July Message from the Dean
Dear Colleagues,
I hope you are all enjoying the summer season and looking forward to welcoming our students back this fall, as I am. Before we talk about the news at Michigan Ross, I wanted to share a few early highlights from the Olympics. Did you know that two team members for USA men’s gymnastics are from the University of Michigan? Frederick Richard, LSA ’26, and Paul Juda, MAcc ’25, both took home bronze medals this week. Also, Syla Swords, BBA ’28, is playing for Canada’s women’s basketball team, Natalie Kan, Business Minor ’25, is competing for the Hong Kong women’s swimming team, and alumnus Myles Amine, BBA ’20, is competing for the San Marino wrestling team, so make sure to cheer them on. We are broadcasting live coverage of the games on NBC in the Winter Garden during building business hours — feel free to come by through Aug. 11 if you want to see our athletes competing. So cool to see Ross students and alums excelling in so many ways!
I also wanted to share some excellent news about the visibility of academic excellence here at Ross. We have now looked at the press mentions for AY24, and are very pleased to report they are up 23.7% compared to last year. As far as we have data, this is a record number of mentions for us. These mentions stem from a wide range of people, programs, and areas. Some come from our partnership with the Financial Times in the monthly poll related to how business and economic considerations are impacting voter preferences, while others come from the books, articles, events, and programs at Ross that are truly world-class. As you know, one of the three main goals associated with our strategy is to be globally recognized as a premier source of talent, knowledge, inspiration, and connection; press recognition is a critical component of achieving this goal, so thanks to all of you who are doing such impactful work.
This month was the start of a new fiscal year which is the time to refine our strategic priorities for the upcoming year and beyond. We held five engagement sessions with faculty and staff and received very valuable input that will be helpful in shaping our future priorities. In particular, the insights on how to best direct people’s attention to key metrics and the ideas around how to make sure Ross is known for creating rigorous research, idea exchange, and educational opportunities around some of the most pressing issues of the day related to business were especially helpful. I also appreciated your ideas for how Ross can support the university’s campus theme for the academic year ‘25 around democracy and civic engagement. Special thanks to everyone who attended. I will continue to keep you updated on the strategic direction of the school and our progress in The Ross Report, the State of the School in September, and through other communications.
As we get ready to welcome new and returning BBA, FTMBA, and MAcc students to Ross in a few short weeks, our MBAn, MM, and MSCM students have already arrived. The OYM team did a fantastic job planning and executing an orientation week in June. The students got to hear from members of the Sanger Leadership Center and Career Development Office, as well as participate in networking opportunities and an Adventure Leadership Academy with U-M’s Recreational Sports. Also, our Executive MBAs for both the Ann Arbor and Los Angeles campuses’ arrived on Sunday for their orientation with Michigan Ross faculty. They have already begun their coursework and have been participating in leadership development coursework and workshops. Before they depart on Thursday, they will enjoy a closing dinner at the Jack Roth Stadium Club. A special thank you to the EMBA team for this successful launch.
As we look to the fall, we are actively engaged in preparing for a semester that will likely be action-packed. We will continue with our Centennial celebrations – please join us on Aug. 26 for some of our 100-foot-long birthday cake, which we will be serving in the Winter Garden on the first day of class. We will also have the kick-off for the campus capital campaign on Oct. 25.
It’s also important to note that we anticipate that the upcoming election and continued violence in Israel and Gaza will impact our students during the fall semester. In partnership with DPSS and student life at the campus level, we will provide support services for students, as well as additional resources and information for our faculty and staff to help navigate through the fall, so be on the lookout for information on this. We are also actively working on efforts to encourage our students (and everyone in our community) to exercise their voice by voting, so watch for more information on get-out-the-vote activities.
It has been great fun to see many of you at our Summer Gatherings, and I want to thank everyone who has attended. These events are a nice opportunity to unwind and get to know your colleagues from across the school. There will be one final Summer Gathering on Wednesday, Aug. 7, from 4-5 p.m. in the S. Scott Stewart Lobby, and I hope to see you there. Additionally, I want to remind staff about the upcoming Summer Soirée, organized by our Staff Recognition Committee. The Summer Soirée will take place today from 3-5 p.m. in the Alessi Courtyard/Executive Dining Room and will feature a garden-party menu and mocktails. I look forward to thanking our hardworking and dedicated staff for their achievements over the past year.
Finally, I want to share that we have launched a new dean’s office webpage that includes information on my office hours, as well as important resource links. In August, the in-person office hours for faculty and staff will be held in the Davidson Winter Garden on the following dates and times:
- Aug. 6 from 4:15-5 p.m.
- Aug. 13 from 4:15-5 p.m.
- Aug. 21 from 3-3:45 p.m.
- Aug. 27 from 4:15-5 p.m.
The monthly virtual office hours will be held via Zoom on Aug. 2 from 3-3:45 p.m. Please contact Heather Cooper for an invite with the link to join, and check the dean’s office website for updates.
Please enjoy the rest of the summer, and I look forward to seeing you soon.
Kind regards,
Sharon
