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Northwestern Office of the Provost

Faculty Newsletter | September 2024

Dear faculty,

 

I am delighted that the new academic year is in full swing across all of our campuses. The positive momentum is energizing: We are in the midst of an exciting construction boom on the Evanston campus, our sponsored research dollars once again have surpassed the $1 billion mark and a little over a week ago, we welcomed one of the most diverse undergraduate classes in history. This is an excellent time to lean even further into our institutional priorities and share our accomplishments with one another and the broader Northwestern community.

 

As you may have read, the University Priorities section of the Northwestern website was recently enhanced to include pages dedicated to each of our 11 priorities. These impressive pages delve into our mission and highlight what we do best, from providing a world-class education to breaking new scientific ground to cultivating a diverse and caring community. Departments across the University will leverage the website to share our progress with donors, peers, journalists and other stakeholders, and these pages will hold us all accountable to continue to be our best.

 

In these pages, you will see the work of your colleagues and maybe even some of your own work. This spotlight-worthy content is designed to be dynamic — we will be updating it periodically because, as we all know, things don't stay stagnant at Northwestern. The fact is, these pages would not be nearly as remarkable if it weren't for our incredible faculty, so thank you for all the talent and passion you bring to Northwestern.

 

I wish you all a great 2024-25 academic year!

 

Sincerely,

 

Kathleen Hagerty
Provost and Professor

News and notes

Academic Leadership Program Fellows Announced

Over the summer, the Office of the Provost announced the Academic Leadership Program Fellows: This year’s fellows are: Enectali Figueroa-Feliciano, Elizabeth Gerber, Megan Roberts, Elizabeth Tipton and Ivy Wilson. Congratulations!

 

Community Support for Anniversary of Oct. 7 

In recognition that many in our community are and will be navigating deep and complex emotions and experiences on the anniversary of Oct. 7, 2023, the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion (OIDI) will be offering various forms of support.

 

News from Northwestern Libraries 

  • Northwestern Libraries has launched a semantic search tool leveraging large language models and the data from the Libraries’ Digital Collections. The tool, available in multiple languages, performs a semantic search — based not on keywords but on context — and delivers primary sources from Northwestern’s digitized collections. A NetID is required. 
  • Deering Library is temporarily closed for renovation. The Libraries have adjusted certain processes to continue to provide full services and resources. For more information, please refer to frequently asked questions about the renovation and closure.

 

Buffett Friday Lunches

Buffett Institute will host a new faculty research lunchtime talk series on the first Friday of every month. Faculty members will give a half-hour talk intended for a broad, multidisciplinary audience of Northwestern students, faculty and staff followed by a conversational Q&A. Lunch will be provided. All talks will take place at the Buffett Institute's new home base on campus, 720 University Place, at 12:30 p.m. Explore the lineup and register. Buffett also hosts an array of terrific events and speakers over the course of year. Check the events calendar for details.

 

Chicago Humanities' Northwestern Day

On Oct. 26, several faculty members will be part of Chicago Humanities' Northwestern Day. Wendy Pearlman will speak on the Syrian diaspora. Maayan Hilel will speak on the interconnected cultures of Jewish-Zionist and Palestinian-Arab societies before 1948. Rebecca Makkai will be in conversation with author John Green. Natasha Trethewey will give a talk on her newest book "The House of Being." And Spencer Parsons will be in conversation with film director Barry Sonnenfeld. 

  

In case you missed it

Faculty Support and Services

Programming Through Searle

The Searle Center for Advancing Learning and Teaching offers a range of programs and guides to support faculty in the classroom. Earlier this month, C. Edward Watson, a national expert on digital innovation in higher education, presented a virtual workshop called “Preparing Students for Life Beyond College: Embracing AI as Essential Learning.” A link to a video recording of the workshop is available at the bottom of  Searle's homepage. Please see "Featured events" near the bottom of this newsletter for upcoming Searle programming. 

 

One Book One Northwestern Teaching Resources

A range of resources are available to instructors for supporting students as they read and process "The Night Watchman," the 2024–25 One Book One Northwestern selection. Searle and OIDI will be presenting an online workshop called Utilizing "The Night Watchman" Teaching Guide. The Block Museum has created a virtual art exhibit based on the book and Academic Curator Corinne Granof will give a talk about artwork at The Block that reflects the book's central themes. Northwestern Libraries has gathered many resources, including government documents surrounding termination policies, sacred stories of the Chippewa and information about the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement. And, of course, don't miss the One Book Keynote With Louise Erdrich at which the author will be joined in conversation by One Book faculty Co-Chairs Dean Bryan Brayboy and Professor Megan Bang.

 

Faculty Career Development and Mentorship Offerings 

  • The Office of the Provost's Career Development and Leadership Calendar of Events is updated regularly with events targeted to specific faculty career levels. Upcoming Faculty Leaders Series events include Critical Conversations on Oct. 1 and Teaching in Turbulent Times on Oct. 30. The New and Early Career Faculty Institute will offer Looking 101 with the Block Museum of Art on Oct. 16.
  • The National Institutes of Health requires that faculty appointed to T32 and other training grants participate in faculty mentoring training. The Office of the Provost, The Graduate School, and the Center for Leadership offer the Advancing Mentoring Excellence at Northwestern series of workshops. Sessions will be offered in 2024-2025 in-person in both Evanston and Chicago as well as virtually.
     

Faculty Wellness

  • Details about all of the well-being resources available to Northwestern faculty will come soon from Faculty Wellness Program Director Gaurava Agarwal. For now, mark your calendar for Faculty Wellness Week from Oct. 21-25. Faculty are encouraged to take advantage of discounts and programming, which includes sessions such as Striving for Excellence: Managing Perfectionism in Academic Life with professional coach Isabeau Iqbal on Oct. 23, from noon to 2 p.m. on Zoom. Register online for the session by Oct. 21. 
  • Human Resources is partnering with CVS to provide on-campus flu and COVID shots Oct.22-Nov. 4. The registration process will be new this year and health insurance information will need to be entered when scheduling your appointment. Learn more. 

 

News from Northwestern Athletics

Purple Pulse is a source for Northwestern faculty and staff interested in community opportunities through Northwestern Athletics and Recreation. Join this Microsoft Teams channel to learn about discounts, free events and community recognitions, including this year’s faculty and staff game with Northwestern Men’s Basketball. 

Mark your calendar

Featured events

 

Key dates


More resources

 

Help us build future newsletters! If your school or department is working on a project that is relevant to the entire faculty, please send an email at least one month prior to the desired month of publication to faculty@northwestern.edu.

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