College of Humanities and Public Affairs
Annual Report - Calendar Year 2007
Dean Lorene H. Stone

 

I.                   Academic Programs (Undergraduate and Graduate)

 

The College of Humanities and Public Affairs offers the following undergraduate and graduate programs in eight academic Departments:

 

 

In addition, the CHPA has three research Centers and six interdisciplinary undergraduate Area Studies Minor Programs:

 

§         Research Centers

§         Center for Archaeological Research (CAR)

§         Bureau for Economic Research

§         Center for Social Sciences & Public Policy Research (CSSPPR)

 

§         Area Studies Programs

§         African American Studies

§         Asian Studies

§         Gender Studies

§         Latin American Studies

§         Middle Eastern Studies

§         Native American Studies

 

During 2007 the CHPA academic units played an integral role in the launching of the new interdisciplinary Global Studies Major. 

 

A.  Curriculum (Modifications, Innovations, etc.)

 

• During 2007 Philosophy offered a BS degree option for the first time to students.
• During 2007 Criminology offered the MS degree for the first time to students.
• Defense and Strategic Studies offered a Certificate Program in Homeland Security for the first time in 2007.
• Religious Studies offered an Accelerated Masters option (including a signed agreement with Evangel University) and a Certificate Program for the first time in 2007.

 

B.  Accreditation, Licensure, Certification and Other Outcome Measures

 

• No CHPA academic unit went through discipline-based accreditation during 2007. 
• Political Science was the first CHPA unit to undergo external review in October 2007.  The reports from the external reviewers have been received, and the department has submitted a response and action plan that will be used as part of its discussions on curricular review, program revision, and student success.

 

C. Access

1. Technology (including distance learning)

      Television and Distance Learning Courses:

• Economics (ECO 155), History (HST 121 and 122), Political Science (PLS 101 and 103), and Religious Studies (REL 100 and 101) offered blended sections of General Education courses via cable television.  Philosophy (PHI 110) produced a new blended course that will be offered by cable television starting in spring 2008.  (Blended sections include an on-campus component for presentations and/or exams.)
• ECO 610 was offered by live interactive television from the Springfield campus to distance learning sites in Lebanon and West Plains.
• A blended television section of GEP 397 was taught by Tom Wyrick (ECO).

On-Line Courses:

• Economics regularly offers on-line sections of two graduate courses to support the Masters in Business Administration.  In fall 2007, this included ECO 500-899. ECO 610-899 is offered usually every other year.
• History offered on-line versions of HST 103 and HST 121.
• History offered on-line Masters level courses that were originally developed as part of its federally supported Masters program in American History (AHEEP). 
• Political Science regularly offers upper division and graduate on-line courses each semester.  In 2007 this included sections of PLS 551 and PLS 656.

• Sociology/Anthropology/Criminology regularly offers graduate on-line courses to support the undergraduate degree in Criminology, the Masters in Administrative Services program, and the Masters in Criminology degree.  In 2007 this included CRM 210, CRM 320, CRM 360, CRM 597, CRM 650, and CRM 670.  An on-line version of SOC 150 was offered in fall 2007 to expand access to this General Education course. 

 

Classroom Technology

 

• All CHPA programs used instructional technology in classrooms.  A sizeable proportion of faculty integrated Power Point, Blackboard, and course web pages into their pedagogical styles. This was made possible by the high level of technology available in Strong Hall and encouragement from Department Heads and the Dean. 
• Sections of CRM 415, SOC 150 and SOC 152 piloted the use of the CPS Student Response System.

 

2.  Off Campus Programs

 

• Political Science developed off-campus learning experiences for both undergraduate and graduate students.  Dr. Muhammad Olimat took students to Jordan during the summer for an Arabic language program (funded by a Kuwaiti businessman).  Dr. James Kaatz took students to the Netherlands during the winter intercession of 2007. Additional programs such as these are currently being developed for 2008.
• CAR sponsored a summer archaeological field school at Delaware Township in which Missouri State anthropology students participated.
• A cooperative agreement between MSU and Liaoning Normal University (China) was signed to provide masters-level instruction on teaching American history.  Dr. Michael Sheng (HST) submitted grant proposals to several agencies with the intention of obtaining external support for this off-campus program.

 

3. Other

 

• All CHPA academic units except MIL participated in the Evening College program (including the Cluster program), providing access to General Education courses as well as courses in the Major or in Masters-level programs.
• Religious Studies and Political Science offered sufficient Evening courses to allow the undergraduate major requirements to be completed.
• HST, PHI, and PLS facilitated numerous dual-credit courses taught in area high schools. 
  
