University of California, San Diego

Dear Health Sciences Colleagues:

Thank you for the opportunity to serve this academic year (2009-2010) as the Chair of the Health Sciences Faculty Council (HSFC). The University of California has a strong tradition of shared governance. Although the Academic Senate is the faculty forum for shared governance campus-wide, within Health Sciences shared governance is channeled through the HSFC. The HSFC and the committees that report to it play a key role in committee membership, student recruitment, curriculum and educational policy, faculty rights and welfare, standing and promotions, student affairs, planning and budget, UC-VA topics, and numerous other issues.

This particular academic year UCSD Health Sciences is confronted with exciting changes and new challenges. These include the enhancement of the 2001 affiliation agreement with Children’s Specialists of San Diego, and the attendant addition of 119 new faculty to our roles, effective September 1, 2009, implementation of the new medical school curriculum, continued growth of the School of Pharmacy, and the State of California budgetary crisis.

I look forward to working hard on these issues from the faculty perspective. HSFC consists of representatives elected by you, the faculty of the Health Sciences. We are here to represent you. I am eager to hear about the topics that are important to you. Please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Timothy D. Bigby

Chair, Health Sciences Faculty Council