MELBOURNE, FLA. — President John Nicklow, acknowledging the large (and rapidly growing) impact of artificial intelligence across society, told faculty and staff at his State of the University address Wednesday that Florida Tech will greet this new force with education, integration and excitement.
“It is a fast-evolving area, and Florida Tech is working quickly to offer our students and faculty the resources they need to contribute in this field,” he said during his address at Gleason Performing Arts Center. (Video excerpts of Nicklow’s remarks on AI and other State of the University highlights are below.)
The university is preparing a new Bachelor of Science degree program centered on applied math, artificial intelligence and data science that could be available as soon as Fall 2024. Elsewhere, AI will be discussed at and integrated into the University Experience course, a one-credit seminar for first-year students that will help start building AI literacy among these young learners.
This summer, Florida Tech will offer AI and space science workshops for high school teachers. And the university is exploring the idea of offering AI certificate and micro-credentialing programs.
“This is a great start—but probably not enough,” Nicklow said in his remarks. “We must keep looking ahead to ensure we’re keeping pace with the speed of innovation in this area. AI is about to be a major part of each of our lives. The more we know about its capabilities, its responsible and ethical use, and how it can be a positive tool in our work, the better.”
Other topics addressed at the State of the University presentation:
- Strategic Plan: Goal champions and tactical teams for each of the four pillars of Florida Tech’s Forward Together, Boundless Potential strategic plan have now been identified and are beginning to meet this month. Metrics to gauge progress and success in carrying out the plan are being finalized and their dashboards should be live on the site in the coming weeks. Nicklow expects that units will tie their annual goals and assessments directly to the strategic plan, which “is effectively our blueprint for realizing all that we know Florida Tech can be.”
- Enrollment: Based on initial data, Florida Tech is on track to have another strong undergraduate enrollment for Fall 2024. Inquiries about a Florida Tech education are up 34% from this time a year ago and applications are up 17%. The impact of the well-publicized national delays in the critical federal form for financial aid known as FAFSA will not be clear for months. Graduate student enrollment has seen a slight uptick in deposits, but Nicklow said there are opportunities to strengthen this area. One way that the university will do that is to consider tweaking the research incentive programs that support graduate students.
- Office of Sponsored Research: Research is part of the DNA at Florida Tech and critical to its future. When new provost John Z. Kiss arrives in May, a presidential priority is to build out the Office of Sponsored Research as it evolves into the Office of Research. “My goal is to provide faculty with greater support in identifying research opportunities, in preparing proposals and budgets, and in building the right interdisciplinary teams that attract funding,” Nicklow said. “This is fundamental to our plan to grow our grant and contract expenditures.” Hamid Rassoul will serve as new senior associate provost for research.
- Faculty Awards: Nicklow announced four major faculty awards and recipients at the end of his address. They are: Kerry B. Clark Award for Faculty Excellence in Teaching to TJ O’Connor, assistant professor in electrical engineering and computer science and cybersecurity program chair; Charles E. Helmstetter Award for Faculty Excellence in Research to Toufiq Reza, associate professor in chemical engineering; Andrew W. Revay Jr. Award for Faculty Excellence in Service to Hamidreza Najafi, associate professor in mechanical and civil engineering; Gavel Award to Al Brown, Faculty Senate president.
A few quick hits:
>> Currently, there are 23 open faculty lines for which the university is searching for candidates to begin in fiscal 2025 – 10 teaching track and 13 tenure-track, including a search for the department head position for mechanical and civil engineering.
>> Wireless internet coverage on campus continues to be improved. Coverage has been completed in the Crawford Building and outdoor spaces at Columbia Village. Additionally, the IT team is implementing an outdoor Wi-Fi plan for most outdoor spaces on campus to be ready for the fall semester.
>> Expense cards will change, and the expense card process will be centralized and streamlined as Florida Tech transitions to a new banking partner in the coming months. More details to come.
>> Florida Tech is working with an outside partner to conduct an economic impact study to get a better handle on exactly how—and how much—the university contributes to the local and regional economy.
>> Program review, always a priority and now part of the strategic plan, will get underway soon with periodic reviews of all academic programs to identify future direction, strengths, challenges, needs and priorities.
>> Dr. Nicklow teased us last fall with a mention that Pete the Panther is getting a new look. In fact, there is a new athletics visual identity coming with new logos. Public unveiling set for April 25!
