PROVOST’S PROGRESS REPORT
for the Faculty and Staff of Washington State
University
from Robert C. Bates, Provost and Executive Vice
President
Number 14
March 2008
Introduction
During this academic year, we have been working on three equally important and parallel efforts that ultimately will have a significant impact on the future of Washington State University. The first is updating our Strategic Plan. The second is Academic Affairs Program Prioritization (AAPP). The third is preparation for our 10-year reaccreditation by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU).
All are integral parts of a long-range institutional planning and evaluation process that will help us review programs, procedures, and resources; clarify our goals and focus on our priorities; increase our effectiveness; and enhance our capacity for strategic change.
We have made every effort to provide opportunities for the university community to participate in each of these efforts and will continue to do so in the future. Thank you to the hundreds of you who have taken the time to provide your thoughts. Your input has been of great value.
In this report, I also want to share information about the searches to fill the positions of Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Dean of the Honors College as well as about events later this month celebrating the achievements of our faculty, staff, and students.
Strategic Planning
The Strategic Planning Committee, incorporating feedback from the university community, has completed a final draft of Washington State University’s vision, mission, values, and goals. This document is available online at http://www.strategicplan.wsu.edu/vision-values-mission-goals.html. The committee is now expanding on the goals to provide the specific guidance necessary to make strategic decisions, achieve scholarly excellence in selected areas, and enhance the academic experience of our undergraduate and graduate students.
Additionally, the committee is working to identify appropriate benchmarks to measure our progress in achieving these goals. I have asked the committee to have a final draft for review university-wide by the end of April. We have a great opportunity before us. This plan will enable us to meet our challenges proactively and set the stage for the next chapter in our progress toward prominence as a world-class land-grant research institution.
Academic Affairs Program Prioritization
Phase II of AAPP is now underway. Larry James, Associate Executive Vice President, and Ken Casavant, Professor of Economic Sciences, are serving as co-chairs of the Phase II task force. The task force is now in the process of reviewing, according to the established evaluation framework, the college/unit self-reviews and recommendations that were submitted on March 15. The task force may ask colleges and units for additional information or clarification of information provided in the reviews.
All program prioritization/self-review materials will be posted March 21 on the AAPP website: (http://academic-prioritization.wsu.edu/) to provide an opportunity for the entire university community to comment. April 3 is the deadline for AAPP website comments. On April 3, the task force will convene a half-day meeting in which deans, administrators, chancellors and I will discuss program priorities as well as opportunities for consolidation and reorganization across and within colleges and units. I have asked that the task force provide me their recommendations by April 15.
Reaccreditation
We are eighteen months into the NWCCU Institutional Accreditation Self-Study process, and one year out from the visit of the Evaluation Team. More than 100 people have been involved at all levels in this process and I greatly appreciate their contributions. It is clear that the pace is quickening and that our preparation will involve more people as the visit approaches. Right now, the Steering Committee is working on compiling all of the academic unit self-studies and college summaries, as well as responses to each of the accreditation standards, into a single, thorough, coherent, analytical, and forward-looking institutional self-study.
This document will represent WSU’s accomplishments, aspirations and challenges; document the quality and effectiveness of the work we do; and, most importantly, foster innovation and improvement across the institution. Ultimately, our focus on quality and excellence should be enhanced by this process. Shortly before the end of the semester, we expect to have the first draft ready for review and comment by the entire WSU community at the accreditation web site: http://olympia.wsu.edu/provost/Accred.stm.
In early fall, based on spring and summer feedback, we will have a more complete document ready for widespread review, including by the Board of Regents and the public. Once the Self-Study is ready for publication in December, we will begin making the preparations for the 16-member team visit, which occurs at the beginning of April, 2009. When the team arrives, I am confident we will be able to demonstrate both to them and the constituency we serve that we have:
- a clear mission from which all activity flows;
- a strategic plan supported by budget decisions;
- evidence-based analysis and planning for institutional improvement;
- assessment of student learning outcomes to improve programs; and
- universal knowledge about and widespread participation in the self-study process.
College Dean Searches
A search for a new dean for the Honors College continues to move forward. Recently, three candidates visited campus. Based upon those visits, feedback from the university community, and the assessment of the search committee chaired by Fran McSweeney, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, I have invited Dr. Stephen Rosenbaum back to campus for further discussion about the position and to answer any questions he may have. Dr. Rosenbaum is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas who served for five years as the Dean of the Honors College at that institution and before that as the Director of the University Honors Program at Illinois State University. I look forward to his visit.
The search for Dean of the College of Liberal Arts has begun. A search firm, in collaboration with a search committee chaired by Dan Bernardo, Dean of the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences, will guide the process. The search will be timed so that the concluding phase will take place at the start of the fall semester so that faculty, staff, and students will have an opportunity to participate. With Dean Erich Lear stepping down on August 15, I have asked Paul Whitney, Professor of Psychology and Associate Dean in the College of Liberal Arts, to serve as Interim Dean beginning August 16. I appreciate his willingness to serve in that capacity until we have a new dean on board.
Celebrating Excellence: Honoring our Faculty and Staff
Everything we have achieved or aspire to in our focus on excellence and quality would not be possible without the hard work and dedication of our very talented faculty and staff. On March 28, four events will recognize and celebrate their achievements. They include:
- From 9:00 a.m. – noon, an all-university display and poster session, Academic Showcase, is planned for Bohler Gymnasium. Faculty, graduate, and undergraduate students will be available to talk about their research and scholarship. This event promises to be exciting and stimulating;
- From 12:15 – 1:45 p.m., the Distinguished Faculty Address and Luncheon featuring Dr. Gregory Yasinitsky will take place in Kimbrough Concert Hall;
- Later that afternoon the Legacy of Excellence Retirees’ Reception will be held from 3:30 – 5:00 p.m. in the Lewis Alumni Center; and
- The day will culminate that evening with the Celebrating Excellence banquet at Beasley Coliseum beginning at 5:30 p.m. Faculty and staff award winners, new Regents Professors, and newly tenured and promoted faculty members will be honored.
Information on the events is available at http://www.showcase.wsu.edu/. I encourage you to join in the day’s activities and encourage your students to participate in the morning’s Academic Showcase. Academic Showcase is a great way to learn about research, scholarship, and arts at WSU.
Robert C.
Bates
Provost and Executive Vice
President