2
University Colleges at UK Benchmark Institution s
Octo ber 2011
With this summary description of benchmark institutions' work by their University Colleges, decision-makers at the University of Kentucky can look in more detail in an analysis to promote program improvements. According to the UK Institutional Research, Planning and Effectiveness website (.edu/IRPE/benchmarking.html), the University started in 2009 to use the UK Top 20 Business Plan institutions as the standard comparison group for all benchmark analyses. Prior to 2009-2010, their analyses used the 19 benchmark institutions assigned by the Kentucky Council for Postsecondary Education. Both groups of institutions were used in this summation (see footnotes to ascertain which institution is from which list).
Georgia Institute of Technology *
The Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs reports directly to the Provost and Vice-President for Academic Affairs (ech.edu/president/sites/president/files/PresidentOrgChart-070111.pdf). This Senior Vice Provost oversees several Vice Provosts: Faculty and Academic Development (who handles accreditation, faculty development, assessment); Enrollment Services; International Initiatives; and, the Vice Provost for Graduate and Undergraduate Studies who oversees
· Office of Graduate Studies, and the Graduate Ombudsman
· Division of Professional Practice
· Office of Educational Technology
· Honors Program (orsprogram.gatech.edu/) with a first-year residence and special advising, small special topics courses, small intro core courses
· Office of Undergraduate Studies (ergradstudies.gatech.edu/) is “the student support center for academic programs beyond the classroom” including ThinkBig (living learning community with a professor), This We Believe at Georgia Tech (student essay awards), Open Forum (student-led intellectual development initiative) – but note this initiative is separate from the Center for Academic Support (cess.gatech.edu/?id=6) which handles tutoring, workshops, Freshman Reading Project, awards, academic coaching
Michigan State University +
The Undergraduate University Division in the Office of the Provost is led by a Director. All undergraduate students who have been admitted to Michigan State University with fewer than 56 credits are enrolled in the Undergraduate University Division (UUD) with the exception of lower division students who are enrolled in special residential colleges (James Madison College, Lyman Briggs College, Residential College in the Arts and Humanities). Each of these residential colleges hire their own faculty who offer their own courses and degrees. The academic responsibility for all students who are enrolled in the UUD rests solely with the UUD. Academic responsibility includes such functions as monitoring students’ academic progress and making decisions concerning retention and academic status. All students who are enrolled in the UUD must select and be accepted for admission to a degree-granting college by the time they reach junior standing (56 credits). The services of the UUD are provided by a Student Academic Affairs unit and a Learning Resources Center.
North Carolina State University +
The division of Undergraduate Academic Programs (u.edu/uap) is led by a Dean who reports to the Provost (see vost.ncsu.edu/about-us/documents/provost-org-chart.pdf). This division is responsible for:
o First Year College (u.edu/fyc) which is described as “the college of options” for students who enter NCSU without declaring a major – the “faculty” are academic advisors who have “lecturer” appointments; specific college/department liaisons are listed (most of them are college-based advisors many of whom are also identified as “lecturers”) – note the FYC is separate from the “Transition Program” (u.edu/uap/programs/transition_program.html) which helps students who did not get accepted to their NCSU college of choice. This college also has active components similar to other colleges at NCSU:
o FYC Advisory Board “is a volunteer group of community and education leaders that support the mission of the First Year College. Members of the Board advise the Director on strategies to enhance the success of the FYC student. The strategies might address policy, recruitment, public relations, and funding.” u.edu/fyc/parents_partners/FYCBoardMember2011.pdf
o FYC Parent Network = being “part of the First Year College Family” (president is on Advisory Board); FYC Student Council and FYC Alumni
o FYC Enhancement Fund (located in University Development’s College Gifts area), includes commemorative brick “Pave the Walkway” to help build a new FYC Commons Building (u.edu/fyc/parents_partners/brick_promotion.html)
o FYC includes one-on-one academic and career advising; two-semester orientation course and the required FYC Forum Series (with an online submission of student reports that includes specific “categories” in order to receive credit for each FORUM event (u.edu/fyc/forum/forum_report_form.html); and, a living learning community (FYC Village) – see impact report at (u.edu/fyc/assessment/reports/fyc_0910_impact_report.pdf )
Ohio State University* +
The now defunct Office of Undergraduate Student Academic Services – created in 2001 and reporting directly to the Office of Academic Affairs – advised students in the University College and in A&S (.edu/news/releases/01-02-13_Improvements_in_Undergraduate_advising.html).
