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TO: University Senate

FROM: Dennis N. Assanis, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

DATE: April 4, 2016

Provost’s Applied Learning Task Force

We are in the midst of a one-and-a-half year project to develop an Applied Learning Campus Plan. Part I, which was an overview of current Applied Learning activities on campus was submitted to SUNY in January 2016. Parts II-IV are due to SUNY on April 15, 2016: Part II-data acquisition and reporting; Part III-faculty engagement; and Part IV-student engagement.
To complete these sections, we have formed the Provost's Applied Learning Task Force, co-chaired by Marianna Savoca and Nancy Goroff, with three subcommittees, chaired by Nancy Goroff (Part II), Charles Taber (Part III), and Charles Robbins (Part IV). The Task Force has been meeting in whole and in subcommittee over the past several weeks to draft these sections of the Campus Plan, the draft of which they will deliver by April 8, 2016 to the Provost, and the Undergraduate Council and Graduate Council of the University Senate, for their comments.

Parts V-VII of the Campus Plan will be due to SUNY in spring 2017: Part V-feasibility study;
Part VI-collaboration plan; and Part VII-graduation requirement. The overall goal of these sections is to determine whether we have the necessary resources to make experiential learning required of every student on campus.

Provost's Applied Learning Task Force

Marianna Savoca Director, Career Center (Co-chair)
Nancy Goroff Associate Provost, Integration of Research, Education, & Professional Development (Co-chair)

Subcommittee on Data Collection and Assessment Plan (Campus Plan Part II)

Nancy Goroff Associate Provost, IREP (Chair)
Santina Abbate Clinical Assistant Professor, SON
D. Kane Gillespie Senior Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs, CAS
Norman Goodman Distinguished Teaching and Service Professor, Sociology Department; Undergraduate Council
Braden Hosch Assistant Vice President, Office of Institutional Research, Planning, & Effectiveness
Keith Sheppard Director, Center for Science and Math Education (CESAME)

Subcommittee on Faculty Engagement (Campus Plan Part III)

Charles Taber Vice Provost for Graduate and Professional Education (Chair)
Peter Caprariello Assistant Professor, CoB
J. Peter Gergen Professor, Undergraduate Biology
Robert Kukta Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies, CEAS
Jun Liu Vice Provost for Global Affairs
Susan Scheckel Professor, English Department

Subcommittee on Student Engagement (Campus Plan Part IV)

Charles Robbins Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (Chair)
Marianna Savoca Director, Career Center
Danielle Ali Undergraduate Student Government
Cole Lee Undergraduate Student Government
Ken Lindblom Associate Dean for Academic Programs, SPD
Joseph Verardo GSO, MA Student in Tech & Society
Diana Voss Director of Academic Technology Services, DoIT
Tiffany Victor GSO, PhD Student in Chemistry

Stony Brook University’s May 2016 Commencement Ceremonies

The Office of the Provost would like to invite our faculty to participate in the academic procession for Stony Brook University's May 2016 Commencement Ceremonies. The Doctoral Graduation and Hooding Ceremony will be held on Thursday, May 19, 2016 at 1:00 p.m. (assemble at 12:00 p.m.) in the Island Federal Arena. The Baccalaureate Honors Convocation will be held on Thursday, May 19, 2016 at 6:30 p.m. in the Island Federal Arena (assemble at 5:30 p.m.). The University Commencement Ceremony will be held on Friday, May 20, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. (assemble at 10:15 a.m. behind Post 1 in the small parking lot adjacent to the Island Federal Arena/Sports Complex) in the Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium.
Faculty participating in May Commencement Ceremonies must order their gowns online by April 29, 2016 via herffjones.com/faculty. The Office of the Provost will pay the cost for the rental of academic attire for all faculty in departments reporting to the Provost. Caps and gowns will be available for pick-up only at the Bookstore between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. beginning on May 12, 2016. All rentals should be returned to the Bookstore promptly after the University Commencement ceremony; the Bookstore will be open until 5:00 p.m. that day. For additional information, please visit Stony Brook University's Commencement web site at stonybrook.edu/commencement.
Academic Achievement Ceremony

On Friday, April 8, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for Leadership and Service, Benedict D013, Stony Brook University will be holding its annual Academic Achievement Ceremony to honor undergraduate students who have demonstrated extraordinary competence, and have excelled in their academic and extracurricular pursuits at Stony Brook University. These students have achieved a 4.0 GPA in the spring 2015 semester and hold at least a 3.85 cumulative GPA.

