Regents' Administrative Committee on Academic Affairs
Summer 2005 MINUTES/CONCLUSIONS
July 17 - 19, 2005
St. Simons Island, Georgia
The Administrative Committee on Academic Affairs held part of its fall business meeting jointly with the Administrative Committee on Student Affairs during the afternoon of July 18 and later as one group on Tuesday morning, July 19. Dr. Michael Stoy, Chair and Vice President for Academic & of Faculty, called the meeting to order. The joint meeting consisted of the Senior Vice Chancellor's report part I.
- Senior Vice Chancellor's Report Part I
- Creation of Peer Institutions
Dr. Daniel S. Papp, Sr. Vice Chancellor for Academics and Fiscal Affairs stated that over the course of the next several months, each university and college will be asked to develop a list of peer institutions. Several questions complicate the development of such a list. The first question is whether the list should consist of "aspirational peers" or "present competitor peers." The second issue concerns the standard measures of comparison for establishing a peer list. The third question involves the number of institutions that should be on the peer list. Dr. Papp explained that the system office does not have the answers to these questions and/or issues, but will provide USG institutions with additional information to help everyone formulate answers. Dr. Papp further explained that the audiences with which vetting would occur on this matter have not been identified. In the meantime, the topic of peer institutions was discussed as simply a "heads -up." Dr. Papp explained that no further action should be taken at this time. - Accountability Indicators
Dr. Papp explained that the Office of Planning and the Budget, in conjunction with the Governor, is emphasizing the development of accountability indicators. Accountability indicators have been used in the annual evaluation of presidents for the last couple of years. Dr. Papp stated that taking these two realities together, the chances are strong that the university system will be required to develop specific accountability indicators for USG institutions over the course of the next year. The system office plans to develop and use a limited number of accountability measures that are at the macro-level such as retention rates, graduation rates, percentage of graduates passing mandated professional certifications, and for research universities, dollars generated in external funding. Dr. Papp emphasized that a strong possibility exists that the research indicators will be linked to funding; however, at this point, the system office is uncertain as to whether such a linkage will result in add-on funding versus formula funding. Additional information will be made available on this topic over time. - Textbook Costs Policy Update
Dr. Papp explained that during spring semester 2005, four regional textbook forums were held around the state at the following institutions: Georgia State University, the University of Georgia, Georgia Southern University, and Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. Representatives from book publishers, students, faculty, and bookstores made presentations at all of the forums. As a result of these forums, and because of student, public, and legislative interest in the rapidly rising price of books, the Board of Regents at its May 2005 Board meeting passed a new policy regarding textbook prices. It can be found in the Policy Manual, Section 310 (Academic Textbooks). In keeping with the Board's policy, additional details will soon be developed and approved by the Chancellor and posted in the Academic Affairs Handbook. - Data Warehouse Update and Implementation of SSN to Generic ID
Mr. John Graham, Executive Director of Enterprise Applications Systems, discussed implementation of changing SSN identifiers to generic IDs system-wide and provided an update on the progress of the data warehouse.
Implementation of SSN to Generic ID
Mr. Graham explained that the implementation of generic ID information will impact USG students, faculty and staff. According to Mr. Graham, Chancellor Meredith has issued an executive directive that institutions formulate policy and otherwise take steps to protect social security numbers by limiting their use to business processes in which they are required. Among steps to be taken is to discontinue the use of social security numbers as the primary student identifier or student ID. Mr. Graham indicated that no specific timetable had been established, but several institutions have begun this activity and some have finished. Mr. Graham stated that Chancellor Meredith had charged Vice Chancellor Thursby with the responsibility of coordinating this activity. Each institution was required to submit a plan to Vice Chancellor Thursby's office for administrative review before undertaking this activity. Details associated with implementing a generic ID system that have been encountered at several institutions include changing non-technical, traditional habits with respect to the use of social security numbers.
Data Warehouse Update
Mr. Graham provided a brief history of the data warehouse initiative and explained that this special funding initiative began in fiscal 2001 with a funding request of approximately $7M that was later funded at the $1M level. The budget has steadily declined to approximately $500,000 for the initiative. The data warehouse was intended to transform USG system collective capability in support of planning, assessment and accountability. The end product would put comprehensive, relevant and timely information into the hands of system leaders, institutional leaders, and other internal and external stakeholders.
