Colleagues,
Welcome to "3, 2, One KU," a weekly memo in which I'll share updates and thoughts for the week ahead. The title of the memo is derived from the format: each edition will include three things to know, two things to share, and one reflection on how our "One KU" initiative is enhancing collaboration across our campuses. I hope you find this weekly communication informative.
Respectfully,
Doug
Three things to know
NIH director visits KU Medical Center
Last Friday, we hosted National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya and U.S. Senator Jerry Moran at KU Medical Center to discuss federal spending priorities and KU research initiatives. In particular, we highlighted the KU Cancer Center and the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, including our efforts to expand the ADRC as part of our broader brain health initiative. It was a productive visit and a special opportunity for KU to showcase its capabilities to the leader of the world’s largest public funding agency for biomedical and behavioral research. There’s no question Director Bhattacharya believes the nation’s top research universities drive American leadership in science, and we will continue working with him on initiatives that benefit KU, higher education and the people of Kansas.
Pursuing our employee pay plan
Last week, the Kansas Board of Regents approved our proposal to provide Lawrence and Edwards campus maintenance workers with at least a 4% pay raise, marking the latest step in our ongoing plan to address market pay for all employees. As was reiterated in last week’s virtual town hall, our top financial priority for the Lawrence and Edwards campuses is employee market pay, and about half of the Lawrence campus’ $32 million budget reduction for FY2027 will be reinvested into market pay increases.
Thank you for your efforts
As we approach Thanksgiving, I would like to express how thankful I am for your efforts on behalf of the University of Kansas. It’s been a tough year for higher education, but KU continues to advance its mission thanks to your talent, compassion and resilience. I hope each of you finds time to rest and enjoy family and friends this week, and I will look forward to seeing you after the break. In the meantime, if you need me, I’ll be home debating with my family about whether stuffing should have nuts in it. (It obviously should NOT.)
Two things to share
KU research on your radio
Research Matters is a collaboration between Kansas Public Radio and the KU Office of Graduate & Postdoctoral Affairs that highlights contributions of graduate research to Kansas and the nation. Each installment of Research Matters showcases a brief interview with a KU graduate student about their project, its impact on the state, and the motivations driving the student’s research. All episodes can be found on the Kansas Public Radio and Graduate & Postdoctoral Affairs websites.
KU hosts inaugural gathering of AAAS Fellows
Last week KU celebrated its 33 faculty members elected as Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. This inaugural gathering brought together KU’s AAAS Fellows, university leaders and research administrators to discuss future research potential and strengthen collaborations across all KU campuses.
"One KU"
Points of Distinction webpage
One of the best things about our One KU initiative is that it enables us to more effectively showcase the great things happening across all of our campuses. With this in mind, I encourage you to visit our Points of Distinction webpage, which is a powerful and efficient snapshot of our most impressive accolades and initiatives spanning all KU locations and all aspects of our mission. I am confident you will find this page useful as you communicate KU’s value in conversations with partners and constituents.