Academic Affairs Annual Report 2007-08

The improvement of retention and graduation rates depends upon a comprehensive student support system that includes academic advising and monitoring of student progress. In 2007-2008 the Undergraduate Studies Council’s subcommittee on faculty advising proposed a pilot project to appoint several undergraduate coordinators who would serve as faculty advisors for their academic programs. In addition, a Task Force on Academic Advising has been formed to develop recommendations for improving the current system and structure of professional academic advising at the university. Finally, the Academic Roadmaps pilot project, designed to develop and implement a tracking, monitoring, and intervention system to facilitate student academic progress and time-to-graduation will be completed in the summer of 2008. Two academic programs from each college participated in the pilot. The plan is to expand the Academic Roadmaps program to include all academic programs and departments.

The pilot project for the Undergraduate Coordinator position initiative only received two applications though Academic Affairs was prepared to fund five positions. This is unsatisfactory. The Task Force on Undergraduate Advising will deliberate through the Fall 2008 semester and make a recommendation before December 2008. The evaluation of this outcome is therefore pending. The Academic Roadmap pilot phase will extend through the summer of 2008 to address additional programming requirements and specifications resulting from the initial test run. All academic programs have submitted initial drafts of Academic Roadmaps for their programs

Graduate:

Graduate students were robustly recruited in 2007-08. Application numbers went up by 441 over 2006-07, from 2303 to 2744. For the first time since 2003 04, we met (and exceeded) our FTE target, earning 968.63 with a target of 952. For the first time since 2003 04, our grad student headcount went up; in fall 2007 it was 1686.

Undergraduate:
Despite facing a severe budget crisis, Enrollment Services saw several significant developments during the 2007-2008 academic year. Some of these changes were procedural in nature, while others represented shifts in the philosophical approach to managing enrollments. These strategic developments resulted from systematic reviews of data and the corresponding implementation was accomplished through a collegial approach by staff members focused on improving the University and enhancing the experiences for the students.

Full Time-First Time: The 2007-2008 academic year saw a redesigned communication funnel designed to increase attendance at FTIC recruitment and yield events. Not only did we improve the system by which we communicate with prospective students, we developed recruitment materials specific to multicultural students and increased marketing associated with Presidential Scholarship targeting high profile students.

Minority recruitment: By improving our communication process, we increased attendance at minority recruitment events such as Jacksonville Black Expo, 100 Black Men of Jacksonville, and Project Excellence. These efforts complimented our other efforts for creating recruitment events centered on local minority churches. These recruitment activities provided the foundation for us to collaborate with the Jacksonville Commitment to yield more minority students. In 2007-2008, we moved away from our practice of delivering FTIC admission decisions on a rolling basis toward a more controlled practice of delivering admission decisions on pre-determined dates. This change has allowed the University to sculpt the academic profile of the entering FTIC class while enabling us to strategically target our fiscal and personnel resources.

Transfer student population: Not only did the budget crisis force us to review and alter our procedures, it also required significant shifts regarding our transfer admission policies. Due to the budget cuts, we had to limit the number of entering transfer students. Driven by data, the policy changes included a limit on the types of transfer students we consider for admission. We continue to consider for admission all AA transfer students who have earned an AA degree (or those who will earn the AA degree prior to enrolling at UNF) when those students come directly from an AA degree program at any Florida public community college or SUS university. We also continue to consider for admission all military personnel who transfer with an AA degree that was earned during active duty military service. In honoring the existing and active articulation agreements regarding transfer admission policies, we remain focused and able to deliver an exceptional educational experience to UNF students while meeting the expectations for those students who qualify for admission

Our initial enrollment restriction policy of limiting transfer admission to only degree seeking post-baccalaureate and upper level transfer students was successful and yielded 237 fewer transfer students (headcount) for the 2007-2008 academic year, while still allowing for the admission of upper level transfer students, including AA transfers. However, due to further budget restrictions this strategy did not yield enough reduction in enrollment and further enrollment restriction policies had to be introduced. While this further restriction should more drastically reduce our enrollment for the future, this policy still allows for the accommodation of AA transfer students.

During the 2007-08 academic year, attendance at our recruitment events increased a total of 321 students when compared to attendance during the same events in 2006-07. It should be noted that this increase in attendance was achieved despite the fact that significant budget cuts forced us to cut our overall number of recruitment events in 2007-08. During the 2007-08 academic year, we were able to see a significant increase in attendance at minority recruitment events that we hosted. Compared to 2006-2007, we saw an increase in attendance from 245 students in 2006-07 to an incredible 523 students for the same events in 2007-08.

