Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser<http://www.uta.edu/president/news/messages/2014/12-22.php>. [cid:image005.jpg@01D01E04.9ABE0030] Monday, December 22, 2014 2014 - A UT Arlington Year to Remember Dear members of the Development Board and Friends: 2014 has been an eventful year and one in which much has been accomplished at The University of Texas at Arlington. Many of you have been integral to our advances, and all of you have assisted in ensuring our forward motion. I am deeply grateful for the invaluable guidance you have provided and for the tremendous support that you continue to give to UT Arlington. We began 2014 with record spring enrollment and ended with the highest ever fall enrollment<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/09/fall-2014-enrollment-record.php> – 34,899 students residing in Texas for purposes of education. Overall, UT Arlington has more than 41,500 students on campus and online around the world. We are now one of the five largest universities in Texas and the second largest institution in the University of Texas System. Go Mavs! We enter the New Year guided by our Strategic Plan, “Bold Solutions: Global Impact,”<http://www.uta.edu/strategicplan/> a living, evolving document developed by faculty, staff, supporters and University leaders to identify over-arching themes, aspirations and Maverick imperatives that will guide UT Arlington through 2020. This plan will empower UT Arlington as it becomes an internationally recognized research institution distinguished by excellence and access through education, scholarship, collaboration, innovation, creativity and global impact. I am pleased to share with you the addition of several new leaders who will continue our current momentum. Michael K. Kingan<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/12/Michael-Kingan-appointed-vp-development.php>, a former senior vice president and chief development officer for The University of New Mexico Foundation with more than two decades of success in advancement positions including international experience, will join UT Arlington in February as vice president for development and alumni relations. He will lead our fundraising efforts as we work to engage the more than 190,000 UT Arlington alumni in our quest to strengthen the University’s academic and research enterprises and expand our global impact. We also welcome Dr. Nan Ellin<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/11/Nan-Ellin-appointed-dean-arch-SUPA.php> as the founding dean of a new college that will integrate the School of Architecture and the School of Urban and Public Affairs. Dr. Ellin comes to us from the University of Utah and previously Arizona State University, and she has held several leadership positions in planning, architecture and environmental design throughout her distinguished career. Her knowledge and experience will help guide the formation of the new college and build on the strong reputation of the two schools. They join other pre-imminent academic leaders who have found a home at UT Arlington in the past year, among them: Dr. David Nygren<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/05/david-nygrenappointment.php>, a renowned physicist and member of the National Academy of Sciences who is now a Presidential Distinguished Professor in the College of Science. Dr. Nygren had worked for the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley since 1973 before joining UT Arlington. Dr. Mickey McCabe<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/09/McCabe-UTARI-appointment.php>, former vice president for research at the University of Dayton and executive director of the University of Dayton Research Institute in Ohio, who is now executive director of the UT Arlington Research Institute in Fort Worth. Dr. McCabe is an expert in aerospace and defense technologies and composite materials. Dr. Timothy Quinnan<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/07/vpsa-tim-quinnan.php>, our new vice president for student affairs and an expert in student success and leadership education. Dr. Quinnan previously served as associate vice president for campus life at San Diego State University and in leadership positions at the University of Michigan, University of Cincinnati and Florida State University. Dr. Anne Bavier,<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/04/CONDean-announcement.php> dean of the recently renamed College of Nursing and Health Innovation. Dr. Bavier is a nationally recognized health care leader who previously served as dean of the University of Connecticut School of Nursing in Storrs, Conn. She is president-elect of the 39,000-member National League for Nursing and has served as a program director in the National Institutes of Health’s National Cancer Institute and as deputy director of the Office of Research on Women’s Health in the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Paul Componation<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/05/componation-imse-hired.php>, chair of the Department of Industrial, Manufacturing and Systems Engineering in the College of Engineering. Dr. Componation joined us from Iowa State University and is a nationally renowned systems engineer whose recent work has focused on improving launch system development for NASA. Dr. Kay-Yut Chen<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/06/kay-yut-chen.php>, a renowned behavioral and experimental researcher from Yahoo! and Hewlett-Packard who is now a professor of Information Systems and Operations Management in the College of Business. Dr. Chen adds to the University’s strength in the science and application of big data. Dr. George Siemens<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/01/georgesiemens-uta.php>, executive director of the new Learning Innovation and Networked Knowledge, or LINK, Lab at UT Arlington. Dr. Siemens is an internationally known expert and theorist in the field of digital learning whose work is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, among other entities. With the efforts of these new Mavericks and the many accomplishments of our dedicated faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends, we will continue to see UT Arlington thrive and grow. Other notable trends Our College of Engineering<http://www.uta.edu/engineering/> enrollment surpassed 6,000 students for the first time, increasing by 25 percent compared with fall 2013. The College enrolled more than 800 additional graduate students and almost 350 additional undergraduates. Enrollment in the School of Social Work<http://www.uta.edu/ssw/> climbed to 1,807 students, up 8.7 percent from fall 2013. Nursing enrollment continues to climb throughout the academic year as online degree program sections begin. Overall, UT Arlington will have more than 12,500 nursing students by spring, making our College of Nursing and Health Innovation<http://www.uta.edu/nursing/> one of the largest and most successful programs in the United States. Enrollment in the College of Education<http://www.uta.edu/coehp/> increased almost 13 percent, reflecting strong partnerships with area school districts and increasing demand by teachers and other professionals who want to advance their own knowledge and skills through UT Arlington master’s and doctoral degree programs. In order to continue to grow, we will continue to reach out to more high school students and increase our commitment to diversity, truly representing the communities we serve. For the second consecutive year U.S. News & World Report ranked UT Arlington fifth among national universities for undergraduate diversity. In April, UT Arlington achieved recognition as a Hispanic Serving Institution<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/04/Hispanic-Serving-Institution.php> by the Department of Education and became the highest profile institution in North Texas to receive this designation. This achievement provides a host of opportunities for UT Arlington, including eligibility for a number of federal grants that can be used to expand and enhance academic offerings, which further emphasizes our commitment to diversity. In September, the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities named UT Arlington its 2014 Outstanding HACU-Member Institution<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/09/hacu-uta-award.php> for the school’s contributions to Hispanic higher education. This was followed in October by a grant from the National Science Foundation that will provide free tuition and a $30,000 yearly stipend for two years to a dozen UT Arlington doctoral students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics under the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program<http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2014/10/LSAMP-grant.php>. UT Arlington remains firmly committed to student success. More than 4,700 students earned degrees during December commencement exercises – and I’d invite you to view a video of ceremony highlights at www.uta.edu<http://www.uta.edu>. Altogether, close to 10,000 students will earn degrees in the 2014-2015 academic year and join the ranks of our many accomplished alumni. I’m reminded that the size of our graduating class almost equals the total student population of two well-known and highly reputed private universities in the North Texas region – their total populations are about equal to our graduating class. Now, that’s impact! We also awarded 225 doctoral degrees, exceeding the goal of 200 for Ph.D. production at Tier One research universities and thus fulfilling one more metric in our drive toward meeting the standards established by the state of Texas through the National Research University Fund. Additionally, UT Arlington’s degree production ratio, or the time to degree, continues to be the highest of all institutions in the UT system. We are justifiably proud of our commitment to ensuring both excellence and access. This is what the very best public universities aspire to – access and excellence that enables transformation of the world. This is The University of Texas at Arlington – diverse, innovative and first choice. This is who we are, and this is who we aspire to be – the best of the best – setting standards that others will follow. Here’s to an even better 2015! With appreciation for your continued support, Vistasp M. Karbhari, President The University of Texas at Arlington Office of the President 300 Davis Hall, Box 19125 Arlington, Texas 76019-0125 [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> 817-272-2101 (voice) 817-272-5656 (fax) Messages Archive<http://www.uta.edu/president/news/messages/> // About Vistasp M. Karbhari<http://www.uta.edu/president/about/> // Office of the President<http://www.uta.edu/president/> © 2014 The University of Texas at Arlington. All Rights Reserved. [cid:image006.png@01D01E04.9ABE0030]<http://www.uta.edu/>