Program Review and Redirection Task Force Recommendations:
Educational Administration and Policy Studies
The Review and Redirection Task Force recommends that the Educational Administration and Policy Studies department be abolished.
The Task Force does recommend preservation, in some form, of the programs in College Student Personnel, K-12 leadership, and the programs in higher education administration. The reorganization required to accomplish these goals can and should be accomplished within the constraints of existing resources. Some specific suggestions for this reorganization are provided, along with these general conclusions and recommendations:
GENERAL CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
- Tenured and tenure-track faculty in Educational Administration and Policy Studies will be transferred to other units, subject to their willingness to move, and subject to faculty approval in the receiving unit. Remaining in the existing unit will not be an option.
- Faculty of EdAdmin and Policy Studies, as well as faculty of other units in the College and University, with the guidance and agreement of College of CEHHS leadership, should be fully engaged in reorganization plans. The outcome should be one in which all faculty have the opportunity to contribute fully to the programs that they join.
- The RRTF appreciates the work done by the EdAmin and Policy Studies faculty to develop a strategic plan and understands the reasons given for abandoning the EdD in favor of a research-focused PhD. However, in light of the unique opportunity for career enrichment and advancement offered by the EdD, we suggest that this recommendation be given very careful consideration.
- A mid- to long-range plan for personnel replacement should be developed so that retirements and other departures do not undermine the strengthened programs that can be developed. This plan should make specific recommendations for faculty deployment in support of the programs that will emerge from reorganization.
SPECIFIC SUGGESTIONS
- The Program in K-12 leadership could be moved to the Department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education where an M.S. and EdD and/or PhD could be offered as a leadership concentration (track). This would have the advantage of melding leadership and teacher training so that a unified ladder of advancement is recognized.
- The M.S. in College Student Personnel could be reconstituted as an interdisciplinary program, composed of courses from various units in CEHHS and elsewhere in the University, as well as the practicum courses that are the apprenticeship heart of the program. A standing committee made up of university faculty (drawn from CEHHS and the university at large), student affairs administrators, and other university personnel would provide administrative oversight of the program.
- The M.S., EdD and/or PhD programs in Higher Education Administration could also be reconstituted as interdisciplinary degree programs. In these programs courses from other units within the College and from departments outside the college should be used to provide breadth of training in areas relevant to administration of higher education. As with the CSP program, a standing committee made up of faculty and administrators would provide administrative oversight of the program.
- A merger of policy studies with the Institute for Assessment and Evaluation could be considered, thereby broadening the mission of that Institute but also possibly providing a home for other sponsored programs. Given the emphasis on accountability, this would seem a productive merger and one that could serve as an umbrella organization to provide support for policy studies.
If implemented, the interdisciplinary programs mentioned above could either reside in the College or in the home department of faculty members primarily charged with managing the degree program.
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