The Assistant Vice President for Undergraduate Admissions and First Year Experience oversees University Orientation and provides senior leadership to a university-wide collaborative effort to implement the First Year Experience initiative for all new students, ensuring their successful transition into the university, including such programming as:
o President’s Convocation
o Common Reading Experience
o Distinguished Speaker Series
o Leadership Collaborative
o FYE Camp (outdoor) program before first fall
o Buckeyes Beyond Ohio – orientation series for out-of-state students
o ALDPES (Alpha Lambda Delta & Phi Eta Sigma) honorary societies for FY students
o Orientation (orientation.osu.edu) programming and peer mentoring including the Transfer Student Activities Board
o Success Series (.edu/successseries.html) offers short courses on common concerns/questions first-year students have during their transition to university life. Students are often asked to attend events as a requirement for their survey classes in the fall but are highly encouraged to continue attending sessions throughout the year. More than 300 sessions offered in fall quarter; each event falls under one of ten theme areas so to give survey course instructors flexibility in assigning relevant topics.
· The Academy Program (Postsecondary Enrollment Option Program) – offers dual credit to qualified high school juniors and seniors – at no cost, .edu/academy/ (Ohio State implementation of the Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Program (PSEOP) created by the state of Ohio – ODE determines who receives full funding for books and tuition). Students may enroll in the Academy at any Ohio State campus.
· Metro Early College High School (www.themetroschoolcom) opened 2007 nearby the OSU campus with KnowledgeWorks Foundation funding (www.early colleges.org) and OSU as postsecondary partner overseeing the dual credit courses offered by high school teachers.
Pennsylvania State University* +
The Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses, reporting to the Executive VP and Provost, is the senior officer responsible for oversight of Penn State’s 19 undergraduate campuses. The main task is to develop regional clusters of activity and resource sharing among Penn State campuses to “facilitate programmatic collaboration, cost savings and more effective use of resources,” including a common foundation for all students as they progress through majors and integrates student recruitment and retention strategies across the campuses. This position also serves as “Dean of the University College” – overseeing the Penn State University College which comprises 14 Penn State campuses not currently having College status. Some campuses within the College are authorized to offer an entire program for designated baccalaureate degrees (puses.psu.edu/uc.htm); faculty may have locus of tenure in University College or in a University Park college (puses.psu.edu/Section_B.pdf) – see the faculty handbook at puses.psu.edu/77.htm. P&T reviews by the Dean of the University College are “campus reviews” (see P&T guidelines at .edu/vpaa/pdfs/p_and_t_%20guidelines.pdf.; note that page 41 shows the different loci of tenure, inc. University Park, University College, Non-University Park faculty with tenure status at a University Park college, Graduate/Professional Studies faculty). The Penn State University College
o offers undergraduate majors leading to baccalaureate and associate degrees – if students don’t want to enroll immediately in one of the colleges or other degree-granting units may enroll in the Division of Undergraduate Studies, typically for one year (.edu/bulletins/bluebook/general_information.cfm?section=AOU1)
o Offers PSU 008S First-Year Seminar University College (1 credit hr)
· Offers Intercollege Programs (older ones are “concurrent degree program” with College of Liberal Arts, with Earth/Mineral Sci or with Engineering) such as the Bachelor of Philosophy Degree (.edu/bulletins/bluebook/college_campus_details.cfm?id=31&program=b_ph.htm ) which is led by an intercollege committee. The Bachelor of Philosophy Degree Committee is responsible for selecting the students and their faculty mentors for the program, annually examining the progress of all students in the program, and approving the completion of the degree based on the certification made by the faculty mentor. Successful completion of an academic program approved by the committee must have: (a) a minimum of 120 credits to include at least 18 credits at the 400 or 500 level; (b) certification by the faculty mentor; (c) and approval of a thesis, or thesis equivalent, by the faculty mentor – and approval by the committee for graduation.
