[The following was provided by the Henry W. Bloch School of Management.]

Teng-Kee Tan is taking a hiatus from his duties as dean of the Henry W. Bloch School of Management.

Tan announced to faculty and staff on April 30 that he is undergoing evaluation due to the discovery of a significant health issue. Bloch School Associate Dean David Donnelly, Ph.D., will serve as acting dean of the Bloch school as Tan undergoes medical treatment.

Tan has been with the Bloch School since 2009, and has been the catalyst for the success of the school’s new strategic plan and rebranding as the Henry W. Bloch School of Management. During Tan’s tenure, Bloch School benefactor Henry Bloch announced a $32 million gift to fund the construction of the Henry W. Bloch Executive Hall for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, a state-of-the-art building designed to propagate team and experiential learning. The building is slated to open for classes this fall.

Tan’s current plans are to step down from his post as dean no later than August 2014 and return to the school’s faculty while assisting University leadership in identifying a successor. The university will form a search committee during the summer to initiate the process of selecting a new permanent dean for the school.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Dean Tan, his family, and the people at the Bloch School who hold so much admiration and respect for him,” said Leo E. Morton, chancellor. “We are focused on his treatment and recovery and hopeful for his return.”

The Master of Social Work Student Organization (MSWSO) in partnership with the School of Social Work and community sponsor First Call presented the first student-based symposium May 10 in the Student Union.

Mark Brehm, MSWSO president, helped develop the concept and opened the session. Rosalyn Bertram, associate professor of social work, presented a slideshow that reflected student research from prior capstone courses that had been published. She invited those in attendance to visit the poster panels in the room that carried results from this year’s capstone research projects.

The audience included faculty and alumni as well as representatives of community organizations and agencies.

Marilyn Rymer, M.D., Department of Internal Medicine Professor and Edward T. Matheny, Jr. Missouri Endowed Chair in Neuroscience in the School of Medicine at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, won the Rose Award for Philanthropy and Community Leadership from the American Stroke Foundation.

Rymer, medical director of Saint Luke’s Neuroscience Institute, has focused her work as a clinician and researcher to improve acute stroke intervention, develop a stroke center, reduce disparities in stroke care delivery and organize regional stroke care networks.

Rymer received her award at a luncheon May 2 at the Regnier Center at Johnson County Community College. The Rose Award for Philanthropy and Community Leadership was created in 2011 to recognize individuals in the Kansas City area who have made a significant, positive impact on the welfare of others.

The Rose award was named in honor of the American Stroke Foundation co-founder, Shirley Rose, recognizing her commitment to community service and leadership. Rose was the first recipient of the award, and U.S. Congressman Dennis Moore received the award in 2012.

Rymer started in 1981 as faculty at UMKC. She was named an endowed chair in 1999.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, May 22, is Staff Appreciation Day. The day-long thank you to UMKC staff members will begin at 8 a.m. with Staff Council representatives distributing Krispy Kreme donuts.

The thank you continues with a delicious barbecue lunch and celebration program from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the Volker Campus Quad. The lunch menu includes barbecue chicken and beef brisket, veggie burgers, a fresh fruit salad, roasted vegetable bow-tie pasta salad and peach cobbler. Don’t forget your UMKC Staff ID card.

The celebration program will begin at noon with the Chancellor’s address, a speech from Staff Council chair Kevin Sansberry and the introduction of newly elected Staff Council voting members.

Representatives from Healthy for Life, Women of Color and the UMKC Capital Campaign will have information available about their programs, services and upcoming events.

Lunch guests will have a chance to win one of 35 exciting door prizes, including an Apple iPad mini, a month of free parking, Roo Bucks and gift certificates to area shops, restaurants and other venues. The prize winners will be announced at the event.

The Kona Ice Truck will finish out the day. The truck will be on the Volker Campus Quad from 1 to 2 p.m. and in the circle drive between School of Medicine and the Health Sciences Building from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.

