As the spring 2026 semester has begun in earnest, I’m pleased to report that we have started work on NTID’s Strategic Journey and have a dedicated website that outlines the pillars we are focusing on and the members and co-leaders of each pillar committee. If you are not a member of a pillar committee and want to share information that is essential for the Strategic Journey process, please reach out to the pillar leader or co-leader to be invited to a pillar committee meeting.

The search for our next dean of NTID has already begun. Get details in this issue of Tiger Collective. In addition, our AI Task Force membership is close to being finalized and will be announced next month, and a two-day AI Symposium is scheduled for May 11 and 12, with a call for presentations now posted.

As of January 2, Alesia Allen, assistant vice president for NTID Access, Engagement and Success, leads the Division of Student Engagement and Success, which encompasses NTID’s Student Life Team, Student Conduct, Financial Services, Vocational Rehabilitation Services, SAISD, and Athlete Development Services. Alesia will be a great asset to this area. Members of her team will move to the Student Developmental Center (SDC) by the fall 2026 semester to be closer to the students and support them. While SDC is being prepped for their move, the members of the team will be in temporary offices over the summer.

Congratulations to Charmaine Jacobs Hlibok ’94, on being named the 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award winner for NTID! Charmaine has been a dedicated educator and leader in Deaf education, language development, nonprofit leadership, and community engagement.

Renovations of the southwest hallway on the 2^nd floor of LBJ Hall that goes through the old counseling services area will begin this summer, so temporary walls will go up after the semester ends. Students are engaged in ideas on how to revitalize the Student Development Center (SDC) spaces, including how to create collaborative student club spaces on the first floor, mural designs for the temporary wall in the Dining Commons space, led by faculty member Laural Hartman, and a special topics course will be offered by faculty member Chris Brucker in fall 2026 to create and offer conceptual designs for different spaces in SDC. 

In addition, Ellingson Hall (Tower A) and Peterson Hall (Residence Hall B) will undergo some renovations to the HVAC system, and faculty and staff who have offices in these buildings will be relocated for the summer. The locations are yet to be determined. 

I am grateful for the many opportunities available for all of us to engage with each other and with our students, who are our highest priority. You never know how much a positive interaction—even a smile or wave—can mean to our students and to our colleagues. Thank you for all the big and small ways you make NTID an exciting and inviting place.  

Warmly,
Carrie