Provost Fellows program taps campus expertise to drive the Academic Success Goals

The first cohort of the Provost Fellows for Academic Success Goals has begun its work to help shape the future of student success. The program, launched in the fall of 2025, aims to engage faculty and staff throughout the university to work with deans, campus leaders and administrative units to advance the university's Academic Success Goals and strategic imperatives.

The nine fellows were selected from a pool of nearly 60 applicants and will work with stakeholders across campus as part of the program.

"I encourage you to engage with them by sharing your priorities, challenges and ideas, and exploring opportunities to align your efforts with the Academic Success Goals," said Provost and Chief Academic Officer Patricia Prelock. "The leadership of these fellows, combined with strong partnerships across campus, will be catalysts for our progress."

Image

Coordinating the effort

Melanie Hingle, professor in the School of Nutritional Sciences and Wellness, is the senior provost fellow, tasked with facilitating collaboration and communication among the fellows. Hingle said the fellows program is a natural extension of her years of campus engagement, including participation in shared governance and multiple campuswide initiatives.

She said her goal is to connect efforts happening across campus related to the Academic Success Goals and reduce duplication of work among units throughout the university.

"A lot of great work is happening across campus, but often within our own silos in research, teaching or community engagement," Hingle said. "One of our goals is to integrate those efforts and better understand how we can work together."

What the fellows do

Fellows were named in each of the strategic imperative areas: Success for Every Student, Research that Shapes the Future, and Engagement with Our Communities to Create Opportunity. Hingle said members of the cohort, each on one-year appointments with the potential for a second year, are working on an ambitious timeline.

"We see ourselves as connectors and supporters, helping surface potential challenges early and supporting the leaders responsible for implementing the goals," Hingle said.

Image

James Bond, assistant professor in the College of Integrative Learning at the University of Arizona Global Campus, is focusing his work on how unmet student needs can contribute to escalated classroom conflicts. He said outcome anxiety can take a heavy toll on students.

"Students may be worried about what getting a B instead of an A means for their future," Bond said. "They might be juggling work, family responsibilities or financial pressures, and those things can spill over into the classroom. Our job is to think about how we design systems that recognize those realities and help students navigate them."

Those who applied for the fellowship but were not selected have been invited to take part in a community of practice, led by Hingle. Members take part in task forces, review proposals and initiatives and provide input on implementation efforts.

Long-term success

Hingle said fellows will measure success by seeing campuswide alignment around the Academic Success Goals, greater awareness across campus of those goals, and measurable progress in key metrics such as retention, graduation rates and research activity.

"What I appreciate about this process is that it has the potential to be truly campus-driven, so that people across the university feel a sense of ownership in the goals and the work behind them," Hingle said.

The inaugural cohort of Provost Fellows for Academic Success Goals includes:

Senior Provost Fellow

• Melanie Hingle, Professor, School of Nutritional Sciences and Wellness

Provost Fellows for Success for Every Student

• James Bond, Assistant Professor, College of Integrative Learning, University of Arizona Global Campus
• Jameshia Granberry, Executive Director of Administrative Operations and Chief of Staff, College of Medicine – Tucson
• Amy C. Kimme Hea, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Student Success, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
• Jessica Salata, Director of Student Success, Arizona Online

Provost Fellows for Research that Shapes the Future

• Danielle Barefoot, Associate for Research Development, Office of Research & Partnerships
• Katharine Hunsdon Zeiders, Professor, Norton School of Human Ecology

Provost Fellows for Engagement with Our Communities to Create Opportunity

• Chad Herzog, Associate Vice President of Arizona Arts and Executive and Artistic Director, Arizona Arts Live
• Karina Salazar, Assistant Professor, College of Education