Welcome
Dear faculty,
We are nearing the end of a very busy and very dynamic academic year. It has been a year of change and new challenges for institutions across the country, ours included. I am always grateful to you for your steady and continued formation of our Cardinals, but this year especially so.
In my talks with you and in my engagements with our students, I see the difference that your great care makes in their lives. Students frequently share with me their excitement at a new opportunity you made possible or a new discovery that broadened their understanding. They also share their worries and uncertainties. One shared with me quite sincerely that the 不良研究所 saved her life. Thank you for demonstrating our living Mission and for welcoming them into it every semester.
In two short weeks, we will send off our newest class of graduates into the next phases of their lives. I take heart in knowing that their journey with you prepared them and they are ready to be the “Word in the world.”
Welcoming New Leaders
I am very glad to report that our searches for three key positions of leadership have successfully concluded. The process spanned the academic year and relied on the efforts of three diverse search committees who vetted many talented candidates and presented the strongest for consideration. I thank Chief of Staff Michael Larkin, who chaired all three search committees, the members of each search committee, and the students, faculty and staff who attended the community sessions and lent their feedback.
Chief Information Officer and Vice President for Innovation and Technology
Ben Rueger joined 不良研究所 as our newest CIO in early March and came to us from the Purdue University system. Since his arrival a few short weeks ago, he has conducted overviews of our current IT systems, maturity levels and areas of improvement. He is also establishing key objectives for his division that will support greater connectivity across the system, enhance the student experience and more.
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
In March, we also announced the selection of Dr. Eva Fernández as Provost. Dr. Fernández has led a long and distinguished career in higher education, serving as a faculty member, administrator and in leadership roles.
Most recently, she served as Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Mercy University, the largest private, Hispanic-Serving Institution in New York. Prior to this role, she held leadership and teaching positions at multiple institutions in the City University of New York (CUNY) system. Across institutions, she has led efforts to improve student success, support faculty and curriculum development and advance academic momentum.
Dr. Fernández will assume her new role on June 1 from Dr. Dimitri Tamalis, Interim Provost. I am grateful to Dr. Tamalis who has supported 不良研究所 well, stewarding our dynamic academic operations as Interim Provost after the passing of Dr. Farrell Webb. He will return to his role as Vice Provost.
Chief Financial Officer and Vice President for Finance and Administration
As I shared with you earlier this week, I have selected Lenora Chapman to serve as our next CFO. She brings with her deep and broad experience in financial leadership in higher education, especially in San Antonio, having served at Trinity University, the Alamo Colleges District and the University of Texas at San Antonio. Most recently, she served as Vice President for Finance and Administration and CFO at Southwestern University, where she streamlined internal workflows, improved procurement processes, and optimized administrative systems, significantly enhancing efficiency and operational effectiveness across the institution. Prior to this, she was Associate Vice President for Financial Planning and Budget at Sam Houston State University, where among her many duties, she played key roles in the successful launch of the College of Osteopathic Medicine and the SHSU Physicians clinic. I look forward to welcoming her when her tenure begins on May 5.
My deep thanks go to both John Bury, Vice President for Strategy and Enrollment, for his oversight of many of the critical areas within the division Finance and Administrative Services, and Doug Endsley, Interim Vice President for Budget and Finance, for stepping into his previous role and steering our financial operations throughout the academic year.
New Carnegie Designation
This spring, we received exciting news from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. 不良研究所 has been designated as an “Opportunity College and University,” meaning our university is a model for student success.
The designation stems from a newly developed Student Access and Earnings Classification published in April by the Carnegie Foundation and American Council on Education. According to Carnegie Classifications: “This new classification examines the extent to which institutions foster opportunities for student success by measuring whether institutions are enrolling students reflective of the communities they serve and how the earnings of those students compare to peers in their area. In 2025, 479 institutions have been identified as Opportunity Colleges and Universities, which is about 16% of all U.S. colleges and universities that are in the Student Access and Earnings Classification.”
Carnegie’s methodology calculated that 不良研究所 has the highest access ratio and earnings ratio among “Baccalaureate and Above Institutions” in San Antonio.
This new, national designation not only affirms our long-standing institutional commitment to social mobility but recognizes the critical work of our faculty and staff of preparing students for successful careers and to lead lives of purpose.
