General Education Committee Self Study

Name of Committee:  General Education Committee

Current Committee Members (please indicate chair and any other officers): 

Betty Spence (chair)

Adrian Duran

Tom Lee

Remy Miler

Haley Cafiero (Institutional Effectiveness consultant)

Part 1:  MCA Faculty Handbook Description

1) The 2011-2012 MCA Handbook includes the following description of the Committee:

None (see E-9 and E-10)

2a) In the opinion of the committee, does the handbook description accurately describe the function, purpose, and membership of the committee? Please explain.

n/a

2b) Please suggest changes/edits/rewrites for the Handbook description of your committee.  If the Handbook does not currently include a description for your committee, please write one. (Answers to this section of the self-study are suggestions only. They are intended to help the faculty move toward Handbook revisions, but they should be regarded as draft versions at this stage. Please don’t spend an inordinately long time trying to craft the perfect description—they can be changed and edited as we go through the process.)

Writes and regularly reviews General Education competencies.  Responsible for seeing that Gen Ed competencies are met. Analyzes Gen Ed assessment data and suggests changes based on that data.

  

Part 2:  Committee Charge, Duties, and Goals

1) Does the committee operate under a clearly stated committee “charge” (that is, a statement of purpose explaining what the committee is charged with doing on behalf of the faculty or college—this may be different from the catalog description of the committee)?  Is this charge written down and made available to the members of the committee and the college community at large?  Please explain. (If you feel that the current catalog description or any revision to the description that you made above functions adequately as a charge, please say so).

There is no formal charge. The description above serves (at this time) also as a charge.

2) Does the committee maintain a set of specific duties? Are these written down? If a set of such duties exists (written down or in the minds of the chair or other members of the committee), please list them here.  (In other words, what is the committee specifically responsible for? What does the committee do?)

The duties so far have consisted of writing a set of school-wide Gen Ed competencies, deciding upon two places to measure those competencies (one at senior level), writing rubrics to be used to measure those competencies. Future duties will be to look at data from the assessments that are done each semester and suggest/implement change based on that data. In short, the committee has the responsibility of seeing that the General Education competencies are being met.

3) Does the committee have a set of goals (short and/or long-term)? If so, please list them and briefly explain the process the committee used to arrive at these goals.

The goal of the committee is to oversee the Gen Ed program in order to keep us accredited. This goal was basically handed to us out of the necessity of our current pursuit of SACS reaccreditation

4) Other than verbal reports at faculty meetings, does the committee make reports in verbal or written form to the faculty or administration? How often are these reports made? Where are written reports housed and are they available to other members of the college community?

The committee has not yet reported to the faculty or administration in writing, other than by writing the Gen Ed goals and presenting them to the faculty for vote. If the committee continues as is apparently warranted by the description, charge, and goals above, then it will be making at least yearly reports to the faculty and the academic dean.

5) Please add any additional comments about the charge, duties, and goals of the committee.

The charge, duties, description, and goals of the committee as stated above seemingly warrant its existence as a standing committee or some permanent entity of the college. Because we must continually “close the loop,” there is no opportunity for this committee to dissolve, as much as we might like it to.

Part 3:  Committee Membership

1a) To the best of the committee’s knowledge, how are faculty members of the currently committee chosen?

Current committee members were nominated and elected by the faculty, with the exception of Haley Cafiero, who serves as consultant/liaison to the SACS reaccreditation process. Haley replaces Patti Hollifield, original Institutional Effectiveness coordinator (no longer employed by MCA), who was a non-elected member of the committee.

1b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, how do you think the members of the committee should be chosen?

As stated above. The current election process is fine. If the committee continues, there will probably be a yearly process of members rotating off and being replaced with a newly-elected member. Terms of office have not been established.

2a) Do the faculty members on the committee have limited terms of service?

            Not yet established.

2b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, should there be terms of service? Please explain.

There should be a process by which members rotate off, or elect to rotate off, the committee. The entire committee should not rotate at once, however, for purposes of continuity. None of this has been established and won’t be established until and unless the committee becomes a standing committee.

3) Does the current committee membership structure make sense? Is the committee too big, too small, the right size?  Please explain.

Committee size is just right. Structure could change if/when the definition of Gen Ed is pinned down to exactly which departments it encompasses.

4a) Does the committee as it currently exists have faculty members from each of the Divisions of the College?  If so, do you feel (or is it a requirement of the committee) that it always have representation from each of the Divisions? 

The committee currently has representation from Liberal Studies, Art History, Foundations, and Fine Arts. It has no representation from Design Arts. To the best of my memory, the membership was nominated to represent the divisions/departments directly involved in General Education, with Tom Lee as a member at large (?).

4b) If the Committee does not include members from each Division, should it? Please explain.

As yet to be determined. Even the definition of Gen Ed is in debate right now. Once it is firmly established what divisions are included in General Education, we can look again at the makeup of the committee.

5a) If there are administrators on the committee (according to Dean Strickland’s committee grid), explain their role(s).

Currently Remy Miller, Academic Dean, is on the committee, but he does not sit on the committee as dean; in other words, he was elected as a faculty member to the committee and has only recently stepped up to the dean’s position. Whether Remy will continue to serve on the committee has not yet been addressed. There is no role for an administrator on the committee.

5b) If administrators are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary? In other words, does the committee feel that administrators should be members of the committee? Please explain.

There is no role for an administrator on the committee.

6a) If there are staff members on the committee, explain their role(s).

There are no staff members on the committee.