Selective admission to certain programs: During the 2007-08 academic year, Academic Affairs instituted a Selective Admissions policy to enable academic units to establish program admission criteria for entry into a major. 

Exercise Science is the first program to submit a proposal following the policy. It was determined that the policy requires some minor adjustments to provide clarity. In consultation with Institutional Research, agreement was reached to develop a standardize approach to providing data to academic units for inclusion in selective admission proposals.

The French Studies major was created and will aid in strengthening the World Languages Department and the University by providing new opportunities for students to gain a global perspective and the ability to adapt to the changing global environment.

New Program approval process and Program Review process: In response to 2.1.1 of last years strategic plan, the New Degree Programs policy was refined and a three year timeline was implemented. It appears the changes worked well for the French Studies program. In addition, in response to 2.1.2 of last years strategic plan, the formal notification process with the BOG and the BOT liaison worked very well. In response to 2.1.4, the APC has taken an active role in assuring Academic Affairs has reviewed and approved the new degree proposal prior to being submitted to Faculty Association.  Twelve program reviews have been conducted using the revised program review process including oversight of the Program Review Committee. 

The Program Review Committee in consultation with the deans and provost agree the process requires further refinement. To make the process useful for all parties, additional “debriefing” conversations need to occur after the external reviewer has submitted his/her report. The process needs to clearly address the expectations for programs conducting a review with an external reviewer and those conducting a review upon completion of an accreditation visit. In addition, alignment with the strategic budgeting process needs to occur

Graduate programs: We launched five new graduate degree programs in 2007-08: 

Doctor of Nursing Practice 
Doctor of Physical Therapy
Masters of Science in Civil Engineering
Masters of Science in Electrical Engineering
Masters of Science in Mechanical Engineering.

The DNP is the terminal practice degree for nursing, and the DPT will soon be the entry level degree for professional physical therapists. The addition of the DNP and the DPT brings UNF’s doctoral degrees to a total of three. These two degrees, like the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership, speak directly to the clear and immediate needs of the greater Jacksonville region; they not only provide opportunities for employment development, they address both the rising healthcare needs of the area and the level of quality of healthcare that can be offered. The three engineering degrees address the needs of the region in two fundamental ways. First, they provide opportunities for baccalaureate educated engineers to enhance their skills and secure advanced employment -- as well as helping to attract to the region industry that requires masters-educated engineers. Second, they address the needs of designing and building a strong infrastructure for a large metropolitan area that is growing rapidly.

In addition, UNF launched its first fully online degree program, a Masters of Education in Educational Leadership with a concentration in Instructional Technology.

Admissions were suspended, beginning in fall 2008, for two programs, the Masters of Science in Rehabilitation Counseling in the Brooks College of Health and the Masters of Science in Applied Sociology in the College of Arts and Sciences. The deactivation of these two programs was necessitated by budget cuts.

Eight GraduateTLO awards, each of $5000, were made: Mina Baliamoune-Lutz/Developing new activities to enhance a Graduate Study Abroad (Brazil) Course; Michael Francis/Spanish Paleography and Florida History Online; Christopher Janson and Carolyn Stone/Urban Education in America; Origins of Democratic Equality in Schools; Judy Rodriguez & Julia Watkins/A TLO in Belize CA for Graduate Nutrition Students; Sherry Shaw/Graduate Study Abroad and Mentored Interpretation Research; Jeff Steagall/ GlobalMBA Scholarships; William Voorhees/PAD 6934 Nonprofit Strategic Planning; Mei Zhao and D. Rob Haley/Health Care and Culture in China: The Qingdao Experience. 

Programmatic growth, given the current budget situation, has slowed down considerably. We continue to discuss future developments and look for ways to position ourselves to pursue programming that clearly speaks to our mission and community interest. This includes not only adding programs but monitoring the vitality of existing programs.

Based on lessons learned at the national American Democracy Conference in June 2007, UNF's American Democracy Project was further institutionalized through the creation of an ADP Steering Committee made up of faculty, staff and students. The steering committee worked on developing and sponsoring a wide-range of campus activities designed to raise student political and civic awareness. These activities included:

Constitution Week (debate, lecture, and film);
a documentary film "Evoking Rights";
lectures on democracy and technology, and media images of the presidential candidates;
a student organized and led "UNF Voices Forum" on power in American democracy;
a panel discussion on public records; a mock political convention;
a student film production documentary on the media and political disengagement among young voters;
and National and Global Youth Service Day.

