2025 Fall Update

As we approach the end of the fall semester, I am writing to share an update from the Office of the Provost, highlighting key academic initiatives and ongoing efforts to support student success and faculty excellence. I am also delighted to report that we have launched searches for 33 faculty lines across all colleges and schools. I am grateful to the faculty involved in the recruitment process.

AI Task Force

The Provost’s AI Task Force has officially begun its work, advancing our commitment to the thoughtful integration of artificial intelligence across the curriculum. After a competitive review process, we funded 14 proposals to incorporate AI into courses—11 launching in Spring 2026 and 3 in Fall 2026—representing innovative efforts from across campus. Thanks to all the faculty members serving on the Task Force and those who have submitted proposals to integrate this important assistive technology into our curriculum.

Faculty Leadership Opportunities

In the interest of transparency and equitable opportunity, I am committed to regularly posting leadership openings so that all faculty have the opportunity to apply and engage in academic leadership. I am pleased to announce campus-wide calls for the director of three interdisciplinary minors: Aging and Health, Leadership and Civic Engagement, and Sustainability.

Additionally, the Office of Faculty Development has announced a call for applications for the newly refocused position of Assistant Director for AI. This role, adapted from the former Assistant Director for Research position, will provide leadership and support for faculty in integrating artificial intelligence into their teaching, research, and professional work. We invite interested faculty members who are eager to explore the transformative potential of AI in academia to apply.

The deadline for all applications is 12/22/2025. Please see the announcement on the Provost Office Faculty Opportunities website.

Instructional Designers

I am glad to report that we are moving the Instructional Designers, who previously reported to CITS, into Academic Affairs to support better our strategic priorities of promoting student and faculty success. This move will enable Instructional Designers to more effectively support faculty, departments/programs, and colleges/schools in providing high-quality instructional support aligned with best practices and research. It will also enable us to align pedagogical support with campus strategic goals, including student retention, career learning, and the integration of AI into instruction, among others.  More information about the Instructional Designers and how they can support faculty can be found on the Provost’s Office website.

UMassD Partnership with ReUp

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has launched a statewide partnership with ReUp, a company that focuses on re-enrolling students who have stopped out on their way to earning their degree. We should be proud that UMass Dartmouth was selected as one of six public institutions of higher education in the state to engage with ReUp, which is being funded by the state. Working with campus partners from Financial Aid, the Registrar’s Office, the Office of Academic Partnerships, and the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment, ReUp has begun reaching out to past UMassD students who have stopped out over the past 25 years to provide a pathway to reenrollment and degree completion.

Updates on Student Success

We continue to make changes in the interest of student success. I am pleased to report that we are moving forward with implementation of Faculty Senate recommendations on Fresh Start (formerly known as Grade Amnesty) and non-traditional session enrollment limits. For more information on these policies, please refer to the Academic Regulations and Procedures section of the catalog. Additionally, Academic Probation has been renamed Academic Alert, and Academic Warning has been renamed Academic Caution. The Rebranding Probation Working Group also developed letters, a contract, and a Canvas site for professional advisors to use with students at these standings. Our engagement with the National Institute for Student Success remains productive and will inform future initiatives. I appreciate the many faculty who have helped think through these policies to support our student success initiatives.

This time of year offers an opportunity to reflect on our collective progress, and I remain grateful for the dedication and collaboration that strengthen our academic community. Thank you for your ongoing commitment as we conclude the semester and look forward to the work that lies ahead.

I hope you all have a good holiday season.

Ramprasad Balasubramanian

Provost

For several years, UMass Dartmouth has employed Instructional Designers in CITS.  These instructional designers have supported faculty in the use of instructional technologies across all teaching and learning environments.

However, the work of Instructional Designers extends beyond the use of technology in teaching to providing professional development to faculty and supporting our students in all modes of instruction.  Instructional design is a systematic and continuous process, deeply rooted in learning principles and pedagogy and supported by educational technology, to develop the most effective learning experiences for students and to promote student success.

