SOS Steering Committee Minutes
December 15, 2006
Present: Voting
members: William Bosron (DEAN), Ray Chin (PRESIDENT), John Watson (BIOL),
Jiang Zheng, for Mihran Tuceryan (CSCI), Kathy Licht (EARTH), Michal
Misiurewicz (MATH), Marvin Kemple for Durgu Rao (PHYSICS), Silvia Bigatti
PSYC). Non-Voting Ex-Officio Members:
Andy Barth (PAST PRESIDENT), Steve Randall (SECRETARY), Pam Crowell, Andy
Gavrin, Jeff Watt (ASSOCIATE DEANS), Regrets:
Stephanie Sen (Chem and Chem Biol, Guests:
None
Note: The SAR met from
9-10am. Current administrative review instruments were reviewed. Two
subcommittees were formed to evaluate job specific questions for the Associate
Deans.
10:03 Chin opened
Steering Committee meeting.
Minutes of 11-17-06
were approved with minor revision.
Randall reported the
results of the ballots completed in the faculty assembly meeting of Nov 28th. The candidates, Belecky-Adams, Chin, and
Barth were voted in as representatives to the IUPUI faculty assembly and the
bylaws changes were supported unanimously (See minutes from 11-28-06 for the
ballot). A motion was made and approved
to destroy the ballots.
Meeting times for
next semester; all in SL306C, on third Fridays of the month (except March
meeting where it is scheduled the week after spring break) are: Jan 19, Feb 16,
March 23, April 20, May 18. It was discussed that we should limit the
SOS Steering meeting to 9:00-10:45. We have not yet scheduled a time for Spring faculty assembly.
Deans Announcements:
Bosron announced that
Jeff Watt, Associate Dean for Outreach, will go back full time to Math, with
the Associate Dean position he held remaining unfilled. Discussion followed about how the duties
conducted by Jeff will be coordinated in the future. Present idea is the
creation of Recruitment and Outreach Committee (or working group), which will
be co-chaired by Jeff Watt and another person to be determined. This group would be expected to be composed
of individuals already involved in these activities.
The deans office has been reorganized (see Attachment I for Organization Chart)
Rick Morris has been
recently hired as the SOS Webmaster.
Pam Crowell reported
the current status of the Signature Center Competition. Two University committees have reviewed all
proposals, It is hoped that 15-20 will be
supported. The school has several that
are rated highly. It is hoped that the
school will get at least two funded.
Math faculty
participating in the BioMath Initiative will be moving into MISB in January.
Computer Sciences, 3
labs and 6 offices, will move MISB in January
Chemical and
Chemical Biology, who will occupy space in the basement of Medical sciences in
Spring Semester.
Geology/CEES staff
will move to SL012, freeing up a Geology wet lab for
research.
Dean Bosron outlined
preparations for the Jan 4, SOS Strategic Planning Retreat.
This will be
coordinated by Roger Schmenner, Associate Dean Kelly School of Business, IUPUI. The goal is to
analyze data regarding past income, research, space, students, etc. Teams will be formed to focus on
Administration, Research and Graduate issues, and Undergraduate issues.
Pam Crowell suggested
placing the SOS 1999 Strategic Plan into the minutes as it might be
particularly useful in our future planning efforts.
(http://www.science.iupui.edu/science/overview/strategicPlan00to05.html).
Appendix II.
It was suggested for
next meeting agenda to discuss Dean Sukhatme’s suggestion that names of
individuals who will serve on The SOS Deans search be identified.
Meeting was adjourned
at 11:20.
Appendix I
Appendix II.
STRATEGIC PLAN:
2000-2005
David L. Stocum,
Dean
June 15, 1999
I. INTRODUCTION
The purpose of a strategic plan is to deploy an organization's
resources in ways that effectively allow the organization to achieve specific
ends (strategic objectives) that are essential to its success. This particular
plan is the result of many meetings and conversations with department chairmen
and faculty, the reading of numerous news reports, scientific articles and
books, conversations with colleagues at national scientific and administrative
meetings, and the exchange of information on strategic planning with faculty
and administrators at other universities. It outlines a set of strategic
objectives and specific aims that address key areas crucial to the success of
the School. These key areas are:
l Human resource
development
l Maximizing
student learning and success
l Academic program
development
l Research and
scholarship
l Maintenance of
financial health
l Allocation of
resources
l External
development/community involvement
The strategic plan presupposes a set of core values. That is, we
must know what we stand for and value as a faculty serving multiple
constituencies. The plan is intended to fit within the strategic objectives of
the University for student learning, responsibilities of excellence,
collaboration and centrality, and accountability and best practices. It is
essential that the visions, values, and objectives of departments, the School,
and the University be congruent, in order to foster a collective commitment to
advancement. Shared commitments and values allow more rational and effective
decisions to be made and provide a context within which the work and
aspirations of students, faculty, and other constituents can be validated.