6b) If staff are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary to the successful functioning of the committee?  Please explain.

n/a

7) To what extent are the decisions of your committee autonomous? In other words, do you make decisions that do not go to the full faculty for approval? Or do you make recommendations that then must be approved by the faculty or others?  Please explain. The committee wrote the Gen Ed competencies that went to full faculty for approval. The rubrics based on those competencies did not go to the faculty for approval. In “closing the loop,” faculty can make recommendations to faculty and/or administration, but I assume that it can take no action based on assessment data without approvals from either administration or faculty (depending on what recommendations are made). If rubrics are revised, I assume the committee will take the authority to do that without approval.

8) Please add any additional comments related to membership, committee structure, the appointment or election of members, participation of non-faculty members, etc.

No additional comments.

Part 4: Committee Meetings and Time Commitment

1a) On average, how many times per semester does your committee meet?  Please indicate if the number of meetings varies by semester and explain why.

The committee met 8 times this semester. With rubrics written and in place, I assume that meetings will be less frequent in the future.

1b) Is there a set meeting schedule (e.g., once monthly, bi-weekly, etc)?  If not, how does the committee determine if a meeting is necessary and who calls the meeting?

The committee meetings this semester were determined by how close we were to having completed rubrics and the nearness of the deadline for completing them. Deadline was determined by when they will be used (review committees and BFA assessment).

1c) If there is no set meeting schedule, do you think that there should be a set meeting schedule or a minimum number of meetings for your committee per semester? Please explain.

Once Gen Ed processes are in place and running well, meetings will probably be monthly or perhaps even bi-monthly.

1d) How long is the average meeting?

One hour

2) In general, how many hours of commitment per semester does this committee require of members?

Wow. In addition to the 8 hours of meeting time, I would imagine that members have spent at least that much more in developing rubrics and reading emails. So 16-20 hours so far this semester.

3a) Does the committee take minutes, keep notes, or otherwise track and archive the activities of the committee?

The chair writes minutes and distributes them to the committee members for approval.

3b) If you do keep minutes, where are they housed? Can other faculty (or administrators) not on your committee look at these minutes easily?

At present, they are housed on Betty Spence’s computer. Other faculty or administrators would have to request to see them.

4) Please add any additional comments on committee meetings and the time commitment required of faculty on this committee.

The Gen Ed committee has become a huge responsibility for its members and an important piece of the SACS puzzle. The time commitment will lessen somewhat once our assessment processes get rolling, but there will always be more work to be done.

The committee has given Betty Spence full authority to write this report, and she is its sole author. The report is being distributed to committee members, who may have additions or corrections to the statements herein.  

Gallery Committee Self Study

Name of Committee:  Gallery Committee

Current Committee Members (please indicate chair and any other officers): 

Elizabeth Brown

Don DuMont

Tom Lee

Susan Maakestad

Hannah Park

Bill Price

Jennifer Sargent - Chair

Zark Strasburger

Cynthia Thompson

Leandra Urrutia

Jennifer Gonzales

Cat Pena

Part 1:  MCA Faculty Handbook Description

1) The 2011-2012 MCA Handbook includes the following description of the Committee:

Gallery—Will assist in the hanging and installation exhibits for MCA’s galleries for the academic year. Membership: Ten F-T faculty members and Work Study assistants.

2a) In the opinion of the committee, does the handbook description accurately describe the function, purpose, and membership of the committee? Please explain.

For most of the Fall ’11 semester there have been 8 members and two graduate TA/work study assistants. There are currently 12 members (including chair) but this number has not yet been tried in practise. More members have become necessary because of varied teaching schedules and the difficulty of having enough people to help at any one time.

The committee does what is stated

2b) Please suggest changes/edits/rewrites for the Handbook description of your committee.  If the Handbook does not currently include a description for your committee, please write one. (Answers to this section of the self-study are suggestions only. They are intended to help the faculty move toward Handbook revisions, but they should be regarded as draft versions at this stage. Please don’t spend an inordinately long time trying to craft the perfect description—they can be changed and edited as we go through the process.)

(Elizabeth) should read “Will assist in the hanging and installation of exhibits for MCA’s . .”

We could include de-installation in the description

(Cynthia) some weekend and/or weeknight hours are necessary for the installation of exhibitions in a timely manner.

Add: This may entail working evenings, weekends or during the holidays in order to fulfill exhibition schedule

Part 2:  Committee Charge, Duties, and Goals

1) Does the committee operate under a clearly stated committee “charge” (that is, a statement of purpose explaining what the committee is charged with doing on behalf of the faculty or college—this may be different from the catalog description of the committee)?  Is this charge written down and made available to the members of the committee and the college community at large?  Please explain. (If you feel that the current catalog description or any revision to the description that you made above functions adequately as a charge, please say so).

(Tom) No. description is adequate for now.

(Cynthia) Not sure if it really states it clearly but the committee is charged with, under the direction of the chair, seeing that the exhibition schedule is accurately implemented and completed.

2) Does the committee maintain a set of specific duties? Are these written down? If a set of such duties exists (written down or in the minds of the chair or other members of the committee), please list them here.  (In other words, what is the committee specifically responsible for? What does the committee do?)

(Tom) No.  The chair asks ahead of time if we (or I) am able to do such and such which is usually an individual requirement related to a specific need.

(Elizabeth) The chair of the committee sends a written list of specific duties via email to all members asking for their preferences.  (These duties change from year to year based on the current exhibition schedule.)  Tasks are delegated to the entire committee by dividing the workload as evenly as possible. 