Shuttles from the Health Sciences Campus and the Volker Campus will begin at 11 a.m. and run every 15 minutes until 2 p.m.

For the most up-to-date schedule and for more information about Staff Council go to: http://info.umkc.edu/staffcouncil/celebrate

The Division of Diversity, Access and Equity is currently accepting applications for 10 to 15 faculty members to participate in its Diversity Curriculum Infusion Institute. Faculty participants will work with peers to develop or redevelop course curriculum with the support and guidance of a faculty instructor. The application deadline has been extended to May 24.

Started in 2003, the Institute has provided guidance to approximately 136 faculty members who wanted to infuse more diversity into their curriculum. UMKC understands and values diverse perspectives and histories, which add intellectual, social and economic development.

Upon completion of the four required workshops and documentation, each faculty member will receive professional development funds in the amount of $1,000.

The application and additional details about the workshops can be found at the Division of Diversity. For information regarding the Institute, contact Omiunota Ukpokodu, Ph.D., professor in the School of Education at ukpokodun@umkc.edu or call 816-235-2469.

It’s that time again.  Has it already been a year? If you have not already been asked, it’s time for you to complete your self appraisal for 2013.

This is the time to set goals for the next year, discuss and make note of your success throughout the past 12 months and make sure you are working towards unified goals with your colleagues in your department. Human Resources is excited to announce that this year the entire performance appraisal is now electrified!

Both the employee self appraisal and the supervisor appraisal are completed online using the HR UMKC Performance Appraisal Application. All employees should begin the process by logging in and completing the self appraisal.  Work on it all at once or take a little time each day until you complete the self appraisal.  Your supervisor will not have access to the self appraisal until you have completed it and the appraisal meeting has taken place.

• Look for the appraisal information here:

http://www.umkc.edu/hr/employee-relations/default.asp

• Take some time to review the instructions before logging in.

http://www.umkc.edu/hr/employee-relations/Performance_Appraisal_Technical_Manual.pdf

• You can also find a link to the application under Seasonal Hot Links on the UMKC HR web site.  www.umkc.edu/hr.

If you have not received your unit specific directions from your supervisor regarding deadlines and processes, contact your unit HR facilitator who coordinates your payroll and HR actions.  If you don’t know who that is, consult this list: http://www.umkc.edu/hr/payroll/hr-facilitators-by-department.asp.

Each year, UMKC’s Faculty Ombudsperson Nancy E. Day issues an annual report of general issues she’s seen in the academic year. The 2012-2013 Faculty Ombudsperson Annual Report is now posted on the Ombudsperson Website and the Ombuds Blackboard site.

The mission of the ombudsperson is to contribute to a fair, equitable and respectful work environment by providing independent, neutral, confidential and informal consultation to faculty who visit.

According to the report, at least half of all visitors’ issues relate to conflicts and communication problems with faculty supervisors, particularly regarding decisions about performance evaluation. This is the most frequently presented category in the past three years.

[The following was provided by Staff Council]

Staff Council invites all staff to participate in the 2013 Staff Appreciation Day on May 22.

The theme of the event is Celebrate! Not only are we celebrating the university’s 80^th anniversary, but Staff Council is celebrating its first year as a reinvigorated organization. Neither of these milestones would be possible without the never-ending support and dedication of UMKC staff members. May 22 will serve as a day-long thank you.

The tentative schedule is as follows:

8 – 9:30 a.m.: Krispy Kreme donuts, distributed by unit on both campuses

11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.: Barbecue lunch, Volker Campus Quad (rain site – Pierson Auditorium) – shuttles available from Hospital Hill

12 p.m.: Short Program, including Chancellor’s Address.

Afternoon: Introduction of new Staff Council members.  Winners will be announced for the more than 35 door prizes, including an iPad Mini.

