Academic Structure Task Force

Academic Structure Town Hall 

Click hereto watch the Sept. 21, 2023, Academic Structure Task Force Town Hall.

Dear ETSU Community,

Through the work of the Committee for 125 Chapter II, stakeholders from across campus have worked over the past few years to develop a bold and inspiring vision for the future of our university. This past fall, we set forth a course of action to help us achieve that vision. “Go Beyond: ETSU’s Strategic Plan through 2026” is both a roadmap and a challenge to take our work to the next level — to go beyond good to great.

One characteristic that has always made ETSU exceptional is our unwavering commitment to the mission of this institution: to improve the quality of life for people in our region and beyond. Since 1911, our campus has been deeply connected to the region, recognizing that the success of the institution and the success of the communities we serve are inextricably interwoven. As we seek to magnify our impact, we know that we must continue to build on our strengths and deepen our efforts to promote student success.

During our strategic visioning and planning processes, a recommendation emerged to better align the university’s operational and organizational structure with the strategic plan. This past fall, we began conversations with our college deans around how we might reorganize our colleges and academic programs to best serve our students now and into the next decade. Following this discussion with the deans, we have decided to move forward with campus-wide conversations regarding reorganization.

Today, we are launching a task force charged with developing a proposal to examine the academic structure of our colleges and ensure we continue to create clear and seamless pathways toward degree completion, provide holistic support for our students, and align with the goals in our strategic plan.

The following key questions will guide the task force:

• What college organizational structure would best serve our students to ensure they have a clear path from admission to graduation?
• How do we build on our existing strengths in teaching, research, and service by aligning academic units and expanding capacity?
• How do we avoid duplication or overlap in our offerings and reduce confusion for our students?
• How do we continue to build on our reputation as a premier health sciences institution in Tennessee and develop additional signature programs or areas of study?
• How will the organizational structure lead to greater flexibility and innovation as we continue to build on the institution’s core strengths and respond to the changing landscape across higher education?
• How will a reorganized structure ensure the university uses its resources strategically to meet its goals?
• How will the structure support the university’s vision and mission and facilitate achieving the goals in the current strategic plan?

We are pleased to announce that faculty members Dr. Nick Hagemeier and Dr. Virginia Foley have agreed to co-chair the task force. We would like to express our sincere appreciation for their leadership in this effort. Other task force members will include faculty, staff, administrators, and students. The task force will finalize its membership and officially begin work in March, with the expectation that they will provide a final proposal during the Fall 2023 semester. Throughout this process, we will work to ensure broad stakeholder input, transparency, and communication. In the coming weeks, we will post updates about the task force on the university’s strategic plan website at etsu.edu/strategy.

Sincerely,

The Academic Structure Task Force welcomes and encourages ideas and suggestions.  

Feel free to share your suggestions and ideas.

• Academic Structure Task Force (as of August 18, 2023)

  Virginia Foley, Co-Chair
  Professor, Faculty
  Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis
  Clemmer College
  
  
  

  Nick Hagemeier, Co-Chair
  Vice Provost of Research, Administration/Faculty
  Office Of The Vice Provost For Research
  

  Ron Roach
  Chair/Professor/Faculty
  Bluegrass, Old Time, and Roots Music
  College of Arts and Sciences
  
  
  

  Ginny Blackhart
  Professor/Faculty Senate/Faculty
  Psychology
  College of Arts and Sciences
  

  Alan Stevens
  Associate Professor and Chair
  Music
  College of Arts and Sciences
  
  
  

  Arpita Nandi
  Chair/Professor/Faculty
  Geosciences
  College of Arts and Sciences
  

  T.J. Jones
  Professor/Faculty
  Biology
  College of Arts and Sciences
  

  Daryl A. Carter
  Associate Dean/Professor/Faculty
  History
  College of Arts and Sciences

  Stephen Marshall
  Professor/Faculty/RC
  Media and Communication
  College of Arts and Sciences
  
  
  

  Dana Harrison
  Chair/Associate Professor/Faculty
  Management and Marketing
  College of Business and Technology
  
  
  
  

  Brian Bennett
  Chair/Associate Professor/Faculty
  Computing
  College of Business and Technology
  
  

  Dawn Rowe
  Quillen Chair Education/Professor/Faculty
  Education Foundations and Special Education
  Clemmer College
  
  

  Jeff Snodgrass
  Associate Dean/Professor/Faculty
  Rehabilitative Health Sciences
  College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences
  
  

  Ester Verhovsek Hughes
  Chair/Professor/Faculty
  Allied Health Sciences
  College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences
  

  David Atkins
  Dean/Faculty
  University Libraries
  
  

  Lisa Haddad
  Associate Dean/Assistant Professor/Faculty
  Nursing
  College of Nursing
  
  

  Steve Ellis
  Assistant Dean for Student Affairs
  
  Gatton College of Pharmacy
  

  Amal Khoury
  Chair/Professor/Faculty
  Health Services Management and Policy
  College of Public Health
  

