Reaching Higher Together: Message to Faculty and Staff

Dear Faculty and Staff,

As we begin a new semester, I want to express my appreciation for the work you do each day to make the University of Arkansas a place where students can succeed and feel they belong. Earlier this month, I joined many of you for Move-In, where nearly 500 faculty, staff and community members came together to welcome approximately 5,781 students and their families to campus over the four-day advertised move-in period. It was a powerful reminder of how deeply our community cares. My thanks go to the Student Affairs team for their leadership in making this a smooth and celebratory experience, and to all of you who contributed your time, energy and care to help our students feel welcome and supported. 

The dedication and teamwork that made Move-In so successful are qualities that have helped us build such tremendous momentum in recent years — and the momentum continues to build. In just the past few weeks, we’ve celebrated record achievements across several key areas: 

• Research: $230.6 million conducted in FY24, the highest in our history. 
• Donor Support: $254.7 million in FY25, our largest total ever for a non-campaign year. 
• Enrollment: More Arkansans in our incoming freshman class than ever, part of the ~34,000 students expected this fall, another all-time high. 

These accomplishments reflect the hard work and dedication of faculty and staff in every part of the university. Whether you teach, conduct research, provide essential student services, or keep operations running smoothly, you are part of the reason we continue to set the bar higher. 

We expect to break more records this year, but two of the milestones we’re most looking forward to will take years of concerted effort. Our 150 Forward Reaching Higher goals of achieving an 80% graduation rate and $500 million in annual research are bold, yet attainable with the talent and dedication found across our university. The Land of Opportunity Scholarship initiative, already more than $132 million toward its $200 million goal, will launch next fall and help more Arkansas students complete their degrees. On the research side, the Institute for Integrative and Innovative Research (I³R), the Anthony Timberlands Center for Design and Materials Innovation opening later this month, and the Multi-User Silicon Carbide Research and Fabrication Facility (MUSiC) opening later this semester will expand our strengths in materials and health, provide vital support to our researchers and attract exceptional new faculty and collaborators. 

As we pursue these goals, we’re pleased to welcome Provost Indrajeet Chaubey to our leadership team. His experience, vision and collaborative approach will be an asset to our ongoing efforts to strengthen academic excellence, and I’m confident his contributions will serve our community well. 

I am grateful to work alongside such talented and committed colleagues, and I’m excited about what we will accomplish together in the months and years ahead. Thank you for everything you do for our students, our university and our state. 

Sincerely,