  

D.  Faculty and Student Awards and Recognition – Teaching, Advising, etc.

 

• Jessica M. Johnson, PLS-major, won the Sarah Bickel Leadership Award.
• A Dean’s list photo was taken each semester to be used in College materials.
• George Connor (PLS) received the NACADA "Outstanding Advisor Award."
• Ken Rutherford (PLS) won the SGA Student’s Choice Star Award.
• Kevin Pybas (PLS) was recognized by Theta Chi Fraternity as an outstanding faculty member at MSU. 

 

E.  Undergraduate Initiatives – Honors, International and Undergraduate

 

• All CHPA units except MIL and DSS (graduate only) offered Honors Courses.
• PHI, PLS, REL, and SOC/ANT/CRM offered Service Learning Courses.
• Five CHPA faculty participated in the Residence Hall Living-Learning Communities program.
• PLS organized the Mid-America Model UN in fall 2007 that included 300+ high school students.
• PHI faculty took 18 students to the Mid-South Undergraduate Philosophy Conference in Memphis.
• Sharmistha Self (ECO) took 9 students to the Missouri Valley Economics Conference, and 4 students presented their work.
• REL assisted five graduate students and one undergraduate student to present papers at the Central States regional meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature in St. Louis.
• Christina Evans (REL undergraduate) received the award for Best Undergraduate Paper, Theta Alpha Kappa (the Religious Studies honors society), Central States Society of Biblical Literature
• Gary Brinker (SOC and CSSPPR Director) involved undergraduates in CSSPPR applied research projects, and the CSSPPR sponsored two students to attend the Annual Conference of the Association for Applied and Clinical Sociologyin 2007 in Ypsilanti, MI to present original research.
• One undergraduate ANT student presented a paper at the Central States Anthropological Society meeting in Minneapolis.
• Three undergraduates accompanied SOC faculty to the Midwest Sociological Society meetings in Chicago, and 8 undergraduates went with ANT faculty to the Central States Anthropological Society meetings.
• The “CRA Applied Social Scientist Award” was established in 2007 (the annual award is $1,000 for a single student).
• Suzanne Walker (ANT) co-authored a published paper with Lester Lakey (an undergraduate at the time the paper was written) that appeared in Practicing Anthropology.
• All Departments had active student organizations and honor societies.
• Two CHPA majors participated in the Study Away program at Qinqdao University in China.
• Of the 148 Missouri State students who studied abroad in 2007, 27 or 18.2% were CHPA majors.
  
  

F. Graduate Initiatives – Co-Authorship, Theses, Research

 

• Dennis Hickey (PLS) co-authored one book chapter with a graduate student (Lilly Kelan Lu) and co-authored two book reviews with graduate students (Lilly Kelan Lu and Kim Wilson).
• All DSS students wrote a thesis for their degree.
• David Rice (REL grad student) was awarded the Graduate College Distinguished Thesis Award.
• HST (2 of 7 students), PLS (1 of 18), and REL (2 of 5) graduate students took the thesis option in completing their degree.
• A total of twelve graduate students from HST (3), PLS (3), and REL (6) read papers in local research colloquia or at regional conferences.
• Four CHPA graduate students participated in the Graduate Interdisciplinary Forum in 2007 (1 REL; 3 MIAA).
• John Schmalzbauer (REL) obtained IRB approval for his REL 671 students’ fieldwork, some of which will be archived in Meyer Library.

 

G.  Enrollment – Majors and Credit Hours

In Fall 2007, 1352 students had majors in the College of Humanities and Public Affairs.  In the table below, it is apparent that DSS, ECO, HST, PHI, and SOC/ANT/CRM saw increases in majors.  A minor decrease REL is not statistically large enough to cause any concern at this time.  The decline in the PLS programs (1) justifies the elimination of the Public Administration undergraduate degree and (2) reflects the need for more strenuous recruiting efforts for the graduate programs.  More focused recruiting efforts are now underway to deal with the declines in enrollment in graduate programs in the College.

 

Percentage changes in total credit hours (especially in upper division or graduate courses) were generally the result of the availability of ranked faculty.  The number of sabbaticals, retirements, leaves, and reassigned time due to administrative or service assignments must be factored into these numbers. Overall, there was a 1.4% increase in total credit hours (=36,221) by the CHPA. 

 

Department	Majors – Fa07	% change	Credit Hrs – Fa07	% change
ECO	54	+2%	4728	-3.2%
DSS	45	+28.5%	408	+33.3%
HST – BA	131	+26%	7323	+3.8%
HST – BS Ed	192	+4.3%	included in above #
HST – MA	49	-8%	200 (grad)	-8.7%
HST – MS Ed	8	-19.6%	included in above #
MIL	N/A	N/A	309	+45%
PHI	31	+55%	2481	-8%
PLS	171	-1%	6427	+10.2%
PLS-PA	11	-42%	included in above #
PLS - MPA	22	-8%	469	-9.5%
PLS - MIAA	30	-16.6%	Included in above #
REL – BA	60	-4.7%	4858	-8%
REL – MA	28	-6.6%	87	-47.3%
SOC	115	+11.6%	4092	+5%
ANT	107	+15%	1743	+23.7%
CRM	285	+1.7%	2256	+15.3%

 

In terms of student success in the General Education courses offered by CHPA departments, the following tables demonstrate (1) total SCH for each course in the spring and fall semesters of 2007, (2) the number and percentage of drops, (3) the percentage of students successfully completing these courses with A, B, or C grades, and (4) the percentage of students who have received D, F, or N grades.  These numbers provide an initial baseline indicating areas in which the College’s student success plan will come into play in 2008 and beyond.

 

                                                            Spring 2007

Course	SCH	% of drops	% of ABC grades	% of DFN grades
ANT 100	369	4 N = 3.3%	78.1%	21.9%
ANT 125	276	4 N = 4.3%	80.4%	19.6%
ECO 155	2478	94 N = 11.4%	67.7%	32.3%
HST 103	432	9 N = 6.3%	79.1%	20.9%
HST 104	780	19 N = 7.3%	77.2%	22.8%
HST 121	2127	104 N = 14.7%	60.4%	39.6%
HST 122	1740	59 N = 10.2%	65.8%	24.2%
PHI 105	267	17 N = 19.1%	60.7%	39.3%
PHI 110	1086	55 N = 15.2%	68.6%	31.4%
PHI 115	471	17 N = 10.8%	84.7%	15.3%
PLS 101	3687	84 N = 6.8%	76.6%	23.4%
REL 100	2415	78 N = 9.7%	75.1%	24.9%
REL 101	663	24 N = 10.9%	72.8%	27.2%
REL 102	717	29 N = 12.2%	73.9%	26.1%
REL 131	753	19 N = 7.6%	81.6%	18.4%
REL 210	462	16 N = 10.4%	75.3%	24.6%
SOC 150	2148	33 N = 4.6%	86%	14%

 

                                                             Fall 2007

Course	SCH	% of drops	% of ABC grades	% of DFN grades
ANT 100	603	11 N = 5.5%	79.6%	20.4%
ANT 125	393	8 N = 6.1%	81.6%	18.4%
ECO 155	2697	125 N = 13.9%	63.9%	36.1%
HST 103	774	24 N = 9.3%	76.3%	23.7%
HST 104	447	4 N = 2.7%	83.9%	16.1%
HST 121	2481	96 N = 11.6%	65.1%	34.9%
HST 122	2259	43 N = 5.7%	73.9%	26.1%
PHI 105	276	12 N = 13%	80.4%	19.6%
PHI 110	1068	24 N = 6.7%	82%	18%
PHI 115	813	26 N = 9.6%	82.3%	17.7%
PLS 101	4935	119 N = 7.2%	70.5%	29.5%
REL 100	2340	49 N = 6.3%	81%	19%
REL 101	528	19 N = 10.8%	68.1%	31.8%
REL 102	627	23 N = 11%	72.3%	27.7%
REL 131	753	20 N = 8%	83.6%	16.4%
REL 210	396	14 N = 10.6%	81%	19%
SOC 150	2412	40 N = 5%	82.2%	17.8%

 

H.  Assessment Updates

 

• Each academic unit in CHPA had an assessment plan on file with the Assessment Office, and each plan was reviewed with changes sent to the Assessment Office and communicated to faculty and students. These included exit interviews with graduating seniors.
• All General Education courses taught by CHPA academic units are assessed on a three-year basis by CGEIP –all CHPA courses reviewed in 2007 were approved for continuation in the GE program.
• Approximately thirty newly hired faculty, graduate assistants, and other CHPA faculty participated each semester in Showcase on Teaching and Master Advisor training.
• A newly revised teaching evaluation instrument began to be used in spring 2007.
• Gary Brinker, Karl Kunkel, and Tim Knapp (SOC/ANT/CRM) as well as Dean Stone were members of the Leadership Priorities and Assessment Committee. 

 

II.  Research and Scholarship

 

A.  Publications in refereed journals (national; international; other)

 

While CHPA faculty continued to be productive and actively engaged in scholarly activities during 2007, they did not have the banner year that occurred in 2006.  As shown in the chart below, the number of refereed articles, book chapters, and monographs declined over 2006.  This decrease is due in part to the number of open faculty positions due to retirement and resignation and to the variation in the publication time table associated with the appearance of monographs.

 

2007/2006	#	% change over 2006
Journal articles/Book chapters	37/49	-24%
Books/Monographs	5/13	-61%

  
 

B.  Presentations (invited; national; international; other)

While the number of presentations made by the CHPA faculty remained fairly steady (down 8% over 2006), one significant trend occurred with a decrease in international presentations (down 61%).  Many of these presentations were by invitation at prestigious international and national conferences.

