Celebrating Accomplishments

Bibie Chronwall, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Affairs and Faculty Development, is retiring at the end of March following 20+ years of service to UMKC.

On Monday, March 16th we will be celebrating her accomplishments and tenure at UMKC. In 1988, Dr. Chronwall began her work at UMKC as an Associate Professor of cell biology and biophysics and has continued to teach courses throughout her career. She was Assistant Dean and Director of Curriculum and Undergraduate Programs in the School of Biological Sciences and since 2003 has served as Vice Provost for Academic Affairs. Having published nearly 100 scientific papers and edited three books, gained support through grants topping over $1,000,000, she is well respected for her accomplishments. You can see her most recent efforts in the New Faculty Teaching Scholars program, the Faculty Center for Excellence in Teaching (FaCET), and the Students Engaged in Artistic and Academic Research (SEARCH) program.

Please join us in celebrating Bibie Chronwall’s retirement at the following event provided by faculty & staff donations:

Ice Cream Social
Honoring Dr. Bibie Chronwall
Monday, March 16, 2009
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Plaza Room, Administrative Center

You are encouraged to share your farewell remarks and favorite Bibie memories by clicking on the comments link below. Or email your remarks/memories (including photographs) to Beci Edmundson for compilation and presentation to Bibie at the party. There will also be a memory book at the party for everyone sign or write comments for Bibie.

Academic Affairs looks forward to sharing our appreciation for Bibie Chronwall’s legacy of work at UMKC with you on the 16th, and hope to see you there.

New Faces for the New Year

For the New Year, we wanted to introduce the new people in our office: Interim Vice Provost for Research William Morgan, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Cindy Pemberton, and Faculty Affairs Specialist Rebecca Edmundson. We asked them to talk about their previous work experience and their new positions, and here are their responses:

William Morgan (Bill)
I came to Kansas City in 1989 from the LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans to join the newly founded School of Biological Sciences at UMKC. I was attracted by the fact that I could continue my research but also expand my interactions with undergraduate and graduate students. Currently I am Professor Emeritus in the School and continue to do some teaching and research as well as serving on review groups for the National Institutes of Health and the editorial board of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

I was very excited when Provost Hackett offered me the opportunity to serve as Interim Vice Provost for Research. The research activities at UMKC have been increasing, and the future prospects are promising. It is often not fully appreciated how important a role the personnel of the Research Office have in providing efficient and positive support for the researchers at UMKC, and I am committed to continuing the past excellent service of the office. I am also committed to exploring ways to improve operations and enhance the resources available for research at UMKC. The financial circumstances are far from ideal, but that is no excuse for not seeking improvements now and planning for the future. Finally, this position enables me to refresh and expand my acquaintances with colleagues here at UMKC as well as to interact with researchers in the entire Kansas City area. I have already met with many old friends and had the chance to make some new ones.

We all face challenges for 2009 and beyond. I believe that given the strong leadership of Chancellor Morton and Provost Hackett, and given the hard work and determination of everyone at UMKC to excel, we will emerge from these hard times a better university and a stronger research community. I am eager to get on with it.

Cindy Pemberton
I have recently returned to the University of Missouri – Kansas City faculty after spending the last 8 years at Missouri State University. While at Missouri State University, I served as the Dean of the College of Health and Human Services, an American Council on Education Fellow and in the Provost’s office leading the development of the university student success initiatives and overseeing several aspects of student academic support services. I am currently serving as the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and serving as the co-chair of the strategic planning subcommittee on Undergraduate Programs/Student Success. The university has made a commitment to expanding our undergraduate programs and to improving the success of our students, which I enthusiastically support! My immediate primary responsibilities will be associated with working to enhance and to expand our undergraduate programs, while continuing to facilitate the ongoing work in academic affairs. I am looking forward to working with Chancellor Morton, Executive Vice Chancellor/Provost Hackett, the faculty, the students and the staff in pursuing excellence as a premier urban university. Everyone has been very welcoming and helpful during my transition. I look forward to working with everyone in our campus community to provide an excellent educational opportunity for our students.

Rebecca Edmundson (Beci)
I am the new Faculty Affairs Specialist for the Provost Office/Academic Affairs. My primary duties are to assist Vice Provost, Dr. Ron MacQuarrie, in streamlining processes and procedures regarding the recruitment, hiring, training and development, promotion, and tenure of UMKC’s faculty and scholars. If you have questions or concerns regarding any of these items, please direct them to me via phone (2721), email (edmundsonr@umkc.edu) or campus mail (350 AC). I also processes all academic hiring documentation (including Additional Pay and Extra Compensation requests) submitted for Provost signature. I transferred to the Provost/Academic Affairs Office in October 2008 with over 11 years experience in personnel, payroll, and scholarship support from the UMKC School of Computing & Engineering.

We welcome Bill, Cindy, and Beci and look forward to continuing to work with them in the new year.

Provost Announcement: Cynthia Pemberton appointed Vice Provost for Academic Affairs

I am pleased to announce the selection of Cynthia Pemberton as Vice Provost for Academic Affairs. During the 2007-2008 academic year Pemberton served as Acting Associate Provost at Missouri State University and between 2001 and 2006 was Dean of MSU’s College of Health and Human Services. Her academic career has also included ten years at UMKC as a faculty member and in administrative roles. Pemberton will begin her duties as Vice Provost on November 17, 2008.

As MSU’s Acting Associate Provost for Student Success, Pemberton provided leadership for the development and implementation of strategies to increase student engagement with the intent of increasing student retention, graduation rates and student learning outcomes. In her role as Dean at MSU, she led an initiative to revise the college strategic plan, reflecting a commitment to multidisciplinary research, teaching and service. Under her leadership, the school established the Center for Multidisciplinary Health Education, Research and Service.

In addition to serving as Chair of the Department of Exercise Science and Physical Education while at UMKC, Pemberton was Interim Associate Dean for the School of Education. Working in partnership with then Interim Dean Linda Edwards, Pemberton developed a proposal for a new cooperative Ed. D. with the University of Missouri-St. Louis, which was approved.

During 2006/2007 AY, Pemberton participated in the American Council on Education (ACE) Fellowship Program, the nation's premier higher education leadership development program for preparing senior leaders to serve American colleges and universities. As an ACE Fellow, Pemberton was mentored by Chancellor Robert Hemenway of the University of Kansas.

“Dr. Pemberton brings to this position both extensive experience and a passion for promoting student success,” said Dr. Ron MacQuarrie, Dean of UMKC School of Graduate Studies and chair of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Search Committee. “Her experiences at Missouri State University, the University of Kansas, and at the national level will be valuable to UMKC in pursuing our goals of expanding learning opportunities and enhancing the quality of student life on campus.”

I commend the work of Dean MacQuarrie and the Search Committee for helping to select an outstanding Vice Provost for Academic Affairs from an extremely competitive slate of candidates.

Gail Hackett
Provost & Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs