May 6, 2019

FROM THE PRESIDENT'S DESK

I can't imagine a more exciting time to be part of UNT Dallas.

Everywhere you look, progress is apparent. Our reconfigured courtyard now elegantly leads down to the nearly complete Student Center, the crown jewel of our growing campus, and the soon-to-be hub for all student activity.

We will celebrate the $63 million, 136,000-square-foot facility with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, May 14, before officially

christening the Student Center with a barbecue blowout to begin the Fall 2019 semester.

In less than two weeks, we will honor another record-setting graduating class at our anticipated Spring Commencement on Friday, May 17, at the Inspiring Body of Christ Church. These proud graduates have laid the groundwork that has made UNT Dallas the fastest-growing university in Texas.

Our law school is also on the precipice of the anticipated opening of the UNT Dallas Law Center. The top-to-bottom renovation of the historic Dallas Municipal Building will make the Law Center the quintessential setting for studying law in urban Dallas.

Yes, we are growing, in many ways by leaps and bounds. Yet, our work to break through the economic disparities that have for too long prevented students in our southern Dallas communities, and beyond, from attaining a college education, is only just beginning.

Because of the commitment and dedication of our wonderful faculty and staff, and the ambition and resiliency of our students, we are indeed optimistic about the progress we're making as Dallas' emerging urban university.  

SCHOOL OF EDUCATION DEAN DR. JOHN GASKO SET TO TACKLE NEW ROLE AS SPECIAL ADVISOR TO PRESIDENT MONG

Since Dr. John Gasko joined UNT Dallas as dean of the School of Education in March 2016, he has collectively raised more than $2.5 million in grants and philanthropic resources. Now he will have the opportunity to serve the university in a more expansive manner as Special Advisor to President Bob Mong, working in collaboration with university leadership, faculty and staff to forge ahead in pursuit of our mission. “I am excited to bring Dr. Gasko’s spirit of innovation and creativity to an expanded role at UNT Dallas,” Mong said.

More: C heck out the full story on Dr. Gasko's exciting promotion

RECOGNITION TOWN HALL PACKED THE HOUSE, AND INCLUDED AN UNEXPECTED BONUS THAT LEFT EVERYONE SMILING

We were pleased to see a full house on April 26 as our Recognition Town Hall brought faculty and staff together to applaud colleagues who have served UNT Dallas (or anywhere within the UNT System) for at least five years, and others who were recipients of the new monthly Outstanding Trailblazer Award. We had 92 Service Award Recipients, employees with at least five years of  service as of Dec. 31, 2018. Another 37 were recognized as Outstanding Trailblazer Award

winners from January through April. Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to nominate employees who are resilient, exemplify teamwork and go the extra mile. President Mong also specifically recognized Daniel Goines, Director of Residence Life, Housing and Conference Services, for his effort with coordinating Meals on Wheels on behalf of the Culture Committee; the 39 faculty and staff members who completed the Navigating Leadership Program; student Hector Robledo for being named a Newman Civic Fellow; and alum Matt Khirallah, co-founder and COO at Big Rock Educational Services. As if all that didn't make for an excellent morning, President Mong announced a one-time merit bonus of $1,000 for staff and faculty (employees are eligible for the bonus if they have a start date of Sept. 1, 2018 or earlier and have a satisfactory evaluation on file; employees are not eligible if they have any formal disciplinary action or have been placed on a performance improvement plan within the last year (April 1, 2018 - April 1, 2019, or have a base pay of $150,000 or more). 

UNT DALLAS IN THE NEWS: DFW MEDIA CONTINUES TO SHINE A SPOTLIGHT ON OUR EXCEPTIONAL FACULTY AND NOBLE MISSION

Three times in April, the Dallas-Fort Worth media found the work that we are doing at UNT Dallas to be worthy of sharing with their viewers and listeners. We were pleased to have CBS 11 reporter Robbie Owens back on campus as she took a deep dive into our Dr. Syeda Jesmin's new project, STRONG (Students and Teachers Reaching Out and Never Giving Up), which has a focus on mental health awareness, and in particular, suicide prevention. Owens' piece was moving and informative. You can view it here. Making his long-awaited return to campus was KERA reporter extraordinaire Bill Zeeble, who attended our unique "Spanish in the Community" course in which UNT Dallas students mentor legal residents as they prepare to take the U.S. Citizenship test. This course is truly pioneering stuff. You can read and listen to Bill's four-minute report here. And, finally, President Mong promoted our mission to break down the economic barriers to higher education and help low-income students gain socioeconomic mobility in a Q&A with Dallas Innovates. You can read his interview here.

TRAILBLAZER ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT…

GLORIA A. LOPEZClass of 2018, Master’s of Public Leadership

Employer: Trinity River MissionPosition: CEO

Alumni Q&A:

What is your ultimate career goal?: To make Trinity River Mission the Ivy League of after-school programs. Ensuring that OUR kids have all the necessary resources, guidance, support and opportunities to thrive.

