Dear colleagues,

October has been a challenging month. As President Schill and I stated in our community message last week, the conflict in the Middle East is affecting our community — for many, deeply and personally — and the stress can feel overwhelming. I want to share with you the resources available, whether you personally need extra support, or you work with faculty and students who may need it: 

• Staff and faculty: SupportLinc, Northwestern's Employee Assistance Program (EAP), is available to faculty, staff and household members and provides 24/7/365 free and confidential access to services, including short-term counseling.
• Instructors: To help instructors with the challenge of inclusive teaching during global unrest, the Searle Center for Advancing Learning and Teaching has augmented a faculty resource called “Teaching During Turbulent Times.” The supporting students section of the Office of the Provost website also offers guidelines for helping students through crisis.
• Students: Students recently received a letter from the Division of Student Affairs, published in Leadership Notes, which shares the resources available to them to ensure their personal wellness and safety, to report harassment and discrimination, and to seek support from peers.

I understand and appreciate that keeping up with the day-to-day work against a profoundly troubling backdrop has been difficult for some of you, and I appreciate your commitment to your work. Even as we move forward on completing projects that are critical to the University, I encourage you to keep the lines of communication open with your supervisor and, in addition, do what you need to do to feel healthy: Take a walk. Talk to a colleague. Call a loved one. And as always, don’t be afraid to ask for help. 

Sincerely,

Kathleen Hagerty
Provost and Professor

All about the staff

Meet Niyo Moraza-Keeswood

Niyo Moraza-Keeswood is of the Diné and Chichimeca peoples. He is Senior Assistant Director, Undergraduate Admission – Native American and Indigenous Student Outreach. A graduate of the Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies master's program at Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in Anthropology from Brown University, Niyo's research has focused on culturally responsive advising and the application of Peacemaking in Higher Education as a mechanism for conflict resolution, policy change and community building.

Can you briefly describe what Peacemaking in Higher Education is all about?

Peacemaking is the foundational discipline from which Restorative and Transformative Justice originate. It is a lived practice which centers the need for developing community that can engage in difficult conversation and conflict in a way that centers healing relationships and changing the social conditions which foster harm. Dominating culture has us adhering to punitive justice, which centers punishment, isolation and the perpetuation of harmful systems. Peacemaking acknowledges that conflict is natural and has far-reaching impact beyond those directly involved, especially on college campuses. Universities exist as hubs of experimentation and innovation — an ideal space to invest in our imagination and begin a cultural shift in how we relate to one another. The goal is to equip our students with the ability to have these difficult value-centric conversations and invest in building a community centered on equity of voice, heartfelt understanding and accountability.

What do you most enjoy about working at Northwestern?

The Native community! They have been a constant source of love and inspiration that keeps me grounded. It’s a privilege to work with colleagues who fight fiercely for the betterment of Indigenous peoples. Their drive and tenacity are just as inspiring as their ability to foster joy and pride within our communities.

What is an interesting fact about you that people may not know?

I grew up traveling the powwow trail with my family, participating in dance competitions. The style I currently dance is "Chicken," which derived from the Blackfoot Confederacy. It originated as a ceremonial style dance to honor the close connection with the prairie chicken. Today, powwows are cultural celebrations filled with traditional song, dance, food and vendors. I have the pleasure of serving on Northwestern’s powwow committee — join us next spring for our third annual powwow!

Brag about your teammates! We feature one staff member in each newsletter. Nominate someone by emailing the Office of the Provost and telling us, in a sentence or two, how your colleague contributes to Northwestern’s mission and why everyone in the Office of the Provost should get to know them.

Staff who started roles in September

Academic Support and Learning Advancement

• Shawn Bush, Program Manager

The Block Museum

• Benjamin Creech, Film/Video/Audio Technician
• Beth Welter, Executive Assistant

Buffett Institute for Global Affairs

• Jenna Messing, Research Coordinator
• Kenan Sharpe, Postdoctoral Fellow

Center for Civic Engagement

• Eleanor Ellis, Public Interest Program Fellow
• Valeria Lira-Ruelas, Public Interest Program Fellow 

Chicago Biomedical Consortium

• Dennis Echevarria-Cooper, Research Associate
• Lucas Shores, Research Associate
• Alex Villarreal, Research Associate 

Office of Undergraduate Research

• Audrey Chisholm, Outreach Coordinator

Office of the Provost

• Nancy Cunniff, Director of One Book One Northwestern 

University Enrollment–Financial Aid 

• Brian Drabik, Director of Financial Aid Operations

Show and tell

• Michelle Manno, Assistant Provost for Diversity and Inclusion, has released a new book, “Denied.”
• Julie Friend, Director of the Office of Global Safety and Security at the Office of Global Safety and Security was invited by the U.S. Department of State to serve as a panelist during its Overseas Security Advisory Council Annual Briefing in November. The title of the session is "Duty of Care During Evacuations."
• The Office of Fellowships has created a Canvas course offering interactive tools and downloadable documents to help faculty and students navigate the world of fellowships. The course has an instructor section with information about the ways the Office of Fellowships can support faculty's work with students, including resources for staying afloat in the deluge of Fall Quarter reference requests. 

