Strategic Initiatives
Course Modes in the Time Schedule: Course modes (in-person, hybrid, online synchronous, online asynchronous) are now included in the time schedule thanks to a year-long effort. The Tri-Campus Digital Learning Alliance defined and vetted them and the Office of the University Registrar built them into systems and processes. Student demand prompted this update and feedback, so far, has been positive.
Future of Teaching & Learning Initiative: ASA is sponsoring and supporting a provost initiative focused on the Future of Teaching & Learning. Two working groups are focused on instructional quality and access. The CTL and Strategic Initiatives are actively engaged with working group members and faculty governance leadership to define teaching excellence and explore alignment with faculty development opportunities and evaluation mechanisms across the three campuses.
Office of the Registrar
New Student Database Access Request Process: With the retirement of Bee Poh, after 30 years of fabulous service, we have redesigned the Student Database (SDB) access request forms and how they are routed and approved. The revised forms will allow for faster and more accurate processing. The UW-IT Student Database Team, led by Matt Winslow, formerly of the Office of the University Registrar, has taken over granting SDB access, lightening the load for OUR.
ASA-IS
ASA-IS is currently working on a variety of projects/initiatives. Check out the IS webpage to see what they are working on.
International Student Services
ISS recently celebrated our team members on Employee Appreciation Day! Thanks to all who make our work possible!
ISS surveyed students since returning to in-person instruction to help inform decisions about in-person vs virtual offerings. They asked how the students use ISS services, and whether they feel their needs are being met. This feedback informed improvements in how ISS delivers services/information to students. Subsequent survey results were positive and showed students are satisfied with their access to services, advisors, and information. ISS will continue to survey students in spring as part of our continual service improvement work.
Center for Teaching & Learning
2023 Teaching & Learning Symposium: The Center for Teaching and Learning is hosting the 19th annual Teaching and Learning Symposium on April 18th. This tri-campus event showcases UW’s vibrant teaching community and UW instructors’ new and exciting work in the classroom. The Symposium features a range of workshops and sessions, including two featured events:
- Keynote: “Sustaining Communities of Hope”, featuring Kevin Gannon, author of Radical Hope: A Teaching Manifesto. Learn more about Kevin Gannon and register for the event.
- Faculty Panel: “Sustainable Teaching”, featuring UW faculty. Register now to attend!
Admissions
After holistically reviewing a record 62,000 undergraduate applications, the Seattle campus admissions office has made ~23,000 offers for an expected autumn quarter enrollment of 7,100 to 7,200. The deadline for admitted freshman to accept their offers is May 1.
On Saturday, April 15, we will welcome thousands of admitted students and their families to campus for Admitted Student Day (ASD). ASD is a welcoming and comprehensive one-day, on-campus event for admitted freshman applicants and their families to immerse themselves in the Husky Experience with events, activities, and tours. ASD is one of the most important moments for admitted students and their families, giving them the information they need to decide on enrolling at UW.
The Office of Admissions is seeking volunteers to help with this year’s Admitted Student Day (ASD) on Saturday, April 15, to help greet the ~6,500 students and families to the UW campus. Volunteers will get T-shirts! Check out the many volunteer options and sign up to volunteer.
Financial Aid
At UW’s Seattle campus, undergraduates are borrowing less. Only 29% of the graduating 2021-22 class has graduated with debt. The cumulative average ($19,995) and median ($15,334) debt of UW students has decreased steadily since 2017-18 — well below the national average. Our talented students maximize scholarships, control their expenses, and have been recipients of additional state support through the Washington College Grant and federal emergency pandemic support.
The OSFA Counseling Services team has new leadership. Congratulations to Andrew (AJ) Szenk and Christine O. Both have recently been promoted from Lead Counselor to Assistant Director. AJ focuses on leading our frontline student service efforts, while Christine focuses on our compliance-related activities. Both report to Lisa Whitehead, who was recently promoted to Associate Director of Counseling Services and Outreach. Together the team ensures students receive supportive counseling and timely delivery of financial aid funds.
In early March, the Veterans Administration (VA) launched a new platform to certify enrollment and tuition costs for students utilizing VA benefits. The Veterans Education Benefits Office (VEBO) staff are utilizing this new platform to certify VA education benefits for ~1,000 students this Spring quarter.
Privacy
The Privacy Office’s new education curriculum is receiving positive feedback from participants on all three campuses. From July 2022 to March 2023, 584 colleagues attended 55 privacy-related courses, info sessions, and/or training.
The data inventory initiative is gaining traction. To date, we have 108 TrustArc users, 105 third-party records, 87 system records, and 365 business process records. While there is still more work to do, we appreciate the time and effort of colleagues who have engaged and supported this initiative.
We continue to enhance our privacy support structure for colleagues at the UW. In April we will launch a privacy community of practice.
Academic Technologies
Academic Technologies recently renovated eight classrooms in the basement of the Electrical and Computer Engineering building and created a comfortable and updated informal study space for students in the basement, too. The improvements to the classrooms include all new furniture, new glass markerboards, updated projection systems, and new audio-visual systems including seven A/V bridges and two automated Panopto recorders. The new spaces have been well-utilized since they opened in Winter 2023, and we look forward to continuing to modernize more of our instructional spaces soon.