About
Overview
Consistent with the University’s student success goals, the Foundations of Excellence initiative is aimed at building a foundation for success in the first year of college to enhance learning, promote retention and facilitate timely degree completion.
Guided by the Gardner Institute’s Foundations of Excellence model, our task force has completed an assessment of the first year and is now moving into the implementation phase of the process.
First Year - Assessment
Over the past year, a task force of about 186 faculty, staff and students worked to assess the first year along 9 foundational dimensions. Collectively, the dimension committees produced close to 200 pages of text and 120 action items focused on improvements.
With guidance from our institutional advisor, Betsy Barefoot, our Steering Committee has worked since May to integrate this work into a comprehensive action plan that includes 21 consolidated recommendations within 5 key themes. Betsy retired this summer and John Gardner is now serving as our advisor in the implementation process.
Five themes consistently emerged across the 9 dimension committees as they assessed opportunities for improvement in the first year and recommendations representing the work of these committees have been drafted for each theme.
The University’s current approach to the first year involves a variety of success initiatives and assessment tools at the department, college and institutional levels and committees focused on the need for a more coordinated and intentionally designed first year experience for freshmen and transfer students.
Action items related to Integration were proposed by five Dimension Committees and recommendations focus on ensuring coordination across functions, resources and services.
Second Year and Continuing - Implementation
Upon completion of implementation plans and commencement of recommended actions, the Steering Committee and respective Work Groups will be transitioned into a Campus First- Year Experience Advisory Board tasked with ongoing monitoring and guidance of Foundations of Excellence initiatives.Structure
Campus Liaisons
Teri Elkins Longacre
Vice Provost and Dean, Undergraduate Student Success
Daniel M. Maxwell
Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs - UH System
Associate Vice President for Student Affairs - University of Houston
Steering Committee Members
Last | First | College/Area | FOE 2015 Service | |
Abbott | JeAnna | College of Hotel and Restaurant Management | Steering Committee Co-Chair CULTURE |
jabbott@uh.edu |
Affre | Mara | Student Affairs and Enrollment Services | Steering Committee Co-Chair INTEGRATION |
maffre@central.uh.edu |
Bloom | Jennifer | Office of General Counsel | Steering Committee | jebloom@uh.edu |
Bott | Simon | College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Steering Committee Co-Chair LEARNING |
sbott@uh.edu |
Burridge | Andrea | College of Education | Steering Committee | aburridge@uh.edu |
Castillo | Adrian | Student Government Association - Chief of Staff | Steering Committee | cstaff@central.uh.edu |
Chin | Wynne | Faculty Senate | Steering Committee | wchin@uh.edu |
Chowdhury | Tanzeem | Student Government Association - Vice President | Steering Committee | sgavp@central.uh.edu |
Coltharp | Sandy | Human Resources | Steering Committee Co-Chair CULTURE |
scoltharp@uh.edu |
Dunkelberger | Martha | Undergraduate Committee | Steering Committee | mdunk@uh.edu |
Fields | John | Government Association - Speaker of the Senate | Steering Committee | jfields95@gmail.com |
Fishman | Sarah | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences | Steering Committee | sfishman@uh.edu |
Gola | Christine | UH Libraries | Steering Committee | chgola@Central.UH.EDU |
Hardy | John | College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Steering Committee | jhardy@uh.edu |
Harold | Mike | College of Engineering | Steering Committee Co-Chair CULTURE |
mharold@uh.edu |
Hayes | Martha | Staff Council | Steering Committee | mshayes@uh.edu |
Hopkins | Troy | College of Business | Steering Committee | tdhopkins@uh.edu |
Horn | Cathy | College of Education | Steering Committee | clhorn2@uh.edu |
Kelley | Frank | College of Business | Steering Committee Co-Chair ADVISING |
fwkelley@uh.edu |
Kennedy | Heidi | Academic Affairs | Executive Team FOE Liaison Steering Committee |
hkennedy@uh.edu |
Kowalka | Keith | Student Affairs and Enrollment Services | Steering Committee | kkowalka@uh.edu |
LeVeaux-Haley | Christine | Honors College | Steering Committee | cleveaux@uh.edu |
Longacre | Teri Elkins | Provost Office | Executive Team FOE Liaison Steering Committee |
elkins@uh.edu |
Maxwell | Dan | Student Affairs and Enrollment Services | Executive Team FOE Liaison Steering Committee |
dmmaxwel@central.uh.edu |
Monroe | Bill | Honors College | Steering Committee | wfmonroe@Central.UH.EDU |
Morgan | Jeff | Provost Office | Steering Committee | jjmorgan@central.uh.edu |
Norwood | Marcella | College of Technology | Steering Committee Co-Chair LEARNING |
mnorwood@uh.edu |
Olson | Beth | College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences | Steering Committee Co-Chair COMMUNICATION |
bolson@uh.edu |
Pascali | Raresh | College of Technology | Steering Committee Co-Chair INTEGRATION |
rpascali@uh.edu |
Pede | Mike | Alumni | Steering Committee | mlpede@uh.edu |
Peden | Maria | Athletics | Steering Committee | mpeden@uh.edu |
Phan | Trang | College of Architecture | Steering Committee Co-Chair ADVISING |
tphan@Central.UH.EDU |
Pierson | Melissa | Exploratory Studies | Steering Committee Co-Chair ADVISING |
mpierson@uh.edu |
Pratt | Joe | College of Business / College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences | Steering Committee | joepratt@Central.UH.EDU |
Ramos | Miguel | Institutional Research | Steering Committee Co-Chair COMMUNICATION |
maramos3@central.uh.edu |
Sawyer | Scott | Student Affairs and Enrollment Services | Steering Committee | ssawyer@uh.edu |
Shah | Asit | Student Regent | Steering Committee | arshah3@uh.edu |
Shefman | Pam | Student Affairs and Enrollment Services | Steering Committee Co-Chair COMMUNICATION |
pshefman@central.uh.edu |
Short | Paula Myrick | Provost | Executive Team Steering Committee |
|
Smith | Brad | College of Education | Steering Committee Co-Chair INTEGRATION |
bsmith5@uh.edu |
Sundar | Sarayu | College of Business | Steering Committee | ssundar@uh.edu |
Theriot-Smith | Shaun | Student Government Association - President | Steering Committee | sgapres@central.uh.edu |
Turchi | Laura | College of Education | Steering Committee Co-Chair LEARNING |
lturchi@Central.UH.EDU |
Walker | Richard | Student Affairs and Enrollment Services | Executive Team Steering Committee |
rwalker2@uh.edu |
Williams | Larry | College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Steering Committee | lrwilliams@uh.edu |
Timeline