News, notes and need to know

Coffee talk with the Office of the Provost team

The inaugural Office of the Provost Coffee with Colleagues was a hit! An initiative recommended by the Office of the Provost’s Professional Development Working Group, the event took place after the Oct. 11 Office of the Provost Fall Quarter All-Staff Meeting. Thank you to organizers, Lorraine Cassis and Samantha Haevers, shown above with colleagues Johanna Page and Commander Kevin “Finger” Riley. Stay tuned for more professional development programming, coming later this fall.

Staff health and wellness

• A caregiver support benefit from Cariloop is now available to benefits-eligible staff and faculty, who can receive personalized, concierge-style resources and support for all their caregiving needs via licensed and certified care coaches. Activate your membership by registering with your Northwestern email address. 

• Northwestern's Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provider, SupportLinc, provides faculty, staff and household members 24/7/365 free and confidential access to a variety of mental health and well-being services and resources, including short-term counseling to help address everyday life challenges in a confidential, professional and supportive manner. 

Performance goals due by end of October

The first Performance Excellence deadline for 2023-24 is quickly approaching. By Oct. 31, all staff must have goals entered in myHR Learn. Additional information and job aids to help staff determine goals with their supervisor, enter/edit/delete goals in the system, and track goal progress can be found on the Human Resources website. As a reminder, the recommendation is to set two to four goals that follow the SIMple framework:

S = Specific or objective measurable
I = Important or aligned with our unit goals
M = Meaningful or motivating to you

Individual goal-setting provides ample opportunity for staff and supervisors, together with unit leaders, to consider how your work and your unit support and contribute to Office of the Provost strategic priorities and our University's priorities.

Please also note the additional deadlines for the 2023-24 PEX cycle:

• Jan. 24: Staff and supervisors have mid-year check in
• May 22: Staff complete written self-review in myHR Learn
• June 19: Supervisors complete written review and assign rating in myHR Learn
• July 24: Supervisors conduct performance meetings, finalize written reviews and release reviews and ratings; staff finalize reviews

The Block on the Riverwalk

Last summer, The Block Museum of Art unveiled an original artwork created for the museum’s collection by Chicago-based contemporary artist Leonard Suryajaya in collaboration with the 2021-2022 Block Museum of Art Student Associates. Now, that work, called "Perennial Blossom" — featuring 14 Northwestern students — lines the Chicago Riverwalk, which is featuring a massive installation of works by the photographer as part of the city’s Public Art programming. 

In case you missed it

• Award-winning author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates will deliver the commencement address for the Northwestern Prison Education Program. This graduation marks the first time incarcerated students in the United States will be conferred a bachelor’s degree from a top 10 university.
• Musical artist and author Michelle Zauner welcomed star-struck packed houses on both Evanston and Chicago Northwestern campuses on Oct. 18 to share thoughts about this year’s One Book selection, “Crying in H Mart.” 
• Northwestern Provost Kathleen Hagerty has appointed Mesmin Destin, an associate professor in the School of Education and Social Policy and in the Department of Psychology in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, as faculty director of student access and enrichment.
• View more news from around the University.

Mark your calendar

University event highlights 

• Through Dec. 3: Rosalie Favell: Indigenous Artists Facing the Camera, For One and All: Prints from The Block’s Collection, and The Block Collects 2023
• Oct. 31, 3 p.m.: Evanston Women's Center Open House, with tarot readings, spooky snacks, raffle prizes, and more (check website for registration)
• Oct. 31, all day: Student services units all over the campus are ensuring students and their kids can get candy practically anywhere on campus — see participating campus locations below. Spread the news, and Happy Halloween!

Key dates 

• Nov. 10: Open enrollment ends at 5 p.m.
• Nov. 20: Deadline to submit recommendations for One Book One Northwestern for the 2024-25 academic year
• Nov. 22: Thanksgiving vacation begins at 6 p.m.
• Feb 7: Office of the Provost Winter Quarter All-Staff Meeting
• March 1, 2024: Deadline to submit nominations for honorary degrees

More resources

• University Events
• Academic Calendars
• Past Newsletters

Help us build future newsletters! If your unit is working on a project that is relevant to the entire Office of the Provost, or if you have awards, honors or accomplishments to share, send an email to officeoftheprovost@northwestern.edu.