Generally these duties consist of moving and placing work, installing work, possibly working at the opening of a show, taking down work (including patching, painting and plastering), packing work for shipment,

(Cynthia) The committee follows the set of duties for each exhibition listed by the Chair. These include receiving and unpacking works arriving for an exhibition, making sure they arrive in good condition – filling out a condition report, placing the works with the assistance of the Chair,

hanging the exhibition, clean up, assistance with receptions if necessary, attendance at said events, de-installing exhibitions, prepping walls for next exhibition, packing works to be return shipped. Clean up, maintenance of storage and gallery equipment etc…

3) Does the committee have a set of goals (short and/or long-term)? If so, please list them and briefly explain the process the committee used to arrive at these goals.

(Elizabeth) Our unwritten major goal seems to be to enable the installation and deinstallation of professional exhibits in all of the MCA galleries to share both with the MCA community as well as the public at large.

(Tom)We have not normally met as a committee. There are sometimes “meetings” at the beginning of an installing session.

(Cynthia) The director in association with the pr and director of development/VP Kim Williams should construct goals together to meet the mission of the college.

This committee carries out all the practical work necessary to ensure that exhibitions are installed/deinstalled according to the schedule set for the school year in the preceding Spring semester.

4) Other than verbal reports at faculty meetings, does the committee make reports in verbal or written form to the faculty or administration? How often are these reports made? Where are written reports housed and are they available to other members of the college community?

no

(Tom) Chair meets with administration or staff to request and report. No written reports that I’m aware of.

5) Please add any additional comments about the charge, duties, and goals of the committee.

(Cynthia) A yearly schedule of duties and who works when would be nice to have planned out in advance so that we can each plan our schedules and know when we are needed to work.

I list exhibition tasks together with number of people needed at either the end or the beginning of each semester. I know teaching schedules before I send out this request to committee members

Part 3:  Committee Membership

1a) To the best of the committee’s knowledge, how are faculty members of the currently committee chosen?

(Susan) appointed

(Elizabeth) I believe it is decided by the Dean and the Faculty Representative based both on a faculty member’s preference and where there is a need for members. 

(Cynthia) The dean places people on committees, supposedly after talking to faculty to determine if they would be best to serve on that particular committee

(Tom) I volunteer but I’m not sure that’s normal.

1b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, how do you think the members of the committee should be chosen?

(Cynthia) I think EVERYONE should at one time serve on this committee. It is a lot of work but supports our mission of the college. Even if you are a liberal arts prof you have something to add by being on this committee and can gain experience. Too often this committee is made up of the same people over and over. It is not fair to be honest.

(Tom) Volunteer first, then draft.

2a) Do the faculty members on the committee have limited terms of service?

(Susan) no

(Elizabeth) not that I am aware of

(Cynthia) Not sure

(Tom) Don’t know.

Don’t know

2b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, should there be terms of service? Please explain.

(Elizabeth) Not for this particular committee since there is always a need for help with exhibitions.

(Cynthia) I think so

(Susan) Yes, there should be term limits. Have people cycle in and out. If someone really enjoys being on the committee he/she could elect to remain.  It’s a good experience that others at the college should experience.  It is truly a service-oriented committee. Without the committee, there would be no shows hanging in the 3-4 galleries.

3) Does the current committee membership structure make sense? Is the committee too big, too small, the right size?  Please explain.

(Elizabeth) It seems to be the right size.

(Cynthia) This committee should be made up of a lot of faculty because exhibitions are in multiple galleries and we all have varied teaching schedules – it’s difficult to hang a show with only 3 people when that is all who can show up.

(Susan) I have no idea why I was originally appointed to this committee, as I had no background in the duties involved.  I have learned a lot.

(Tom) It’s a good size when everyone shows up.

I will be able to tell at the end of spring semester as committee is now larger than it has been before

4a) Does the committee as it currently exists have faculty members from each of the Divisions of the College?  If so, do you feel (or is it a requirement of the committee) that it always have representation from each of the Divisions? 

(Cynthia) No, it could have more

(Elizabeth) I do feel having practicing artists/designers on the committee is important.  There is plenty to do however, so having some members from Liberal Studies seems fine as long as they are willing to learn. 

(Tom) Don’t know but it’s a good point that any area required to put anything on a wall (or floor, or pedestal…) should be available to help…..or learn and help….or at least pick up stuff.

It’s a good theory but having faculty members who hate doing the work makes the gallery job harder for all members of the committee and particularly the chair. There are also faculty with physical problems who cannot do the work.

4b) If the Committee does not include members from each Division, should it? Please explain.

(Susan) Representatives from all divisions makes sense, service-wise.

5a) If there are administrators on the committee (according to Dean Strickland’s committee grid), explain their role(s).

no

5b) If administrators are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary? In other words, does the committee feel that administrators should be members of the committee? Please explain.

6a) If there are staff members on the committee, explain their role(s).

Cat Pena has just been added to committee and has already proved very useful in being based at The Nesin Grad School. Her availability is limited by her job at 477 store. Jennifer Gonzales is both staff and faculty, also based downtown, and is also limited by her work schedule - full time including some evenings.

(Elizabeth) Since the bulk of the committee work is spent hands-on working in the galleries, there really isn’t a lot of discussion taking place that lends itself to inclusion of diverse experiences (as may be the case on other committees).  Certainly, the help of administrators and/or staff is welcome especially if they have prior experience setting up and taking down exhibitions.

6b) If staff are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary to the successful functioning of the committee?  Please explain.

(Elizabeth) Since members divide the tasks, everyone’s role is important.  It is not as if staff is completing tasks that are different from anyone else’s. 

(Tom) Probably, given the nature of funding for the committee work.

The particular people chosen for the committee are an excellent addition although I expect them to be mostly of use downtown. I will see next semester if they have enough time available to help with installation/deinstallation of exhibitions.

7) To what extent are the decisions of your committee autonomous? In other words, do you make decisions that do not go to the full faculty for approval? Or do you make recommendations that then must be approved by the faculty or others?  Please explain.

(Cynthia) the director of exhibitions, the chair, has oversight and vision for the gallery which we as a committee follow. We are always able to curate or propose a project for support

8) Please add any additional comments related to membership, committee structure, the appointment or election of members, participation of non-faculty members, etc.

Part 4: Committee Meetings and Time Commitment

1a) On average, how many times per semester does your committee meet?  Please indicate if the number of meetings varies by semester and explain why.

(Cynthia) We should meet once a semester to receive a calendar of duties revolving around each exhibition and visiting artist

(Elizabeth) We don’t hold official committee meetings per se, although we communicate via email (for scheduling in particular).  This seems to be an efficient way for our group to communicate.  We also meet with other members during work sessions for a particular exhibit. 

(Tom) Only when we install.

We get together at the beginning and end of exhibitions, this means that obligations extend outside of semesters.

Hyde: Fall, 2 exhibitions, one to be installed before the beginning of the semester; Spring, 1 exhibition; Summer, 1 exhibition (installed/de-installed outside of spring semester)

Rust Hall: Main Gallery: Fall, 2 exhibitions - 1 installation outside of semester; Spring, 3 exhibitions – 1 deinstallation, 1 installed/deinstalled outside of semester

Lower Gallery: 2 exhibitions per semester

Alumni Gallery: TA responsibility if I have grads assigned, 3 exhibitions a semester

1b) Is there a set meeting schedule

(e.g., once monthly, bi-weekly, etc)?  If not, how does the committee determine if a meeting is necessary and who calls the meeting?

(Elizabeth) None currently. If a meeting were necessary, the committee head would contact the committee members via email and ask us to meet.

(Cynthia) The director of exhibitions calls meeting when and if necessary

No, see above

1c) If there is no set meeting schedule, do you think that there should be a set meeting schedule or a minimum number of meetings for your committee per semester? Please explain.

(Susan) No.  We don’t need meetings.  Jennifer is able to conduct business via email.

(Elizabeth) Our current method of scheduling and communicating (via email several times a semester) seems to work efficiently.

(Cynthia) Once a semester to go over the events for the year as a group , the entire schedule could be set very easily in one meeting.

No because of nature of duties

1d) How long is the average meeting?

Until exhibition is complete, 3 / 4 hours but can be longer

2) In general, how many hours of commitment per semester does this committee require of members?

 (Susan) I estimate 12-15 hours per faculty member per semester.

(Elizabeth) About 10-20 hours. 

(Cynthia) I would say roughly around 20 hours a semester

(Tom) Depends how many shows we work on and what jobs we have to do. I’ve not kept track of my own hours, but installing the current show downtown (Adrift) I helped for about 6 hours and expect the uninstalling to take as long.

Depends on exhibition requirements and class and holiday schedules of committee members

3a) Does the committee take minutes, keep notes, or otherwise track and archive the activities of the committee?

no

3b) If you do keep minutes, where are they housed? Can other faculty (or administrators) not on your committee look at these minutes easily?

4) Please add any additional comments on committee meetings and the time commitment required of faculty on this committee.

(Susan) The gallery committee hangs most of the shows in Rust Hall and in the Grad Center.  We take down the work and pack it for shipping.  We work days, nights, weekends and during holidays.  We can’t merely meet at noon during the semester to conduct our business.  The work is done behind the scenes.  While the shows are noticed, the work of the committee is not.  It may appear to the MCA community as if the shows magically appear for all to appreciate.  Because of that our participation on the committee does not go appreciated.  I have been criticized for not doing committee work!  The committee is invisible to the rest of the faculty.  That is partly why I suggest that there be term limits for this committee.  Faculty can volunteer to stay on, but others will be enlisted so that all will understand the valuable work of the committee.  Otherwise, perhaps this work should not be done by faculty at all, but by students.  We may need to start a Gallery Management class.

Exhibition/Visiting Artists Committee

Name of Committee: Exhibitions/Visiting Artists Committee

Current Committee Members (please indicate chair and any other officers): 

Jennifer Sargent

Part 1:  MCA Faculty Handbook Description

1) The 2011-2012 MCA Handbook includes the following description of the Committee:

Exhibitions/Visiting Artists—will oversee the visiting artist and exhibition programs for the academic year. Membership: Director of Exhibitions and Lectures. Director of MFA Programs, Faculty Representative, Vice President for College Advancement and VPAA/Dean.

Director

2a) In the opinion of the committee, does the handbook description accurately describe the function, purpose, and membership of the committee? Please explain.

No it does not describe committee as there has not been one. A committee was attempted at least once in the past with makeup as given above and faculty reps being head of design and Fine Arts divisions. It was not successful with the members not reading the prepared materials and in the end leaving me to make decisions as before. For the past few years I have solicited input from faculty and discussed the overall needs/directions of MCA with VP for College Advancement so as to keep a balance of exhibitions and lecturers that serve the whole college

2b) Please suggest changes/edits/rewrites for the Handbook description of your committee.  If the Handbook does not currently include a description for your committee, please write one. (Answers to this section of the self-study are suggestions only. They are intended to help the faculty move toward Handbook revisions, but they should be regarded as draft versions at this stage. Please don’t spend an inordinately long time trying to craft the perfect description—they can be changed and edited as we go through the process.)

……membership; Director of Exhibitions and Lectures, Director of MFA Programs, VP for College Advancement, members of Gallery committee

Part 2:  Committee Charge, Duties, and Goals

1) Does the committee operate under a clearly stated committee “charge” (that is, a statement of purpose explaining what the committee is charged with doing on behalf of the faculty or college—this may be different from the catalog description of the committee)?  Is this charge written down and made available to the members of the committee and the college community at large?  Please explain. (If you feel that the current catalog description or any revision to the description that you made above functions adequately as a charge, please say so).

This will be developed during the spring semester after the new committee has met to discuss the programs for the coming academic year

2) Does the committee maintain a set of specific duties? Are these written down? If a set of such duties exists (written down or in the minds of the chair or other members of the committee), please list them here.  (In other words, what is the committee specifically responsible for? What does the committee do?)

no see above

3) Does the committee have a set of goals (short and/or long-term)? If so, please list them and briefly explain the process the committee used to arrive at these goals.

no

4) Other than verbal reports at faculty meetings, does the committee make reports in verbal or written form to the faculty or administration? How often are these reports made? Where are written reports housed and are they available to other members of the college community?

no

5) Please add any additional comments about the charge, duties, and goals of the committee.

Part 3:  Committee Membership

1a) To the best of the committee’s knowledge, how are faculty members of the currently committee chosen?

1b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, how do you think the members of the committee should be chosen?

As described in revised description of committee

2a) Do the faculty members on the committee have limited terms of service?

Term would reflect members term on Gallery committee. Chair, Grad Director and VP for College Advancement would be ongoing

2b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, should there be terms of service? Please explain.

As above

3) Does the current committee membership structure make sense? Is the committee too big, too small, the right size?  Please explain.

I will form committee in Spring 2012 and be able to answer more clearly after that.

4a) Does the committee as it currently exists have faculty members from each of the Divisions of the College?  If so, do you feel (or is it a requirement of the committee) that it always have representation from each of the Divisions? 

4b) If the Committee does not include members from each Division, should it? Please explain.

It should be based on gallery committee members plus grad director and VP for College Advancement

5a) If there are administrators on the committee (according to Dean Strickland’s committee grid), explain their role(s).

5b) If administrators are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary? In other words, does the committee feel that administrators should be members of the committee? Please explain.

6a) If there are staff members on the committee, explain their role(s).

6b) If staff are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary to the successful functioning of the committee?  Please explain.

7) To what extent are the decisions of your committee autonomous? In other words, do you make decisions that do not go to the full faculty for approval? Or do you make recommendations that then must be approved by the faculty or others?  Please explain.

8) Please add any additional comments related to membership, committee structure, the appointment or election of members, participation of non-faculty members, etc.

Part 4: Committee Meetings and Time Commitment

1a) On average, how many times per semester does your committee meet?  Please indicate if the number of meetings varies by semester and explain why.

Not clear, maybe two in the Spring only when decisions need to be made

1b) Is there a set meeting schedule (e.g., once monthly, bi-weekly, etc)?  If not, how does the committee determine if a meeting is necessary and who calls the meeting?

1c) If there is no set meeting schedule, do you think that there should be a set meeting schedule or a minimum number of meetings for your committee per semester? Please explain.

1d) How long is the average meeting?

2) In general, how many hours of commitment per semester does this committee require of members?

3a) Does the committee take minutes, keep notes, or otherwise track and archive the activities of the committee?

3b) If you do keep minutes, where are they housed? Can other faculty (or administrators) not on your committee look at these minutes easily?

4) Please add any additional comments on committee meetings and the time commitment required of faculty on this committee.

Digital Media Committee Self Study

Name of Committee:  Digital Media Committee

Current Committee Members (please indicate chair and any other officers): 

Maria Bibbs

Don DuMont

Susan Maakestad

Haley Morris-Cafiero

David Chioffi

Howard Paine

Hannah Park

Meredith Root

Zark Strasburger

Jill Wissmiller (Chair)

Gordon Dover

Leslie Holland

Ian Sterling

Part 1:  MCA Faculty Handbook Description

1) The 2011-2012 MCA Handbook includes the following description of the Committee:

Digital Media— Guides the acquisition of digital technology to serve the curriculum. Membership: Director of Institution Technology, Instructional Technology Associate, Academic Affairs Coordinator, Interested F-T & P-T faculty, and a student representative.

2a) In the opinion of the committee, does the handbook description accurately describe the function, purpose, and membership of the committee? Please explain.

No,  current activity exceeds far beyond the reach of the above description. In addition, the committee assess the ability of the school’s technology to meet curriculum needs, offers faculty education on school technology, research and tests new educational technology, and

acts as a repository and distribution point for technology related initiatives and information

There is a general sense that this is too much work, and that the structure needs to revolve around more sub-committee work. There is dissent among the members as to whether the committee should be responsible for faculty education.

2b) Please suggest changes/edits/rewrites for the Handbook description of your committee.  If the Handbook does not currently include a description for your committee, please write one. (Answers to this section of the self-study are suggestions only. They are intended to help the faculty move toward Handbook revisions, but they should be regarded as draft versions at this stage. Please don’t spend an inordinately long time trying to craft the perfect description—they can be changed and edited as we go through the process.)

Digital media committee:

·      guides new media acquisition

·      tests educational technologies

·      trains the faculty and staff on educational technology usage

Part 2:  Committee Charge, Duties, and Goals

1) Does the committee operate under a clearly stated committee “charge” (that is, a statement of purpose explaining what the committee is charged with doing on behalf of the faculty or college—this may be different from the catalog description of the committee)?  Is this charge written down and made available to the members of the committee and the college community at large?  Please explain. (If you feel that the current catalog description or any revision to the description that you made above functions adequately as a charge, please say so).

