Welcome to the new school year

Welcome, Fighting Pickles!

Seeing students arrive with their families and vehicles packed to the brim always makes me happy and grateful to be your chancellor. I hope all of you are refreshed, invigorated and excited to start what promises to be an exciting new school year of learning and creating. I was so pleased to connect with many of you at last night’s Party on the Plaza and look forward to many more opportunities to get to know you throughout the coming year.  

As classes and activities get underway, I wanted to share some exciting new developments on campus, and “zoom out” to look at the big picture by outlining some important priorities for UNCSA for this academic year. 

What’s new

I am very much looking forward to our new 2024-25 performance season, “UNCSA Presents,” on sale now. There is so much in this exciting new season and I can’t wait to experience the work of our talented students and faculty on stage and screen and behind the scenes. We are also thrilled to again take our beloved holiday tradition, “The Nutcracker,” back to the Tanger Center in Greensboro following a successful run last year, and I am particularly looking forward to conducting the orchestra again – truly the best seat in the house. Be sure to check out the press release and website to explore individual shows. And please take note of our new comp ticket policy, which aims to maximize attendance at all UNCSA productions, enhancing the student performer experience and increasing access.  

We are thrilled to be partnering with a new Dining Services vendor, Sodexo, selected following a highly competitive process. Sodexo has begun the transition by rebranding and renovating our facilities to provide the best service and an enhanced dining program that will cater specifically to artists’ needs, with specialized, award-winning menus. One of the great perks of Sodexo is extended dining hours and the availability of nutritious food around the clock, which is so important to student artists who might have limited time to eat lunch or get out of rehearsals or performances late. And you heard right: The new Studio Brew (formerly Library Café) is a “We Proudly Serve Starbucks” location! 

I am honored that UNCSA welcomes 20 new full-time faculty members for the 2024-25 school year and nine adjunct and visiting faculty. As Provost Patrick J. Sims said, “This year’s faculty cohort brings a wealth of knowledge and creativity. Their artistry and vision will profoundly impact how we prepare our students for the ever-evolving world of the arts." And I am thrilled to welcome our new dean of Drama, John Langs, who started this summer. A 1996 directing alum, John has done great work since graduating, most recently as artistic director of the ACT Contemporary Theatre in Seattle. Among his goals, John plans to focus on interdisciplinary work, new technologies and student well-being.  

Student well-being is also something I and all leadership remain committed to; Health and Wellness is one of the core initiatives of our strategic plan, UNCSA Forward. I want to ensure you are aware of the important resources we have recently added, such as “Uwill,” a mental health and wellness online platform that has significantly expanded our existing counseling capacity for students. 

Also new this year are a few wellness-centered schedule updates aimed at helping you achieve a better balance in your student experience, including Intermission (a weekly 2-hour block of unscheduled time); Collaborative Days (3 days a semester where all classes and activities are suspended); and a time-limited workday. Stay tuned for information on those initiatives, and how they will apply within your conservatory. We recognize that we have more to do and commit to taking our community’s mental health and wellness to heart. Throughout the year, we encourage you to “Take 5ive” to check in with yourself and each other. 

UNCSA priorities for 2024-25 

In an effort to provide context for why we do some of the things that we do, here are a few things that are on our priority list for the year: 

Reaccreditation 

UNCSA is currently preparing for our Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) Accredidation Reaffirmation, which happens every 10 years. Accreditation is necessary for universities to be eligible for federal student aid and can also affect acceptance of transfer credits, and students’ future job prospects and earning potential.

Reaffirmation is an important opportunity for us to take a good look at UNCSA and its programs to ensure we are not only meeting but exceeding higher education standards and providing an education of the highest level that allows our students to excel. Reaffirmation requires UNCSA to identify and execute a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) designed to improve student learning and/or student success over the next five to 10 years.  

I also want to congratulate the High School Academic Program for being reaccredited by the Cognia Global Commission this summer!  

New High School residence hall and program expansion 

Speaking of our incredible High School, we are examining it as a place where UNCSA might expand and grow. There is demand in the community and the state for greater High School capacity, and expanding our programs there would help increase enrollment and meet goals around institutional sustainability. Of course, to grow we will need the physical capacity to house new students. The N.C. state legislature authorized funding last fall for a new high school residence hall, and we will be adjusting the requested funds based on a feasibility study regarding growth of our High School. After the Stevens Center, the high school residence hall has been first on our priority list for many years. We are pleased to see this greatly needed project begin to move forward. 

New comprehensive campaign planning 

We are already planning for our next comprehensive campaign, an intensive fundraising effort during a specific timeframe to be announced, which will reflect the mission priorities for the future of UNCSA. Our last campaign closed in 2021, having raised more than $75 million for scholarships, faculty, innovation, facilities and community engagement.  

As we work through the planning process, one of my personal priorities is to take a big swing at student debt, with a lofty long-term goal of eliminating it. It is my belief that UNCSA should be a leader among arts training institutions in efforts to help artists launch careers without being saddled with debt. 

Equality within the UNC System 

Many of you are aware that the University of North Carolina (UNC) Board of Governors adopted a new policy on “Equality Within the University of North Carolina” in May. We have been working over the summer, with input from faculty, staff and students and across divisions, to realign resources and ensure compliance, which has a reporting deadline of Sept. 1, 2024, to the UNC System Office.  

We have agreed to focus our important work in the new Division of Institutional Engagement, which will continue to be led by Dr. B. Afeni McNeely Cobham. We will share more details about the realignment in the coming days. Please know that as we work to comply with the new policy, we remain committed to our core value of belonging, with student success and employee well-being as a top priority for our community.  

As the year gets underway, I look forward to continuing communications with all of you, and please know that I welcome feedback and want to keep an open dialogue as your chancellor.  

I’m extremely excited about the new year, and I know you are, too. I can’t wait to experience the incredible art and creativity of our community and look forward to working together to make this year at UNCSA one of the best yet.   

Sincerely, 



Brian Cole
Chancellor

August 20, 2024