Mr. Graham explained that progress on this initiative has been limited by the USG's ability to finance the effort, but progress has been made in spite of scarce resources. The initial scope of the project included financial and human resources information inclusive of faculty, curriculum, students and facilities. The financials mart was placed into production in 2002. Human resources followed the production schedule with implementation occurring in 2005. Initial curriculum and student information will be in production by spring 2006. Facilities modules are under development. A weekly status report and release scheduled on the status of the data mart, status of campus submissions, status of helpdesk inquiries, and other issues is shared with several vice chancellors and stakeholders in the system office. Mr. Graham mentioned several key points with regard to data warehouse milestones achieved to date and future plans:- Beginning summer 2005 the data warehouse will be the system of record on SAT scores in support of that new policy. The CIR and SIRS deadlines are July 20th. Mr. Graham mentioned that the USG legacy reporting system is competing for scarce resources.
- Mr. Graham highlighted the fact that a presentation would soon be made to the National Association of System Heads (NASH) on USG assessment capabilities for teacher education programs provided within the warehouse. This mart will be migrated to production on August 12.
- Outstanding issues that require follow-up include:
- The warehouse as the system of record for SAT reporting according to recent policy.
- Continuous improvement of the data submission process. Mr. Graham explained that OIIT's goal is for this to become a "backroom" process presenting only error feedback to the user. In order to make the data warehouse more valuable and more useful to institutions and the System Office, Mr. Graham stated that the system needs information that is more comprehensive and better integrated.
- CSSE and NSSE Student Engagement Survey Updates
Dr. Cathie Hudson explained that institutions will receive data from the Spring 2005 administration of NSSE and CCSSE in August, but a final date has not been determined. Dr. Hudson stated that it will take several months to build files for analysis, link to existing student data files, and to analyze the resulting data. A workshop is planned for institutional NSSE and CCSSE administrators on September 9th in Macon.
The reports will be embargoed until the Board receives the information. Dr. Hudson explained that it was important that the results not be released by the institutions until the Chancellor has lifted the embargo. Dr. Hudson further noted that that NSSE/CCSSE data would be extremely useful in better understanding the dynamics of retention, progression, and graduation rates at each institution. - Gacollege411 Update
Ms. Tonya Lam explained that Gacollege411 would be relaunched in September 2005 with more information about careers and college planning as well as enhanced functionality including on-line applications. USG institutions will share a common element database which will make it easy for students to move from the "recruit me stage" to applying to college without having to re-enter common information such as name, address, telephone number, etc. In the section on Colleges, the comparative tool has been modified so that instead of seeing "cost of attendance" for which there is not a standard definition, the field has been divided into two categories, tuition and fees and room and board, thus giving students a clearer picture of costs at each institution. Attendees were encouraged to set up their own MY411 account and navigate through each section, paying particular attention to their specific institution's information. Campuses are encouraged to put photos and videos on the site using the system's back end control center. Any questions concerning the Gacollege411website should be directed to Tonya Lam at tonya.lam@usg.edu.The minutes of the spring meeting held April 28, 2005 were approved as distributed.
- Creation of Peer Institutions
- Senior Vice Chancellor's Report Part II
- Higher Education Reauthorization Act Issues
Dr. Papp explained that finalization of the Higher Education Reauthorization Act would be addressed in the fall. Revisions include such emphasis areas as graduation rates, financial aid, and textbooks. At this point, the system office and other higher education systems await finalization of this matter. - Funding Formula
Dr. Papp explained that preliminary discussions are underway between Chancellor Meredith and the Office of Planning and Budget concerning the USG funding formula. Areas of discussion include the distribution of the funding formula, accountability indicators, the cost of programs, performance factors tied to special funding initiatives, and system-wide performance targets. Information concerning the complexity of the Board of Regents and the diversity of institutions will be shared with the Office of Planning and Budget as the funding formula is analyzed in more detail. Future steps that are under discussion in the system office include the development of a task force in January to determine system-wide indicators and to revisit the Pappas Study as additional meetings take place on this subject. - AP Status
Dr. Dorothy Zinsmeister explained that data points are currently being collected on AP status at each system institution in an effort to more narrowly define AP credit. Information concerning the status of AP credit has been distributed to the academic advisory committees. Each committee was asked to provide suggestions concerning the range of creditable scores. Further discussion is needed in order to reach a consensus on credit. The committees vary in their assessment of what constitutes a high score for advanced placement as do individual institutions. Such action may result in a difference in transfer practices between and among institutions. Additional details on AP status will be provided during the fall meeting. - ACCEL
