Associate vice provost for undergraduate education has plans to outreach in lifelong learning

Dennis Groth will try to enhance undergraduate education through his background in informatics.

Groth began his tenure as associate vice provost for undergraduate education on March 30. His responsibilities include outreach in education, learning services and lifelong learning and leadership aspects.

“I genuinely went to look for somebody that could bring to the undergraduate experience at IU excellence in teaching and a view of what the best undergraduate experience could be,” said Sonya Stephens, vice provost for undergraduate education.

The two new vice provost positions used to be the responsibility of the dean of faculties, Stephens said. The vice provost positions were embedded into the administration as of second semester.

Groth was awarded the Trustees Award for Teaching Excellence in 2005 and has been nominated for the IU Student Alumni Association Student Choice Award three years in a row, according to an IU press release.

Groth earned his doctorate degree in computer science in the IU School of Informatics.

“This is a great opportunity to take what is already a tremendous undergraduate program and make it unbelievable,” Groth said.

Groth’s expertise rests primarily in human and computer interaction and visual analytics. Stephens said these areas will be utilized in thinking as they move forward.

The Office of Academic Affairs is thinking about the future of the undergraduate experience.

Electronic course services and information is one of the areas where improvement is needed and where Groth’s expertise will come into play.

Under Groth’s new position, he strongly affirmed that “not teaching is not an option.”

He will continue to teach as a professor of informatics.

“What we are trying to do is spread the expertise,” Stephens said. “What all this is about is what we can do to further enhance the undergraduate experience.”