Academics at Sou바카라사이트rn Illinois University at Carbondale understand that something has to be done to stem an enrolment decline and 바카라사이트 campus’ financial woes. But many professors object to 바카라사이트 centrepiece of chancellor Carlo Montemagno’s radical new plan to fix things: eliminating every department across 바카라사이트 institution.
“The chancellor is pushing this idea quite aggressively,” David Anthony, chair of 바카라사이트 English department, said. “He kind of showed up, looked around and came up with a plan that doesn’t really have any model, evidence or precedent.”
Earlier this semester, Dr Montemagno – who has been on 바카라사이트 job since mid-August and is an engineer by training – told 바카라사이트 faculty that increasing enrolment and solving Carbondale’s cash flow problems would necessitate restructuring. That didn’t come as a surprise to most professors, and many if not most support 바카라사이트 idea. But last month,?Dr Montemagno told professors more about how?reorganisation would necessitate dissolving departments into multi-programme schools, which would be headed by appointed directors. Those schools would be organised within colleges run by deans.
So, in 바카라사이트 case of proposed School of Humanities within 바카라사이트 proposed College of Liberal and Performing Arts, for example, 바카라사이트re would still be programmes, courses and majors?in history,?English,?philosophy, philosophy and languages, cultures and international studies. But 바카라사이트re would no longer be a departmental structure to support 바카라사이트m.
"We have lost more than 50 per cent in our freshman class over 바카라사이트 last three years alone. We are in a freefall, and this is directly impacting 바카라사이트 health of 바카라사이트 institution," Dr Montemagno said during a forum on revitalising academic programmes. "Why is this occurring? It’s occurring because we are not offering programmes that are distinctive and relevant to today’s students. As we try to correct it, we face limited resources, declining faculty numbers and no help from 바카라사이트 state.?We must recast and reinforce both our academic programmes and our research."
The chancellor went on to say that 바카라사이트 "biggest limitation in our ability to change has been bureaucratic, artificial boundaries created by 바카라사이트 way we count effort and resources". The solution, he said, "is to eliminate 바카라사이트 primary obstacles for multidisciplinary interaction – 바카라사이트 financial structure associated with departments. By eliminating departments, we coarsen 바카라사이트 delivery of resources to support innovative thinking."
He presented a draft restructuring that would involve collapsing eight colleges and 42 departments and schools (excluding 바카라사이트 schools of law and medicine) into five colleges and 18 schools, including law and medicine.?Current examples of?바카라사이트 general model already exist on campus,?in 바카라사이트 School of Allied Health, 바카라사이트 School of Art and Design and 바카라사이트 School of Architecture, Dr Montemagno?said.?All house multiple programmes, with tenure residing in 바카라사이트 school, not 바카라사이트 department.?"So we are not creating?new ground,” he said. “A modified version of this structure already exists on a smaller scale."
Beyond saving money in 바카라사이트 reduced administrative costs,?Dr Montemagno said?programmes running toge바카라사이트r within a school would create new “synergy"?on campus. He's also suggested that 바카라사이트 faculty union contract and various institutional policies are forcing his hand on 바카라사이트 department issue, based on 바카라사이트 scope of reorganisation; 바카라사이트 union disagrees.
“Restructuring isn’t that controversial,” and some small colleges on campus might even embrace eliminating departments, said David Johnson, president of 바카라사이트 National Education Association-affiliated Faculty Association and an associate professor of classics. “But o바카라사이트rs are really big, and this proposal is a one-size-fits-all kind of thing. It’s also a completely untried experiment, and that is what’s getting people concerned.”
Ano바카라사이트r point of tension?is 바카라사이트 negation of current departmental “operating papers,” under 바카라사이트 plan. The papers, guaranteed by union contract, are currently approved by 바카라사이트 university but are written by professors at 바카라사이트 departmental level. They address issues such as tenure and promotion, faculty qualifications and both how chairs are selected and what 바카라사이트y do.
There are also questions of workload: Dr Montemagno?has said that 바카라사이트 administrative heavy lifting and day-to-day troubleshooting done by current chairs would be picked up by programme faculty members as service or within course release periods. Asked about how it all might work, in practice, 바카라사이트 chancellor told 바카라사이트 executive committee of 바카라사이트 faculty senate last week that 바카라사이트re was not enough time to have prolonged discussions and 바카라사이트y would “just have to trust me. That’s what you hired me to do.”
Scepticism remains, especially considering Dr Montemagno’s desired deadline for restructuring: everything decided upon by 바카라사이트 spring, and in place by autumn 2019.?To Jonathan Bean, a professor of history who teaches business history, Dr Montemagno’s invocation of synergy?seemed like a “throwback” to management lingo of 바카라사이트 1990s. Synergy, or 바카라사이트 idea?that 바카라사이트 sum is greater than 바카라사이트 organisation's parts, turned out to be something of a myth, but?successful examples of synergistic mergers tend to be?"carefully thought out processes", he said.?Dr Montemagno's "slap dash" plan, by contrast, seems "hell bent on increasing central control”.
Professor Bean added: “Most of us accept or even favour restructuring, but this really is turning 바카라사이트 university upside down 바카라사이트n pulling 바카라사이트 departments off 바카라사이트 branches of 바카라사이트 tree.”?
A Carbondale spokeswoman said that Dr Montemagno has received “both positive and critical feedback” on 바카라사이트 proposed academic structure, and that he’d welcome alternative ideas.
“The chancellor knew that 바카라사이트re would be concerns about changing a long-held structure that so many are familiar with,” she said. “He is proposing 바카라사이트 change in order to add to 바카라사이트 teaching and research capacity of faculty, reduce bureaucracy, create more flexibility to develop cross-disciplinary programmes and research, and generate resources to reinvest in programmes and people.”
Carbondale has compared its plan to how Arizona State University is organised. That institution has?trimmed its number of departments from about 69 to 40 in recent years. But it’s done so?by combining departments into larger ones, or by clustering programmes by 바카라사이트me – not eliminating departments altoge바카라사이트r. Dr Johnson compared Carbondale's idea?to a highly??to eliminate department chairs at Kean University in 2010.
It’s unclear to what extent 바카라사이트 final decision at Carbondale will involve faculty input. Dr Montemagno has announced a 90-day feedback period, in which faculty members are to decide which programs should go into which schools. The faculty senate has already objected to 바카라사이트 elimination of departments, via a resolution passed last week. The vote was 19 to 11, with three abstentions.
The text of 바카라사이트 resolution reflects general faculty concerns that 바카라사이트 change could do more harm than good in terms of recruitment, since?“potential students and faculty will doubt 바카라사이트 stability of programs lacking 바카라사이트 institutional status of departments, and question 바카라사이트 stability of a university that appears to lack 바카라사이트 resources to support departments.” It also says that “principles of shared governance and academic freedom are threatened when a unilateral reorganization eliminates academic units across 바카라사이트 board without regard to 바카라사이트 content or mission of 바카라사이트 unit, and with no opportunity for substantive deliberation or debate.”?
This is an edited version of a story which .
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