2007/2006	#	% change over 2006
Total Presentations	83/91	-8%
International	10/26	-61%

   

 

C.  Funded Research

 

An RFP was published by the CHPA Dean’s Office providing the opportunity for faculty to submit proposals to fund research, teaching, and student engagement projects.  The following chart provides the results of this offering.  A second round of funding will be made available in spring 2008.

 

CHPA INCENTIVE INITIATIVES PROPOSALS AY 2007-2008
Department/Faculty	Title		Funding
CAR
Lopinot/Ray:	First American Studies: Entering the Big House		$7,310
DSS
Joseph:	DSS Student Internship and Career Development		$10,000
Thayer:	The American Creed and national Security		$5,000
Economics
Gallaway/Mitchell:	GIS Training and Equipment		$8,190
Self:	Economics Students’ papers at the Missouri Valley Economics Conference, 2007		$1,930
Barari/Chuchiak (HIST):	Strengthening International Area Studies at MSU: Travel expenses for attending workshops and consulting previous successfully funded Title VI Foreign Language and Area Studies Grant Applications at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C.		$2,600
History
Chuchiak:	Inquisitions & Empires: International Conference on Inquisition Studies		$3,900
Philosophy
Knight:	Philosophy Honorary Society Travel Grant		$1,635
Political Science
Ondetti, G.:	LDC Coalitions in the Doha Round: Explaining Brazilian Leadership		$7,005
Ondetti, I.:	Panel discussion on current Latin American politics: Is Latin America turning left?”		$6,435
Religious Studies
Reinis/Hobbs	Updating and Expanding of Religious Studies Department DVD/Video Collection		$9,055.30
Berkwitz	Subvention to Illustrate Buddhist Manuscript Cultures Volume		$5,000
Given	A Public Lecture by Bart D. Ehrman		$4,590
Baynes/Strong	Dead Sea Scrolls Lecture by Jim VanderKam		$4,700
Pulley	Will the Stone-Campbell Churches (Restorationists) of the Nineteenth Century Survive in the Twenty-First Century?		$1,719
Llewellyn	Tutoring/Mentoring Pilot Program in Religious Studies		$1,680
S/A/C
Wedenoja	Preserving the Historic and cultural Heritage of Bluefields, Jamaica		$6,000
Sobel	Introductory Training in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for CHPA Faculty		$3,300
Walker-Pacheco/Vaught	Diabetes and Obesity Prevention in Latino Children		$5,995
Meadows	Publication of Kiowa Military Societies: Ethnohistory and Ritual		$3,500
Gartin	Developing a Missouri Crime Victimization Survey		$10,000
Brinker	Undergraduate Experience Presenting Research at a Regional Conference		$1,000
Brown/Hass	Sending Sigma Mu Sigma to Cincinnati for Student Success		$7,140
Garland	Prisoner Reentry in Southwestern Missouri: Examining Perspectives of Ex-prisoners, Agency Representatives, and the General Public		$9,960
Integrated Departments
Chuchiak, Nelson, Burt, Sobel, Lopinot, Ray, Jones, Thompson, Richards:	Before Lewis & Clark: The French & Spanish Colonial Missouri Project- Digitalizing, Translating, and Editing the Documents of the French & Spanish Colonial Period in Missouri, 1682-1902.		$10,000
Meadows/Lopinot/Thompson/Barnhart	Archaeological Testing and Analysis of Type I and II Karnak Culture Sites		$4,500
TOTAL:			$142,144

 

 

CHPA faculty and Research Centers submitted both internal and external research grant applications in 2007.  The following charts represent the funding sources and funding amounts from external grant proposals, and the total number of external and internal grant proposals that were submitted and funded.

 

                                 Source of External Funding

 

Department	Source	Amount
CAR	Foundation for Restoration of St. Genevieve	$10,766
	Missouri Dept of Natural Resources	$7,555
	Clayton Group Services	$2,082
	Saddlebrooke Estates	$8,409
	MODOT	$33,946
	Nat’l Park Service	$5,856
	Nat’l Park Service	$29,981
	US Army Corps of Engineers	$90,000
	Missouri Archaeological Society	$22,182
	Cultural Resource Analysts	$158,879
	Nat’l Park Service	$7,100
	Clayton Group Services	$1,288
	Clayton Group Services	$2,686
	Clayton Group Services	$2,465
CSSPPR	Southwest Missouri Office on Aging	$1,000
	Missouri Partnership on Smoking	$900
	National Science Foundation	$2,500
	U.S. Department of Education	$2,605
	James River Basin Partnership	$1,300
	Education Round Table	$13,846
	Missouri State Student Success Initiative	$4,739
ECO	Missouri Housing Development Commission	$20,000
	Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services	$15,191
HST	U.S. Dept of Education	$20,000
	Missouri Secretary of State's Office	$4,800
	University of Ireland	$3,500
	16th Century Society	$2,000
PLS	Taipei Economic and Cultural Office	$10,000
	Taiwan Foundation for Democracy	$11,000
	Missouri City Clerks and Finance Officers Association	$42,000
REL	Herzog Ernst Stipend	$3,200
	Lilly Foundation	$23,871
SOC/ANT/CRM	American Sociological Association	$956
		TOTAL = $566,603

