As we are well into the new academic year, every day I am learning about the many exciting things happening across our departments. I am excited to begin using this newsletter to elevate all the great work happening across the School of Arts and Sciences.
First, please join me in welcoming the new faculty members who joined our community this year. Our 20 new faculty members come to us from an impressive array of backgrounds, and we are excited to add their talent to our departments. You can read more about them here.
I can’t thank you all enough for continuing to welcome me and share your incredible work. Please continue to send me all of your news about the work and research happening in your department so we can share it here!
Your dean,
Nicole
NEWS OF NOTE
Art New York Program highlighted by New York City Library system
Art New York, Rochester’s signature work-study program that brings 12 undergraduate students to New York City to live, intern, study, and make art for a semester, was recently highlighted in a feature story published by the New York City Public Library system. The final project for the Field Studio course is to make a zine for the series, “Alternative Guide for New York City Wanderers.” Thank you to Megan Mette and Heather Layton for your great work creating this opportunity for students.
Examining the history of Soviet glaciological observations
Tanya Bakhmetyeva, a professor of instruction in the Department of History and associate academic director of the University’s Susan B. Anthony Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies, has received a $25,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for an international collaborative project on the cultural history of the Fedchenko Glacier. One of the world’s longest nonpolar glaciers, the Fedchenko is located in the Pamir mountain range of Tajikistan, a former Soviet republic in Central Asia.
Bakhmetyeva, a member of the multidisciplinary team of scientists and humanists in the Pamir Project, which includes Rochester historian Stewart Weaver, will use funding to plan and conduct a series of workshops that examine the glacier’s history. Learn more at the project’s website.
Two undergraduates receive Beckman Scholarships for research
Two University of Rochester students have been named Beckman Scholars with an institutional award that allows undergraduates in the fields of chemistry, biological sciences, and interdisciplinary combinations to work with faculty mentors for a 15-month research experience. This year’s Rochester recipients are:
- Derek Chien ’25, a chemistry and bioethics double major from Reno, Nevada. He aspires to be an academic physician and is a recent recipient of the Barry Goldwater Scholarship, awarded to high-achieving undergraduate science students who are US citizens.
- Margaret (“Maggie”) Hoare ’24, a biochemistry major from Honeoye Falls, a suburb south of Rochester. She previously received the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation Award for undergraduate students in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).
The University is one of 14 participating institutions with the Beckman Scholars Program, which helps to stimulate, encourage, and support research activities by exceptionally talented undergraduates who are pursuing full-time studies at four-year colleges and universities across the country.
NEED TO KNOW
Weigh in on the strategic plan
As we work towards shaping the future of our institution, we value your insights and perspectives about the University’s Boundless Possibility strategic plan. At this early stage in our work, we are especially interested in assessing awareness of the strategic plan among our community of faculty, staff, and students. We invite you to participate in a very short survey that will take less than one minute to complete. Your responses will remain anonymous, and the information will be used to help us improve our communications about the plan’s goals and objectives. Please click here to access the survey.
Update on New York State wage transparency
The New York State Pay Transparency law mandates that as of September 17 all job descriptions must include a compensation range that the employer “in good faith believes to be accurate.” On September 11, UR started including salary ranges for all faculty and staff job postings. Please address questions with your direct supervisor.
Graduate admissions post SCOTUS
As we continue to understand the impact of this summer’s SCOTUS decision regarding affirmative action, I am committed to sharing information that will help recruiters be mindful of the legal implications while at the same time working to diversify our student population. The deans have had discussions with unit leadership, and I encourage you to work with your unit leaders as we navigate this new landscape together.