Eighth Annual Teaching, Learning & Technology Colloquium

On Friday, April 15, 2016 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Student Activities Center, Ballroom A, Stony Brook University’s Faculty Center will be hosting its Eighth Annual Teaching, Learning & Technology Colloquium entitled "Pedagoggles: A Fresh Focus on Teaching and Technology." The event’s keynote speaker will be Dr. Vivienne Ming. Named one of 10 Women to Watch in Tech in 2013 by Inc. Magazine, Vivienne Ming earned her doctorate at Carnegie Mellon University and is a theoretical neuroscientist, technologist and entrepreneur. She co­founded Socos, where machine learning and cognitive neuroscience combine to maximize students' life outcomes. Vivienne is a visiting scholar at UC Berkeley's Redwood Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, where she pursues her research in neuroprosthetics. To view the complete program agenda, please visit https://facultycenter.stonybrook.edu/events/teaching-learning-colloquium/2016

Admitted Students Day

Admitted students and their families are invited to campus on Saturday, April 9, 2016 to meet with faculty, students and staff to learn more about our campus and life at Stony Brook. Guided walking tours of our campus and residence halls will be ongoing throughout the day. We will
host approximately 5,000 guests on campus, including 2,500 new students who will attend with their parents and/or family members. For additional information, including a schedule of events, visit http://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/admitted/asd

Earthstock 2016

Stony Brook University is at the vanguard of the sustainability movement. Our commitment to a green future is evident everywhere on our 1,400 acres, from reducing our carbon footprint, to advocating recycling and using recycled materials whenever possible, to promoting alternatively fueled transportation. Stony Brook will host its annual Earthstock event, surrounding environmental awareness and sustainability, in which environmental organizations, participants with an earth-friendly message, and local schools will celebrate in the Academic Mall on April 22nd, 2016 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. This year’s Earthstock keynote speaker will be Dr. John Warner, who will give a talk entitled “Green Chemistry: The Missing Elements” on Friday, April 22, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. in the Wang Center Auditorium. Green Chemistry is a philosophy that seeks to reduce or eliminate the use of hazardous materials at the design stage of a materials process. This presentation will describe the history and background of Green Chemistry and discuss the opportunities for the next generation of materials designers to create a safer and more sustainable future. For more information on SBU’s 2016 Earthstock program, please visit http://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/earthstock/

2016 Graduate Award Winners
I am pleased to announce the 2016 winners of the Graduate School Awards for students, faculty and staff. I am grateful to the members of this year's selection committee: Dimitrios Samaras (Computer Science), David Black (Marine Sciences), Derek Teaney (Physics), Christopher Sellers (History), Michael Peress (Political Science), Marcia Simon (Graduate Council) and Jessica Seeliger (Pharmacology). All awards will be presented at the Graduate School's Annual Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, May 18, 2016.
President's Award to Distinguished Doctoral Students
Matthew Gilbert, English
Luisa Escobar-Hoyos, Molecular & Cellular Pharmacology
Jue Liu, Chemistry
Wolfger Peelaers, Physics
Mao Zeng, Physics

The winners of the President's Award to Distinguished Doctoral Students will present a synopsis of their research (geared to a non-specialist audience) at a symposium held in conjunction with the Graduate Awards Ceremony. One of these winners will be asked to give a commencement speech at the Doctoral Hooding Ceremony.
President's Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student
Andrew Conklin, Music
Michelle Ho, Cultural Analysis & Theory
Simone Hoffman, Anatomical Sciences
Ashley Lytle, Psychology
Vahideh Rasekhi, Linguistics
Anthony Teets, English

The winners of the President's Award for Excellence in Teaching will be invited to participate in the August 2016 Workshop for New Teaching Assistants presented each year to new doctoral students during graduate orientation events.
Mildred and Herbert Weisinger Dissertation Fellowship

Anusha Shankar, Ecology & Evolution

Madeline Fusco Fellowship Award
Heidi Rademacher, Sociology
Faculty-Staff Dissertation Fellowship Award
Nicholas Parkinson, Art History
John Marburger III Fellowship for Science, Engineering and Mathematics
Fang Xu, Chemistry
Joyce Turner Dissertation Fellowship Award
Francisco Delgado, English
Dean's Alumni Association Leadership Award
Saul Siller, Molecular & Cellular Pharmacology
Dean's Award for Excellence and Innovation in Graduate Education
Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology graduate program

Dean's Award for Excellence in Graduate Mentoring by a Faculty Member
Mary Rawlinson, Philosophy
Dean's Award for Excellence in Graduate Teaching by a Faculty Member
Richard Larson, Linguistics
Dean's Award for Excellence in Service to Graduate Education by a Graduate Program Director
Shirley Lim, History
Dean's Award for Excellence in Service to Graduate Education by a Graduate Program Coordinator
Kathleen-Anna Amella, Philosophy
Joann Delucia-Conlon, Molecular & Cellular Biology and Biochemistry & Structural Biology