Faculty assembly discusses new provost, university policies

Faculty Assembly President Robin Kear announced that the provost search committee selected Joseph McCarthy as Pitt’s new provost and senior vice chancellor during Wednesday’s meeting. 

McCarthy has served as the interim provost since the resignation of former provost Ann E. Cudd in June of 2023. 

“I am very pleased to congratulate Joe McCarthy on becoming our next provost,” Kear said. “I think he is an excellent choice to be provost and I look forward to our continuing partnership.” 

Faculty Assembly met Wednesday afternoon in room 2700 of Posvar Hall and over Zoom. At the meeting, they discussed the new provost Joseph McCarthy and Zoom renewal and voted on a university policy. 

The provost search committee, chaired by Anantha Shekhar, senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and the dean of the School of Medicine, formed in October 2023. 

“It was my pleasure to be part of such a great search committee,” Kear said. “I want to thank [my] fellow members. That was a great experience and I learned so much from them.” 

Kear also discussed a recent question directed to faculty by deans regarding the renewal of Zoom for each school within the university. 

“The renewal of Zoom is up for the University, and there is an increase in price,” Kear said. “Pitt IT is offering deans the choice of which level of Zoom they want to renew for their school.”  

Kear gave an update on the ongoing issue with the Disability and Resource Services’ Testing Center capacity. For 18 months, the testing center has frequently reached capacity, especially during midterms and finals weeks. 

“Some short-term solutions include additional staff and space during the busiest parts of the year,” Kear said. “Long-term solutions include a more permanent space and some assistance from faculty departments with extra time accommodation as it is feasible.”

Kear explained that DRS has already implemented some short-term solutions to help with the capacity issue such as Panther Card readers, which allow students to enter and exit the testing center more efficiently. DRS has also made suggestions to faculty for how they can help aid the issue. 

John Stoner, co-chair of the educational policies committee, presented research to explain the surge in Testing Center use. 

“In 2014, less than a third of exams given [at the testing center] were related to students with accommodation needs,” Stoner said. “In 2022, at least 90% of the exams were related to students with accommodation needs.”

Stoner suggested that faculty give assessments other than timed tests in their courses to decrease use of the testing center. 

“Give fewer timed tests. If you still have to give a final that’s timed, sure, but if you can do some other assessments, that’s great,” Stoner said. “There are curricular designers there to help you do that.” 

Bridget Keown, co-chair of the Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Discrimination Advocacy committee, presented information about a university policy called “Assistance Animals, Therapy Animals and Pets.”

The policy aims to clarify which animals are permitted on campus while establishing procedures to address dual disabilities, such as accommodating individuals who may be allergic to assistance animals.

“This policy is based on existing university regulations, ADA regulations and other institutionalized policies where necessary,” Keown said. “[The policy] remains flexible enough to accommodate individual students’ needs and requests when those regulations do not extend far enough.” 

The Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Discrimination Advocacy Committee approved the policy in February, and Faculty Assembly approved it at the meeting. Senate Council will vote on the policy in two weeks. 

Finally, Vice Chancellor for Communications and Marketing Rachel Richelieu presented recent developments for the Pitt Identity and Brand Positioning project. The project is working in support of Chancellor Joan Gabel’s “Strategic Plan for Pitt.” It aims to “strengthen” Pitt’s brand positioning. 

“Our project really focuses on how we as a university talk about ourselves,” Richelieu said. “How we show up visually, our digital storytelling and so on. It’s really important.” 

Some key focuses of the project include identity refinement and connection between Pitt’s regional campuses from a branding standpoint. 

“The idea is to really help connect with people so that they can have a greater understanding and an emotional connection with the university,” Richelieu said.