A Message from Dean Shane Burgess, Fall 2022

Student success is my priority. Our team of world-class faculty and exemplary staff are dedicated to understanding what obstacles our students face. But how do we know what these obstacles are? We listen.

This past academic year, we regularly asked our students how they were doing and what they thought using an anonymous survey tool called CALES Pulse. We then acted on what they told us by providing diverse support for basic needs like food, academic advising, targeted emergency financial aid, counseling, and mental health support.

I want to recognize the critical role our alumni, parents, families and friends have in supporting students and let you know that we also celebrated our first year as the University of Arizona’s only college providing Strategic Alternative Learning Techniques (SALT) support for every single student at no additional cost. This was possible because of a $1 million gift from a CALES alum. I am thrilled to be able to tell you that this past year, 188 CALES students participated in SALT Center services, and as one of our student advisors reported, it was “truly life-changing.”

As we welcome our CALES family back for homecoming this year, we are reflecting on our history and legacy as the first college on campus.

CALES has been called “the broadest college” at the University of Arizona, because of our range of disciplines including traditional agriculture, health, biosystems engineering, natural resources, plant sciences, environmental science, economics, entomology, nutritional sciences and wellness, family and consumer sciences, retailing, and financial planning (to name just a few).

In this issue of CALES Life, we highlight the John and Doris Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences’ legacy, how it has grown, and how it will continue its impact under a new name.

Please know that I truly appreciate your dedication and contribution as a CALES alum, whether it is through volunteering, advocating, or making a gift in support of student success.

Shane C. Burgess
Vice President for Agriculture, Life and Veterinary Sciences,
and Cooperative Extension
Charles-Sander Dean of the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences