NMU BOARD OF TRUSTEES – ACADEMIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

December 2011

ACADEMIC AFFAIRS ROAD MAP UPDATE

The Road Map to 2015 was introduced in March 2008. The Academic Affairs Division, with the leadership of the Provost and members of the Academic Cabinet and with contributions by outstanding faculty and staff, continues to move forward with many aspects of Road Map implementation. This December 2011 update, while not an exhaustive listing, provides highlights of progress made since the last report in July 2011.

Innovation

Priority: Integrate global engagement and diversity learning experiences throughout the academic curriculum.

  • Dr. Robert Legg, Department of Earth, Environmental, and Geographical Sciences (EEGS), delivered a Faculty Led Study Abroad trip to Scotland during the first two weeks of May 2011. The ten students explored the rugged Scottish highlands and learned about the active pelagic fishing industry, offshore oil production, and environmental protection in the Shetland Isles.
  • Dr. Susy Ziegler, Head of the Department of EEGS, drove four NMU students and a recent NMU graduate to Chicago for the West Lakes Meeting of the Association of American Geographers, hosted by DePaul University. The students presented an oral paper or a poster to other conference participants. The students’ research had developed from courses offered by the department and through internship experiences. In Chicago, the students networked with representatives from organizations such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and universities offering graduate degrees in fields related to geography, geology, environmental studies and science, and Geographic Information Science. Graduating senior Hillary Tahtinen was awarded second place in the poster competition for the research on earthquake prediction that she conducted while an intern in summer 2011 at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
  • Dr. Bill Ball in Political Science developed MOUs with Rajabhat University in Bangkok, Bangkok Thonburi University in Bangkok, and extended the MOU with STOU in Bangkok. These MOUs are extremely useful for our students as they help facilitate transportation and lodging for our students while they are in Thailand.
  • Two faculty members in the Department of Psychology have cultivated contacts in the international community that are leading to scholarly collaborationand potential student exchanges. Dr. Harry Whitaker traveled to Greece, with formal invited presentations at the Universities of Athens and Thessaloniki, resulting in joint publications with Greek scholars. Professor Paul Andronis traveled to Brazil and Greece, attending and presenting at international conferences. He taught undergraduate and graduate courses at the University of Brasilia (UnB), supervised graduate research in the psychobiology program, and had lengthy discussions with the Department Head and senior faculty about the possibility of having NMU students conduct research and attend classes in the behavior analysis program at Brasilia, and having students from Brasilia apply to the graduate program in experimental psychology at NMU.
  • The Center for Native American Studies produced a website entitled “Learning from the Earth” which showcases Great Lakes Anishinaabe ethnobotany through interview with elders and traditional knowledge holders. The project was made possible by the United States Forest Services and the Cedar Tree Institute.
  • The NMU Center for Native American Studies is leading an academic research movement exploring the relationship between people and Indigenous foods of the Great Lakes Region. This project is known as the “Decolonizing Diet Project.” The project was made possible by the United States Forest Services and the Cedar Tree Institute.
  • From May 3-19, Jon Barch and Rachel Harris from the Center for Student Enrichment led a group of 18 NMU students to India on a “Students Volunteer Abroad” trip. A trip requirement is that participating students need to be enrolled in Superior Edge. Students volunteered at an orphanage, day care center, and other locations where they taught children sports, computer usage, English, math, first aid and basic health care practices, arts and crafts, and in the process befriended them.
  • Dr. Randy Jensen, HPER, traveled with two undergraduate students to a meeting of the International Society of Biomechanics in Sports in Porto, Portugal. The students presented their original research and networked with international leaders in the field.
  • Technology and Occupational Sciences Department Hospitality Management program HM210 students operated the Chez Nous restaurant under the supervision of Yvonne Lee. Ms. Lee and the students researched and developed two menus based on regional American Southern cuisine and “soul food” and two additional menus focused on world cuisine specifically the Mediterranean and Indo-Javanese.
  • The Study Abroad Fair provided students the chance to explore study abroad opportunities, ask questions, and compare program options from NMU departments and partner organizations that offer study, work, internships and volunteer abroad experiences. Nearly 400 people attended this signature event for education abroad. The International Programs Office also coordinated with Peter White Public Library to incorporate Passport Day into the Study Abroad Fair. More than 30 students and community members applied for U.S. passports.
  • The International Programs Office developed a collaborative project with the South Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, to implement two South Korea Initiatives at NMU. One of the first 17 universities in the U.S. to offer EPIK (English Program in Korea ) and TaLK (Teach and Learn Korea) programs, NMU screens and recommends students for paid internships to teach in rural Korean public schools. Fifteen NMU students are currently in the application process.
  • The International Visiting Scholar Series continues to increase the potential for faculty research collaboration and broaden the minds of NMU students. This year, the International Programs Office has invited scholars from locations around the globe including Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Israel, and Peru. Speakers will discuss a diverse array of topics, from Agrobiodiversity in the Andes, to the impact of youth theatre in the Gaza Strip and other parts of Palestine

Priority: Realign policies and procedures to better support students and reward faculty and staff contributions to achieving university goals.

  • Section 2 of the Student Handbook was reviewed. Recommendations for revisions are being reviewed and will be sent to the President's Council.

Priority: Utilize corporate partners to increase internship opportunities for students.

  • In June 2011, Dr. Robert Legg, Department of Earth, Environmental, and Geographical Sciences, co-organized and hosted a second ESRI Upper Peninsula of Michigan User Group conference for people in the public and private sectors who use ESRI Geographic Information Systems products. This conference enabled NMU students to network with local employers, leading to internship and employment opportunities.
  • The Mathematics and Computer Science Department has strengthened its student intern presence at Intel with eight projected internships for the 2012 Winter Semester.
  • Students in the Behavior Analysis program in Psychology complete extensive practica every semester in a variety of for-profit human service settings around the Marquette community including the adult and child psychiatric units, the substance abuse unit, and the anxiety/depression unit at Marquette General Hospital, Teaching Family Homes of Marquette and Adult Learning Systems.
  • Professor Paul Andronis, Psychology, placed an undergraduate Behavior Analysis major, Ashley Cole, in a summer internship with the Wisconsin Young Autism Program (WYAP), a comprehensive treatment program, based on principles of applied behavior analysis, for children with autism. She completed the program’s intensive training, and helped deliver therapy both in the treatment center to which she was assigned, as well as in the homes of some of the children. Prof. Andronis is discussing with Dr. G. Sallow, the program’s director, a more formal placement system between WYAP and NMU’s Psychology Department in the near future.
  • The Online Loss Prevention Management Program recently secured the opportunity for students to apply for twelve available paid internships with Sears Holding Company Loss Prevention Department. Loss prevention representatives from Sears were on campus during the week of November 7, 2011 to interview potential interns. Additionally, Jill Roadman, the divisional vice president for loss prevention at Sears Holding, will be teaching a loss prevention course during the winter 2012 semester. This is the first female loss prevention instructor to teach in our program.

Priority: A growing portfolio of corporate collaborations that exploit NMU’s technical expertise, enhance academic programs and facilitate global engagement for students and faculty both on campus and abroad.

  • The Mathematics and Computer Science Department now runs a programming contest (for Northern students) with Intel.
  • Dr. Mounia Ziat,Psychology, is pursuing a research program involving propriety hardware and software (in collaboration with the manufacturer) to improve an automobile driving simulator by incorporating haptic stimuli (for the sense of touch) into the simulation of the driving experience. Her research involves NMU undergraduate psychology students serving as research assistants participating at all levels of the study.
  • Dr. Adam Prus, Psychology, is conducting psychopharmacological research with experimental proprietary drugs provided by pharmaceutical companies. The drugs are targeted for use with patients with schizophrenia, and Dr. Prus’s lab is conducting basic testing of some of the behavioral effect of these agents. Undergraduate and graduate students in psychology participate as research assistants in these studies, learning not only behavioral procedures, but also advanced pharmacological techniques often found in common use only in industrial and Tier I Research Universities’ laboratories.
  • Dr Paul Andronis, Psychology, has collaborated with a product development team at Headsprout, Inc. (an educational software company in Seattle, WA), to create an inexpensive, early music education program for young children. The product currently is in beta-testing, with a U.S. patent pending for some of the instructional technology developed specifically for this product (with Andronis as the first patent holder).

Priority: Consolidate and/or reduce the number of undergraduate majors and streamline baccalaureate programs to enhance quality and efficiency.

  • The Department of EEGS continues to mentor and advise its majors and minors to help increase the efficiency of students’ undergraduate programs and the quality of the learning experience. Faculty and staff of EEGS host an advising party each semester before registration opens for the next semester. More than 50 students attended the session in October 2011 to learn about curricular changes, upcoming courses, internship opportunities, student organizations, and strategies for minimizing the number of semesters it takes to complete a degree at NMU.
  • The Department of Psychology is in the process of suspending its two-year (Associates Degree) program in Applied Child Development (ACD) – since its inception, certification requirements for early childhood education have changed, and the two-year ACD program no longer meets those requirements; the courses involved constitute the same first two years’ courses in the Department’s four-year major in Early Child Development; moreover, several nearby junior colleges (e.g., Bay de Noc College in Escanaba and Gogebic Community College) offer two-year programs of their own in early child development, so NMU’s ACD program is essentially redundant.

Priority: Implement the Wildcat Innovation Fund to support innovative practices by faculty and staff that will help to achieve Road Map priorities.

