Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to share some recent highlights from the Office of the Vice Provost and Academic Affairs (VPAA):

• We recently co-hosted a successful virtual research mixer with the University of Greifswald in mid-October. We had a high level of engagement from both institutions. The following faculty members delivered enlightening lightning talks on a range of topics including healthy and independent aging, health and preventative psychology, and advances in brain imaging, modeling, and stimulation:

• Dr. Jennifer Blackwood, Professor of Physical Therapy and Director of Physical Therapy, College of Health Sciences, University of Michigan-Flint
• Dr. Kristina Yordanova, Professor of Data Science, Institute of Data Science, University of Greifswald
• Dr. Gergana Kodjebacheva, Professor of Public Health and Health Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of Michigan-Flint
• Dr. Silke Schmidt-Schuchert, Professor of Health and Prevention, Institute of Psychology, University of Greifswald
• Dr. Khalid Malik, Director of Cyber Security and Professor of Computer Science, College of Innovation and Technology, University of Michigan-Flint
• Dr. Marcus Meinzer, Professor in the Department of Neurology at University Medicine Greifswald

We are currently working on identifying actionable next steps for follow-up initiatives, which we look forward to sharing with you in the near future.

• Phases 1 and 2 of the "Why I Belong @ UM-Flint" Initiative are nearing completion. This project has been presented at four governing faculty meetings, a Senior Leadership team meeting, a Staff Council meeting, a University Academic Advising Committee meeting, Pre-Convocation workshop, and a Student Government monthly meeting. We are actively collaborating with members of the Student Affairs Leadership Team and various Student Government representatives to determine how best to implement our findings within academic affairs. I extend my gratitude to the many faculty, staff, and administrators who have provided helpful feedback on this campus-wide initiative. Our ultimate goal is to foster a psychologically safe environment for our students, ensuring that humanity remains at the forefront of our academic efforts.

Stay tuned for more updates in a forthcoming email.

Wishing you all a productive remainder of the semester.

Sincerely,

Sapna

Sapna V. Thwaite, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

Vice Provost for Academic Affairs

Professor of Education