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The following message was sent to faculty on March 19, 2026:
Dear Colleagues,
Today, we are releasing the results from the Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) survey, completed by faculty in Spring 2025. Your feedback provides valuable insight into the faculty experience at Mizzou, and President Choi and I appreciate the time you took completing the survey.
Our office commissioned a standing COACHE faculty committee consisting of a representative from each school or college that reviewed the survey data and identified areas of strength as well as areas of opportunity. You can read the committee’s full report on our website, which was shared with Faculty Council this afternoon.
Areas of strength highlighted in the report include:
- Department climate and collegiality
- Leadership and shared governance
- Nature of academic work
Areas for growth include:
- Clarity in the tenure process
- Recruitment, retention and workload pressures
The report also highlighted a selection of initiatives tied to the 2022 results. Over the past several years, we implemented efforts at improving transparency of communication between leadership and faculty, involving faculty in policy decisions, and supporting faculty in career progression.
Some accomplishments and initiatives since the 2022 COACHE survey include:
- I visited each school/college to attend faculty and staff meetings, faculty were involved in the HLC accreditation process, and standing meetings were held with Faculty Council leadership and the Provost/President to improve quality, frequency, and transparency of communication between institutional leaders and faculty.
- President Choi and I held a campus-wide promotion and tenure session in Fall 2025, and the Office of the Provost provided additional workshops and webinars on promotion and tenure to identify and remove barriers that may limit opportunities for advancement of faculty and support faculty in career progression.
- We continued focused efforts to support faculty success and professional goals, such as adding the LEAP (early career), Mid-Career, and Arts & Humanities cohort programs, open to both tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty, and adding an external awards team that provides workshops and mentoring sessions to support faculty in pursuing prestigious and highly prestigious awards.
Next Steps
- Spring 2026: The COACHE committee will create reports for each school and college. These reports will be shared with faculty members.
- Throughout 2026: Stakeholder meetings led by COACHE committee members to generate suggestions about processes and resources to address areas noted for growth.
- Spring 2027: Release COACHE committee action plan to share recommendations.
We will use the survey data, along with ongoing conversations with faculty, to guide decision-making and strengthen a climate of trust, respect, and opportunity across our campus. Thanks to every member of the committee (listed below) for their thoughtful insights into the survey data.
Sincerely,
Matthew P. Martens, PhD
Provost & Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
Members of the 2025-26 COACHE Faculty Job Satisfaction Survey Committee
Co-chairs
- Matt Easter, College of Education & Human Development
- Sungkyoung Lee, Missouri School of Journalism
Members
- John Arnold, Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business
- John Heidt, School of Medicine
- Joan Hermsen, College of Arts & Science
- Jiaming Jiang, College of Engineering
- Jennifer Keely, College of Health Sciences
- Knoo Lee, Sinclair School of Nursing
- Nicole Nichols, College of Veterinary Medicine
- Michael Tripp, School of Law
- Vacant, College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources