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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 9, 1982)
age 2 1982 local - Battalion/Page 3 March 9, 1982 Vepartment first phase for AScM self-study Steering committee sets review guidelines Is topics. »theui| atioiu he qu: defini real dingfi s. •nt: vl ped a how ll le foui| • equ; 1 will ce busil p/tor’s note: This is the second 'a four-part series on Texas kM’s self-study program. by Sandra Kay Gary Battalion Staff n an effort to keep up its utation as a high quality edu- ional institution, Texas A&M iveristy must undergo a self- Bidy every 10 years. This self- lidy is required by the South- I n Association of Colleges and Ihools, which is responsible for l arding accreditation to the I liversity. I One of the first phases of the U liversity self-study begins at le department level. I “Each department within the I liversity, and there are about I at A&M ... must conduct a lidy of itself with regard to ... Idi of the major aspects, which Be accrediting body says make II an academic program,” said RJ.Q. Adams, coordinator of Be University’s self-study pi ogram. BThe Southern Association provides the University with ini tial information to direct its self- st idies. B But, Dr. R. William Barzak, et itor of the self-study said: “When we looked through this (information) 10 years ago ... (it) had less than a page of sugges tions for a departmental study. And it was so skimpy and so in- ■equate for an institution the complexity and the size of A&M that the steering committee ... starting from those suggestions developed its own local guide lines.” The steering committee that conducts the self-study at Texas A&M developed a list of guide lines for the departments to use as a starting point for their indi vidual studies. The list, Barzak said, includes 397 questions that are designed to give the depart ment committees an idea of what they should look for when doing research. The questions are based on 12 major aspects or standards, which the studies at all three levels must address. These stan dards consist of: purpose, orga nization and administration, educational program, financial resources, faculty, library, stu dent development services, phy sical plant, special activities, gra duate program, research and computer services. “(The guidelines) are orga nized under the same 12 stan dards ... so there is a mirror or a parallel division, shaping and outline for the University, the college and the department,” Barzak said. “The departments, however they’re organized ... take these guidelines, and in effect, they’re on their own to organize and to respond. “I think most departments ... organized into ... an appropriate number of committees ... and wrote up their reports. Some of them just answered the ques tions, but we found in most cases ... the person in charge of (each committee) wanted to see what his committee counterpart did 10 years ago, and many of them are using that as a guide. “We hope they are not slavish ly imitating, just sticking to (the old self-studies). They should be free to add to or multiply and divide. Hopefully they’re using the last 10 years’ study as a mod el, as a suggestion or at least as a starting point ... and then they’re looking at the current status (of the department).” Most department studies show their financing is inadequ ate, their operating expenses are low and they’re understaffed, he said. Adams said: “Of course the reason every department finds that is because it’s uniformly true. Department operating funds are the first place you lose the battle of the budget in a time of inflation. “In its report a department may say that we’ve been losing the battle of class sizes ... our class sizes get bigger and bigger and bigger, and we need more “The departments, however they’re orga nized ... take these guil- delines, and in effect, they’re on their own to organize and to re spond. ” — R. William Barzak, editor of the self-study. staff. Or they may say though we didn’t realize it ’til we studied it, we are shy of ‘X’ equipment ... and in technical and scientific departments that may be a great need.” Barzak said: “The depart ment reports ... are under the most immediate supervision of the college.” Each of the 10 colleges in the University have a coordinator and an editor who are responsi ble for keeping track of depart ment reports within their col lege and for generating their own college report. The college reports address the same mat ters the departments did on a wider scale and submit a draft to the steering committee. The steering committee doesn’t really concern itself with the reports until they reach the college level, Barzak said. He said: “The steering com mittee will ... exercise its judg ment on the draf ts of the college report and send it back with sug gestions or additions or changes or whatever, if necessary.” Adams said: “On the college level ... (reports) may say that because of our close examina tion of what’s going on at the department level and feeling the pu Ise of the students, the facul ty, the staff and so on ... we need a whole new degree program to meet .... a need. “Ten years ago, there was no College of Liberal Arts and in the Department of Political Sci ence, there was no Master of Public Administration. (From the self-study) it was obvious that there was a need for such things because there was a de mand. And there’s a program which is enoumously popular. “A college may also discover that its physical plan is inadequ ate ... it doesn’t have enough offices ... rooms to teach in ... laboratories. Or it may discover that it’s been doing something wrong Once the colleges have con ducted their studies, evaluated the research and submitted it to the steering committee, a self- study on the University-wide level begins. ouncil authorizes machine or Cepheid Variable buttons h heJ olveli iculai thinl ad mi nesidj >rd. Al lie carl 3 -z by Johna Jo Maurer Battalion Staff Ifhe MSC Council approved a dget revision Monday for the pheid Variable Committee it authorizes the purchase of a 00 button-making machine to used for publicity purposes. Currently, the Print and Ipy Center has a $750 button- iking machine that the va- kis MSC committees use for blicity and promotion pur ses. The need for another ichineand its cost justification is questioned by Paul Fisher, luncil vice president of de- lopment. heid Variable has in- ased revenue from ticket saes in the past year and there- e can justify the $200 cost of machine, said Kirk Kelley, ncil vice president for stu nt development. This committee plans to use machine for profit-making rposes, such as selling buttons Aggiecon, an annual three- y science fiction convention Kid in the spring. Bwith the MSC Annual wards Banquet coming up April 3, the Awards System Study Committee presented proposals for two new awards which the council approved. The Harold W. Gaines Out standing Service Award will rec ognize the student on the MSC Council and Directorate who has excelled in one area of the MSC organization. A First Year Involvement Outstanding Service Award will be given to a student who has served one year in the MSC organization and has shown ex ceptional motivation and in volvement. Newly appointed council officers will begin their terms at the awards banquet. The council also approved nominations of 16 committee chairmen and seven council pro jects chairmen, completing a continuing nomination and appointment schedule begun at the start of spring semester. Newly appointed MSC com mittee chairmen are: Becky Laird, Aggie Cinema; Mark Bel cher, Amateur Radio; Todd Stansbury, Arts; Todd Bonin, Basement; Kelsel Thompson, Black Awareness; Deborah Molina, CAMAC; Angela Par- tain, Cepheid Variable; David Franz, Great Issues; Beth Ann Hendrix, Hospitality; Michael Dewey, OPAS; Morris Salge, Outdoor Recreation; David Hamilton, Political Forum; Steve Daniels, Recreation; Mike Carson, SCONA; Darryl Heath, Town Hall; John Visser, Travel. M-F 9:00-5:30 SAT 9:00-5:00 I’arkmg behind 41 5 Uni.crsit\ 846-5816 a n i. * a' ,4 6 I "8: 70% OFF ALL N.Y. STOCK 5 Days Only! 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