Dean Vaught
I am excited to have the opportunity to serve as the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. I have enjoyed being able to work more closely with so many talented faculty over past few months while serving as interim dean. The College truly has an amazing collection of scholars who provide tremendous resources for the campus and the community. As Dean, I will work to ensure that our scholarly activities are recognized by the community and strive to secure the resources necessary to further the mission of the College. I believe there are some exciting times ahead for UMKC, and for the College of Arts and Sciences.
We continue to face economic challenges due to threats of cuts to our state appropriations. This, combined with declining graduation rates for Missouri high school students over the next few years, will necessitate that we look closely for opportunities to create efficiencies in our day-to-day operations and to improve our ability to recruit and retain students. Efforts are currently underway to dramatically improve our ability to retain our first-year students and to improve the number of students completing their degrees in 4 years. We are also enhancing our recruitment efforts, and will soon have a marketing director who will focus on promoting the College. However, our success in these areas will require active participation by faculty and staff in every department.
Over the next several years, we will work diligently to establish our reputation as the destination of choice for high school students in the region. We will work together to implement a strategic plan that will enable us to grow quality graduate and undergraduate programs. We will continue to build upon a culture that nurtures academic success, both for our faculty and for our students. We will ensure that the College builds its visibility and is recognized as a vital resource for the Kansas City community.
I am delighted to be serving as Dean of the College and greatly appreciate the support I have received over the past few months. There are some exciting times ahead for the College of Arts and Sciences, and I look forward to sharing them with you.
Dean Vaught