  David Linville
  Associate Vice President for Clinical Affairs/Senior Associate Dean/Chief of Staff/Faculty
  Dean's Office/Medicine
  Quillen College of Medicine
  

  Megan Roberts
   Executive Director/Academic Advising/Staff
  Student Life and Enrollment
  

  Ronnie Gross
  Director of TRIO/Staff
  TRIO Programs
  Student Life and Enrollment
  
  

  Joy Fulkerson
  Director of Leadership and Civic Engagement/Staff Senate/Staff
  Leadership and Civic Engagement
  Student Life and Enrollment
  
  
  
  
  

  Nancy Dishner 
  Niswonger Foundation Director/Community Representative
  

  Jill LeRoy-Frazier
  Chair/Professor/Faculty
  Cross-Disciplinary Studies
  College of Graduate and Continuing Studies
  
  

  Brian Cross
  Assistant Vice Provost for Interprofessional Education/Administration/Faculty
  Office of the Provost
  

  Trent White
  SGA Representative/Student
  

• Academic Structure Task Force (ASTF) Timeline to Date (as of September 25, 2023)

  February 20 – Co-Chairs Dr. Virginia Foley and Dr. Nick Hagemeier meet with Provost Kimberly D. McCorkle and President Brian Noland.

  February 27 – Co-chairs meet with Provost and President to identify members of Task Force.

  March 6—Co-chairs attend Faculty Senate to answer questions.

  March 8—Co-Chairs begin planning work and determine they will meet weekly or every other week.

  March 10—ASTF holds kick-off meeting with Provost and President.

  March 31— First official ASTF meeting is held and will meet every other Friday from 9-10:30 a.m.

  April 4—Co-Chairs attend listening session with SGA.

  April 10—Co-Chairs attend listening session with Staff Senate.

  April 12—Co-Chairs attend Zoom consultation with EAB.

  April 14—At ASTF meeting, Dr. Chris Keller presents an overview of Honors College visioning. Dr. Megan Roberts presents information about advising.

  April 19—Provost, President, and Co-Chairs host Town Hall Listening Session.

  April 28—At ASTF meeting, groups discuss approaches to creating individual structures and begin conversations about rubric development.

  May 9—Co-Chair/EAB conversation

  May 12—At ASTF meeting, task force participates in rubric development work.

  May 16 – Dr. David Atkins was identified as Chair of ASTF subgroup charged with exploring academic structure literature and experiences of other institutions that have undergone restructuring.  Dr. Dana Harrison and Stephen Marshall volunteer for subgroup.

  May 22—Co-Chairs begin College Leadership listening sessions.

  • May 22: Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy
  • May 23: Clemmer College of Education and Human Development
  • May 24: College of Public Health
  • May 24: College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences
  • June 9: College of Business and Technology
  • June 12: College of Nursing
  • June 21 College of Medicine
  • June 23 College of Graduate and Continuing Studies
  • July 10 College of Arts and Sciences

   

  
  May 26 – At ASTF meeting, Dr. Joe Chappell provides data presentation to task force.

  June 9 – At ASTF Meeting, a draft rubric is presented and feedback is elicited.

  June 23 - At ASTF Meeting, Task Force endorses rubric for assessing proposed models

  July 19 - Co-Chair/EAB conversation

  July 21 - At ASTF Meeting, Co-Chairs present summary findings from meetings with college leadership 

  July 24 - Co-Chairs met with Council of Chairs Executive Committee

  July 27 - Co-Chairs met with ETSU Admissions Staff

  August 18 - At ASTF Meeting, Dean Atkin’s Subcommittee presented findings from other universities who have completed restructuring.  Co-Chairs organized subgroups to begin creating proposed models

  August 28 - Co-chairs update the President and Provost

  
  September 1

  • Task Force Meeting, Teams working on models
  • Co-chairs met with Chairs
  • Co-chairs met with SLE leadership team

  September 5

  • Co-chairs met with Dean
  • Co-chairs met with Chairs

  September 7

  • Co-chairs met with Chairs
  • Co-chairs met with Alumni and Advancement

  September 8

  • Co-chairs met with Chairs
  • Co-chairs met with Literature and Language Council

  September 13 - Co-chairs met with Academic Advisement Leadership Team

  September 14 - Co-chairs met with Provost Office (minus Provost)

  September 15 - Task Force meeting - David Attis zoom

  September 18

  • Co-chairs met with SARM 
  • Co-chairs met with Chairs

  September 19 - Co-chairs met with Dean

  September 20

  • Co-chairs met with Gen Ed Redesign Chairs
  • Co-chairs met with Chairs

  September 21

  • Town Hall
  • Co-chairs met with faculty member

  September 25 - Co-chairs met with Associate Dean

• Past Academic Structure Task Force Town Halls

  Wednesday, April 19, 2023 meeting