1-2 p.m.: Kona Ice Truck, Volker Campus Quad

2:30-3:30 p.m.: Kona Ice Truck, circle drive by Health Science Building

For the most up-to-date schedule and for more information about Staff Council, visit our website.

[The following was provided by the Office of Student Affairs]

Graduating students who have excelled in both academic achievement and community service may be nominated as a Vice Chancellor’s Honor Recipient.This recognition honors students who maintain high scholastic performance while actively participating in university and community activities outside the classroom.

Congratulations to the Spring 2013 Honor Recipients.

• Deepti Bankapur, SCE (ECE) – Nominated by Deborah O’Bannon and LaShaundra Randolph
• Joshua Boehm, A&S (UP+D) – Nominated by Sungyop Kim
• Christine Burleson, A&S (Psychology) – Nominated by Jannette Berkley-Patton
• Ashley Capps, Pharmacy – Nominated by Cameron Lindsey
• Melony Chakrabarty, Medicine – Nominated by Connie Beachler
• Andrew Dang, Biology – Nominated by Tammy Welchert
• Krishna Doddapaneni, SCE (Computer Science) – Nominated by Jamie Kanki
• Karol Gil Vasquez, A&S (Economics) – Nominated by John Henry
• Collin Herman, A&S (Chemistry) and Biology – Nominated by Kathleen Kilway and Loretta Sanderson Klamm
• Ryan Holbrook, A&S (Chemistry) – Nominated by Kathleen Kilway
• Brandon Jackson, A&S (Chemistry) – Nominated by LaShaundra Randolph
• Mena Kerolus, Medicine – Nominated by Agostino Molteni
• Sarah Meiners, Biology – Nominated by Aaron Reed and Ursula Gurney
• James Mitchell, A&S (Environmental Studies) – Nominated by Caroline Davies
• Ashika Odhav, Medicine – Nominated by Kathy Kinder
• Amy Quinn, Law – Nominated by Nancy Levit
• Bethany Rippy, Biology – Nominated by Hazel Jones
• Jamison Ryan, Biology – Nominated by Aaron Reed and Bill Smith
• Jouliana Sadek, Graduate Studies (Molecular Biology and BioChemistry) – Nominated by Sandy Gault

[The following was provided by Public Relations]

Missouri’s new partnership with the online Western Governors University is not in direct competition with UMKC, at least for now. But the revolutionary approach to higher education employed by WGU is a harbinger of changes that will eventually confront traditional colleges and universities.

That was the message Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Dr. Gail Hackett brought to the Faculty Senate last week in a briefing on the state’s decision to partner with WGU.

Hackett explained that WGU is an online-only university that offers no traditional classes or courses. Students earn credits via assessments of knowledge and competencies students develop via independent reading, workplace experience, massive open online courses (MOOCs) or other means. WGU’s target audience is working adults with some college credit already who are pursuing degree completion. There is no teaching faculty; students are advised by “mentors” who help them find and select qualifying “learning experiences”; students can ask for credit-granting competence testing whenever, and as often, as they like.

WGU is run by a consortium of state governments; Missouri is one of five states involved. Other participating states are Indiana, Tennessee, Texas and Washington. WGU offers a limited menu of degree options, primarily in the areas of business, education, health professions and information technology.  The university is accredited, but the education program at WGU Texas was rated as “at risk” by U.S. Dept. of Education in 2011.

“Right now, they probably won’t be taking any students away from us,” Hackett told the Senate, “but all of higher education is starting to move in this direction,” despite the skepticism of many higher education professionals.

“The lesson for us is, eventually we are going to have to grapple with prior learning assessment and competence assessment,” she said. “The value of seat time in the classroom is coming under scrutiny … if we think their approach isn’t the way to go, we need to develop alternative approaches.”

The key to any alternative, she said, is making it user-friendly for adults working full time, making it possible for them to complete a degree in a reasonable amount of time.

“Our job is to explain that higher education is more than just a collection of competencies,” she said.