Promote Interdisciplinary Curriculum, Programming and Scholarship

Define, assess and promote interdisciplinary curriculum, programming and scholarship

• Academic units will study the feasibility and desirability of creating an office or program(s) tasked with increasing interdisciplinary curriculum, programming and scholarship at Missouri State.
• Potential models include discipline-area-focused programs (e.g., The University of New Mexico: Interdisciplinary Science Cooperative, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign: Interdisciplinary Working Group for Integrative Scholarship in the Arts), problem-oriented initiatives (e.g., NC State University: Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program) and institution-wide offices (e.g., Duke University: Office of Interdisciplinary Studies). Institution-wide offices could be housed in the Provost’s Office or the Graduate College.

Increase student and faculty engagement in interdisciplinary activities

• Establish a new calculation formula for allocation of credits/funding to all contributing departments/schools/programs for interdisciplinary courses.
• Recommend that departments incentivize interdisciplinary education activities within tenure and promotion policies.
• Introduce university awards for interdisciplinary education.
• Establish a new calculation formula for allocation of credits/funding to all contributing departments/schools/programs for interdisciplinary majors/minors/certificates. Create a university committee to address and evaluate internal barriers that prevent or disincentivize interdisciplinary and/or innovative new programs, courses and other efforts:
  • Resolve the dilemma created by the cost-center model, which incentivizes each program and college to maximize student credit hours by minimizing collaboration with others.
  • Establish a means of recognizing and compensating the costs of administering interdisciplinary programs.
• Incentivize hosting events such as workshops that feature experts from multiple fields and that demonstrate the benefits of working on interdisciplinary teams.
• Use the Student Organization Funding Allocation Council (SOFAC) and the Office of Student Engagement to incentivize student organizations to host interprofessional, service-learning and community engagement events.
• Include interdisciplinary teaching activities and practices as a part of the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning (FCTL) showcase.
• Create interdisciplinary committees within colleges to enhance research and creative collaboration and pursue interdisciplinary grant funding within and across colleges.
• Host “beyond department” research and creative activity presentation events for colleges across the university.
• Recommend that departments incentivize interdisciplinary scholarship and creative activities within tenure and promotion policy.
• Introduce university awards for interdisciplinary scholarship and creative activities.