As such, I am pleased to announce that the Instructional Designers have moved into Academic Affairs to better support our strategic priorities of promoting student and faculty success.  Mendy Smith, Instructional Designer, has extensive experience in instructional design, education, and pedagogy and a Master’s degree in Technical Communication.  Rachel Rebello, Lead Instructional Designer, is leaving UMass Dartmouth to pursue other opportunities.  We plan to search for her replacement in the spring.

Moving these positions to Academic Affairs will allow the Instructional Designers to more effectively support faculty, departments/programs, and colleges/schools in providing quality instruction aligned with best practices and supported by research.  It will also allow us to align pedagogical support with campus strategic goals around student retention, career learning, the integration of AI into instruction, and more.

The Instructional Designers will report to the Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs and Undergraduate Education and will work to support colleges/schools, faculty and instructional staff at every phase of program and course design.

Our Instructional Designers can assist with:

• Course Design and Development – We collaborate with faculty to provide guidance on how to improve existing courses or develop new ones.
• Syllabus Design – We provide feedback and guidance on creating or refining your syllabus.
• Course Mapping and Alignment – We assist with mapping your course goals and learning outcomes to ensure there is alignment with course materials, activities, and assessments.

• Course Content Presentation – We share technologies and techniques to improve the way you present content in your courses.
• Student Engagement and Active Learning – We share ideas to improve student engagement in your courses and promote active learning.
• Assessment Strategies – We assist with providing suggestions on how to assess student learning to promote academic honesty, use authentic assessment methods, and effectively use design tests/quizzes.
• Accessibility and Universal Design for Learning – We provide recommendations to ensure your course is designed to be accessible to all learners.
• Online Asynchronous, Synchronous, and Hybrid Course Design – We assist with modifying courses taught in person to be taught in other modalities such as asynchronous online, synchronous online, and hybrid.
• Accelerated Formats – We assist with transforming existing courses into accelerated formats going from 13 to 7 or 4 weeks.
• Instructional Technologies – We share suggestions on the effective use of instructional technologies to support your teaching and learning goals.
• Visual Design and Usability – We help you modify course templates to enhance the visual design and usability of your courses.
• Multimedia Production – We provide guidance on how to produce DIY videos and assist faculty in the creation of high-quality videos in our professional studio and editing facilities.

 

 

The Office of the Provost is pleased to announce the recipients of the Curricular Integration of AI Skills and Literacy Grants, a new initiative supporting faculty who are integrating artificial intelligence into teaching and learning across the university. These competitive awards support faculty as they redesign existing courses or develop new offerings that advance students’ AI literacy, ethical reasoning, and discipline-specific application skills.

This year’s grantees represent a wide range of academic disciplines, reflecting UMass Dartmouth’s commitment to preparing students for an evolving technological and professional landscape. Selected projects will launch in Spring 2026 or Fall 2026, each incorporating one or more of the university’s new AI Student Learning Outcomes, including practical AI fluency, bias detection and mitigation, ethical and social impact analysis, and understanding the capabilities and limitations of AI tools.

2026 Grant Awardees

• Christopher Brigham – Bioengineering, BNG 430 & BNG 530 – Spring 2026
• Danish Saifee & Zhengzhong Shi – Decision & Information Science, BUS 681 – Spring 2026
• Gokhan Kul – Computer & Information Science, CIS 552 – Fall 2026
• Hamed Samandari – Mechanical Engineering, MNE 101 – Spring 2026
• Jiawei Yuan – Computer & Information Science, CIS 452 – Fall 2026
• Jonathan Mellor – Civil & Environmental Engineering, CEN 491 – Spring 2026
• Joshua Botvin – English & Communication, ENG 101 – Fall 2026
• Maureen Eckert – Philosophy, PHL 319 – Fall 2026
• Melody O’Donnell & Elizabeth Hart – Medical Laboratory Science, MLS 326 – Fall 2026
• Peter Sandby-Thomas & Douglas Roscoe – Political Science, PSC 349 – Spring 2026
• Scott Ahrens – Design, AXD 365 – Spring 2026
• Stephanie McGoldrick – Design, IAD 202 – Spring 2026
• Tryon Woods – Crime & Justice Studies, CJS 350/345 – Spring 2026

The Provost’s Office congratulates all recipients and looks forward to the impact their courses will have on student learning in the years ahead.

