[Plsgs] To our SPLS graduate students

[Arnold, Betsy - (fungi)]

Dear graduate student members of our School of Plant Sciences community,

I am humbled and honored to take on the responsibility of serving as Interim Director for our School. This is a role that I take seriously and with a strong appreciation for our mission delivery in instruction, research, and Extension. I see my role as one that requires vision, leadership, management, advocacy, development, service, and outreach, all built on a foundation of integrity, mutual respect and support, collaboration, a forward-looking mindset, and communication. These are my principles and they will guide me as a member of our community, working on behalf of all of us.

As we all know, our unit has immediate needs. We are honored to be joined by Amanda Stevens and Keven Teres as leaders in finance and administration. Based on our interactions and their excellence, I believe their work with us will be a game-changer. Please stay tuned for emails from the three of us. We also have diverse needs specific to graduate students and staff, to faculty, and a need to foster positive relationships within and beyond our department in areas of instruction, research, graduate education, Extension, and outreach.

Over the past week I have been a guest at meetings of Heads of Departments (unit leaders/HoDs) and the CALES Spring Budget retreat. I have spoken with most of the Associate Deans in CALES, communicated extensively with Shane, reached out to members of our staff, faculty, and graduate student group, and begun to connect with our development office, stakeholders and partners. My aim is to share that SPLS is a unit of accomplishment and great potential, and to advocate for what we do, and can do, as an incredible group of people.

I feel strongly that in any organization, the greatest asset truly does lie in our people — in who we are, and where we can go together. When success for one is viewed as a success for all, we can move forward in new ways. A measure of my impact, should I be fortunate to be successful, will be that we position ourselves rapidly and effectively as a unit that will attract a world-class permanent Director.

In the coming days I will be communicating as much as possible to set up group meetings (faculty, staff, graduate students) and align teams to address some of our most pressing needs. I am advocating on behalf of our unit for support at the associate director level and for advancement of our curricular and graduate training needs. If I am quiet please know that I am working for us and those we serve. I also would like to thank those who lead our graduate student group as peer leaders.

In closing, please join me in thanking Dr. Judy Brown for the time, energy, and effort she invested during her position as Interim Director. We wish Judy well as she returns to her exceptional research program.

Warm regards,
Betsy

Email: all of these reach me:
arnold at ag.arizona.edu, fungi at arizona.edu, barnoldaz at gmail.com




[The University of Arizona block 'A' logo.]
A. Elizabeth Arnold, PhD

Professor, School of Plant Sciences

Curator, Gilbertson Mycological Herbarium

Chair and Director of Graduate Studies,

Ecosystem Genomics GIDP

THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

fungi at arizona.edu

www.arnoldlab.net<http://www.arnoldlab.net> | www.gilbertsonherbarium.net<http://www.gilbertsonherbarium.net>


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