New Series Discover UH � the Vision, the Culture, and the Pride Wraps up this Week
 
The five week Discover UH � the Vision, the Culture and the Pride series offered by Human Resources will wrap up on Friday, October 8th, with an exploration of Advancement, Athletics, and the Alumni. The series is designed for managers, supervisors and new employees that want to learn more about how the University works behind the scenes. Each session takes participants on a journey of discovery through the University.

The Discover UH series started with presentations on the UH History, the Board of Regents, government relations, and the strategic initiatives and planning. This session was a journey through the history of UH, presented by Oscar Gutierrez, Assistant to the Chancellor/President for Communications. He provided great insight, personal anecdotes and a pictorial presentation from the past to the present that truly showed the progress made over the years. Participants were excited to hear from the Chair of the Board of Regents, Carroll Ray, about the mission of the board and how the members work to support the University as it moves forward. Chair Ray helped the participants understand that the drive to Tier One will take everyone working together and that it is more than a one person job. Barbara Stanley, AVC Local Government Relations, shared insights on working with both local and federal government officials to promote the interest of the University in areas such as metro, repaving of Cullen, and funding. Finally, Ed Hugetz, Associate VC/VP Planning/University Outreach, shared how the strategic initiatives were identified and the progress that has been made to reach the goals. These presentations and speakers illuminated the Discover UH � the Vision.

Discover UH � the Culture was covered in three sessions. The first session on the Division of Academics Affairs and the Division of Research, presented by Dr. Ages DeFranco and Dr. Elizabeth Fletcher-Anderson, highlighted how these two divisions are working toward the strategic initiatives. Participants learned about the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) initiative and reviewed cutting edge research currently taking place at the University. The second session on UH culture, offered a variety of speakers from the Division of Student Affairs, and highlighted the vast organizational structure, which includes Residential Life and Housing, Learning Support Services, the University Centers, Campus Recreation and Wellness, CAPS, the Health Center, International Student Scholars, Students with DisABILITIES, Career Services and much more. The last session on UH culture was an experiential journey with Administration and Finance with participants going on an excursion to evaluate three areas of service; the bookstore, the shuttle service, and the waste management area. Participants shared feedback and their experience and then participated in an open dialogue on service initiatives and going green. Also, offered in the sessions on UH culture was the three representative groups for the campus shared governess model: the Faculty Senate; the Student Government Association; and the Staff Council.

Finally, this week will wrap up the Discover UH � the Vision, the Culture, and the Pride, with presentations concentrating on the Pride. Participants will meet at the Alumni Center and hear presentations from Advancement, Athletics and the Alumni Association. Human Resources delivered this series with the following goals in mind: to build ownership of the University by providing knowledge about the internal decisions; to build understanding of how each person can contribute to the goals; and to build pride in our University. Join us next semester as we continue to Discover UH.

To learn more about QEP, click here.