 

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce the formation of the Resource Advisory Working Group, a key body that will guide our campus through the review of our programs. UMass Dartmouth continues to grow in enrollment and student demand, and we need to ensure that our academic resources are aligned with the areas where our students—and the market—are headed. I am committed to ensuring that this work remains inclusive, transparent, and aligned with our institutional mission, values, and resource-planning needs, as described in the town hall presentation.

Purpose and Timeline

The goal of this effort is straightforward: to help us prioritize programs that show strong student interest, growth potential, research strength, and alignment with our mission as a public research university serving a high proportion of in-state, first-generation college students. Starting immediately, the working group will work to identify the metrics we will use for this review, and the Institutional Research Office will then provide the deans and chairs with a data report for each of their programs. We anticipate that this phase will conclude by mid-March 2026.

From March through December, deans and department chairs will consider the data, along with the broader context of each program, and work with the Provost’s Office to develop 3–5-year roadmaps that position our programs for future success. I also anticipate that some colleges and schools may identify new programs they would like to develop to build on existing strengths and meet growing demand from employers and students.

Working Group Charge

The group will lead a data-informed process to define the metrics necessary for building a comprehensive institutional picture of each academic program. This will enable us to identify areas of opportunity and those that may require realignment, with a focus on positioning our academic portfolio for long-term sustainability.

Membership

I want to thank the Faculty Senate for its recommendations for membership in this important advisory body. This working group brings together colleagues whose leadership experience, deep institutional knowledge, commitment to our students, and nuanced understanding of the higher-education landscape position them to guide this important work thoughtfully and strategically:

• Brian Ayotte (co-chair)
• Denise Baxter (co-chair)
• Christopher Eisenhart
• Heidi Berggren
• Rob Griffin
• Ziddi Msangi
• Mark Silby
• Frank Scarano
• Phil Scher
• Amit Tandon
• Steven White
• Liudong Xing
• Shannon Jenkins, ex officio
• Lamya Karim, ex officio
• Tesfay Meressi, ex officio
• Tammy Silva, ex officio

Our Path Forward
This is an opportunity to strengthen our academic portfolio, sharpen our focus, and ensure that we invest in the programs that will define UMass Dartmouth’s next decade. I appreciate the willingness of these colleagues to lead this important work and look forward to engaging the campus as the process moves ahead.

Thank you,

Ramprasad Balasubramanian
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

BookCake-11122025

Dear Colleagues,

I welcome faculty to a casual lunchtime meeting to engage in meaningful discussion and bring the key issues facing UMass Dartmouth into the conversation.

Each hour-long session typically includes 15 faculty members, often grouped by common interests such as faculty role or specific interests.

Soup and Salad Discussions will be held every two to three weeks from November 2025 through April 2026.  Faculty will be invited based on common interests. Dates for the Fall and Spring semesters are:

 

Fall Meetings

• Thursday, November 13, 2025 – 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
• Wednesday, November 26, 2025 – 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

           Spring Meetings

• Wednesday, February 4, 2026 – 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
• Thursday, February 26, 2026 – 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 11, 2026 – 12:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
• Friday, April 3, 2026 – 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
• Wednesday, April 22, 2026 – 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

 

Please respond to our Qualtrics survey using the link below by 10/31/25 at 5:00 pm to let us know when you can attend and what topics you are interested in discussing.

 

https://umassdartmouth.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_2sEDkQZMH41jpyK

 

Sincerely,

 

Ramprasad Balasubramanian
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

Faculty Promoted or Granted Tenure effective September 2025

The Office of the Provost is pleased to announce that 31 UMass Dartmouth faculty members have been promoted or awarded tenure during the 2024-2025 academic year. These accomplished faculty members excel as teachers, mentors, scholars and researchers.  Please join us in congratulating them.