  

 

Summary of Grant Submission from All Sources

 

Department	# External Proposed	# Internal Proposed	# Funded	Total Amount
CAR	17	0	14	$383,195
CSSPPR	6	1	7	$26,890
HST	5	5	9	$264,300
PLS	3	4	7	$73,205
REL	8	9	12	$64,105
SOC/ANT/CRM	7	17	17	$97,960
CHPA TOTAL	46	36	66	$909,655

 

 

D. Efforts to Support and Promote Research

 

The major CHPA initiative in 2007 focused on external grant writing.

• The CHPA Dean’s office provided monetary incentives to nine faculty who submitted external grant proposals to an agency.
• The Missouri Archaeological Society relocated its offices from the University of Missouri-Columbia to Missouri State University and is now housed in STRO 206.
• All CHPA Departments supplemented the travel allotment of $750 provided by the Dean’s Office to support travel to professional conferences.
• Dean’s office provided additional travel funds for three faculty to attend international conferences.

 

E.  Faculty and Student Awards Recognition – Research/Scholarship

 

• Ken Rutherford (PLS) -- Springfield Metropolitan Bar Association Liberty Bell Award.
• Mahua Barari (ECO) -- Nominated as one of the outstanding members of the faculty and staff at Missouri State by Theta Chi Fraternity, Iota Beta Chapter.
• Eric Nelson (HST) -- AppointedJames K. Cameron Faculty Fellow at the Centre for Reformation Studies, University of Saint Andrews, 2006-2007.
• John Chuchiak (HST) – named a Young Honors College Endowed Professor.
• Leslie Baynes (REL) -- chosen as Regional Scholar by the Central States Region of the Society of Biblical Literature and subsequently as one of four Regional Scholars recognized by the national office of the Society of Biblical Literature.
• James Moyer (REL) -- given the John Gammie Distinguished Scholar award by the Southwest Commission on Religious Studies.
• Suzanne Walker (ANT) – received the 2007 Leslie Hewes Award for best social science article published in Great Plains Research in 2007, "Population Characteristics and Health Service Use by Latino Immigrants to Southwest Missouri."

 

F.  Other

 

• Keith Payne (DSS) served as Editor-in-Chief of the refereed journal Comparative Strategy.
• Keith Payne (DSS) served as Chair, Board of Directors, National Institute for Public Policy.
• Keith Payne (DSS) serves as Chair, Policy Panel, Senior Advisory Group, U.S. Strategic Command.
• Bradley Thayer (DSS) served as Associate Editor of the refereed journal Politics and the Life Sciences.
• Victor Matthews (REL and Associate Dean) served as series editor of the Symposium Monograph Series for the Society of Biblical Literature.
• Steve Berkwitz (REL) served as Series Editor, Routledge Critical Studies in Buddhism Series, Routledge Press and as Book Review Editor for the journal Religion, Elsevier Press.
• John Strong (REL) served as Chair of the Council of Regional Coordinators, Society of Biblical Literature.
• Eric Nelson (HST) serves on the Editorial Board, Saint Andrews Transactions in French History.
• Ken Rutherford (PLS) serves as Board Member on Center for Unconventional Security Affairs at the University of California – Irvine.

  

III.  Public Affairs and Community Outreach

 

A.  Technical Assistance – Program Evaluation, Strategic Planning, etc

 

• Long-range plans for each CHPA unit, which are reviewed annually, included further integration of Public Affairs activities into the curriculum and the service activities of the faculty.
• Economics and Philosophy engaged in a more substantial strategic planning process to prepare them for a new program direction, new leadership and a major turn over in faculty due to retirements.
• The Dean’s office produced a SWOT analysis of College programs and revised the College Long-Range Plan for 2006-2010.

 

B.  Alumni Activities

 

• All CHPA units as well as the Dean’s Office produced bi-annual newsletters to update alumni on current happenings in the College.
• DSS conducted the William Van Cleave Lecture Series that was open to faculty, students and alumni in the Washington, D.C. area.
• Homecoming receptions for alumni were held by several CHPA units, and the College participated in the Bearfest Village Alumni hospitality tent.
• Dean Stone attended alumni events in Kansas City, St. Louis, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. during 2007.

