Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ

Dear University community,

Happy Engagement Week! As part of the systemwide investments launched last September, we enhanced our commitment to Engagement and Outreach. The work under this Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ Compact expands programs from all four universities to the entire state to help increase access to education, improve health care and grow Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ’s economy. There is no better way to showcase and reflect upon our collective statewide impact than with a week-long celebration starting today. We hope you are able to attend or tune in to the exciting Engagement Week events happening throughout the week both virtually and on your campuses.

In addition to the inspirational speakers, panel discussions and campus events lined up this week, we’re also celebrating the virtual rollout of Engagement Portals for the UM System as well as all four universities. These interactive portals capture and leverage university interactions with the objective to foster even stronger ties with Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬans. Additionally, these portals have impact data readily available to show the university’s reach dynamically, in real-time, to every district and county across Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ. , which includes direct links to all four university portals.

We have entered a new era of engagement for the UM System and this important work of connecting the dots does not happen on its own. We want to thank our Engagement Leaders from MU (Blake Naughton and Susan Renoe), UMKC (Curt Crespino and Troy Lillebo), Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ S&T (Andy Careaga and Melanie Keeney) and UMSL (Paul Evensen and Patricia Zahn) for their commitment to linking the research, teaching and service happening on your university campuses to the work of colleagues systemwide as well as to Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ citizens through Extension offices.

Lastly, as part of our investment in engagement and outreach, we launched a Health Engagement Task Force to help Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ move the needle from being by focusing on critical health indicators the university can help address. This group of 30 leaders systemwide is working to find the best way to leverage our assets—the incredible people and programs—to better provide high-quality, affordable health care to all Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬans. We will continue to keep you updated on the progress of this promising effort.

Thank you for your support of this systemwide approach to achieve excellence in engagement and outreach. We will continue to invest in opportunities that help us better serve Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬans through our teaching, research and service. To stay up to date on the latest progress, visit our Engagement and Outreach page.

Sincerely,

Mun Y. Choi, UM System President
Marshall Stewart, UM System Chief Engagement Officer