(Oct. 18, 2017) -- Since his arrival at the beginning the current academic year, UTSA President Taylor Eighmy has been very busy meeting with faculty, staff, students, administrators, alumni, donors, elected officials and local community members. Outlining his vision of the future of UTSA, President Eighmy identified five themes that he will be focusing on going forward. Those themes include becoming a great multicultural discovery enterprise, an exemplary urban-serving university of the future, world-engaged, a fertile landscape for the cultivation of excellence among faculty/staff/students, and an institution known for operational and infrastructure excellence.
With regard to the second theme – becoming an urban-serving university - President Eighmy went on to say:
Great cities need great universities and great universities need great cities. Active engagement with San Antonio’s research and high-tech industries, K-12 school systems, health care providers, cultural establishments and governmental entities will pave the way, solidifying UTSA’s role as a driver of San Antonio’s rich and diverse cultural and economic ecosystem.
For our students and faculty, San Antonio serves as a living laboratory, providing opportunities for experiential learning and developing the leaders of tomorrow. UTSA will serve as the city’s anchor for cradle to career education, economic development and community engagement. Our mission is to help all San Antonians realize their dreams and attain prosperity.
According to a definition from the Coalition of Urban Service Universities (USU), an urban-serving university is about more than being located in an urban area. It means that the university must be – and be seen as – an anchor institution, an essential component of the social, cultural and economic well-being of the community.
The Coalition further clarifies the work of an urban service university to include:
In a previous column from in these pages in March of last year, I discussed The New American University, a model spearheaded by Arizona State University President Michael Crow. Many of the features of the ASU model are applicable to UTSA and stem from the long tradition and rich history of inclusiveness by land grant institutions that resulted from the Morrill Act of 1862. Crow further elaborates by saying:
ASU is a comprehensive public research university, measured not by whom we exclude, but rather by whom we include and how they succeed; advancing research and discovery of public value; and assuming fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural and overall health of the communities it serves.
In a research task undertaken by Portland State University to gather and present mission statements of ASU and other USU members, the university also outlined its own mission in the process:
Portland State University’s mission is to enhance the intellectual, social, cultural and economic qualities of urban life by providing access throughout the life span to a quality liberal education for undergraduates and an appropriate array of professional and graduate programs especially relevant to metropolitan areas. The University conducts research and community service that support a high quality educational environment and reflect issues important to the region. It actively promotes the development of a network of educational institutions to serve the community.
No doubt, the model of the above USU institutions and others will provide a useful set of guideposts for UTSA going forward. USU’s organizational mission further elaborates:
The Coalition of Urban Serving Universities (USU) is a president-led organization committed to enhancing urban university engagement to increase prosperity and opportunity in the nation's cities, and to tackling key urban challenges. Membership includes more than 35 public urban research universities representing all U.S. geographic regions.
The USU agenda is guided by three capabilities Research, Public Engagement, and Policy. Current projects address these issues by facilitating transformations in student success pathways, encouraging campus-community partnerships to build strong communities, and ensuring greater diversity in the healthcare industry.
Additional details remain forthcoming from President Eighmy. It is clear, however, that based on the models of USU peer and aspirant institutions and communities, both San Antonio and UTSA remain well-positioned for a bright future indeed.
This article was originally published on Oct. 16, 2017 in the San Antonio Business Journal.
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Archaeology 201 will briefly go over the foundations of archaeology and related skills, followed by a different topic over the course of this week (like skeletal analysis, global cultures, and more).
Center for Archaeological Research, UTSA Main CampusCraft a comic to create your own narrative and find your voice through storytelling. Participants will learn to create characters that are self-reflective and through a community lens.
REGSS Community Room (DB 3.202,) UTSA Downtown CampusJoin the Student Involvement Center and the Whataburger Resource Room (Food-Pantry) for a service project! Help us prepare for the Roadrunner Days Move-In Market on Thursday, July 25 from 11 AM - 2 PM by assisting us with the following volunteer needs. We are preparing for UTSA's largest garage sale, but everything is free for our students!
BK Lot 5 Building (Next to Campus Garden), Main CampusCome enjoy a discussion on art as a self expression in the age of moving technology and telling your story with a community.
REGSS Community Room (DB 3.202,) UTSA Downtown CampusYou will get the opportunity to learn about the importance of psychopharmacology, common medications for pediatric populations, and best practices for collaborating with health care teams and families.
Virtual EventThe UTSA Veteran and Military Office will be holding a social event for our new military-affiliated students to come out and meet our office, staff, and other students.
MB 0.100, Ground Floor Lobby, Main BuildingThe Student Union invites you to join us for Kickback at the Union, a fun event designed to get you acquainted with all of the services available in the Student Union!
Student UnionThe University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.
To be a premier public research university, providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.
We encourage an environment of dialogue and discovery, where integrity, excellence, inclusiveness, respect, collaboration and innovation are fostered.
UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education .
The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to promoting access for all. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.