Answered in 2b – new handbook write-up would be the committee’s charge.

The handbook needs to be revised before the charge will be written. This will then be made to all committee members, and posted online with meeting notes in the admin server.

2) Does the committee maintain a set of specific duties? Are these written down? If a set of such duties exists (written down or in the minds of the chair or other members of the committee), please list them here.  (In other words, what is the committee specifically responsible for? What does the committee do?)

Committee needs to further analyze, as a greater emphasis needs to be placed on sub -committee creation, a necessity due to the expanding role of the digital technology in the curriculum.

3) Does the committee have a set of goals (short and/or long-term)? If so, please list them and briefly explain the process the committee used to arrive at these goals.

See minutes 10/12/11 meeting for this answer.

4) Other than verbal reports at faculty meetings, does the committee make reports in verbal or written form to the faculty or administration? How often are these reports made? Where are written reports housed and are they available to other members of the college community?

No – In the past reports were made verbally to the Dean.

5) Please add any additional comments about the charge, duties, and goals of the committee.

Committee is vast in its scope and its responsibility.

Part 3:  Committee Membership

1a) To the best of the committee’s knowledge, how are faculty members of the currently committee chosen?

By the Dean, who made the decision based on how extensively members used digital technology in the classroom. Additionally, Gordon and Ian were appointed for obvious reasons. Additionally, this year we had volunteers as requested by the liberal studies and fine arts divisions. Susan and Maria serve to assure all voices are heard.

1b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, how do you think the members of the committee should be chosen?

There is dissent within the committee as to the effective size. It is currently large and unruly, however due to the broad range of work necessary, not sure how we could handle it with less members. Most are in agreement that the best process would be to have clearly defined sub-committees.

2a) Do the faculty members on the committee have limited terms of service?

NO -- not that we know of.

2b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, should there be terms of service? Please explain.

There is agreement that the chair position should be held for a maximum of three years. It is unclear whether that position should be appointed by the dean or elected by the committee. As for other members, there need not be any timeline for their involvement. It depends on how involved the member is with digital technology. Obviously Digital media faculty and IT staff would presumably always be on the committee.

3) Does the current committee membership structure make sense? Is the committee too big, too small, the right size?  Please explain.

As mentioned several times in previous answers, this is something we are still in discussion about.

4a) Does the committee as it currently exists have faculty members from each of the Divisions of the College?  If so, do you feel (or is it a requirement of the committee) that it always have representation from each of the Divisions? 

It currently does, and the committee for the sake of equal voices and transparency think that this should always be the case.

4b) If the Committee does not include members from each Division, should it? Please explain.

See above

5a) If there are administrators on the committee (according to Dean Strickland’s committee grid), explain their role(s).

No

5b) If administrators are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary? In other words, does the committee feel that administrators should be members of the committee? Please explain.

N/A

6a) If there are staff members on the committee, explain their role(s).

The two IT staff membersare critical as experts in the field and maintainers on the ground. They are not, however, nor should they be, the final vote/word on all IT/ET issues.

6b) If staff are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary to the successful functioning of the committee?  Please explain.

Yes absolutely. Our usage, training, and acquisition should be a collaboration of equals with our staff counterparts.

7) To what extent are the decisions of your committee autonomous? In other words, do you make decisions that do not go to the full faculty for approval? Or do you make recommendations that then must be approved by the faculty or others?  Please explain.

We are solely recommenders, be it to the policy on policies, budget committee, administration, or faculty as a whole.

8) Please add any additional comments related to membership, committee structure, the appointment or election of members, participation of non-faculty members, etc.

The committee decided that student should be involved with the committee only if they are invited to attend. Zark disents , adding that it would be nice to consider all voices of the college.

Part 4: Committee Meetings and Time Commitment

1a) On average, how many times per semester does your committee meet?  Please indicate if the number of meetings varies by semester and explain why.

4 meetings

varies semester to semester

1b) Is there a set meeting schedule (e.g., once monthly, bi-weekly, etc)?  If not, how does the committee determine if a meeting is necessary and who calls the meeting?

see above

1c) If there is no set meeting schedule, do you think that there should be a set meeting schedule or a minimum number of meetings for your committee per semester? Please explain.

I think the frequency of meetings should be based upon the size of our agenda for the year. Don’t meet too much if you don’t need to. We already have too many meetings to go to.

1d) How long is the average meeting?

one hour

2) In general, how many hours of commitment per semester does this committee require of members?

It depends on the projects and who is doing them

3a) Does the committee take minutes, keep notes, or otherwise track and archive the activities of the committee?

Meredith is keeping minutes currently. These will be made available on the Admin server.

3b) If you do keep minutes, where are they housed? Can other faculty (or administrators) not on your committee look at these minutes easily?

Server folder, and yes they will be available for all interested parties to access.

4) Please add any additional comments on committee meetings and the time commitment required of faculty on this committee.

Curriculum Committee Self Study

Name of Committee:  Curriculum Committee

Current Committee Members (please indicate chair and any other officers): 

David Chioffi (Chair)  [CHIOFFI COMMENTS IN BROWN].