 

C.  Community Programs and Partnerships

 

• The CHPA Dean’s Advisory Council involved twenty-five members of the community in the College planning process.
• AHEEP, the Department of Education funded Masters program in History involved a collaboration with several local school districts.
• History Bowl and History Day included collaboration with school districts throughout southwest Missouri.
• Southwest Missouri Region of the Archaeology Challenge (now renamed Archaeology Quest) involved working with teachers on yearly theme and organizing regional competition for grades 4 to 12.
• The Philosophy Essay contest provided students from throughout southwest Missouri the opportunity to compete for a scholarship.
• Numerous faculty and administrators served on community-based boards or committees including: The Victim Center, the Good Community Committee, Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield Foundation, The Family Violence Center, Landmine Survivors Network, Ethics Committee-Cox Health Systems, CASA, Springfield Area Planning Forum, The Longstreet Society, Greene County Historical Society, and the Club de Cuentos Latino Children’s Literacy Group.
• Dozens of CHPA faculty made presentations to community-based organizations, churches, and businesses.
• The expertise of CHPA faculty was shared in numerous radio and television interviews and in newspaper op-ed pieces.
• The CSSPPR and the Center for Archaeological Research performed contract research studies providing data analysis for community and government agencies.
• CHPA partnered with Ozark Food Harvest for a holiday food drive and Boys and Girls Town of Missouri for a holiday mitten-tree.

 

D.  Statewide Initiatives

 

• James Kaatz (PLS) organized the annual conference of the Missouri City Clerks Association and served as the Association’s Director.
• The newly installed Missouri Archaeological Society office in STRO 206 provided state-wide coordination of archaeological field work and instructional aids on Missouri archaeological sites.   

 

IV.  Resource Development, Allocation, Effective and Efficient Management

 

A.  Faculty

 

1.  Recruiting, Hiring, Mentoring, Faculty Assignments, Tenure and Promotion, Career Paths, etc.

 

• CHPA recruiting and hiring of new faculty was part of the College Long-Range Plan and followed established procedures that required Departments to justify the hiring of new faculty to replace retiring or departing faculty to the Department Heads’ Council and the CHPA Dean.  Four new ranked faculty joined the CHPA in 2007.
• All recruiting and hiring of new faculty in CHPA included an emphasis on developing a diverse faculty and involved extensive efforts to make openings known to under-represented minorities.
• All new CHPA faculty members were assigned a mentor to assist them with orientation to the university, first-year teaching assignments, and acquaintance with all CHPA and university policies.
• Each CHPA unit had a tenure and promotion plan that was reviewed and involved a decision process including recommendations from faculty committees, Department Heads, and the Dean.  Three CHPA faculty members were awarded tenure in 2007, and seven faculty members were promoted.
• CHPA faculty were encouraged to consider various career paths, including administrative appointment.  This included the appointment of two Dean’s Fellows and nomination of faculty for participation in the Provost’s Leadership Program.  One faculty member was on unpaid leave during 2007 to work for the Department of Defense, and another was named Provost Fellow for International Studies. 

 

2.  Diversity and Inclusiveness

  

CHPA Faculty	Male -2007	Female -2007
Caucasian	64	23
Afro-American	2	0
Asian	3	4
Middle Eastern	1	1

  

• CHPA housed six Area Studies Minors that are designed to provide opportunities for interdisciplinary study and an increase in diversity and global awareness. 
• Heritage month activities were organized by CHPA faculty throughout the year, including a Pow Wow during fall 2007, African American Heritage Month and Women’s History Month events in spring 2007.  Specific activities that drew significant audiences were: 1) a dramatic performance of “Ain’t I a Woman”; 2) a presentation on “sex trafficking” as part of International Woman’s Day events; 3) a presentation on “Gender Development, Institutions, and Economic Development”; 4) a faculty panel on “The N-word”; and 5) a presentation by Dr. Timothy Baumann, Missouri Valley College, entitled “From Slavery to Freedom in Missouri’s Little Dixie: An Archaeological Perspective.”
• The new Global Studies Major began accepting majors for an intercollegiate, interdisciplinary degree involving courses from all of the units in CHPA except DSS and MIL.
• Under the leadership of Dr. Dennis Hickey (PLS), a major international symposium on "Taiwan's External Relations in a Time of Transition" took place on campus.  The Political Science Department, the Taipei Economics and Cultural Office, and the CHPA were co-sponsors.
• A conference on “America, Islam and the Middle East”, organized by Dr. Muhammed Olimat (PLS) and sponsored by the Political Science Department, the CHPA, and a public affairs grant, was held on campus.
• A conference on Eastern Europe that was held in St. Petersburg, Russia was co-sponsored by the PLS department, together with the Slaviani Foundation of Sofia, Bulgaria, the Gorbachev Foundation of Moscow, Russia, and St. Petersburg State University.