What was the defining moment of your academic career?: Realizing that the material we are learning are perspectives and practices

from subject-matter experts that don’t have a lot in common with me. Yet, my peers and I could connect the pieces to see their perspective applied to OUR world and the need for OUR contribution to shed a full light. I found the need to add my voice. Anyone who attended class with me knew my passion revolved around children, education, gentrification and service. This program definitely refueled the activist in me, the dreamer, the knowledgeable and, certainly, the learner.

Can you provide an example of a challenge and/or breakthrough you faced during your career?: Just the idea that I made my dream come true is breakthrough enough. I have always wanted to go to grad school, l I just didn’t know if I had it in me anymore because I had waited so long due to financial reasons. But thankful a kind soul, my hard work and tuition reimbursement made it possible. I graduated debt-free with my master's! However, I would have to say that the last semester was challenging. I was taking capstone and one other class. Our capstone fell through after we completed a literature review on the topic and we needed to find another and research the new topic, all while at work I was promoted to CEO, adding tons of responsibility. Our agency needed to restructure, it was a major undertaking. Luckily, much of what I was learning I had been applying at work. A year prior, I had completed an organizational assessment for Dr. Larry Terry. Working through the recommendations I was able to apply theory and application to real life practice. I was grateful to have made TRM my subject of practice. In the end it was paving the rode for me and helping me towards my goal. Today, I am 15 months into being the Chief Executive Officer of the agency I first enrolled in 33 years ago! I get to pay it forward and I get to be the first in my family to earn a master's degree.

Alumni Fun Facts:

Favorite book: The Four Agreements, By Don Miguel RuizFavorite part about living in Dallas-Fort Worth: The Arts DistrictFavorite Dallas restaurant: Boiling CrabLife Motto: Do what you love!!!!

#UNTD NEWS & CAMPUS UPDATES

Dr. Monica Williams Receives Excellence Award: Congratulations to Vice President of Advancement, Dr. Monica Williams, who was nominated for the 2019 Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce's Excellence in Education Award, and was unanimously selected as an honoree. Dr. Williams received her award during the Excellence in Education Scholarship Program on May 2 at Discovery Gardens.

Political Science Students Hear From Obama, Colin Powell: Four of our political science majors -- Vickie Hawkins-Stewart, David Schaller, Fernando Luciano and Arayon Washington -- were selected to represent UNT Dallas at the 15th Annual Diversity and Leadership Conference at the Hilton Anatole Dallas, where they heard speeches from General Colin Powell, President Barack Obama and actress America Ferrera. Each student was selected for being among the outstanding performers in political science courses, and all have taken several courses in political science that deal with the politics and history of race, ethnicity and diversity.

SGA Passes the Gavel: Our Student Government Association held its passing of the gavel ceremony on April 29. Outgoing President Isiah Smith and his executive board did an excellent job during the 2018-19 school year. They passed the gavel to incoming President Monty Grant, who will be a sophomore political science major. President Elect Grant ran on the slogan, "Unity in the Community." We look forward to witnessing his agenda unfold during the next academic year. Grant's presidential

ambitions don't end with SGA. He has long set his aspirations for the White House.

Construction Update: We are extremely excited by the progress in the courtyard between DAL 1 and Founders Hall. As you've surely noticed, we've moved to the landscaping phase with an abundance of trees and plants that will beautify our growing campus. The fences that have surrounded the planting areas are just about ready to be removed, which will give way to the steps that lead down to the Student Center. More big news there as furniture is now being moved into the facility. All phases of construction are in the waning stages as we anticipate the grand opening of the Student Center.

Speaking of the Student Center: We are only days away from a significant milestone for our growing university. On May 14, we will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony that will include tours of the new building for a small constituency of friends of the university. This celebration of the Student Center precedes a significant grand opening event scheduled in late August during Welcome Week.

Culture Committee Wants to Hear from You: In our continuing effort to meet the needs of faculty and staff, the UNT Dallas Culture Committee will debut a monthly newsletter in early June. The Committee is asking for faculty and staff to submit noteworthy information by the 15th of each month including births, birthdays, new faces, employee recognition, campus events and milestones for inclusion by the 15th of each month. Please submit information here. 

The University of North Texas at Dallas is our city's emerging urban university. UNT Dallas empowers students, transforms lives and strengthens communities. Perched on a hilltop, overlooking the Downtown Dallas skyline, UNT Dallas is the only public, accredited 4-year university in the City of Dallas. UNT Dallas includes the UNT Dallas College of Law in Downtown Dallas and is part of the UNT System.

Office of the President7300 University Hills Blvd, Dallas, TX 75241972.780.3601President@UNTDallas.edu