Ellen Daugherty

Tom Lee

Remy Miller

Ken Strickland

Part 1:  MCA Faculty Handbook Description

1) The 2011-2012 MCA Handbook includes the following description of the Committee:

Curriculum—Reviews proposals for new courses or substantive changes to existing

 courses and/or programs. See curriculum development procedures on page D-5. Membership:

The appropriate Department Head, Division Chair(s), and the VPAA/Dean. Secretary/record keeper will be chosen from within the committee.  For the purpose of continuity, at least one member of the committee will continue to serve through the following year. The VPAA/Dean will respond, in writing, on all proposals received, and the action taken. An annual log of deliberations and actions will be maintained.

2a) In the opinion of the committee, does the handbook description accurately describe the function, purpose, and membership of the committee? Please explain.

The handbook describes a process which has in the past been the previous manner of action and provided functionality. The suspension of the Committee and the reinstatement [under these parameters] remains uncertain for the past several academic years. The current operational sequencing as voted upon by the faculty on 20 April 2011 is as follows:

START QUOTE: The establishment of a Curriculum Committee, in response to a mandate by the governing Faculty, was enacted through an open nomination and election process for representation by: the Divisions of Design Arts, Fine Arts, Foundations, and Liberal Studies. The Committee is now comprised of the following full-time faculty:

Division of Design Arts: David Chioffi Division of Fine Arts: Tom Lee Division of Foundations: Remy Miller Division of Liberal Studies: Ellen Daugherty

The Committee convened its first meeting on 23 March 2011.

_______________

Passed Motion: The Curriculum Committee as charged by the governing Faculty puts forth a Motion to suspend all current policies and procedures regarding the Curriculum Committee as outlined in the 2010-2011 Faculty Handbook, as well as for the proposed 2011–2012 version. These statements are attached and noted as:

Curriculum Policy [p. D5-6] Faculty Committees [p. E-7]

Revisions to the policy regarding roles and procedures of the Committee will be drafted by the Committee and submitted to the full Faculty for approval. Once sanctioned by the Faculty, the changes shall be distributed as an amendment to the 2011–2012 Faculty Handbook. In the event that the Committee will need to review curricular proposals prior to the official establishment of new procedures, interim methodologies for such review will be conveyed to the Faculty in a transparent manner. END// END QUOTE.

2b) Please suggest changes/edits/rewrites for the Handbook description of your committee.  If the Handbook does not currently include a description for your committee, please write one. (Answers to this section of the self-study are suggestions only. They are intended to help the faculty move toward Handbook revisions, but they should be regarded as draft versions at this stage. Please don’t spend an inordinately long time trying to craft the perfect description—they can be changed and edited as we go through the process.)

Curriculum—Reviews proposals for new courses or substantive changes to existing courses and/or programs. Membership: The establishment of a Curriculum Committee, in response to a mandate by the governing Faculty, is enacted through an open nomination and election process for representation by: the Divisions of Design Arts, Fine Arts, Foundations, and Liberal Studies. A chair, as well as a secretary will be chosen from within the committee. The term of each member shall be [00]. Outside of reviewing proposals the committee will meet for administrative and evaluation purposes [00] times per year. For the purpose of continuity, at least one member of the committee will continue to serve through the following year. Curricula Proposals will be reviewed [00] times per semester and must include the following forms: [XX]. Committee members will review all course applications and additional information may be requested. The recommendation of the committee will be composed in writing. A motion will be drafted by committee members and presented by the chair at the next scheduled faculty meeting following conventional practices. Actions of the faculty will be conveyed in writing to: [Sponsoring Faculty, Department Head, Chair, Registrar, Dean].The chair of the committee will present the VPAA/Dean with the approved actions of the full faculty in writing for proposed implementation]. Faculty staffing and operational budgetary concerns are independent of the advancement of the College’s permanent course offerings. An annual log of minutes, deliberations, and actions will be maintained in digital form for committee administration, faculty review, and archiving purposes.

Part 2:  Committee Charge, Duties, and Goals

1) Does the committee operate under a clearly stated committee “charge” (that is, a statement of purpose explaining what the committee is charged with doing on behalf of the faculty or college—this may be different from the catalog description of the committee)?  Is this charge written down and made available to the members of the committee and the college community at large?  Please explain. (If you feel that the current catalog description or any revision to the description that you made above functions adequately as a charge, please say so).

For the moment, [Part 01/2B] satisfies this aspect yet requires additional and more specific guidelines and procedures.

2) Does the committee maintain a set of specific duties? Are these written down? If a set of such duties exists (written down or in the minds of the chair or other members of the committee), please list them here.  (In other words, what is the committee specifically responsible for? What does the committee do?)

All Members:

01_Maintain the operation of the committee as charged by the faculty.

02_Abide by the approved operational procedures.

03_Represent the philosophies of their Division.

04_Maintain an active participation within the committee.

05_Provide diversity in opinion and experiences in review and deliberations.

06_Provide information and guidance regarding procedures for faculty.

Chair:

01_Implement administrative sequences.

02_Represent the committee as requested by the faculty or College

03_Call meetings and request agenda items from members and or faculty

04_Facilitate meetings

Secretary:

01_Maintain accurate accounting of meeting discussions and actions in written form.

02_Prepare materials for presentation and distribution to faculty.

03_Prepare motions in written form for consideration within faculty meetings.

04_Maintain all materials as they relate to faculty course proposals.

05_Maintain all forms and their distribution for faculty use in preparation for proposals.

06_Maintain digital archive of all operational, supplemental, actions of the Committee.

07_Convey in writing and signed by the committee approved actions on behalf of the faculty to the appropriate parties [Sponsoring Faculty, Department Head, Chair, Registrar, Dean].

3) Does the committee have a set of goals (short and/or long-term)? If so, please list them and briefly explain the process the committee used to arrive at these goals.

