Academic Affairs Officers

The MASU Academic Affairs Officers (AAO) Committee represents the heart of the public university mission. Provosts are the chief academic officers of universities and are traditionally considered to be the second-in-command under a president or chancellor. Under this committee’s jurisdiction are all academic topics, including such issues as academic freedom, curricula, enrollment, program design and delivery, student success, transfer, accreditation, K-12 alignment, faculty development, and research. The AAO Committee also executes the Academic Program Review process. Each university submits its new academic programs and any major programmatic revisions to this committee for peer review and approval. This mutual accountability balances university independence with quality assurance. The committee also oversees the annual selection of the Michigan Distinguished Professors of the Year.

As with all MASU committees, during their convenings, members of the AAO Committee provide insight on the implications of current state and federal policy issues and fiscal dynamics affecting Michigan’s public universities. Contemporary higher education topics and trends are examined through the lens of academic affairs officers, with strategic consideration given to such factors as college access and affordability, academic quality, instructional innovation, student success, and public-private partnerships.