Published: April 16, 2024

As we continue to move through the School of Education’s budget sustainability initiative, it’s my pleasure to provide an update on the composition of the ad hoc budget sustainability committee.

Following the call for nominations, the leadership team and I were very pleased to receive nearly 100 submissions containing nominations and self-nominations and a wide sampling of representation across our community. We are pleased with the final committee composition, and we believe the members are well-positioned to listen, learn, and work together collectively for the benefit of our students, mission, and long-term resiliency.

Here are the committee members, who have all been contacted and have agreed to serve this important role:

  • Emily Johns O’Leary, PhD student, literacy studies 
  • Karla Scornavacco, director of field experiences 
  • Kelsey Ostenaa, sponsored projects manager 
  • Oded Gurantz, assistant professor, REM 
  • Roudy Hildreth, executive director, CU Engage 
  • Terri Wilson, associate professor, EFPP
  • Travis Anderson, assistant dean of academic program and planning
  • Valerie Otero, professor, STEM education 

The leadership team and I took several criteria into consideration in selecting members, including:

  • the individual’s representation across program areas and/or their diversity of service or leadership experiences within the school,
  • the overall representation and diversity of experiences across the committee composition,
  • how many times individuals were nominated, and
  • the individual’s unique insights and qualities as stated in their nominations.

The large pool of nominations was just what we were hoping for, and it made our task challenging — there were many interesting perspectives that came through the nomination process. We thank everyone, who either nominated someone or themselves, for their interest in joining or supporting the committee. We strongly encourage everyone to continue engaging by submitting your questions and ideas through the web form:

All ideas submitted through the form will be considered by the committee and leadership team. As the committee begins and progresses, you’ll receive updates about what the committee is learning about and leaning into, and the committee timeline is available on the budget sustainability webpage.Ìý

We are all committed to thinking and working together throughout this process. I am grateful for your thoughtful nominations, and I thank the committee members, in advance, for their commitment to deeply understanding our school’s mission and our budget while we work creatively and thoughtfully toward potential solutions.

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Fernando Rosario-Ortiz
Interim Dean