Our Mission
The University Fellows Program (UFP) is dedicated to supporting UAGC faculty in the creation and application of new knowledge. The Office of Research and Creative Scholarship (ORCS), the Institutional Review Board (IRB), and members of the Academic Affairs department collaboratively support the UFP and its annual efforts to prioritize and fund faculty research at the university. The UFP also provides support and assists faculty in conducting research in an environment that follows federal, state, and institutional regulations, as well as providing guidance on ethics on ethics and compliance issues.
All projects approved for UFP align with at least one of the UAGC Critical Student Goals:
- RETAIN students during their first year of enrollment
- Support COMPLETION of programs and educational goals driven by student-based timelines
- Offer HIGH-VALUE CREDENTIALS WITH MARKETABLE SKILLS
- Enhance students’ ECONOMIC RETURN
University Fellows Leadership Team
UFP Process Flowchart

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Principal Investigator (PI)
Team Member(s)
Title of Project
College Alignment of PI
Clifford Blizard
Marc Hnytka
One Small Step to Lifelong Learning: Assessing the Short- and Long-Term Impacts of an Environmental Footprint Reduction Project on General Education University Students
School of General Studies
Wendy Conaway
Ellen Beattie, Kelly Olsen-Stewart, Stephanie Stubbs
Preparing for the Oral Defense: Enhancing Doctoral Students’ Public Speaking Skills
School of General Studies
Stephanie Fink
Adrianne Hanson, Cheri Ketchum, Kimberly Luke
Making the C.A.S.E.: ePortfolio-Driven Design in the Liberal Arts
College of Arts & Sciences
Brandy Havens
Misty Resendez, Jennie Walker, Maja Zelihic
Promoting GRIT in Online Women Students
Forbes School of Business and Technology®
Karen Ivy
Lucas Cordova, Tahereh Daneshi, Michael Hayden
Applying Artificial Intelligence Toward Student Success
Forbes School of Business and Technology®
Holly Lopez
Stephanie Heald, Lauren Gonzalez,
Michelle Simicek, Jennifer Zaur,
Amy Johnson, Latisha ShipleyECE Retention Project
College of Arts & Sciences
Hwangji Lu
Robert Smiles
The Effectiveness of Implementing ePortfolio in a Capstone Course: A Case Study
College of Arts & Sciences
Tanya Mooney
The Impact of Student Study Hours: Perceived Perception of First-Year Student Success and Persistence
School of General Studies
Kelly Olson Stewart
Alan Belcher
Culture of Care: Exploring Perceptions of Support from UAGC Doctoral Students
College of Arts & Sciences
Holly Ourso
Live Learning Mathematics Expansion to Required Virtual Live Learning Mathematics
School of General Studies
Dan Tinianow
Expanding on Immersive Experiences for Students and Faculty
School of General Studies
Dan Tinianow
Marc Hnytka
Supporting Student Success with Interstitial Skills Courses
School of General Studies
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Date and Recording Link
Critical Student Goal Highlighted
Projects Discussed
Retain students during their first year of enrollment
Making the C.A.S.E.: ePortfolio-Driven Design in the Liberal Arts- Stephanie Fink
Live Learning Mathematics Expansion to Required Virtual Live Learning Mathematics- Holly Ourso ECE Retention Project- Holly Lopez Support completion of programs and educational goals driven by student-based timelines
Expanding on Immersive Experiences for Students and Faculty- Dan Tinianow One Small Step to Lifelong Learning: Assessing the Short- and Long-Term Impacts of an Environmental Footprint Reduction Project on General Education University Students- Clifford Blizard Preparing for the Oral Defense: Enhancing Doctoral Students’ Public Speaking Skills- Wendy Conaway Offer high-value credentials with marketable skills
The Impact of Student Study Hours: Perceived Perception of First-Year Student Success and Persistence- Tanya Mooney Supporting Student Success with Interstitial Skills Courses- Dan Tinianow The Effectiveness of Implementing ePortfolio in a Capstone Course: A Case Study- Hwangji Lu Enhance students’ economic return
