Weekly Letter from the Provost—Dec. 12 Edition
Weekly Letter from the Provost
This weekly newsletter serves as one of the many tools my office uses to keep you informed and engaged as we make progress toward our three goals for Academic Affairs. Thank you for your interest and support.
If you have suggestions for what we should include in future communications, please submit your ideas or stories here. Suggestions received before noon on Monday will be reviewed and considered for publication in that week’s newsletter. Others will be held for consideration until the following week.
Today’s update falls into four categories:
If you have suggestions for what we should include in future communications, please submit your ideas or stories here. Suggestions received before noon on Monday will be reviewed and considered for publication in that week’s newsletter. Others will be held for consideration until the following week.
Today’s update falls into four categories:
- Campus news and happenings
- Goal 1: Shape enrollment and improve retention and graduation rates for all students
- Goal 2: Improve career outcomes and better prepare our students to succeed and lead in an AI-transformed workforce
- Goal 3: Strengthen academic excellence
Campus News and Happenings
Board of Trustees Meeting Recap
Today, my office presented fall 2026 graduate student tuition rates to DU’s Board for approval. My thanks to Corinne Lengsfeld, senior vice provost for research and graduate education, and all of the deans for their thoughtful and extensive collaboration to bring forward next year’s recommended rates. At this meeting, I shared DU’s plans to implement a Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) approach over the next three years, striking the right balance between student selectivity, net tuition revenue, and access. Todd Rinehart, vice chancellor for enrollment management, and Corinne Lengsfeld provided undergraduate and graduate applications updates for fall 2026.
Meeting With the Staff Senate
On Wednesday, I joined Chancellor Jeremy Haefner, Jeff Banks, vice chancellor for human resources, and Christopher Whitt, vice chancellor of community support and engagement, for the Staff Senate’s December meeting. During this session, we participated in a series of conversations based on questions submitted in advance around staff compensation, workload, community/culture, transparency/governance, budget strategy, job growth/professional development, graduate enrollment, and policies/parking. We greatly appreciate the invitation from the Staff Senate and the opportunity to engage in such a robust and productive dialogue.
Council of Deans Meeting Recap
On Thursday, I conducted a listening and learning session with DU’s academic deans. Having met with each of their units over the fall term, it was wonderful to engage them as a collective. Additionally, Bobbie Kite, dean of the College of Professional Studies, and Henrika McCoy, dean of the Graduate School of Social Work and acting dean of the Morgridge College of Education, shared examples of academic unit reorganization approaches. We also finalized plans for next week’s daylong budget retreat on Dec. 15.
Meeting With the Faculty Senate
Today, Leslie Hasche, vice provost for faculty affairs, and I participated in December’s Faculty Senate meeting, where senators discussed their resolution concerning academic mergers. I am grateful to Faculty Senate President Sarah Watamura for the invitation to participate. With deliberations underway amongst the faculty and staff in the Morgridge College of Education (MCE), Graduate School of Social Work (GSSW), and the Graduate School of Professional Psychology (GSPP) on a new structure/academic home for MCE, I was happy to meet with the Faculty Senate to discuss opportunities for further collaboration if/as future merger conversations arise.
2025 Staff Award Recipients Announced
We are pleased to announce the 2025 recipients of the Staff Awards at the University of Denver. Every year, the University recognizes outstanding staff who have made a positive and significant impact on our community. This year’s awardees include:
- Outstanding Service Award: Michael LaFarr, assistant vice chancellor of health and wellness in Student Affairs
- Staff Innovator Award: Stacey Stevens, executive director of employer connections and alumni career engagement in Career & Professional Services
- Crimson & Gold Civic Engagement Award: Cortney Hallagin, the former senior sales manager in Conference and Event Services
- Quality Department Award: The Office of Student Rights & Responsibilities
Congratulations to the 2025 staff awardees! We are all incredibly proud of you for the difference you make in the lives of our students.
Goal 1: Shape Enrollment and Improve Retention and Graduation Rates
Announcing the Return of DU’s Path Forward Program in 2026
This week, the Office of Student Success announced that it would be running the Path Forward Program again this year, beginning in January 2026. You can access last year’s assessment report for some insights into the program’s successes in 2025.
Program details and FAQs can be found on the Path Forward Program website. Eligible first-time, first-year students will be invited to join the program on Jan. 2, 2026. Please contact Kristy Firebaugh if you have questions about the program. Thank you for encouraging students to enroll and benefit from additional academic and financial support.
Program details and FAQs can be found on the Path Forward Program website. Eligible first-time, first-year students will be invited to join the program on Jan. 2, 2026. Please contact Kristy Firebaugh if you have questions about the program. Thank you for encouraging students to enroll and benefit from additional academic and financial support.
Undergraduate Persistence Dashboards Updated in Data Insights
The undergraduate persistence dashboards in Data Insights have been updated to reflect the fall end of term (EOT) census. These dashboards allow users to explore multiple combinations of facets of student characteristics, and they can be accessed in Data Insights in the My4D portal.