II. CORE VALUES
OF THE
Our core values are derived from what have been described by
philosophers over the ages as the four transcendental dimensions of human
experience on which rest the foundations of excellence. None of these
dimensions exist separately from the others. It is through these dimensions of
experience and foundations of excellence that every human being finds personal
fulfillment and becomes a productive citizen and leader.
The Four Dimensions The
Corresponding Foundation
Of Human Excellence
l
The
Intellectual Truth
l The Aesthetic Beauty
l The Moral Goodness
l The Spiritual Unity
Within this context, the core values for which we stand are:
l Commitment to
success in student learning
l Commitment to creativity
and excellence of scholarship, teaching, and service
l Commitment to
change as a condition for creative growth
l Commitment to
ethics, integrity, accountability, character, and credibility
l Commitment to
continual improvement
III. VISION AND
Samuel Johnson wrote that " The
supreme end of education is expert discernment in all things--the power to tell
the good from the bad, the genuine from the counterfeit, and to prefer the good
and the genuine to the bad and the counterfeit". The following vision and
mission statements were constructed with this idea in mind.
The vision of the
The
mission of the
These statements put learning--by the active study of the known
and by discovery of the unknown---at the center of our academic enterprise.
The
l Physical
facilities for instruction and research
l Faculty teaching
and advising
l Undergraduate
programs
l Graduate
programs
l Research
programs
l K-12 inreach and
outreach
l Financial
management
l Student
recruitment and services
l Linkage between
research activities and undergraduate education
l Community and
alumni advisory councils
IV. ACADEMIC AND
RESEARCH THEMES OF THE 21ST CENTURY:THE SOS IS
WELL-POSITIONED
Five general academic and research themes are predicted to
dominate science and science education in the early 21st century. These are: computer and information science and
technology, molecular science and technology, renewable and sustainable
resources, quality of life, and educational access and life-long learning.
These themes are all represented in the disciplinary strengths of the
It is virtually certain that future growth in science and
technology will occur at the interfaces between the various disciplines of the
sciences, engineering, and the humanities and social sciences, especially in
conjunction with modern information technologies. Thus computer and information
science and technology, while having its own disciplinary focus, will also be
linked in an interdisciplinary way with each of the other themes listed above.
In fact, all these themes will find multiple linkages with one another to
address complex problems, forge research in new areas, and create new
commercial opportunities.
V. STRATEGIC
PLAN OUTLINE: 2000-2005
The plan consists of six strategic objectives that address the key
areas required for school success. Each objective has one or more specific aims
and tactics to achieve those aims. Most of the strategic objectives have been
pursued for the past ten years, but the aims and tactics used to achieve them
have been revised to align with current climate and opportunities. It is
important to note that while our specific aims and tactics will in the future
likely change somewhat in response to new challenges and opportunities, our
strategic objectives and core values will not, because these will be as valid
in the 21st century as they are now.
Strategic
Objective I: Build a Strong and Diverse Faculty and Staff
Key success areas addressed: all
Specific Aim:
l Continually
improve faculty and staff quality, diversity, and productivity and the working
environment of faculty and staff.
Tactical:
l Hire people whose qualifications and potential are better than our
own.
l Raise starting
salaries for faculty to a minimum of $50,000/yr and start-up packages to a
maximum of $300,000; give merit increases to especially productive faculty.
l Keep staff
salaries competitive; give merit increases to especially productive staff.
l Provide development activities and recognition of faculty and
staff accomplishments.
l Maintain a
strong associate and adjunct faculty drawn from professional ranks; raise
salaries of associate faculty.
l Strive to hire minority faculty in proportion to their
representation in potential candidate pools.
Strategic
Objective II: Develop Nationally Recognized Undergraduate Programs in Select
Areas
Key success areas addressed: Maximizing student learning and
success, academic program development
Specific Aims:
l Maintain
curricula that provide students with a sound general education and deep
knowledge in their major discipline that prepares them for work and life-long
learning.
l Continue to recruit more qualified students to increase retention,
graduation rates, and recognition of undergraduate programs.
l Develop new programs, based on current strengths, in emerging
areas of high scientific and national significance. Examples of
such areas, many of which have high career potential are:
1. Computer and
information science and technology: computer software design, industrial
mathematics and physics (application of mathematical and physical principles to
enhance industrial processes), informatics (databases, data mining, and
manipulation of data), new media (the application of computer and information
science and technology to the formatting and presentation of information).