01_Evaluate the processes of curricula development to be implemented for the advancement of a specific department while further expanding the inter-disciplinary relationship to the greater scope of the College and its benefits.

02_The request of Division’s to review course offerings which are active and those inactive to be appropriately represented in the course bulletin.

03_The request of Division’s to provide and maintain the sequence of course offerings for student advising in relation to degree completion.

04_Request policy of faculty in relation to the construction in language of course descriptions and the ownership of these and who may amend them.

05_Implement all processes for curricula requests to become fully digital.

06_Request review and further development that Divisional curricula meets accreditation expectations.

07_Review of comparable institution’s policies and procedures for further insight.

08_Implementation of designated sequences of committee evaluation.

4) Other than verbal reports at faculty meetings, does the committee make reports in verbal or written form to the faculty or administration? How often are these reports made? Where are written reports housed and are they available to other members of the college community?

Not at this juncture, however the intent is to in alignment with the faculty’s and College’s initiative of transparency to have this realized. The physical aspects of a secure and logical methodology have yet to be determined as a committee and a faculty body.

5) Please add any additional comments about the charge, duties, and goals of the committee.

The intent of serving the academic needs of the student body through the faculty remains of the highest priority in an efficient and professional process.

Part 3:  Committee Membership

1a) To the best of the committee’s knowledge, how are faculty members of the currently committee chosen?

“The establishment of a Curriculum Committee, in response to a mandate by the governing Faculty, was enacted through an open nomination and election process for representation by: the Divisions of Design Arts, Fine Arts, Foundations, and Liberal Studies.”

1b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, how do you think the members of the committee should be chosen?

The membership process [should] include that the committee be composed of full-time faculty members.

2a) Do the faculty members on the committee have limited terms of service?

No, however the current [non-faculty approved version] states that one [01] member should be sequence in to provide consistency.

2b) If it is not explicitly stated in the description/rules/by-laws of the committee, should there be terms of service? Please explain.

Currently it is not explicitly state and should be. A single academic term may not be advantageous due to the short and long term goals being ambitious. This is augmented by, in recent years, the committee not in existence and not within a process available to all faculty’s consideration

3) Does the current committee membership structure make sense? Is the committee too big, too small, the right size?  Please explain.

Currently the committee membership and structure are fairly distributed by the Divisional representation and its size allows for dialogue and productivity.

4a) Does the committee as it currently exists have faculty members from each of the Divisions of the College?  If so, do you feel (or is it a requirement of the committee) that it always have representation from each of the Divisions? 

“The establishment of a Curriculum Committee, in response to a mandate by the governing Faculty, was enacted through an open nomination and election process for representation by: the Divisions of Design Arts, Fine Arts, Foundations, and Liberal Studies.” This composition has been successful as it allows a diverse voice in the meetings and enables each member to, when required, a faculty’s concerns either in identifiable or concealed representation.

4b) If the Committee does not include members from each Division, should it? Please explain.

Asked and answered, please see [4a].

5a) If there are administrators on the committee (according to Dean Strickland’s committee grid), explain their role(s).

Not applicable in the sense of the committee composition however the Dean’s role within the process remains uncertain. Upon completion of the committee and faculty-at-large processes the Dean [will] be provided with a recommendation for possible implementation Can the Dean reject the recommendation of the faculty? Will the Policy on Policy overshadow the actual functionality of this and other committees? Will the faculty be devoid of their academic governance? It is understood that ultimate independence as a faculty is not possible but where is the line to be drawn?

5b) If administrators are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary? In other words, does the committee feel that administrators should be members of the committee? Please explain.

Asked and answered, please see above, [5a].

6a) If there are staff members on the committee, explain their role(s).

Not applicable.

6b) If staff are members of the committee, do you feel that their roles are necessary to the successful functioning of the committee?  Please explain.

Asked and answered, [6a].

7) To what extent are the decisions of your committee autonomous? In other words, do you make decisions that do not go to the full faculty for approval? Or do you make recommendations that then must be approved by the faculty or others?  Please explain.

Asked and answered, please see [Part 1, 2a-2b].

8) Please add any additional comments related to membership, committee structure, the appointment or election of members, participation of non-faculty members, etc.

Part 4: Committee Meetings and Time Commitment

1a) On average, how many times per semester does your committee meet?  Please indicate if the number of meetings varies by semester and explain why.

This will be determined by the process which is now in a fluid state.

1b) Is there a set meeting schedule (e.g., once monthly, bi-weekly, etc)?  If not, how does the committee determine if a meeting is necessary and who calls the meeting?

This will be determined by the process which is now in a fluid state.

1c) If there is no set meeting schedule, do you think that there should be a set meeting schedule or a minimum number of meetings for your committee per semester? Please explain.

This will be determined by the process which is in a fluid state.

1d) How long is the average meeting?

The developmental meeting was fifty [50] minutes long.

2) In general, how many hours of commitment per semester does this committee require of members?

As this aspect of the College can be viewed as one of the foundations of its mission, the current developmental commitment can be large. This would be associated with policy, administrative sequences, and form/paperwork. After which, based on the outlined tenets and a [hopeful] productive process, the time association is inline with the expansion of the course catalogue as requested by the faculty.

3a) Does the committee take minutes, keep notes, or otherwise track and archive the activities of the committee?

Yes.

3b) If you do keep minutes, where are they housed? Can other faculty (or administrators) not on your committee look at these minutes easily?

Asked and answered, please see [Part 2, 4].

4) Please add any additional comments on committee meetings and the time commitment required of faculty on this committee.