The President’s Advisory Council (PAC) met at UNMC last week. The event included a dialogue with Interim President Susan Fritz, Ph.D., an update from UNMC and UNO Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D., and a tour of the cutting-edge technology at iEXCEL. The group also had the opportunity to see UNMC’s SIM-NE trucks and the Dr. Edwin G. & Dorothy Balbach Davis Global Center, scheduled to open in the next few months.
The PAC is a diverse coalition of Nebraskans who meet twice yearly to hear updates about the University of Nebraska, share their advice with the president, and learn how to effectively advocate for the university and its students. Each spring, PAC members travel to the state capitol to meet with policymakers and share stories of NU’s work and impact.
Other sessions during the UNMC visit included a presentation on Nebraska’s changing demographics from Josie Schafer, Ph.D., director of the Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and a presentation on UNMC’s efforts related to rural health care, led by Bob Bartee, vice chancellor for external relations, and Nicole Carritt, UNMC’s newly appointed director of rural health initiatives.
In her opening remarks, Dr. Fritz noted that the University of Nebraska system is on an important growth trajectory, with recent successes that are advancing economic development and quality of life in the state and around the world. She pointed to a recent breakthrough in HIV research in which UNMC was a lead partner, UNO’s record-breaking biomechanics grant announced last week, NU’s top-100 worldwide ranking in securing U.S. patents, and campuses’ flood recovery efforts throughout the spring and summer as examples.
She credited the NU chancellors and their leadership teams for a “laser focus” on serving students.
“Everything comes back to making sure that we are affordable and accessible for our 51,000 students,” she said.
Further enhancing the student experience, improving and tracking student outcomes, and building a highly skilled workforce for the state will be among her highest priorities as interim president, Dr. Fritz told the group.
“It’s truly an exciting time to be a part of the University of Nebraska,” she said.