AGS 72nd Annual Meeting - Agenda

MONDAY, October 5

11:00 – 11:15 a.m.

Welcome & Orientation to Virtual AGS Annual Meeting

Opening Remarks: Barbara R. Snyder, President, AAU

11:15 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Live Polling followed by Breakout Rooms for Small Group Discussion
This session aims to surface issues graduate deans are confronting. The moderators will pose a short series of questions and deans will, using real-time polling technology, provide brief responses which will then be discussed.

Moderators:

Emily Miller, Deputy Vice President for Policy
Jeni Hart, Dean of the Graduate School and Vice Provost for Graduate Studies, University of Missouri

12:30 – 1:30 p.m.

BREAK / Virtual Coffee Hour

1:30 – 3:00 p.m.

AAU Update
An opportunity for AGS members to receive an update on key policy issues and projects. Extensive time will be allowed for questions and discussion.

Moderator: Meredith Asbury, Policy Officer

3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

BREAK / Virtual Coffee Hour

MONDAY, October 5

4:00 – 6:00 p.m.

Role of Graduate Schools: Crisis Management
In this session, Robin Kaler, Associate Chancellor for Public Affairs and Chief Communication Officer at the University of Illinois will lead an interactive discussion of issues related to crisis management at a major public research university. Robin will draw from more than twenty years of experience managing communications around a variety of challenging situations facing university administrators. Graduate Deans from several AAU institutions will share examples of how they have responded to crises as they emerge on their campuses.

Moderator: Wojtek Chodzko-Zajko, Dean of the Graduate College, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Panelist: Robin Kaler, Associate Chancellor for Public Affairs and Chief Communication Officer at the University of Illinois

6:00 p.m.

Adjourn and Quick Overview of Tuesday’s Program

TUESDAY, October 6

11:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.

Graduate Schools Respond to COVID-19: Promising Pathways to Innovation and Sustainability in STEM Education
This session will provide a reflection on the recent NORC discussion on COVID-related practices and innovations to stimulate the success of STEM graduate students and programs during and after the crisis.

Presenters: Debra W. Stewart,NORC Senior Fellow

James R. Neumeister, Research Scientist, NORC

11:15 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Academic Progression of Graduate Students: Strategies to Mitigate the Effect of COVID-19
Since mid-March 2020 when universities shut down, moving all classes and administrative processes online, many graduate students found themselves adrift. Adrift from the loss of interaction with their professors and colleagues, the cancellation of research opportunities, promised summer funding evaporating, and many other related issues. What are the challenges of providing support for graduate students during the time of COVID-19? How are students who were in the final year of guaranteed funding continuing their programs when they lost a semester of work? These are just a small set of the questions facing graduate deans who need to keep their students moving forward toward their degrees. This panel discussion will identify what a number of institutions are doing to maintain students’ academic progress. We also hope to hear from others about their experiences and how they handled or are handling these situations. It is possible that some best practices will evolve that will be useful to all graduate deans.

Moderator:
Paula D. McClain,Dean of the Graduate School and Vice Provost for Graduate Education, Duke University

Panelists:
Michael Cunningham, Associate Provost for Graduate Studies and Research, Tulane University
Joy Williamson-Lott, Dean of the Graduate School, University of Washington
Seiichi Matsuda, Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Rice University

Lisa Tedesco, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs-Graduate Studies and Dean, Laney Graduate School, Emory University

TUESDAY, October 6

1:00 – 2:30 p.m.

BREAK / Virtual Coffee Hour

2:30 – 4:30 p.m.

A New Future: Innovative Designs for PhD Education
This session will engage the graduate school deans in a discussion about the future design of doctoral programs and curriculums. How are doctoral programs providing students the knowledge, skills, and abilities to succeed in a range of careers both

within and beyond the academy? Panelists will provide examples of how doctoral programs are responding to the various factors influencing doctoral education.

Moderator:
Karen Butler-Purry,Associate Provost for Graduate and Professional Studies, Texas A&M University

Panelists:
Adam Seipp,Assistant Provost, Office of Graduate and Professional Studies, Texas A&M University
Nancy Kass, Vice Provost for Graduate and Professional Education Johns Hopkins University
Phillip Trella, Associate Vice Provost and Director of the Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs, University of Virginia

4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

Virtual Happy Hour