PROMOTED TO COMMONWEALTH PROFESSOR

College of Engineering

Liudong Xing, Electrical and Computer Engineering

 

PROMOTION TO PROFESSOR

College of Arts & Sciences

Nikolay Anguelov, Public Policy

Brian Ayotte, Psychology

Heidi Berggren, Political Science and Women’s and Gender Studies

Shakhnoza Kayumova, Education

 

College of Engineering

Lance Fiondella, Electrical and Computer Engineering

 

College of Visual & Performing Arts

Ziddi Msangi, Art & Design

 

Charlton College of Business

Ling Lin, Accounting & Finance

 

TENURE & PROMOTION TO ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR

College of Arts & Sciences

Aneesa Baboolal, Crime and Justice Studies

Wei-Shun Chang, Chemistry & Biochemistry

Genevieve Kozak, Biology

Raina Lamade, Psychology

Vanessa Lovelace, Crime and Justice Studies

Toniqua Mikell, Crime and Justice Studies

Anna Schierberl Scherr, Psychology

 

Charlton College of Business

Anoosha Izadi, Management and Marketing

 

College of Engineering

Sarah Caudill, Physics

Yuchou Chang, Computer & Information Science

Gokhan Kul, Computer & Information Science

Hangjian Ling, Mechanical Engineering

Banafsheh Seyed-Aghazadeh, Mechanical Engineering

Caiwei Shen, Mechanical Engineering

 

School of Law

Faisal Chaudry

 

PROMOTION TO ASSOCIATE TEACHING PROFESSOR

 

College of Arts & Sciences

Crystal Lubinsky, History

Ilana Offenberger, History

 

College of Engineering

Laura Hanzly, Bioengineering

 

College of Visual and Performing Arts

Aleta Deyo, Art & Design

Lara Henderson, Art & Design

Otto Metzger, Art & Design

 

PROMOTION TO PROFESSIONAL TECHNICIAN I

Jennifer Clark, College of Nursing & Health Sciences

 

PROMOTION TO LIBRARIAN

Emma Wood, Information Services

Dear Colleagues,

We are living through a moment of profound transformation. Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI, is reshaping every aspect of society — from business and law to healthcare, education, the arts, and beyond. The future of work will depend on how effectively we can partner with AI, using it to extend human creativity, judgment, and problem-solving rather than to replace them.

As educators, we have a shared responsibility to ensure that every UMass Dartmouth graduate is AI-literate, ethically grounded, and professionally prepared. To meet this imperative, I am pleased to announce the formation of the Faculty Taskforce on AI Integration in the Curriculum.

The Taskforce is charged with developing a systematic and thoughtful approach to introducing every undergraduate student to generative AI tools and their responsible use. The work will focus on helping students understand:

• The capabilities and limitations of AI, including large language models (LLMs);
• The biases and ethical issues inherent in AI systems;
• The role of AI in the human creative and decision-making process; and
• The responsible application of AI within their disciplines.

Through this initiative, we aim to prepare students who can critically assess AI outputs, apply AI tools with creativity and integrity, and lead responsibly in a world where AI will be broadly used in every profession.

The Taskforce will:

• Conduct a landscape review of AI education across higher education and within UMass Dartmouth.
• Define foundational learning objectives and competencies for AI literacy.
• Recommend strategies to embed AI education across general education and major programs.
• Propose opportunities for faculty development, interdisciplinary teaching, and hands-on student learning; and
• Design assessment models and a phased implementation roadmap.

The Taskforce will work closely with the Office of Faculty Development, the Senate Technology Committee, and Instructional Design to develop strategies for preparing both faculty and students for this work. While the committee does its work, ideas proposed by faculty through the recently issued RFP will be piloted in AI-integrated courses beginning in Spring 2026 so that we can equip the class of 2028 with skills to integrate AI thoughtfully into their professional practice.

Taskforce Membership

• Amy Shapiro – Chair of the Task Force, Dean of the Honors College
• Scott Ahrens – Design, College of Visual and Performing Arts
• Brian Ayotte – Psychology, Honors College, Faculty Senate President
• Nancy Godleski – Dean of the Library
• Firas Khatib – Computer and Information Science, College of Engineering
• Melody O’Donnell –  Medical Laboratory Science, College of Nursing and Health Sciences
• B.K. Rai – Chair, Decision and Information Sciences, Charlton College of Business
• Michael Sheriff – Biology, Office of Faculty Development
• Mendy Smith – Instructional Design
• Matt Sneider – History, Director of University Studies
• Alexis Teagarden – English, First-Year Writing Program Coordinator
• Iren Valova – Associate Dean, College of Engineering
• Anoo Vyas – Law School

I am deeply grateful to this distinguished group of faculty and academic leaders for taking on this important and forward-looking work. Through their guidance, UMass Dartmouth will position itself at the forefront of ethical, inclusive, and innovative AI education, ensuring that all our students have the knowledge and judgment to lead with integrity in an AI-powered world.

