Welcome to the Office of the Provost

Beginning in January, Dean Yi Deng of CCI and Dean Sharon Walker of CoE will go on sabbatical. During this time of transition, CoE and CCI will have interim leadership, effective January 1, 2025. Kapil Dandekar, PhD, E. Warren Colehower Chair Professor and associate dean for enrollment management and graduate education in CoE, will assume the role of interim dean of the College of Engineering. Ali Shokoufandeh, PhD, senior associate dean for academic affairs and operations of CCI, will serve as interim dean of the College of Computing & Informatics.

An initial set of working groups has been formed to lead the design and implementation of Drexel’s Academic Transformation. The membership of these groups was selected in collaboration with the Faculty Senate and is listed below in the postscript.

The University Advisory Committee on Selection of a Learning Management System (UAC LMS) shares the status of their work and efforts to evaluate and recommend a comprehensive, robust and user-friendly LMS to best meet the academic and administrative needs across Drexel University.

Last month, Provost Jensen announced the University’s intention to move forward with a vision — outlined by the recommendations of the University Advisory Committee on Academic Structure (UACAS) and pending the review of Faculty Senate — in bold pursuit of academic transformation. We are pleased to share that Faculty Senate voted in favor of the majority of the recommendations, with those remaining undergoing further discussion. With this support, we mark a crucial step in aligning our efforts to realize this new vision for the University and its many stakeholders.

Last term, Drexel University faculty members were recognized for their scholarly research and prolific academic and professional contributions.

Through a special Drexel type of experiential education, graduate student Ran Liu curated a new exhibition blending artistic process, community conversations, individual inspiration and University history.

In August 2024, the 11th cohort of the Executive Leadership in Academic Technology, Engineering and Science (ELATES) program at Drexel was announced and included 46 faculty from 35 institutions across the United States and Canada and with backgrounds in biology, computer and information sciences, geology, mathematics and a variety of engineering disciplines. In the articles below, Nembhard and other ELATES alumnae from previous cohorts share their experiences with the program and how it continues to resonate with them.

Greg Schwenk’s passion for science took root during his high school years in Elmhurst, a small rural community near Scranton, and continued at the University of Scranton, where he found the support and encouragement that fueled his curiosity and solidified his academic journey.