 

B.  Fiscal

 

1.  Fundraising and Contracts

 

• Total gifts to CHPA accounts in 2007 = $853,777.27, an increase of approximately $50,000 over 2006.  (NOTE: The CHPA was without a Director of Development for the last six months of 2007.)
• DSS raised external funds from the Northrop Corporation, Scaife Foundation, The Boeing Corporation, and The Lockheed Martin Corporation to support its program in the amount of $265,000.
• Five new endowed scholarships were funded in 2007: Kathy J. Pulley Religious Studies Scholarship, Duane G. Meyer History Scholarship, Benjamin G. Rader History Scholarship, Barbara C. Massello History Scholarship, and the Schyler Elizabeth Strong Biblical Archaeology Award.
• Four new scholarships were awarded to students for the first time in 2007: 1) Women in Religious Studies Scholarship; 2) Scott and Gayla Moore Economics Scholarship; 3) PLS Alumni Scholarship; and 4) Pete McCormick Memorial History Scholarship.
• A $50,000 donation was secured from Adulaziz Saud Al-Babtain during Kuwait trip to support students in 2007 summer language institute in Jordan.
• Dean hosted CHPA Scholarship Banquet for College scholarship recipients and donors.
• Dean engaged in numerous fundraising activities including annual telephone campaign, letter writing, and personal visits with potential donors, etc.
• Acknowledgement/Thank You letters were sent to all CHPA donors from the appropriate unit.

 

2.  Budget Allocation and Management

 

• ECO, HST, PLS, REL, and SOC/ANT/CRM utilized funds raised from offering on-line and blended television courses to supplement operations budgets and to provide additional funds to support faculty travel to conferences, student participation in regional conferences, the purchase of instructional equipment, and the costs associated with invited speakers.
• 2007-2008 CHPA Budget - $8,687,806.  Dean provided oversight of effective and efficient use of cost center resources for strategic purposes. 
• CHPA had a total of $448,457 in carry forward funds at the beginning of the fiscal year.  Of this amount, $185,841 was redistributed to CHPA units.  Each CHPA unit (including the Dean’s office) submitted a budget plan indicating proposed uses of carry-over funds.
• CHPA had a total of $905,117 ($154,040 recurring and $751,077 one-time) in salary savings at the beginning of the fiscal year.  CHPA used the ½% reallocation (@$41,000) for faculty/staff salary equity adjustments.
• Dean distributed $750 per faculty member to the department accounts for travel.
• Dean managed the replacement of ¼ of the academic computers in the College.
• CHPA entry-level salaries were at recommended CUPA median.
• Dean held open budget hearings for interested faculty and staff.

 

3.  Cost Benchmarking – Delaware and other models

 

• Based on the most recent Delaware numbers available, the chart below shows that all CHPA departments (except PLS) met or exceeded Delaware standards. 

 

Department	Ranked Faculty - Undergraduate	Ranked Faculty – Graduate	Total Without Continuing Educ.
ECO	160%	No graduate program	144%
HST	93%	88%	100%
PHL	106%	No graduate program	104%
PLS	76%	88%	98%
REL	115%	78%	126%
SOC/ANT/CRM	94%	No graduate program	108%

 

 

• The majority of undergraduate SCH production in CHPA resulted from the large offering of General Education courses.  As shown in the chart below, the average lower division section size in the CHPA was 50.8 – the highest of all Colleges.  The average upper division section size was 21.1 – second highest of all Colleges.

 

• CHPA had the highest percentage of SCH taught by tenured faculty in any of the Colleges (67.3) and the highest S/F ration of any of the Colleges (25.3). 

 

College	LD avg. size	UD avg. size	GD avg. size	%SCH by tenured	%SCH by other reg.	S/F ratio
CARL	20.4	12.4	6.5	38.8	21.4	13.3
CHPA	50.8	21.1	11.9	67.3	18.4	25.3
COBA	41.9	33.4	19.6	61.1	25.1	22.9
COE	11.8	15.3	10.6	58.4	17.5	12.5
CHHS	40.2	19.4	15.7	53.6	27.5	16.2
CNAS	29.4	15.8	4.9	53.1	23.8	17.4

 
 

C.  Equipment, Space, etc.

 

• All Springfield-based CHPA units except MIL were housed in Strong Hall, the most technologically advanced classroom building on campus.  All but one classroom in Strong Hall was equipped with up-to-date instructional technology, i.e., Smart podiums, projector systems, etc.
• CHPA exhibited efficient space management.  A review of classroom utilization showed that Strong Hall had the most efficient use of classroom space on campus due to classroom scheduling coordinated by the Dean’s office.
• The only major renovation of space in Strong Hall in 2007 took place in the REL suite creating needed faculty office space.
• Growth in the size of General Education course offerings, as well as more effective use of Graduate Assistants as TAs, increased the utilization of the larger classrooms in Strong Hall and made a future auditorium serving classes of 150-200 students a higher priority.

