USA Announces Inaugural LevelUP Fellows

---

Posted on January 24, 2023

Joy Washington

---

---

The University of South Alabama has announced the inaugural class of 10 LevelUP Fellows, representing eight different academic disciplines and two student support areas. 

South Alabama’s LevelUP Quality Enhancement Plan, a campuswide initiative, prepares students for careers or further studies. The fellows are faculty and staff members who help students develop the skills that employers value most.

LevelUP affirms South Alabama’s commitment to considering each student’s experience holistically and improving each student's learning experience. The initiative is designed to create projects and ideas to better prepare South Alabama students for their futures. Fellows, selected by the Office of Academic Enhancement, participate in creating, piloting and executing those projects while also developing their leadership skills.

“Our first group of LevelUP Fellows are faculty and staff members with exceptional qualifications who strongly desire to lead and innovate,” said Executive Director of Academic Enhancement Dr. Julie Estis. “As champions for LevelUP, the new fellows will complete projects that turn ideas into impactful realities and foster a culture of continuous improvement. The contributions of the fellows will play a pivotal role in ensuring the success of LevelUP as it strives to uniquely prepare South students for their next steps toward success.”

 

The 2023-24 LevelUP Faculty Fellows are:

 

•         Associate Professor and Acting Chair Dr. Jaclyn Bunch, Political Science and Criminal Justice, Arts and Sciences.
•         Title IX Specialist Julia Kristman, Student Affairs.
•         Professor Dr. Jeff Landry, Information Systems and Technology, School of Computing.
•         Instructor Robert O'Berry, English, Arts and Sciences.
•         Transfer Coordinator Nani Perez-Uribe, Academic Advising and Transfer Services.
•         Assistant Professor Dr. Laura Powell, Psychology, Arts and Sciences.
•         Associate Professor Dr. Carol Sawyer, Earth Sciences, Arts and Sciences.
•         Assistant Professor Dr. Amy Sprinkle, Marine and Environmental Sciences, Arts and Sciences.
•         Assistant Professor Dr. Brad Swiger, graduate program coordinator, Biomedical Sciences, Allied Health Professions.
•         Associate Professor Dr. Shenghua Wu, Civil, Coastal and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering.

 

About the LevelUP Quality Enhancement Plan:

The University of South Alabama’s LevelUP: Uniquely Prepared for What Comes Next Quality Enhancement Plan is a campuswide initiative aimed at uniquely preparing students for what comes next. Through metacognitive reflections, students will synthesize connections among learning opportunities inside and outside of the classroom as they look ahead and plan for their future. LevelUP provides enhanced opportunities for students to develop career readiness competencies that prepare them for life after their degree as confident, ready and capable members of the workforce or well-equipped graduate students.

---