The ADP has successfully expanded the level of participation among UNF faculty and staff and has increased the range and quality of programming aimed at achieving ADP objectives.

UNF’s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) focuses on community-based transformational learning (CBTL). Consistent with the University’s new Goal #4 (Affirm the university's public responsibility through civic engagement and community-based learning and research); CBTL is designed to support a significant enhancement of student learning and an enhanced profile of the University in its relationships with community partners.

Development of the QEP involves clearly specifying the learning goals for students engaged in CBTL, delineating the desirable community impacts to be achieved, outlining the mechanisms by which these achievements will be monitored, and recruiting the programs and departments to lead the effort.

The recruitment of an associate provost for Institutional Effectiveness made it possible to contemplate amalgamating into one cohesive unit Institutional Research, Assessment, Testing, and Institutional Effectiveness. Such a potential reorganization, should it eventually be implemented, will be facilitated by the recent physical relocation of these functions into the suite adjacent to Academic Affairs vacated by Institutional Advancement.

The more significant structural amalgamation has yet to occur. A search for a director of assessment did not reach positive closure, so the responsibilities of that position are being carried out by the associate provost. More fundamentally, there remain several philosophical issues about whether and if so how best to integrate a variety of functions into one encompassing entity

The University's assessment results, both direct and indirect, represent an ongoing process that should deepen with maturation and practice. New to UNF's assessment portfolio is its participation in the national Voluntary System of Accountability (VSA) as an early adopting institution.

The General Education Task Force's initial assessment findings point toward Next Steps to pursue, specifically in order to improve student writing. Program-, department-, and major-specific assessment findings reinforce writing as a focus for improvement. Graduate program assessments as a group are simultaneously more diverse and somewhat more advanced than undergraduate assessments. The VSA permits some standardization of data collecting and reporting. It also generates benchmarking potential and the integration of direct and indirect assessment measures.

There were no new recurring funds available to the Colleges, Academic Affairs, or any the other University Division so there was no opportunity to reengage the Strategic Budgeting Process which was implemented last year. There were limited non-recurring funds available for distribution, and the Provost reengaged the Academic Affairs Budget Council for purposes of reviewing requests for non-recurring funding. The Council's recommendations were forwarded to the President and were supported. Additionally, as a result of the budget cuts required of the University, the budget for Summer School was reduced by $1.25M. Those courses which remained on the summer schedule were required to meet enrollment targets. Special consideration was also given to courses required to keep students on pace for graduation.

The recommendation of the Budget Council relative to the allocation of non-recurring funds to the Division was approved without reservation by the President.

The Office of Academic Affairs funded the registration fee and travel expenses for new in-coming Chairs to attend the annual Kansas State University Chairs Conference held in May in Orlando. Academic Affairs also encouraged all Chairs to attend the annual Institute for Academic Leadership Conference hosted by Florida State University at Howey-in-the-Hills. Additionally, Academic Affairs held a Chairs workshop on annual evaluation of faculty as well as one where case studies addressing personnel situations faced by Chairs were the focus of discussions.

Feedback from the chairs who attended the K-State Chair and FSU IAL conferences were quite positive. Those who attended indicated they would like to attend future conferences. The feedback from the Chairs who attended the in-house workshops was also positive.

The Provost's Task Force met through 2007-08 and led the university community in conversations on a revised Mission Statement, revised University Goals, a new Vision Statement, and a set of Values statements.

These statements were developed by the Task Force and then vetted by every constituent group on campus, including students, faculty, the president's staff, chairs and deans, and A&P and USPS employees. At the culmination of this process of drafting, reviewing, and refinement the new statements were reviewed and then formally adopted by the University Board of Trustees.

The UNF Reads! Program is designed to prepare first-year students for some of the academic and intellectual rigors of college life, and also to create a bond and sense of community based on this shared intellectual reading experience. Through Academic Affairs funding, we were able to purchase enough copies of Freakonomics for all first-time freshman students. Students will receive a copy of the book when they attend the orientation sessions throughout the summer. The book, and the various issues and topics it addresses, will then be integrated into many of the General Education courses taken by freshman students during the Fall semester. In addition to the use of Freakonomics in General Education courses, discussion groups will be organized in the residence halls and at other campus locations. Finally, a website has been created with information about the program and a link to a blog that allows students to begin some dialogue about the book before they arrive in the Fall.