 V.  Leadership and Management: Challenges and Opportunities

 

A.  Promoting Initiatives and Avoiding Problems

 

• Due to the rapid pace of change involving transition to a Cost Center model, a new pay-for-performance compensation system, and various other campus-wide initiatives, CHPA Dean enhanced communication within the College.  This included weekly Department Heads’ Council meetings with minutes placed on the College website, weekly e-mail reminders to all faculty and staff of deadlines and upcoming events, as well as All-College and town hall meetings.
• CHPA Dean had open door policy for faculty, staff, and students.
• Dean led a Department Heads’ Retreat in summer 2007 and a mini retreat in fall 2007.  In addition, she attended department retreats in fall 2007 and met with all units in the College at least twice during the year.
• A three-year Hiring Plan was developed for the College to strategically plan for the replacement of large numbers of faculty retirements and resignations.  (It is estimated that 25% of CHPA faculty will retire within a 5-6 year period.)
• CHPA Dean supported a phased retirement plan.
• Major College initiative was emphasis/support of external grant writing to compensate for inadequate state funding of higher education.
• Dean used one-time carryover funds to initiate a research initiative RFP that resulted in the funding of over $142,000 in research, teaching, and student engagement projects.
• CHPA focused increased efforts to partner with community/state agencies and organizations and to engage in a more visible level of community outreach.  This included arrangements with the Naval Post-Graduate College to offer a certificate program in Homeland Security to meet the needs of the Missouri National Guard.

 

B.  Faculty Relations – Governance and Consultation

 

• The following actions were initiated by the CHPA Dean in 2007 to insure transparency of administration and governance of the College:
  -- All-College meetings were held by the Dean to discuss College initiatives, the new university compensation plan, and the research RFP incentive.
  -- All CHPA policies, as well as minutes of all Department Heads’ Council meetings were placed on College website.

      -- College budget hearings were open to all faculty and staff.
      -- A Dean’s Advisory Council, made up of CHPA faculty serving on the      

      University Faculty Concerns Committee, met with the Dean each month.

• CHPA faculty committees oversaw curricular matters (College Council), participated in faculty recruiting/hiring, and were involved in reappointment/tenure/promotion recommendations.
• Faculty committees also developed and implemented department criteria for the new compensation plan.
• Three new CHPA faculty committees were formed in 2007 to enhance faculty input: 1) Faculty Compensation Committee; 2) Dean’s Advisory Council; and 3) Sabbatical Committee.

 

C.  Working with Staff

 

• Dean and Associate Dean had good working relationships with office staff, as well as College DUSS and DOD.  All College staff had high level of productivity.
• Dean supported staff development by encouraging clerical staff to attend various training sessions on campus and on-line.  Dean also sent new department head to one academic administrator’s national conference.
• Dean formed a CHPA Staff Compensation Committee.  

 

VI.  Individual Professional Accomplishments

 

Dean Lorene Stone did the following in 2007:

• Served on the National Conference of Academic Deans (NCAD) executive committee and participated in a panel on “How Jim Collins’ book Good to Great Fits My Campus” at the annual NCAD conference (Summer 2007).

• Served on Missouri ACE-Network Planning Committee.
• Chaired the Missouri State University NCAA Validation Committee.
• Member of the following University committees: 1)Administrative Council; 2)Emergency Response Task Force; 3)Executive Director of Development Search Committee; 4)Continuing Education Task Force; 5)IT Council; 6)Orientation Advisory Committee; and 7)Leadership Priorities and Assessment Committee.
• Accompanied ACE Fellow group to China; signed cooperative agreement for MA in American Studies with LNU.
• Conferred degrees at DSS Commencement in Fairfax, VA (Spring 2007).
• Faculty Advisor to 10 CRM students.
• Hosted 4th annual CHPA Scholarship Banquet (Fall 2007), as well as end-of-semester receptions (Spring and Fall 2007), College retirement receptions (Spring and Fall 2007), CHPA New Faculty Breakfast, College Picnic, and CHPA Graduate Receptions (Spring, Summer, and Fall 2007).
• Provided welcome/introductory comments to: 1) “America, Islam, and the Middle East” Conference – Spring 2007; 2) “Taiwan’s External Relations in a Time of Transition” Conference – Spring 2007; 3) Philosophy Essay Contest Banquet – Spring 2007; 4) Kaufman Scholars Program – Summer 2007; and 5) USA Program Academic Affairs Day – Fall 2007.
• Participated in Midnight Breakfast at dorms during Final Week (Spring and Fall 2007) and Residence Hall House Calls (Fall 2007).  Also was Bear Crew greeter at Fall 2007 Dorm Move-In.
• Participated in Springfield-Branson Salute to Legislators in Jefferson City.
• Attended alumni events in Kansas City, St. Louis, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.
• Attended MSU Commencements and Army ROTC Commissioning Ceremonies (Spring, Summer, and Fall 2007).
• Community Engagement – Member of the following:  1) Board of Directors (The Victim Center); 2) Good Community Committee; 3) Board of Directors (CASA – Court Appointed Special Advocates); 4) Springfield Rotary (Chair – Strategic Planning Committee).