· Dual Credit (50% tuition reduction at all campuses except Univ Park) and Early College (limited number of highly qualified high school seniors – see more at .edu/academics/majors/requirements/options/index.cfm
The Vice President and Dean of Undergraduate Education oversees Registrar, Admissions, Student Aid, Support for Student Athletes, Office for Communication, Penn State Learning, ROTC, Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence, Undergraduate Research, Diversity, and:
· Division of Undergraduate Studies which handles FY Testing and academic advising - .edu/ including. an Advising Handbook (.edu/handbook/)
· LEAP (Learning Edge Academic Program) FY Living Learning Community cohort and peer mentor p.psu.edu
· iLEAP – for international students
· Summer Session, inc STEP student transitional experience program and high school student programs.edu/SummerSession/
· Schreyer Honors College olars.psu.edu
· Bachelor of Philsophy – independent study with faculty mentor and capstone project .edu/oue/bphil/
· Intercollege Majors and Minors .edu/oue/intercollege3.pdf
· Laboratory for Public Scholarship and Democracy licscholarship.psu.edu/
Purdue University +
The Vice Provost for Undergraduate Academic Affairs is one of 3 Vice Provosts (Faculty Affairs, and Diversity and Inclusion) who report to the Executive V-P for Academic Affairs and Provost. (due.edu/oir/PDF_files/Purdue_University_Organizational_Chart.pdf) This office handles such initiatives as:
· assistance with IU branch campuses regarding Evening College general studies degree completion programs
· USP - an advising program for exploratory students, Undergraduate Studies Program (USP), was modeled after a program at The Pennsylvania State University. In August 1996, 212 students started with USP. In 1999, the Purdue University Senate approved USP as a permanent program for entering freshmen students effective August 1999. In June 2001, the University Division of the Office of the Dean of Students was merged with USP, adding reentry, readmit, and change of degree objective continuing students to the population served by USP. due.edu/usp/ (note: 3 colleges also allow “undecided” majors)
· Student Access Transition and Success Programs, a division of the Office of the Provost - SATS programs include Summer Transition, Advising and Registration (STAR), Learning Communities, Orientation Programs (such as Boiler Gold Rush and Welcome Programs), Parent and Family Programs, the Purdue Opportunity Awards program, the Purdue Promise program (www.purdue.edu/sats/purduepromise), Support for Twenty-first Century Scholars at Purdue, and the West Central Indiana regional Twenty-first Century Scholars sites: 14 (due.edu/sats/scholars) 21st Century Scholar Support Sites. Scholars must have a combined family income of $40,000 or less. Once registered, they receive institutional and federal money to help meet full financial need. Purdue Promise students also participate in a comprehensive support success initiative.
· Science Bound - partnership among Purdue, the Indianapolis Public Schools and the Indianapolis business community - provides eligible middle and high school students an opportunity to earn a full tuition scholarship to Purdue to study an agriculture, engineering, science or technology-related career.
Rut gers University – New Brunswick *
See the 2007 Transformation of Undergraduate Education report (gers.edu/transform_ru) and the resulting Dashboard Indicators which demonstrate accountability, impact from those initiatives (gers.edu/dashboard.shtml). The Vice President for Undergraduate Education (gers.edu) oversees campus deans and also the Associate Vice Presidents for:
· Academic Engagement & Programming (inc multicultural engagement, new student programs, learning communities, academic programs,
o First Year Interest Group Seminars gers.edu
dashboard - gers.edu/dashboard_figs.shtml
o Byrne Seminars gers.edu for first year students; see dashboard gers.edu/dashboard_bs.shtml
o Summer Bridge to Success (5 week residential summer program = 6 credit hrs)
· Associate VP for Instructional Support (inc. Learning Centers, McNair, TRIO, Athletes Support Svcs)
· Associate VP for Undergraduate Academic Affairs (inc Research Ctr, FY Seminars, Career Svcs, fellowships, pre-law advising, scheduling & space management, study abroad, student conduct/judicial)
· Douglass Residential College (for women - has its own dean and own campus)
· University College Community (which has its own dean)
Texas A & M * +
See distribution of funding and accountability for SACS QEP “High Impact Learning,” Advising Support and “Aggies Commit”( u.edu/initiatives/strategic-planning-2010/Distribution%20of%20Reallocation%20Funds%20for%20FY12-083111.pdf). The Associate Provost for Undergraduate Studies oversees the Department of General Academic Program (with an Executive Director) which is handling about 10% of the total undergrad population, see more at u.edu/customers/oisp/reports/statistics-booklet-2011.pdf: The Associate Provost oversees:
· General Studies (up to 60 hrs then must identify a major)
· Blinn TEAM (Transfer Joint Admiss/Enrollment)
· Aggie Gateway to Success (Gateway) u.edu/gateway/ 6 week summer bridge with total of 7 credit hours after being provisionally admitted
· In FOCUS – Foundations of Continued Undergraduate Success – learning community for Regents’ Scholarship recipients (tho non-scholarship can apply to wait list) in selected programs – GAP, Liberal Arts, Ag/Life Sci/ Dept of Biology; inc optional LLC u.edu
· University Studies degree (u.edu/): 2007 – 08 was the first year they offered a University Studies Interdisciplinary degree program via the General Academic Programs office
o Students complete general education requirements and then chose one major area of concentration and two minor areas of concentration.
o The degree is located within the college where the major is declared; each student declaring a University Studies Degree submits a proposal to the University Studies Office that is housed in General Academic Programs. The proposal will then be reviewed and either approved or denied by the college that offers the concentration the student has selected.
o Students must be in good academic standing at TAMU and in good standing in the three areas they choose. Students must have no less than 30 and no more than 100 passed hours to be eligible to apply for US majors. Students must be enrolled as a University Studies major for at least two semesters before they may graduate.