In terms of a process evaluation, the UNF Reads! Program has put into place all the components for a successful freshman reading program based on best practices and lessons learned from other institutions.

In April 2007, the Provost established a Diversity Task Force. The Provost charged the committee with drafting recommendations targeting the goals of increased applications and more effective recruitment of diverse faculty; mentorship of ethnically/racially under-represented faculty; and the mentorship of ethnically/racially under-represented students. Over the course of 2007-08, the DTF met monthly to discuss concrete steps to further its mission. Three subcommittees were formed; they worked on issues connected to strategic planning, researching literature focused on enhancing diversity, developing an inventory of campus resources, and researching the potential of developing a center with a diversity focus. In April 2008, the DTF hosted a visit by Dr. Mordean Taylor-Archer, Vice Provost for Diversity at the University of Louisville. In the course of a very inspiring two-day visit, Dr. Taylor-Archer presented the DTF with a suggested list of action items; this list formed the basis for a set of DTF action steps that the task force will present to the Provost and President in September 2008. 

From April 2007 to April 2008, the DTF worked to develop strategies to address the enhancement of the diversity of the UNF faculty profile, but it was at the point of Dr. Taylor-Archer's visit to UNF that we turned from planning to implementation. We are now poised to develop, propose, and implement a set of concrete action items focused on our mission. The centerpiece of these action steps is the evolution of the DTF into a Commission on Diversity.

Appointed an interim director of the Office of Faculty Enhancement. 

The interim director has completed a successful year leading the faculty development unit. Programming in OFE has more closely corresponded with the larger initiatives of the university and Academic Affairs with workshops and faculty conversations on: community-based learning, international transformational learning opportunities, the Quality Enhancement Plan, promotion and tenure, accreditation and assessment, undergraduate research, plagiarism, and the use of instructional technology in large classes.

The dollar amount of direct federal awards for research received by UNF, as of the end of May 2008, stood at $2,261,479. This is a 13% increase relative to the total direct federal awards in 2006-2007 ($2,020,496). Given the number of awards currently under negotiation, the increase in direct federal awards is likely to exceed the increase recorded for last year (15%). This is indicative of continued progress in the competitive positioning of the UNF research enterprise with respect to federal funding programs. However, we expect to see a reduction in the total dollar award for sponsored programs in 2007 - 2008.

This reduction is a result of a number of internal and external factors. There has been a significant reduction (43%) in the amount of flow-through federal funds awarded to the University. The downturn in the State’s economy has resulted in reduced support for programs that depend largely on local and regional sources of funding. Faculty turnover at the beginning of the 2007–2008 academic year involved the departure of some members of the faculty who were quite active in sponsored project activities. In addition, with the recently approved policy on the placement of funds, some funds previously counted as sponsored project awards are now administered through the Auxiliary Oversight Committee and will not be included in the annual report for research and sponsored projects. The net effect of these changes will be reflected as a flat or reduced total dollar awards received through ORSP in 2007-2008. 

Regrettably, as a result of the fiscal austerity that is currently being experienced by the university, there has been a significant reduction in funds available to support new academic initiatives. While Academic Affairs has maintained full funding for faculty travel and other forms of faculty development, the division has not been in a position to allocate the kind of incremental funding that would have been required to support a new faculty colloquy or seminar series.

This action will be deferred until such time that there is a restoration of funding adequate for this purpose. 

The Quality Enhancement Plan for UNF includes as a central component the establishment of a Center for Community-Based Learning (CCBL). The QEP Development Team has conducted research on comparable centers at other institutions, and conducted several phone interviews with directors who head up these centers, to inform the plan for the organization, structure, and staffing of UNF’s CCBL. The search for a director of the CCBL is currently underway.

If the current search for a director is successful, an important initial component for the successful creation of a CCBL will be in place.

Academic Affairs and the President’s office contracted with the Center for Community Initiatives to produce a comprehensive study of current student and faculty community outreach in the city of Jacksonville and in Northeast Florida. With the completion of this study, it is expected that the Director of the Center for Community Based Learning, once hired, will continue this study to the next phase – gathering data on what community needs remain unmet and incorporating new areas of outreach as part of the Quality Enhancement Plan’s Community Based Transformational Learning. 

The release of the Community Impact Study has been delayed until August, 2008. The study will include an inventory of community outreach activities currently being conducted by UNF faculty. With the Center for Community Based Learning, the university should be able to build on the current community outreach activities.