Built By Many

Wednesday, June 10, 2026

Progress Worth Celebrating

Hi all,

It’s summertime, and we enter a different season of reflection, rebuilding, preparation for the coming year, and hopefully some well-earned rest and recovery. We have plenty of challenges ahead, but as I settle into summer work mode, I find myself reflecting on what we have accomplished over the past year.

Part of what I do this time of year is review reports from our program committees. I am always struck by what groups of dedicated faculty and staff can accomplish when working together. Just a few highlights:

The MSI committee successfully completed its biennial ALA review.
The MSI committee also established a Product Management Pathway and launched a new AMDP program for all University of Michigan students.
The BSI program welcomed its first cohort of sophomore admits and launched the HCAI minor.
The MHI program finalized plans for its own AMDP and completed significant new course development.
MADS added new courses in emerging topic areas and implemented important changes to admissions.

On top of that, faculty and staff launched the Alternative Learning Initiatives Committee and made meaningful progress on our MOOC portfolio strategy. We also held faculty-led discussions throughout the year about the role of generative AI in our pedagogy and curriculum.

Overall, in my long, long (long) history at UMSI, this was a year of incredible hustle, creativity, and progress.

My deepest gratitude to everyone who helped make it happen.

Best,

Cliff

Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

University of Michigan School of Information

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