2. Molecular
science and technology: materials science (design of new materials for multiple
construction uses, including biomaterials), biotechnology, developmental and
regenerative biology (understanding mechanisms of embryonic development and how
to re-initiate them in adult life to restore tissues damaged by disease or
injury), chemical biology (understanding structure and function at the
interface of chemistry and biology).
3. Educational
access and life-long learning: modular education ( focused short
course sequences leading to a certificate, or blocks of courses that can be
"mixed and matched" to achieve a specific degree content), research
on the best ways to teach and learn science and mathematics, development of
distributed education (learning accomplished through means other than standard
lectures, usually electronic).
Tactical:
l Assessment of student learning, curricula, and advising using
results to make changes that improve learning.
l Reward faculty
and departments for effective teaching and advising that increases retention
and graduation rates.
l Raise the percentage of students who participate in the SOS
Undergraduate Research Program to 20%.
l Adopt a marketing campaign stressing the quality of education and
career opportunities afforded by SOS academic programs.
l Increase number
of special events and programs for high school students (example: Toyota Motor
and Manufacturing of Indiana High School Mathematics Contest).
l Increase number of international students.
l Design the new
programs from existing courses plus essential new courses.
l Introduce Associate degrees, certificates, and BS/MS options
(including articulations with other colleges and universities).
Strategic
Objective III: Develop Nationally Recognized Research and Graduate Programs in
Select Areas
Key success areas addressed: maximizing student learning and
success, academic program development, research and scholarship, maintenance of
financial health.
Specific Aims:
l Develop new academic and research programs of high scientific and
national significance that complement and build on our existing strengths. Examples of new
areas are the same as in Strategic Objective II.
l Continue to increase external funding for research, including
equipment and personnel infrastructure, support for PhD students and
postdoctoral fellows.
l Develop new research space.
Tactical:
l Expand MS
programs in areas of demand through "fast track (non-research) options,
BS/MS options (including articulations with other colleges and universities);
admit more international students into these programs.
l Gradually
increase the number of PhD students to 100, particularly in emergent areas of
high national and scientific significance.
l Increase number of postdoctoral fellows.
l Replace retiring faculty with new faculty who are very competitive
for research funding.
l Seek industrial
collaborations and support; apply to more foundations.
l More applications for research in science and mathematics
education.
l Create research
space seed fund from ICR and build on this fund from private sources
(foundations, donors).
Strategic
Objective IV: Selective Investment in Technology
Key success areas addressed: maximizing student learning and
success, academic program development, research and scholarship
Specific Aims:
l Achieve a positive balance between the instructional benefits of
technology and the costs of technology.
l Improve
instructional and research technology
Tactical:
l Carefully evaluate
the cost/benefit ratio of implementing each type of instructional technology.
l Investigate
distributed education: in what areas does it work best and have the best
results?
l More grant applications for instructional and research technology.
Strategic
Objective V: Enhance External Development
Key success areas addressed: external development and community
involvement
Specific Aims:
l Increase the visibility of SOS academic/research programs and
faculty, staff, and student activities and achievements.
l Secure three
million dollars in alumni and corporate giving during the campaign for IUPUI,
to be used for scholarships and fellowships, academic and research innovations,
endowed chair.
Tactical:
l Develop
inexpensive brochures of SOS facts, faculty expertise, catalogue of
services/activities/programs that can be distributed to prospective students,
high school teachers and counselors, business and corporations, etc.
l Use the Web and
the media as extensively as possible.
l Invest
selectively in K-12 collaborations (examples: Scientist's Apprentice Camp and
Future Camp).
l Articulate a
compelling case statement that tells why why an investment in the SOS is a good
investment.
l Cultivate
prospective donors through their interests.
l Use the Dean's
Advisory Council and the Alumni Association Board as resources.
Strategic
Objective VI: Maintain and Enhance School Finances and Flexibility
Key success areas addressed: all
Specific Aim:
l Continue to
develop a larger resource base and the most effective use of current resources.
Tactical:
l Use all of the
tactics outlined above to increase external funding from granting agencies and
private support.
l More attractive
curricula, higher retention will generate higher tuition revenue.
l Recruit more
international students
l Expand MS
programs
l Shift resources
from stagnant to more vital areas.
l Cut costs by reorganizing and/or downsizing