First-Year Council Notes: Wednesday, December 4, 2024

Membership of First-Year Council for 2024-2025

Rotating Members

• Dr. Minor Baker, COE (member through 2024)
• Crystal Dicke, LIBR (member through 2025)
• Dr. Toby Dogwiler, CNAS (member through 2027)
• Scott Handley, Honors College (member through 2027)
• Aubrey Hardy, Student Representative, Special Needs Ed major
• Rob Moore, Student Affairs (member through 2027)
• Dr. Linda Moser, RCASH (member through 2025)
• Dr. Sarah Murray, MCHHS (member through 2025)
• Carly Pierson, COB (member through 2025)
• Dr. Christi Sudbrock, DCOA (member through 2025)  

Ex-Officio Members

• Dr. Kelly Wood, Associate Provost, Student Success (standing member)
• Dr. Tracey Glaessgen, Associate Director, Center for Academic Success and Transition (standing member)

Council Charge:

To advise the Executive Director and Associate Director, Center for Academic Success and Transition on initiatives involving the first-year experience (FYE) at Missouri State University. These initiatives include, but are not limited to: 1) developing overarching goals for the first-year seminar course, 2) ensuring the course is designed to increase academic skill building, public affairs awareness, and campus connections, 3) evaluating the effectiveness of the first-year seminar course and recommending changes based upon assessment data, and 4) serving as a liaison with other departments/colleges/student affairs as part of a larger effort to inform and address issues involving first-year students.

Agenda

1. 1. Convene meeting—
      Members present:  Crystal Dicke, Toby Dogwiler, Scott Handley, Aubrey Hardy, Rob Moore, Sarah Murray, Carly Pierson, Christi Sudbrock, Tracey Glaessgen
      
      
   2. Updates and Discussion
      • GEP 101 Grade Distribution for fall 2024
        Tracey shared the grade distribution chart with FYC members.  Similar to previous years, GEP 101 had approximately 63% A’s and approximately a 13% DFW rate.
        
        
      • CGEIP Review
        The general education goal of Information Literacy was assessed this time. A general call to current GEP 101 instructors was made along with a call for student work. Four GEP 101 instructors (mix of faculty/staff and all returning instructors) volunteered along with 4 Peer Mentors from CAST reviewed student work; 183 student work samples, focused upon the annotated bibliography, were collected with 178 papers reviewed for Information Literacy. The general education rubrics listed within CGEIP handbook were used to evaluate student work (capstone highest, then milestone, with benchmark as the lowest indicator of student learning). In all instances, each paper was reviewed by two different evaluators with 113 papers receiving the same level score and 65 papers receiving a difference of one level. The same level score results are listed below.
      Information Literacy    
      • • • • • • Capstone—34/113
                • Milestone—51/113
                • Benchmark—24/113
                • No evidence—4/113
                  
                  
      • GEP 101 core assignments
        FYC members reviewed and provided feedback on whether four primary required assignments (annotated bib, graduation and career readiness plan, public affairs conference reflection, in/direct service project) and three required presentations (title IX, information literacy, and academic advisement) are still meeting the needs of GEP 101 students.  Feedback was provided both anonymously through a Microsoft office form (with the option of Keep, Modify, Delete) and through this FYC meeting.
        
        The council (with 8 of 10 members present) unanimously agreed to remove the (In)Direct Service Project as a required assignment for several reasons ranging from the service expectation is too much too soon for incoming students, too challenging to find service opportunities, especially for students without cars, many other opportunities for students to engage in service through their student organizations/scholarship requirements.  Indirect service was used to offset the additional scheduling requirement for direct service, but just doesn’t seem as relevant to the course.  With the removal of this required assignment, the council still feels that no other required assignments should be added as the course is still packed, and the removal of this assignment frees up some instructional classroom time.
        
        Additional assignment feedback included modifying the Graduation and Career Readiness plan to make the directions easier to follow as well as to review the directions for the annotated bibliography.
        
        Regarding required presentations, the council (with 8 of 10 members present) unanimously agreed that the Title IX video/quiz needs either to be reworked or removed from the course as it no longer seems to be the best location for the Title IX information and the information, as currently presented, is not up to date.
        
        Next step:  Tracey will reach out to Title IX to discuss any modification to their material/support as well as to reach out to CASL. She will also work on providing more clear directions for the noted assignments.
        
        
      • GEP 101 instructor pay
        The council discussed the importance of increasing instructor pay opportunities for teaching the course, specifically through the instructor retention model, which would incentivize instructors to continue with teaching the course each year to move up on the instructor retention scale.  For instance, instructors who taught 1-2 years would receive the baseline pay; for 3-5 years, would move into the next tier, etc.  However, the implementation of this model would come at an additional budgetary expense, so it needs to be decided upon by the Provost. There’s also concern, though, that if instructors are paid more, it will come at the expense of increased class size.
        
        
      • Other items?
        No other items were discussed.
        
        
   3. Center for Academic Success and Transition
      
      • Academic Care Team— faculty/staff referral and student self-referral
        No update provided due to time constraint.
        
        
      • Title III Grant
        No update provided due to time constraint.
        
        
   4. Next meeting—spring 2025
      
      • TBD
        Calendar invites will be sent in mid-to-late January for spring meetings.