To access the dashboards, please visit the My4D portal, then select “Data Insights,” then “Institutional Research Dashboard” under the “Graduation and Persistence” tab. A DU login is required, and the site can be viewed on campus or through a DU VPN.
The fall 2024 one-year EOT retention rate for first-time, first-year (FTFY) students is 88.97%—very slightly above last year's rate of 88.94% and representing a 10-year high at DU. We appreciate your efforts, big and small, to support our goal to improve graduation rates. Many thanks to the Office of Student Success for their insights and programming that serve as key drivers for our progress as we work to improve persistence rates.
To access the dashboards, please visit the My4D portal, then select “Data Insights,” then “Institutional Research Dashboard” under the “Graduation and Persistence” tab. A DU login is required, and the site can be viewed on campus or through a DU VPN.
The fall 2024 one-year EOT retention rate for first-time, first-year (FTFY) students is 88.97%—very slightly above last year's rate of 88.94% and representing a 10-year high at DU. We appreciate your efforts, big and small, to support our goal to improve graduation rates. Many thanks to the Office of Student Success for their insights and programming that serve as key drivers for our progress as we work to improve persistence rates.
Goal 2: Improve Career Outcomes and Better Prepare Our Students to Succeed and Lead in an AI-transformed Workforce
Provost Lunch and Learn – Career Outcomes Dashboard
On Tuesday, my office hosted a lunch and learn for staff with the Provost Office, representatives from the College of Professional Studies (PSC), and members of the Goal Two Academic Affairs Committee to review DU’s new Career Outcomes dashboard.
Federica Bologna, director of business information and systems in the Division of Career and Professional Development, reviewed the processes and approaches taken to develop this new dashboard. Ben Siebrasse, director of analytics and senior data scientist in the Office of Institutional Research, provided a dashboard demonstration. Marcel Thomas, director of data insights and operations, and Alex Parnell, director of admissions, student, and workforce success, reviewed the PSC-specific outcomes dashboard as well as the chatbot, named “Chappie,” that they have been developing as an engagement tool with students and parents who come to their website for information.
I walked away from the event impressed and inspired by the great work our faculty and staff are doing to produce and promote DU’s incredible student outcomes. I look forward to the continued strengthening of career outcomes for our students as a key indicator of DU’s value proposition.
Federica Bologna, director of business information and systems in the Division of Career and Professional Development, reviewed the processes and approaches taken to develop this new dashboard. Ben Siebrasse, director of analytics and senior data scientist in the Office of Institutional Research, provided a dashboard demonstration. Marcel Thomas, director of data insights and operations, and Alex Parnell, director of admissions, student, and workforce success, reviewed the PSC-specific outcomes dashboard as well as the chatbot, named “Chappie,” that they have been developing as an engagement tool with students and parents who come to their website for information.
I walked away from the event impressed and inspired by the great work our faculty and staff are doing to produce and promote DU’s incredible student outcomes. I look forward to the continued strengthening of career outcomes for our students as a key indicator of DU’s value proposition.
DU Students Complete Impactful Research Internships in France and Spain
Six DU students spent their fall 2025 quarter making real-world impact through research internships in France and Spain, an opportunity sponsored by the Institute for Field Education (IFE). Students participating in IFE programs complete a 12-week, full-time, credit-bearing international internship in the languages of host countries. At the conclusion of the fall term, each student developed a 30-page research paper, which was written in the host language and under the guidance of a research adviser who specializes in each student’s field. The students’ research focused on a question arising from work in their internship on behalf of their host organization.
More information on the programs can be found here:
More information on the programs can be found here:
Goal 3: Strengthen Academic Excellence
Students Gain Valuable Experience in the Arts Through Unique Internships
DU’s Theatre Tech Internship Program, recently featured in the Denver Gazette, provides our students (the Pio Techs) with practical real-world experience building sets—not just for campus productions, but for some of the best professional stages in the Denver metro area. In the past 18 months, they have built the sets for 22 stage productions ranging from small plays to large musicals for a client list that spans Curious, the Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company, Parker Arts, Local Theater Company, and Veritas Productions. Thank you to Steven McDonald, scenery director and professor in the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Department of Theatre, for his leadership over this program.
Final Reminder: Request for Proposals—2026 Professional Research Opportunities for Faculty
The 2026 Professional Research Opportunities for Faculty (PROF) request for proposals (RFP) is now available! Proposals are due Feb. 2, 2026, by 5 p.m. The PROF Fund supports faculty research and creative work that advances the “One DU” vision. Awards are available up to $27k for single investigators and $45k for multidisciplinary teams.
Applicants can find the RFP, application, and budget template on the PROF Digication site(DU login is required).
For questions, please contact Audry LaCrone.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth G. Loboa
Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor
Applicants can find the RFP, application, and budget template on the PROF Digication site(DU login is required).
For questions, please contact Audry LaCrone.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth G. Loboa
Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor