle of Weaver Awards launches in fall 2026.

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Academic Freedom and Freedom of Expression at ��AV: Policies and Practices

Academic freedom and freedom of expression are similar concepts, but with key distinctions: academic freedom is a narrower, specialized concept focused on protecting faculty research and teaching in a faculty member’s area of expertise. This panel will address the challenges associated with free speech at a private university, the rights of faculty at ��AV to teach and research in their disciplines, and the purpose of protecting scholarly inquiry from interference. ��

Panelists:

Alan Chen, Thompson G. Marsh Law Alumni professor��
Michael Todd, associate vice chancellor, Office of Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity��
Derigan Silver, faculty director and chair, Freedom of Expression and Pluralism Initiatives��
Sarah Watamura, professor of psychology and president, ��AV Faculty Senate��

which will take place on Tuesday, March 3, from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in the Grand Forum of Community Commons.��

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��AV Faculty Member Wins a Grammy!

Remy Le Boeuf, chair of jazz & commercial music, has won the for his piece “First Snow.” The composition appears on “Silent Course,” his album with the Nordkraft Big Band, a Danish ensemble, and vocalist Danielle Wertz. As he put it in his acceptance speech, “Let’s keep building bridges.”  ��

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Join Me for Lunch

Please join me in the faculty lounge (Community Commons 2800) from noon-1 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 16 for our “First and Third Mondays” lunch. Bring your food, questions, and ideas—I look forward to engaging with you.

For reference, here are the dates reserved for lunches for the remainder of the winter and spring quarters:��

Feb. 16��
March 2��
March 16��
April 6��
April 20��
May 6 (due to travel on May 4)��
May 18��
June 1��

We wish you all a wonderful term. ��

Sincerely,��

Elizabeth G. Loboa��
Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor��

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