This week, we are highlighting the Faculty Council meeting. The meeting’s guests included President Renu Khator, Provost Diane Chase, General Counsel Dona Cornell, Associate Provost for Faculty Development and Faculty Affairs Jim Briggs, Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School Sarah Larsen, and Vice President for Research Claudia Neuhauser. For full details, please review the minutes posted on the Faculty Council website. 

Meeting highlights include:

• President Khator delivered updates to the FC including the 2027 legislative agenda.
• VP for Research, Dr. Neuhauser provided data on the Total Research Expenditures, the use of Common Forms, the PI Portal updates, and other research related updates.
• Campus construction this hear and winding down early 2027. Please continue to use the UH map which provides real-time navigation around campus and its construction sites. It's available online at www.uh.edu/maps and via the Map feature on the UH Go app.
• Provost Chase established a Faculty Curriculum Review Advisory Committee.
• Tiered process of Core Curriculum - speak to your Curriculum Committee Councilor for details.
• Security updates including near completion of the perimeter lighting project and the UH Campus Police satellite office in the Welcome Center. 
• One representative from each college, as well as the library, was asked to update the Council on how we are communicating initiatives and updates within our respective units (e.g., colleges). Please contact your Faculty Councilor for details.
• Administrators and councilors expressed a thank you to the voters for the passage of the Texas University Fund.      

Each week, we shine a light on a key SAM or MAPP policy that directly affects faculty. This week’s focus: Security MAPP 07 Public Safety.

The University of Houston’s Violence on Campus policy articulates the institution’s commitment to maintaining a safe environment for learning and work by defining unacceptable violent acts and behaviors of concern and outlining processes for responding to them.

All U.S. universities that participate in federal student aid programs, including all public universities in Texas, are required under the Clery Act to publish an Annual Security and Fire Safety Report. The Faculty Council acknowledges faculty concerns related to this issue and is actively working to address the matters raised. Preliminary discussion and related updates were included in the Faculty Council meeting held on January 21.

The Future of Higher Education Talk Series, Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Talk:         The Homework Machine and What Comes After… 

Speaker:   Justin Reich, Associate Professor, Comparative Media Studies, MIT

Location and Time: 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in 102 HSC (Houston Science Center)

Please RSVP to receive the meeting link or to sign up for in-person attendance.

APeX Talk Wednesday, January 28, 2026, 12:15 – 1:15 p.m.

            Dr. Michael Kistner - "How Has Social Media Shaped Politicians' Rhetoric" 

 Your input helps shape the UH experience for all of us. Do you have ideas, feedback, or topics you would like to see featured in UH Together? We would love to hear from you!

Recently, there was a request for an update to the Student Government Association (SGA) elections. The most recent posting on the UH website shows that elections are open. 

https://www.uh.edu/sga/#:~:text=The%20Student%20Government%20Association%20is,university%20policies%2C%20decisions%2C%20and%20services. 

To date, we have processed 14 submissions (2 were the same). The submissions are vetted by the Executive Committee and resolved (easy suggestions such as a link to the FC website or an issue we can address in the UH Together weekly publication) or routed to the appropriate committee.

Share your thoughts here: https://forms.office.com/r/iDkuvcvbWB .