Sept. 7 reception set for new provost

Updated 10:00 AM August 14, 2006

Sept. 7 reception set for new provost

By Laurel Thomas Gnagey
and Julie Peterson, Office of the Vice President for Communication

President Mary Sue Coleman invites all members of the campus community to a reception to meet Provost Teresa Sullivan. The event will be held from 4-5:30 p.m. on Sept. 7 in the Michigan League Ballroom. President Coleman will formally introduce Provost Sullivan during a short program that will begin at 4:30 p.m.

Sullivan began her duties as provost and executive vice president for academic affairs June 1, and Coleman says the former executive vice chancellor for academic affairs for the University of Texas System has "hit the ground running."

"Since she began in June Provost Sullivan has participated in two Board of Regents meetings, and in July presented a General Fund Budget that addresses increasing costs and responds to challenges in faculty recruitment and retention, while investing in important new initiatives and emphasizing academic quality," Coleman said.

Sullivan has made it a point to become acquainted with University units, Coleman says, including participating in day-long visits with the schools and colleges of business; education; engineering; kinesiology; law; music, theatre & dance; natural resources and the environment; pharmacy; public health; and social work. By the end of this month she will have visited the Rackham Graduate School and the Medical School.

The provost also has engaged in discussions with the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs and University deans, and has spent considerable time getting to know members of the faculty and the administration.

Sullivan received her Bachelor of Arts degree from James Madison College at Michigan State University (MSU) in 1970 and her doctorate in sociology from the University of Chicago in 1975.

She served in many administrative positions at the University of Texas at Austin, including director of the Women's Studies Program and chair of the Department of Sociology. In 1995 she was named vice president and dean of the Graduate School. During her tenure, the school introduced new programs in neuroscience, biomedical engineering, and the commercialization of science and technology. In 2000, the Graduate School was given the Award for Innovation in Graduate Education by the Woodrow Wilson Foundation.

Sullivan also holds a tenured faculty position at U-M as professor of sociology. She is a scholar in labor force demographics, with a particular focus on economic marginality and consumer debt.

She is joined at U-M by her husband, Douglas Laycock, who has accepted a faculty position at the Law School. He is a nationally renowned legal scholar and constitutional litigation specialist, and is considered one of the foremost national experts on the religion clauses contained in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution that establish the principles of religious liberty and the separation of church and state.

Sept. 7 reception set for new provost

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