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Dear Colleagues,

As mentioned in President Edwards’ email yesterday, each year, ����ԭ�� honors exceptional faculty whose work exemplifies the highest standards in teaching, research, service and community engagement. Through a competitive nomination and selection process, these prestigious awards recognize faculty who demonstrate sustained impact, inspire their peers and students, and advance ����ԭ��’s mission. I am proud to recognize this year’s recipients of the university’s highest faculty honors.

Trustees’ Award for Faculty Excellence

Sherif Elbasiouny, Ph.D., Professor

College of Science and Mathematics

 

University Professor

Thomas Brown, Ph.D., Professor and Associate Chair

College of Science and Mathematics

 

Brage Golding Distinguished Professor of Research

Madhavi Kadakia, Ph.D., Professor

Boonshoft School of Medicine

 

Frederick A. White Distinguished Professor of Professional Service

Dawn Wooley, Ph.D., Professor

College of Science and Mathematics

 

Robert J. Kegerreis Distinguished Professor of Teaching

Jeffrey Peters, Ph.D., Professor and Interim Chair

College of Science and Mathematics

 

Presidential Award for Faculty Excellence: Early Career Achievement Award

Cogan Shimizu, Ph.D., Associate Professor

College of Engineering and Computer Science

 

Presidential Award for Outstanding NTE Faculty: Service

Chad Campbell, Ph.D., Lecturer

College of Science and Mathematics

 

Presidential Award for Outstanding NTE Faculty: Teaching

Nick Ritucci, Ph.D., Senior Lecturer

College of Science and Mathematics

 

Presidential Award for Faculty Excellence in Community Engagement

Michelle Fleming, Ph.D., Associate Professor

 

Expanded Coursera Access Through Career Academy Plus

Effective this fall, all ����ԭ�� faculty, staff, and students have access to the full Coursera Career Academy Plus catalog, which now includes more than 14,000 courses, specializations and professional certificates. The expanded catalog provides opportunities for professional development, career readiness, workforce training, and curricular enhancement across a wide range of disciplines.

Several notable additions may be of particular interest to your students:

• Workday Learning modules covering Workday Student, Human Capital Management, Financial Management, Payroll and foundational Workday skills.
• New content from Wiley and Sage, including leadership, management, healthcare, educational leadership, project management and research-focused training.
• Expanded artificial intelligence content from organizations such as Stanford Online, Vanderbilt University, Microsoft and Adobe, covering topics ranging from AI literacy and responsible AI to Copilot, AI agents, governance, healthcare applications and generative AI.
• New workforce and skilled-trades content from Interplay Learning, including HVAC fundamentals, safety, troubleshooting, maintenance and other technical skills.
• Additional learning opportunities in cybersecurity, cloud computing, software development, data analytics, Excel, Power BI, SQL, healthcare, human resources, communication and professional development.

Faculty interested in incorporating Coursera content into their courses, supplementing existing instructional materials, or exploring certificate-aligned learning opportunities for students are encouraged to do so. Questions about integrating Coursera content into coursework may be directed to Provost@wright.edu.

SOCHE AI Webinar Series

The Strategic Ohio Council for Higher Education (SOCHE) has launched a new AI Webinar Series for the 2026–2027 academic year. The series is designed to help higher education professionals explore the opportunities and challenges associated with artificial intelligence, with topics focused on teaching, learning, productivity, assessment, and student success. Recordings will be available to registrants who are unable to attend live sessions.

The first webinar in the series, “Cultivating an Authentic Voice in the Age of AI,” will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 21, from 12–1 p.m. and presented by Dr. Brandy Bagar-Fraley, Writing Program Administrator at Franklin University. The session will explore how AI is influencing communication in higher education and provide practical strategies for maintaining authenticity when using AI tools in teaching, leadership, and collaboration. Participants will examine how AI can sometimes create a “flattening” effect in communication and learn ways to preserve the perspective, personality, and values that make human interactions meaningful.

Faculty interested in attending can .

Student Recognition in Best Integrated Writing Journal

Our students inspire us every day by submitting exceptional written work. ����ԭ��’s biannual journal  will continue to showcase student excellence this fall. Please consider submitting the work of students you believe deserve recognition and publication. These written works can come from fall 2025, spring 2026 or summer 2026 courses.

 The deadline for the fall 2026 edition of Best Integrated Writing is Sept. 11. To submit work, email kristie.mckiernan@wright.edu.

 Faculty may nominate up to three student works unless they have made other arrangements in advance. Nominations must be submitted in Word format and may be collaborative or individual works, including essays, posters, multimedia projects or any other work that demonstrates superior writing. Nominations do not guarantee publication. The editor makes the final selection. Students must give permission for their work to be nominated and published.

Fall Career and Internship Fair

The Dayton Campus fall career and internship fair will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 30, from 1–4 p.m. in the Student Union Apollo Room. Encourage your students to register in advance through Handshake or on the day of the fair at the student check-in station.

Students are encouraged to attend a Career Fair workshop prior to the event.

Graduate Programs Open House

The School of Graduate Studies will host a graduate programs open house on Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 4–6 p.m. in the Student Union Apollo Room.

Prospective graduate students will have the opportunity to speak with the School of Graduate Studies staff, graduate program leaders and peer mentors and learn about campus resources such as financial aid, University Libraries and the Veteran and Military Center. Registered attendees will be eligible for one application fee waiver. Walk-ins are welcome. Faculty are encouraged to attend and meet prospective graduate students.

Learn more.

Student Success and Academic Engagement

Academic Success Centers

Embed academic success in your course by connecting students with the Academic Success Centers early in the semester. Faculty play a key role in helping students understand the support available to them. Here are three ways to get students connected:

1. Put support information in your syllabus. We have ready-made snippets you can use on our Faculty and Staff Resources webpage.
2. Bring your students to the Academic Success Centers or invite us to visit your class by requesting a tour or classroom visit through our .
3. Add the Academic Success Centers widget to your Pilot homepage.

Contact Dr. Alison Witte, director of the Academic Success Centers, with any questions.

 

Peer Navigators

The Peer Navigator Program connects students with upperclassmen for regular support and mentorship. The program seeks to:

• Increase sense of belonging with a built-in peer support system
• Initiate early intervention strategies as needed
• Provide an additional touchpoint via regular follow up
• Identify barriers prohibiting student success
• Allow students to see their peers model excellence
• Assist in the transition between high school and university life
• Promote healthy classroom behaviors

Learn more.

 

Raising Early Alerts for Students

Faculty can make a difference by identifying students who may benefit from additional support by submitting an Early Alert. Early Alerts allow campus support teams to intervene early and connect students with resources that promote academic success. Early Alerts can be submitted through the Slate Student Success Portal by accessing the course roster and selecting “Submit Alert/Referral” for a student of concern. Questions may be directed to academic-engagement@wright.edu.

Learn more.

Faculty Activity Reporting

As a reminder, faculty should continue to maintain and update their activities in Watermark Faculty Success for the 2025–2026 academic year (fall 2025 through summer 2026). Activity reports reflect the prior academic year.

The submission window for forwarding Faculty Activity Reports to department chairs opened on Sept. 8 and the deadline to submit has been extended to Monday, Sept. 21.

When a Student Needs Support

 is a great resource for helping students or making referrals. This site contains contact information for emergency or essential departments that can assist your students all in one location.

The Student Success Navigator showcases the wide range of resources designed to support our students. Whether students are interested in joining a student organization, looking for access to mental health services, playing a sport, or finding a job, all information is available in one central location.

I am grateful for your dedication to promoting student success.

Jim Denniston, Ph.D.