Provost Communication, Wednesday, November 20, 2024

Hello and happy Wednesday! I hope you are surviving the rain and those last few days prior to Fall Break. I will take a break from Provost Communications next week and resume on December 2, 2024. In the meantime, there is a lot to share with you.

National Enrollment Update

Please take a look at this National Student Clearinghouse update, which summarizes early results from fall enrollment in the U.S. While enrollment overall increased nationally, the big news is that this fall, first-year student enrollment declined 5% across the nation. Four-year public institutions, like ours, actually declined 8.5% in freshman enrollment since last year. Our campus saw a slight dip in first-year student numbers, but nothing of this magnitude, and also managed to significantly increase our new, upper division transfer enrollment and our retention of current students. This means we are outperforming many of our peers, thanks to the strategic work that is underway. Thanks to each of you for your efforts.

URPC Divisional Presentations

Thanks to those of you who were able to join the University Resources and Planning Committee (URPC) last Friday for the second of three sessions dedicated to Divisional Reporting of budget reductions and impacts for last fiscal year. On Friday we heard from Academic Affairs and Enrollment Management and Student Success. Thanks to Chrissy Holliday for partnering with me to deliver these presentations. If you missed them, you can view them here.

On Friday, December 6, 2024, we will complete the divisional presentations at the next URPC meeting from 1 pm-2:30 pm and will hear from Advancement and Athletics. The Zoom link and time certains will be shared when we return from fall break. I am looking forward to continued engagement. 

Fix Your Content Day: Accessibility Assistance Tomorrow November 21, 2024

Accessibility is helpful for all and necessary for some. Accessibility supports student success and it is the law. Recent changes to Federal law make it imperative to provide accessible materials to all students by April 2026. Join the Accessibility Faculty Fellows to get hands-on guidance to fix your Canvas and other class materials. 

What is in it for me? 

An amendment to Appendix J has been approved to count accessibility efforts toward Retention, Tenure, and Promotion (RTP) consideration.

• Date: Thursday, November 21, 2024

• Location: Lib 121 (computer lab)

• Time: 11:30 am - 1:00 pm

Accessibility Fellows can help you with: 

• Interpreting and using Ally Accessibility checker and scoring in Canvas

• Adding Alt-text to images

• Easy fixes you can do yourself to rapidly improve your Canvas course

• When to contact the Accessibility Resource Center (ARC)

• Captioning materials

• How to handle PDFs

AI & Pie: Reading Critically with AI (While Reading AI Critically)

Thursday, November 21, 12 pm - 1 pm, Library 308

In this session, we will introduce AI-powered tools designed to enhance reading and comprehension. These tools assist users in navigating complex articles by summarizing key points, answering questions, and synthesizing key findings. Through demonstrations and hands-on practice, we will show how these tools can be used before, during, and after reading to make the process more focused and efficient. We will also discuss the benefits and limitations of these tools, sharing strategies for incorporating them into your courses (and possibly your own research) while promoting AI literacy and critical thinking. 

Please contact the CTL (ctl@humboldt.edu) with any questions. 

Inclusive Course Materials

In an effort to expand the ease of students receiving their classroom materials, we are launching a trial for Spring 2025 for a Cal Poly Humboldt Immediate Access program for a few course sections that currently adopt book materials with our Follett Campus Store Partner. The goal is to have materials available on the first day of instruction for students, with a lower-cost digital option, that will be coordinated with the student’s account for pending financial aid support. We are launching a small trial to work out any logistics or technical issues so that other faculty who are interested can join the program in Fall 2025. For more information, see the attached flyer and visit this Zoom recording from earlier this month.

I hope that you enjoy some well-earned time off next week. You are appreciated.

Sincerely,

Jenn Capps

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Jenn Capps, PhD 

Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs 

Cal Poly Humboldt