August 28, 2025
Although I have been a member of the University of Georgia community for 29 years, I am always inspired by the renewed energy a new academic year brings. It has been a pleasure to welcome faculty, staff and students back to campus from a new perspective in my role as senior vice president for academic affairs and provost.
Alongside our returning students and an impressive group of transfer students, the university welcomed one of the largest and most academically talented first-year classes in its history. These 6,200 students were selected from nearly 48,000 applicants, and they come from 45 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Approximately 80% of the first-year students are Georgia residents, a percentage well above that of many flagship institutions.
The university also welcomed an impressive class of new faculty members this semester. I had the pleasure of meeting many of our new faculty during New Faculty Orientation and the New Faculty Tour stop in Atlanta.
As the new semester begins, UGA is focused on several critical initiatives.
Our commitment to improving health care for all Georgians took another important step forward earlier this summer with the announcement of the new School of Nursing. We are moving forward with efforts to launch the new school, with a goal of welcoming our first nursing students as early as fall 2027.
Preparations for UGA’s new School of Medicine are accelerating. We have made several important faculty and leadership hires, and work on a new medical instruction and research building is well underway on the Health Sciences Campus. To position UGA as a national leader in health and medicine, a campus-wide task force is developing recommendations that will advance our institution’s excellence in health-related instruction, research, and engagement.
Also, this semester, the university will begin the process of crafting our institution’s next five-year strategic plan. A 30-member Strategic Planning Committee comprised of faculty, staff, students and alumni from across the UGA community will develop a series of goals and key performance indicators in response to three mission-centered strategic imperatives: advance and strengthen instructional excellence and student success; accelerate and expand research and innovation that improves society; and deepen UGA’s commitment to serving communities across Georgia and beyond. Your input is vital to this initiative. To that end, please take a few moments to complete a short
feedback survey by Sept.12.
Looking to the year ahead, one of my personal goals is to engage as much as possible with the outstanding faculty and staff in our schools and colleges, including those on UGA’s five campuses outside Athens. I appreciate all you are doing to help our institution build upon its exciting trajectory of excellence in teaching, research and service, and I look forward to working with you during this pivotal time in UGA’s history.
Sincerely,