  • With funding from the Wildcat Innovation Fund, the College of Business launched The Business Profession Program. The Program prepares business students for the highly competitive business

job market by exposing them to practical skills, such as networking and career preparation. This program is open to all Business majors.

Priority: Explore and act upon graduate programming (certificate, master’s, doctoral) in areas of strength, needs and opportunities.

  • Several faculty members from Psychology with formal backgrounds in neuroscience, have entered into discussions with interested Biology faculty regarding the creation of an interdisciplinary undergraduate major in neuroscience. NMU has both the faculty expertise and basic research facilities to mount an excellent program in this, one of the fastest growing areas in both the biological and the behavioral sciences.
  • Professors Greg Warchol and Bob Hanson, Criminal Justice, recently visited several universities in Kenya, where they fostered avenues for faculty exchanges and the possibility for Kenyan students to enroll in our department’s certificate and graduate programs. Online course completion is possible in Kenya, and there is extreme interest for Kenyans to receive American certificates and graduate degrees. Additionally, Dr. Kapla is part of a committee to explore the offering of graduate programs in criminal justice and public administration in South Africa.

Priority:Explore and act upon opportunities to expand programs in nursing and allied health to meet the growing demand for professionals in health care and related fields.

  • In coordination with the School of Nursing and U.S. Army Cadet Command, Cadet Student Nurses attending the U.S. Army’s Nurse Summer Training Program will receive approved credit hours from NMU. Cadet Nurses can now earn credit for spending 130 hours with a Certified Nurse Preceptor while caring for Soldiers at Army Medical Centers around the country. This opportunity assists future Army Nurses while also preserving limited clinical space for other deserving NMU nursing students.

Meaningful Lives

Priority:Create an infrastructure that integrates the Liberal Studies Program with the First Year experience and other support services that improve retention.

  • The Academic and Career Advisement Center continues to improve the Freshman Probation and College Transition Programs while utilizing courses within the Liberal Studies Program. In addition, this fall all CTP students are also enrolled in an academic support course – either Learning Skill Development (EN 101) or Personal Reading Improvement (EN 102). It is hoped that these students, purportedly the most at-risk academically, will gain skills to improve their academic success.

Priority: Create an enhanced infrastructure that will continually expand the availability and variety of new technological tools and services for NMU students, faculty and staff.

  • The implementation of the electronic Parent PLUS application through the BANNER software has allowed the Financial Aid Office to be more efficient in two ways. First, processing paper applications required manual data entry for over 800 applications last year (already exceeding 750 applications to date this year); the electronic process will eliminate data entry at the staff level and, instead, shift it to the parent as they complete the application online. Second, since the federal websites for both the Parent PLUS application and PLUS Master Promissory Note have now been combined to one website, this should streamline the process for parents, and ultimately funding the PLUS loans for students quicker.

Priority: Develop a “virtual” campus that provides reliable, convenient access to online courses and other essential student services.

  • In Winter 2012, EEGS adjunct instructor Cameron Fuess will pilot a hybrid offering of GC 225 Introduction to Maps. Students will watch the weekly lecture on their own time as a podcast through EduCat, and will meet for two hours per week in the laboratory for hands-on map-reading exercises.
  • On a yearly basis, the Music Department creates and utilizes a customized laptop image (beyond the usual NMU Image) that offers access through a key server to software such as Finale (for music notation), SmartMusic (for classical solo and jazz accompaniment), Band-in-a-Box (for jazz improvisation accompaniment and instruction), and Sonar (for audio editing).
  • Dr. James Suksi, Psychology is submitting a plan to place the Psychology Department’s entire graduate program in Training, Development, and Performance Improvement online, using the full range of instructional technology available at NMU. This would vastly increase enrollment by reaching remote populations, such as adult students in underserved rural areas and on military bases, who seek higher education but who cannot attend on-campus programs.
  • The NMU Center for Native American Studies provides the American Indian Education courses on-line for graduate students around the world. NAS 485 and NAS 486 are endorsed by the Tribal Education Departments National Assembly (TEDNA).

Priority: Establish articulation agreements with community colleges that effectively evaluate and improve the transferability of liberal studies and other courses and credits, and that will be attractive to transfer students.

  • The Department of Psychology’s Early Childhood Program is communicating with community colleges around the U.P. to ensure that students who complete two-year early childhood programs offered at those schools will have met the basic course requirements for the four-year program at NMU.
  • Student Services and Enrollment finalized an articulation agreement with Coast Community College District in California. The agreement establishes a transfer program for qualified Coast international students who are eligible to transfer to NMU.
  • The Engineering Technology Department completed an articulation agreement with Macomb Community College for students completing their Associate Degree in Electronic Engineering Technology to enter NMU’s Electronic Engineering Technology baccalaureate degree program.

Priority: Utilize the Center for Native American Studies, the Multicultural Education and Resource Center and the Office of International Programs to recruit, retain and grant degrees to students.