OCTOBER 13, 2023 — Editor’s note: The following message was sent today via email from Interim Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Heather Shipley, Chief Enterprise Development Officer and Senior Vice President for Business Affairs Veronica Salazar and Chief of Staff and Senior Vice President for Institutional Strategic Planning, Compliance Risk Management and Office Operations Carlos Martinez to all faculty, staff and students.
In late August, we shared the engagement strategy that UTSA would use to review programs, activities and initiatives to comply with Senate Bill 17 (SB 17). A transparent and inclusive process that considers student, faculty and staff input before implementing any changes is now in place. Today, we’re writing to update you on the progress made to bring all programming into compliance by January 1, 2024, as required by the new law.
The Program, Activity and Initiative Review (PAIR) team is currently engaging in dialogue with a campus-wide stakeholder working group to collect and review information related to UTSA’s diversity, equity and inclusion activities. To date, more than 300 submissions have been entered for review.
Building on the work of the stakeholder working group, the PAIR team is now evaluating each submission to determine its status; some activities are exempt, some need modification and others will need to be discontinued to comply with SB 17’s requirements. Preliminary recommendations will be forwarded to a group of university and student leaders for review before they are submitted to President Eighmy in early November.
Over the coming weeks, we’ll share more about this work through community forums, social media, email and UTSA Today. This week, we discussed SB 17 and SB 18 (recent changes to the law related to faculty tenure) in meetings with the Faculty Senate and Department Chair Council. We will continue to meet with the Staff Senate, the Student Government Association and other campus organizations.
As the law will impact every member of the UTSA community differently, we encourage you to stay engaged in the process, share your concerns and learn more about the framework and legal guidance from UT System by visiting our SB 17 website.
Please know we remain committed to free expression and academic freedom inside and outside the classroom to maintain the core mission and values of our Roadrunner community.
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This academically rigorous mathematics-based summer enrichment program prepares middle and high school students for advanced studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Participants learn about problem-solving systems, develop greater awareness of STEM careers and strengthen their research skills.
UTSA Main CampusArchaeology 101 will introduce campers to archaeology and build on learned skills through experimental activities (like cave painting, weaving, and garbology).
Center for Archaeological Research, UTSA Main CampusThe camp exposes rising high school juniors, rising seniors and incoming college freshman to the many facets of the criminal justice system. Students will have opportunities to learn the functions of police in society and apply scientific theories to criminal investigations by examining a mock crime scene.
UTSA Main CampusThe Academy for Teacher Excellence Research Center invites you to join us for the Summer Bridging Institute. This institute will focus on being lifelong growers and continually seeking to increase our skills as educators.
UTSA Downtown CampusArchaeology 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 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 CampusThe 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.