Deadlines/Dates:
- Academic calendar
- Final exam schedule
- Deadlines for posting grades
- Commencement, autumn 2009
- President and Provost’s 2009-10 Diversity Lecture and Cultural Arts Series
- National and International Awards: Calls for Nominations and Applications
Issues and Outcomes:
Autumn 2009
Dear Colleagues,
With the 2009-10 academic year now well under way, I hope you are fully engaged in the many activities that collectively accomplish the mission of The Ohio State University. For faculty, those activities include moving the boundaries of knowledge, teaching and inspiring our students, and serving our many communities, both on and off campus. Staff members and administrators contribute to our institutional mission by supporting those core activities. Together (and the operative word is together), we are making the strides that are ratcheting Ohio State ever upward in national rankings. To cite just one example of our progress, Ohio State has moved up a notch to 18th among public institutions in the latest U.S. News & World Report list of best colleges.
In this issue of keyNotes, I want to acquaint you with a number of steps we are taking to sustain that momentum, starting with this year’s academic priorities.
Academic Priorities for 2009-10
To be part of an institution in a state where higher education enjoys strong bi-partisan support is real cause for celebration, but we must prove ourselves worthy every day of the confidence of our elected representatives and our communities. I have been mindful of that in establishing this year’s academic priorities. [ For more on the year’s academic priorities… ]
Calendar Conversion: Moving From Quarters to Semesters
On June 11, 2009, the University Senate gave formal approval to move Ohio State from quarters to semesters. Since then, a number of steps have been taken to get us ready for the calendar conversion, to take effect in autumn, 2012. [ For more on the calendar conversion… ]
The One Ohio State Framework
Another equally profound shift is occurring at the same time as the move to the semester calendar. Ohio State is developing the One Ohio State Framework, a comprehensive, long-range physical vision for the campus that will allow us to advance knowledge and serve our communities for years to come. [ For more on the One Ohio State Framework… ]
Preparing a Next Generation of Leaders
We are looking down the road in other ways, too. In addition to planning for the campus of the future, we are working to ensure that Ohio State will have well-prepared leaders in the years to come. [ For more on leadership preparation… ]
Centers for Innovation and Innovation Groups: Teamwork at Work
The activities I have discussed in this issue of the newsletter—the shift to a semester calendar, the development of the One Ohio State Framework, and our focus on leadership opportunities—are initiatives that require collaboration, collegiality, and trust. The same can be said of Ohio State’s next phase of centrally funded research, our Centers for Innovation and Innovation Groups. [ For more on Innovation Centers and Groups… ]
The opening of every academic year is the opening of a door. We have brand-new opportunities to create imaginative structures for advancing our scholarship; for developing fresh perspectives on how our disciplines can work together for trans-institutional good; for engaging more fully with our students and colleagues; and for renewing our commitment to our academic enterprise. If we can sustain the enthusiasm and the sense of collective purpose with which we start the academic year, this institution will become more dynamic and less bureaucratic, more flexible and less insular.
This is a great moment to be part of Ohio State. I invite you to join me in making optimism, teamwork, and shared vision the hallmarks of our daily contributions to the university.
With warmest wishes for the balance of the quarter and the upcoming holidays,
Sincerely,
Joseph A. Alutto, Executive Vice President and Provost
The key in the keyNotes nameplate dates from the early days of the university. Though “R & E” originally referred to the key manufacturer, today those letters might stand for “research” and “education”— two keystones of Ohio State’s original mission. The key symbolizes the university’s foundational commitment to research and education. And it celebrates our rich tradition of opening doors, opening minds, and opening opportunities.
Key courtesy of the Department of Facilities Operations and Development, Key/Card Control Center.
