Hello colleagues,

I hope your semester is going well as we move closer to commencement. Once again, I’m happy to share updates on recent achievements by your colleagues.

• I previously mentioned Sofia Samatar’s recent book, The White Mosque. That work is now also the winner of the 2023 Bernard J. Brommel Award for Biography and Memoir from the Society of Midland Authors. Congratulations!   
• Bill Lukens, Assistant Professor of Geology and Environmental Science, was interviewed by WHSV regarding his research recently published in Science. Check out the interview here.
• The Center for Assessment and Research Studies (CARS) won an award for distinguished and sustained leadership for assessment. See this article for details on the Trudy W. Banta Lifetime Achievement in Assessment Award and how CARS faculty and staff work with doctoral psychology students in assessment and measurement. 

Last week I received this inquiry: How are updates/achievements chosen for the Provost's emails? This is a great question! My goal is to highlight as many of the amazing activities involving faculty and staff as possible. Some featured stories come from JMU News, while others rise to the top of various college news feeds, social media and newsletters. I’d love to feature awards and achievements that may not have received notice in another forum, so please send ideas – for yourself or your colleagues – to provost@jmu.edu.

Please keep submitting questions and comments! You can email provost@jmu.edu or submit a question through the Ask the Provost option online. 

Sincerely, 

Heather Coltman

To increase transparency and eliminate some common misunderstandings about the operation of the division, I've added this anonymous feedback feature.

This is an open line of communication that allows faculty and staff to express their questions, but it is not a substitute from the crucial interactions you have with your academic unit head and dean.