Interim Provost Gerry Bradley addressed the faculty senate with information on student enrollment and departmental budgets. Data collected through last fall semester revealed student enrollment was under projection for both undergraduate and professional students. For this reason, the university entered the spring 2022 semester with roughly $4 million less than anticipated. Although a similar budgetary loss was anticipated for this spring term, strong enrollment and retention rates mitigated this effect, leaving the spring semester budget at a deficit of $1.5 million.

“All in all, we were down about $5.5 million dollars. The budget teams, especially in the units that have been impacted by lower enrollment than expected, have carried a lot of weight trying to work through that. We also made adjustments centrally and allocated discretionary funds to support those units,” Bradley said. “Overall, we are confident we can go forward, finish out the budget year and break even as we do every year.”

Bradley attributed this confidence to an overall increase in first-year student applications and admits for next academic year. All budgets for the next academic year are currently being developed, and increases to employee pay have been identified as an institutional priority.

“As we are developing our budgets now, we certainly want to build in things we know are important. We need to build in a pay increase, and we are committed to that. That is certainly critical for us to recruit and retain our faculty and staff here in this institution, who we know have gone through a trying two years with COVID-19,” Bradley said.

Faculty members Lauren Freeman and Avery Kolers presented senators with the proposal for a new academic program, the . The proposal moved for transition of the current master of arts in interdisciplinary studies-health care ethics, which is housed in graduate school, to the department of philosophy under the rubric of applied philosophy. The 33-credit hour program offered through the College of Arts and Sciences was proposed for implementation during the fall 2022 semester. Senators unanimously approved the proposed academic program.

Committee reports and a of the meeting can be accessed on the . The next Faculty Senate meeting is scheduled for April 6 via a hybrid format with the option of remote attendance via Teams, or in-person attendance at Ekstrom Library’s Chao Auditorium.

She started her undergraduate studies away from Louisville, but eventually came back, deciding to see if and how UofL could align with her goals of working with the environment in some capacity. When she began college, geology was her major of choice, but it wasn’t offered at UofL.

“When I transferred to UofL, I had to change my major to fit something I was interested in,” said Johnson. “I went to the geography and geosciences department, and that allowed me to see the human side of geology.”

That “human side of geology” became ingrained in the rest of Johnson’s time at UofL. During college, Johnson had the opportunity to travel abroad four times, to Iceland, Trinidad and Tobago, Nepal and Belize, meeting and working with people who shared her passion.

Each trip came with a different “human side” of the environmental studies she was studying. In Iceland, Johnson completed a writing internship with others and became a contributor to a book titled .

In Trinidad and Tobago, Johnson traveled with a group from the Pan-African studies department and did an independent study on hydrocarbons. In Nepal, she focused on geosciences and geohazard. Her final abroad trip to Belize allowed her to facilitate an environmental education lesson plan for local high schoolers.

“The first time I studied abroad with a geography internship, I found more passion for the idea of representation in this industry and how humans impact the environment and earth,” said Johnson. “UofL helped me a lot with traveling and studying abroad.”

Just like in college, Johnson is still exploring what this vast field can provide for her and others. As a field ambassador for , a position that was created for Johnson, some of her work includes increasing the diversity, inclusion and outreach for the organization.

“What I do is try to help reconnect and connect young adults and members of underserved communities, specifically communities of color, to explore nature and Bernheim,” said Johnson. “I also want to encourage them to consider green jobs in order to diversify this field. By working at Bernheim, I’m helping to show young adults and children that there can be representation within this type of field.”

Being allowed to show her passion to those who may look like her is just one way Johnson is impacting Bernheim. Her hope is that people also look toward roles like her and recognize that they can be financially feasible and welcoming.

“There are a lot of people and communities not working in this area because they don’t feel it’s welcoming or they don’t see people like them doing the same work,” Johnson said. “It’s important that people realize they can do green and environmental jobs, and those positions are just as acceptable as any other job.”

Johnson notes UofL provided the outlets and organizations she needed to thrive. One such organization was , a program that helps students who are low-income, first-generation, or students with disabilities achieve a bachelor’s degree.

“It was through TRIO that I actually started to appreciate the campus, the city and the college community,” said Johnson. “I had so many resources, whether it be social, academic, or financial. TRIO helped me with the study abroad programs. I give a lot of credit to TRIO because the staff was really passionate about seeing everyone succeed.”

In addition to being a part of TRIO, Johnson credits her level of preparation to professors within her department. The opportunities to study abroad was no doubt impactful, but it took some specific courses to help Johnson with that next step into the professional world.

“In my senior year, my thesis professor was really helpful for preparing me for a career in environment and research,” said Johnson. “We as students learn that research would be a part of our field, but it wasn’t until that class that I truly felt confident and prepared professionally to conduct research.” 

UofL’s fully online programs were recognized as some of the top online education for students in the following categories:

• Online bachelor’s
• Online graduate education (specialty ranking of 22 for veterans)
• Online criminal justice (specialty ranking of 12 for veterans)
• Online bachelor’s psychology
• Online engineering
• Online computer information technology

Since 2000, UofL has been offering online degrees and has grown to over 50 online programs and certificates.

“Our students are attracted to our online programs because the online delivery mode allows students access to education in a way that on-campus programs cannot for adults who are often working and raising families,” said Kristen Brown, interim associate provost for Online Learning and Technology. “Our online programs allow part-time enrollment and most are fully asynchronous.”

With fully asynchronous programs available, online students are granted the flexibility to successfully achieve their degree on their own time. UofL’s online programs build a community of care when it comes to adult learners, working professionals, active military, and veterans seeking and succeeding in higher education.

This year, UofL adds two new rankings:

• Online MBA programs (specialty ranking of 29 for veterans)
• Online bachelor’s business (specialty ranking of 38 for veterans)