Promoting GRIT in Online Women Students- Brandy Havens Applying Artificial Intelligence Toward Student Success- Karen Ivy Culture of Care: Exploring Perceptions of Support from UAGC Doctoral Student- Kelly Olson Stewart -
Primary Investigator (PI)
Team Member(s)
Title of Project
College of PI
Christopher Foster
Clifford Blizard
The Impact of Experiential Learning in the Asynchronous Online University Classroom
College of Arts & Sciences
Teresa Handy
Tamecca Fitzpatrick
Walk the Talk
College of Arts & Sciences
Brandy Havens
Jennie Walker, Scott Schaller, Misty Resendez, Maja Zelihic, Aasiyah Ghazi, Tiffanie Ho, Kerissa Kuis, Gwendolen Stutler
Bridging the motherhood penalty: Identifying the specific challenges working mothers face in completing their education and advancing their careers and strategies to support their success
Forbes School of Business and Technology®
Karen Ivy
Tahereh Daneshi, Lisa Sims, Michael Hayden, Students: Shavon Andrews, Karrie Suess, Myinn Colden
Student Organization Involvement with Matched Mentors and Mindsets: Creating a Culture of STEM Leadership
Forbes School of Business and Technology®
Cheri Ketchum
Chelsey Yeats, Daria LaFave, Elaine Phompheng
Interaction or engagement: What do our students really want?
College of Arts & Sciences
Connie Lower
Wendy Conaway and Stefanie Lassitter
UAGC Cohort Jumpstart
College of Arts & Sciences
Hwangji Lu
Robert Smiles
Collaborative Project and ePortfolio: The Impacts of High- Impact Practices on Online Learning
College of Arts & Sciences
Hwangji Lu
Robert Smiles
Quality Improvement in Online Course Design: A Case Study
College of Arts & Sciences
Holly Ourso
Live Learning Mathematics
College of Arts & Sciences
Nathan Pritts
Mingzhen Bao, Marc Hyntka, Christopher Foster
Live Learning: Supplementing Asynchronous Courses with Synchronous Web Meetings
College of Arts & Sciences
Allison Rief
Teresa Kuruc, Matthew Phillips Matthew, Kim Cowan
The Power of One: Flexibility as a Specialized Need for Non- Traditional Student Success
College of Arts & Sciences
Jennifer Robinson
Stacy Manning, Diane Hilbrink, Kathryn Kleypas, Cathlene Dollar, Benjamin Sorenson
Live Learning as a requirement of asynchronous first-year experience: Themes and understandings from student responses
College of Arts & Sciences
Shari Schwartz
Pamela Murphy
The Use of Digital Badges to Enhance Student Engagement and Retention
College of Arts & Sciences
Peggy Sundstrom
Jennifer Robinson
Evaluating the Use of Doctoral Writing Coaches to Enhance Doctoral Student Retention and Success: A Pilot Study
Forbes School of Business and Technology®
Dan Tinianow
Marc Hnytka
Immersive experiences for student engagement
College of Arts & Sciences
Jennifer Zaur
Amy Johnson, Allison Rief
The Role Scaffolding Plays in Student Success and Faculty Satisfaction
College of Arts & Sciences
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Date and Recording Link
Projects Discussed
Bridging the motherhood penalty: Identifying the specific challenges working mothers face in completing their education and advancing their careers and strategies to support their success – Brandy Havens
Quality Improvement in Online Course Design: A Case Study – Hwangji Lu
Live Learning Mathematics – Holly Ourso
Immersive experiences for student engagement – Dan Tinianow
The Use of Digital Badges to Enhance Student Engagement and Retention – Shari Schwartz
The Power of One: Flexibility as a Specialized Need for Non- Traditional Student Success – Allison Rief
Student Organization Involvement with Matched Mentors and Mindsets: Creating a Culture of STEM Leadership – Karen Ivy
The Role Scaffolding Plays in Student Success and Faculty Satisfaction – Jennifer Zaur
Walk the Talk – Teresa Handy
Interaction or engagement: What do our students really want? – Cheri Ketchum
UAGC Cohort Jumpstart – Connie Lower