Sincerely,

Ramprasad Balasubramanian
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

Dear Colleague,

Welcome back. As we begin a new academic year, thank you for the many ways you have contributed to the momentum UMass Dartmouth is experiencing. Our enrollment is growing because of strong academic programs, meaningful research and hands-on learning opportunities, excellent advising, and a supportive, intellectually engaging environment. These outcomes reflect your time, talent, and dedication—thank you.

Our reputation as a destination of choice is also rising because your scholarship and creative work are being recognized nationally and globally for advancing knowledge and the public good. This visibility strengthens our ability to attract outstanding students, faculty, and staff.

New Academic Leadership
This growing reputation enabled us to attract strong national candidate pools and recruit three dynamic new Deans who joined us this summer. It was great seeing so many of you gathered on Tuesday evening to welcome Dr. Denise Baxter (Visual & Performing Arts), Dr. Rob Griffin (Engineering), and Dr. Phil Scher (Arts & Sciences) to UMass Dartmouth. I’m excited to partner with them as they help elevate the teaching, learning, scholarship, and creative work happening across our colleges.

Priorities for 2025-2026
Over the last year, I’ve engaged in thoughtful conversations with the Deans, Chairs, the Faculty Senate President, and a wide range of faculty and staff about how my team can continue supporting the academic enterprise.

Faculty Development
We remain committed to timely, meaningful support for the professional growth of our faculty and staff. Last year, the new Director of Faculty Development, Dr. Michael Sherriff, refreshed the content and format of the New Faculty Institute. We also expanded competitive internal funding for research and creative activity and found additional ways to celebrate a range of faculty accomplishments. We will continue and build on these efforts.

Student Success
Many of you contributed to the various initiatives to improve student success, including a new system for math placement testing, an expanded summer bridge program, a new academic orientation course for first-year students (UMassD Ready), advising tools that facilitate better communication between students and advisors, the re-institution of an early engagement survey, and the pilot of an on-demand, online on-demand tutoring service (BrainFuse) to supplement the work of the ARC this academic year. I’d also like to commend faculty for increasingly providing early feedback to students so they can adjust their approach and make every effort to succeed in their courses. These collective efforts are starting to make a real difference. For the first time in a decade, we are on track to see a meaningful increase in first-to-second year retention rate—I look forward to sharing the data when it is final later this fall. This is a great outcome for our students—we all want to see them continue to make good academic progress and earn their degrees.

AI Task Force
One strong theme that emerged from my conversations with the Deans and Chairs is the rapidly evolving impact of AI on higher education and the future of work. Many of you are already experimenting with AI to enrich your teaching, research, and the student learning experience. These discussions have surfaced some creative approaches as well as some important questions. I plan on convening an AI Taskforce with faculty, staff, and students from across our academic units to explore and build on these ideas, provide guidance and practical resources on effective and responsible use of AI, and help ensure that our students graduate prepared to use AI thoughtfully in their professional and civic lives. I will convene the task force this month and share more information about its membership and work soon.

Assessing Program Resource Needs
With rising enrollment and improving retention, we must ensure our colleges and schools have the resources to meet student demand while maintaining quality and investing in areas of distinctiveness that make UMass Dartmouth a destination of choice. This year, I will partner with the Faculty Senate and our Deans to launch a collaborative process—establishing a committee, timeline, and criteria—to strengthen and position our academic programs for near-term and long-term success.

In closing, I am deeply grateful for everything you do for our students and community. Our progress last year—on faculty development, research, student success, and college-level milestones—gives us real momentum. I look forward to working with you this year to continue investing in our faculty and staff, our academic enterprise, and—most importantly—our students.

Best wishes for a productive and inspiring semester.

Ramprasad Balasubramanian
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs