AUGUST 22, 2023 — Rebecca Schroeder, interim associate dean of University College and professor of instruction for the college, and Wenbo Wu, the Graham Weston Endowed Professor and chair of the Department of Management Science and Statistics, have been accepted into the Texas Academic Leadership Academy (TALA) for the 2023-2024 academic year. Both are also core faculty members in the UTSA School of Data Science.
TALA is a year-long experience that develops leadership skills in aspiring academic leaders. TALA Fellows are guided by senior academic leaders and mentors from institutions across the state on topics such as finance in higher education, diversity, conflict management, free speech, faculty concerns, research, assessment, accreditation and strategic planning. Participating in the academy will help Schroeder and Wu advance in their current and future roles as academic leaders and help UTSA advance as a model for student success and academic excellence.
Schroeder and Wu are part of the sixth TALA cohort. They were nominated by their colleges to UTSA Academic Affairs, which is sponsoring their participation in the academy. Other UTSA faculty who have been TALA Fellows include Alberto Cordova, Mark Leung, Terri Matiella, Arturo Montoya, and Erica Sosa.
“UTSA is committed to seeking out and offering unique faculty development opportunities that help our faculty grow professionally and expand their leadership capacity,” said Interim Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Heather Shipley. “Investing in faculty excellence allows UTSA to more effectively serve our diverse student population and provide innovative, outstanding educational and research opportunities that give students an advantage in their future careers.”
Schroeder joined UTSA in 2018 as an assistant professor of instruction for the Academic Introduction & Strategies program in University College. She is heavily involved in the Generation AI Nexus—a program in partnership with MITRE that introduces artificial intelligence principles to students across all academic disciplines—for which she was awarded the UTSA President’s Distinguished Achievement Award for Excellence in Core Curriculum Teaching.
In 2021-2022, she participated in the UTSA Advancing Next-Gen Faculty Leadership Fellow Program, which prepares faculty to tackle current and future challenges in higher education. During the program, Schroeder was instrumental in developing several new incubator degree programs in the University College’s multidisciplinary studies program, which prepared her to join the college’s leadership team as assistant dean in Fall 2022.
Prior to joining UTSA, Schroeder spent a year as a senior biomedical research scientist the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio. Prior to that she served nine years conducting research at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
Schroeder earned her Ph.D. in biomedical sciences, with a focus on experimental therapeutics and pharmacology, from the MD Anderson UTHealth Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.
Wu, who also joined UTSA in 2018, started as an assistant professor in the UTSA Carlos Alvarez College of Business. He earned tenure in 2021 and has quickly moved up the ranks, becoming interim chair of the management science and statistics department in October 2021 and then department chair in June 2022.
His research focuses on data analysis, including high-dimensional statistical modeling, machine learning, data mining and data visualization. He received the Dean’s Distinguished Research Award in 2021 for his contributions.
Wu also frequently collaborates with researchers in other domains such as finance, marketing, engineering and computer science.
Wu is also involved in other academic programs at UTSA. He has chaired or been a member of over 20 committees for various academic programs, student dissertations, scholarship selections and faculty searches. Additionally, he has helped develop several new graduate-level courses in his department for both in-person and online modalities to serve the evolving needs of his students.
Wu spent three years on the faculty of the University of Oregon before joining UTSA. He earned his Ph.D. in statistics from the University of Georgia.
UTSA Today is produced by University Communications and Marketing, the official news source of The University of Texas at San Antonio. Send your feedback to news@utsa.edu. Keep up-to-date on UTSA news by visiting UTSA Today. Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram.
Join UTSA’s Carlos Alvarez College of Business and the UTSA Small Business Development Center for a Preview Event to learn more about SURE@UTSA—a transformative program that has empowered over 700 businesses to achieve growth and long-term success.
Durango Building (DB 2.316,) Downtown CampusA moderated discussion to learn how the Suttons not only influenced understandings of local, Black history but also about their lasting legacy on education, civil rights, politics, community organizing, and more in San Antonio and beyond.
Carver Branch Library, 3350 E Commerce St, San Antonio, TX 78220A roundtable discussion that will explore the impact of documenting LGBTQ+ oral histories and the unique challenges of sharing these stories.
UTSA Westside Community Center, 1310 Guadalupe St. San Antonio 78207Have questions about making your OER accessible on UTSA Pressbooks? The OER Team and the Digital Accessibility Team are ready to answer them! Please bring your questions about OER and accessibility and receive guidance from our two teams.
Virtual EventCelebrate the graduates of the College for Health, Community and Policy, College of Liberal and Fine Arts and College of Sciences.
AlamodomeCome celebrate the graduates of the Alvarez College of Business, College of Education and Human Development, Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design and University College
AlamodomeThe 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.
