Welcome from the Dean

Dean Ed Taylor

Dear Alumni of Undergraduate Academic Affairs,

Welcome to the inaugural issue of the Undergraduate Academic Affairs Alumni E-newsletter!

Undergraduate Academic Affairs (UAA) weaves together the threads of scholarship, service, research, and leadership to create a singular undergraduate experience that enables all students to realize their potential.

As an alum of a UAA program, maybe the intellectual connections that came together for you were research you conducted as part of your biochemistry major and then presenting it at the Undergraduate Research Symposium. Perhaps, through volunteering in a service learning course, you saw firsthand the lives of refugees and integrated their experiences into your understanding of sociological concepts. Or maybe you mentored new students into the University by being a Freshman Interest Group leader or Orientation leader. The common thread running through all these varied examples is one of engaging in meaningful experiences that have the potential to expand your perspective and change your life.

Our work is defined by our graduates’ stories of their transformative undergraduate experiences and by our commitment to do more and to serve more students.

This fall, the University enrolled 5,540 freshmen and 1,553 transfer students. Our students come from many different high schools and many different towns, cities, states and countries; from as close as Bellevue to as far away as Bolivia. In a few short years, they will join the esteemed ranks of UW alumni. Our goal is to engage them in academic opportunities that will prepare them to tackle issues both enduring and new to the 21st century.

You’ll read about some of those students in this issue. Students like Steve Margitan and Peter Kithene who are answering calls for help continents apart; Susan Massey, who is looking to understand brain tumor growth; Susan McKay, who discovered an unexpected love of neuroscience; and our UW community, which serves the broader Seattle community on the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service.   

Sincerely,

Ed Taylor,
Vice Provost and Dean
Undergraduate Academic Affiairs