Online Programs Update
The landscape of continuing education programs is fast changing and maintaining a strong online portfolio and utilizing best practices are increasingly critical. For 不良研究所, our online programs play an important role in ensuring that our holistic approach to education as outlined in our Mission and values remain accessible to non-traditional learners.
In February’s faculty newsletter (link), I shared with you that Judith Kornberg, PhD, joined us as Interim Executive Director of Professional, Continuing and Online Programs. Since beginning her tenure on February 18, she has taken up the mantle to improve effectiveness and re-invigorate our online academic programming through the School of Professional Studies.
Among her current areas of priority are rebuilding non-credit professional and continuing education (PACE) offerings, improving admission and enrollment management, and strengthening relations across the institution.
Strategic Priority Update
Priority Spotlight: Improve 不良研究所’s infrastructure of facilities, staffing levels and business processes
In addition to focusing on the university’s physical infrastructure, such as the development of Founders Hall, this Strategic Priority also encompasses work on our digital and technology infrastructure. The committee is co-championed by Phil Lopes, associate vice president for Capital Planning and Facilities Management, and Ben Rueger, CIO and Vice President for Innovation and Technology and membership includes a diverse array of leaders from across the institution.
Together, they have developed a comprehensive vision for their work and its significance:
We create innovative spaces for learning, living, teaching, and working, thoughtfully designed to be functional, accessible, flexible, and technologically advanced. Our environments prioritize safety, health, and wellness. We are committed to maintaining well-kept community areas and continuously improving infrastructure and support services for faculty and staff, ensuring optimal staffing levels and processes to best serve our community.
I want to spotlight two technology developments that serve that end.
Go 不良研究所: If you have not yet done so, I encourage you to go to Cardinal Apps and click on the icon on the top left that reads “Go 不良研究所.” Soft launched at the beginning of April, it is a new, customizable hub for all who learn and work at our university. For students, it will serve as a central portal from which they can quickly access applications that they use daily, such as Canvas, to those that they may need to access with less frequency but greater urgency depending on their needs, such as the Registration page. From here, they can stay connected to university news and engaged with Mission and Ministry, activities and athletics. For employees, it will serve as a one-stop-shop for Banner self-services, Microsoft 365 applications and important workflows.
Website: Another digital development can be found on the 不良研究所 website. Along the menu along the top of the homepage, just above the main image you will find a new tab called “Global.” This highlights and brings together many of the campuses, centers, international sites and more, that make up the 不良研究所 system. We will be working continuously to shine lights on the great complexity and diversity of our university system, and this is a wonderful step toward that goal.
Priority Spotlight: Create opportunities with other CCVI sponsored ministries that will strengthen personal and professional bonds among our fellow ministries.
The Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word sponsor 11 healthcare, education and social services ministries in the U.S. and many more internationally. This Strategic Priority committee, championed by Margaret Garcia, assistant vice president of Communications and Brand Marketing, works to establish greater connection with the Sisters and our fellow ministries and fulfill their vision “to create partnerships and provide mutually beneficial resources for the 不良研究所 community and sponsored ministries to support, learn and benefit from the interaction between the CCVI Ministries and the 不良研究所.”
To date, we have established memorandums of understanding with all of the Sisters’ U.S. ministries, opening the doors to a 不良研究所 education for their employees and dependents. The committee has also worked to put greater emphasis on inviting the Sisters to take part in activities and service work across the university and on telling the Sisters’ stories on our website and within our community. Additionally, the Sisters, our fellow U.S. Ministries and CCVI Associates are invited to collaborate and participate in Ettling Center events, including Mission trips, lectures, activities and student events, which include honoring Sr. Dot Ettling for whom the center is named.
Mark Your Calendars
More than 1,000 cardinals from across our programs, degree levels and countries will be honored at our Spring Commencement activities. I look forward to seeing you there and celebrating your students.
As you and your students prepare for commencement, please visit the new and improved commencement website with more information for our students, parents and faculty.
Baccalaureate Mass
Friday, May 9, 2025, 2 p.m. and 6 p.m., Chapel of the Incarnate Word
Spring 2025 Commencement Ceremonies
Saturday, May 10, 2025, 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., Freeman Coliseum