Ms. Tonya Lam explained that no further updates have been made to the ACCEL program. Ms. Lam recapitulated the current program that allows high school students to take college courses and its evolution from the postsecondary options program. Ms. Lam encouraged the Chief Academic Officers to review the Georgia Student Finance Commissions' website to confirm the list of HOPE eligible courses and to call her if anyone had further questions. - PRISM
Drs. Frank Butler and Sara Connor provided a brief summary of PRISM activities to date in the University System. They explained that the USG applied for and received a $35M grant for the initiative. Partners in the grant include state P-16 teams, the Georgia Department of Education, CEISMIC, the University of Georgia, Georgia Perimeter College, Georgia State University, Georgia Southern University, Armstrong Atlantic State University, and fifteen school districts. The PRISM initiative consists of ten strategies. Strategy #10, the Faculty Rewards system, is co-chaired by Drs. Butler and Connor. The Faculty Rewards System is a strategy to develop a rewards structure for the active participation of faculty in K-12 activities that are germane to the objectives of the grant. Drs. Butler and Connor indicated that the committee for Strategy #10 will be discussing and developing a pilot implementation framework that provides faculty rewards for K-12 activities that can be incorporated in the Regents' Principles, evaluation processes, and post-tenure review policies. - Celebration of Constitution Day
Dr. Papp explained that all institutions that receive federal funding must engage in an activity that focuses on Constitution Day (e.g., teaching, seminars, symposia, etc.). Dr. Frank Butler can provide a synopsis of how each institution has planned to celebrate Constitution Day. Directors of Student Life and Student Affairs have been provided requisite information to engage in celebratory activities. Additional information can be found on the NASPAA website. - Other
CSRDE Dr. Hudson explained that for the past six years, the University System of Georgia has participated as a System in the Consortium for Students Retention Data Exchange, hosted by the Center for Institutional Data Exchange and Analysis at the University of Oklahoma. In the past, CSRDE has collected aggregate data from four-year colleges and universities on retention and graduation, and it serves as the major source of national data for benchmarking in these areas. In the last three years, IPEDS has begun collecting graduation rates for four-year institutions; however, there has been no similar source of data for two-year colleges. CSRDE is piloting a collection of aggregate data from two-year institutions, and Senior Vice Chancellor Daniel Papp has authorized funding for participation in the project by the System for the two-year colleges. The USG will provide data for the institutions from SIRS such that there will be no additional work for the institutions. This project will be supported by SRA's Dr. Anoush Pisani.
On-line Pilot Regents' Test
Mr. Leslie Caldwell briefly discussed the summer implementation of an on-line pilot of the Regents' Test. In Mr. Caldwell's summary he indicated that the following issues were present with the administration of the test within UGA's Department of English: funding, essay administration, and accountability. Currently the limited pilot has been tested at seven institutions.
EPAAC, Teacher Preparation, Etc.
Dr. Jan Kettlewell explained that EPAAC met during April 2005 to discuss Area F courses. The committee is examining courses for potential action during the fall 2005 or spring 2006 meetings. In addition, Dr. Kettlewell announced that follow-up conferences were under development with regard to teacher preparation courses based on the new Georgia Performance Standards, and faculty performance assessments in a standards-based environment. Dr. Kettlewell further informed the chief academic officers that the "Double the Numbers, Double the Diversity" initiative was progressing according to its projected timetable. At least 15 of the 17 institutions that prepare teachers are involved in the new certification area, birth to five years of age. A faculty committee is reviewing changes in the Regents' Principles for the Preparation of Educational Leaders. This review and assessment is being conducted in partnership with institutions that offer leadership programs with funding from the U.S. Department of Education.
Senior Administrator's Seminar Abroad
Dr. Richard Sutton discussed a proposed Senior Administrators' Seminar Abroad. Dr. Sutton asked that any interested senior administrators contact him about a seminar that is under development for a trip to London, Brussels, and Belgium. A straw poll was taken and Dr. Sutton explained that additional details would be forthcoming. The trip will take place after the July 4th holiday.
2005 - 2006 Executive Committee
Dr. Michael Stoy informed the chief academic officers that Dr. Barry Goldstein would serve as Chair of the Executive Committee for the 2005 - 2006 academic year. The chair-elect position will be held by Dr. Cathy Rozmus of Georgia Southwestern State University. Dr. Goldstein made closing remarks and indicated that an executive committee would be constituted before the fall 2005 meeting
- Higher Education Reauthorization Act Issues
- Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at approximately 11:00 a.m. on July 19.