- Fourteen new faculty members were recruited in clinical and social sciences in psychology, brain and cognitive sciences, chemistry, economics, English, psychology, mathematics, philosophy, physics and astronomy, and political science.
- Renowned economist Narayana Kocherlakota, former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, was welcomed to the Department of Economics as its inaugural Lionel W. McKenzie Professor of Economics.
- Two major initiatives were launched: the Humanities Center to support multidisciplinary engagement around literature, history, the arts and culture and the Institute for Performing Arts to bring together music, theater, and dance programs on the River Campus. Both underscore the University’s commitment to the liberal arts. Several new academic paths were introduced: a BA, BS, and MS degrees were introduced in data science; a BS and a minor in computational biology; an MS in computational linguistics and an MA in language documentation; and a cluster in modern languages and cultures.
- The undergraduate academic experience was enriched through study and education abroad. Students have conducted research on higher education in the Philippines, pursued voice studies in Austria, and held teaching assistantships in Spain and Malaysia.
Bullet points highlight impact made in 2015
