AA/PPS 01.02.01 - Academic Administrative Units

POLICY STATEMENTS

1. The Division of Academic Affairs at Texas State University is organized administratively into colleges, schools, departments, and programs. This policy and procedures statement defines the scope of each academic administrative unit and provides guidance for the preparation of proposals for new units and for changing or deleting existing units.

   An academic administrative unit is defined as “a department, college, school, or other unit at a university or health-related institution, which has administrative authority over degree or certificate programs” (Texas Administrative Code, Title 19, Part 1, Chapter 5, Subchapter C, Rule 5.43.)

2. When considering the addition, change, or deletion of an administrative unit, the college dean should first consult the provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs for informal discussion and to ensure consideration of the proposed addition, change, or deletion in the appropriate strategic plans. Chairs, directors, and deans should also consult with faculty in the unit and in other related programs.

3. This policy conforms to the rules, regulations, and policies of The Texas State University System (TSUS) Board of Regents and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB).

EXPECTATIONS

1. As a major unit of the university, each college is expected to establish a significant agenda for teaching, scholarship, and service, supportive of the university’s and the division’s strategic plan. The senior executive leader of the college holds the title of dean. Each college is organized into various schools, departments, and programs.

2. Each college is expected to perform several specific functions that include but are not limited to the following:

   1. significant leadership in promoting rigorous tenure and promotion standards within the college, including development and implementation of a faculty evaluation process that documents teaching excellence, scholarly and creative activity, and professional service within the college and that uses the results of these evaluations for the effective professional development of college’s faculty;

   2. significant leadership of the college’s use of advanced instructional technology to maximize student learning outcomes;

   3. significant leadership of the college’s assessment of ongoing activities and of new initiatives;

   4. significant leadership in pursuit of all of the university’s goals and initiatives on the university’s strategic plan;

   5. significant leadership in pursuit of the university’s service to all students seeking to complete degrees and certificates at Texas State;

   6. significant leadership of university grant and contract activities within the college, including pursuit of grant and contract goals developed in cooperation with the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs; and

   7. active participation in monitoring degree and certificate programs and certifying degree candidates.

3. The senior executive leader of a school holds the title of director. For designation as a school several of the characteristics listed below are normally present:

   1. The current and anticipated future size of a school should be appropriate to the discipline.

   2. The number and complexity of programs offered within a school should warrant special recognition.

   3. The external evidence should clearly establish that a school has a distinguished reputation for its quality.

   4. A school should be able to establish that the outcomes it has identified in its strategic plan are closely related to those of the university as a whole.

   5. A school should be able to establish that the outcomes it has identified in its strategic plan are closely related to or contingent upon designation as a school.

   6. A school should be able to demonstrate that designation as a school is frequent among units of similar size and scope within the discipline.

   7. A school should demonstrate significant expansion of grant and contract activities including pursuit of grant and contract goals developed in cooperation with the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.

   8. A school should demonstrate development and implementation of standards for tenure and promotion, including development and implementation of a faculty evaluation process that documents teaching excellence, scholarly and creative activity, and professional service within the school and that uses the results of these evaluations for the effective professional development of school faculty.

4. In most cases, designation as a school does not imply that the unit is on its way to becoming a free-standing college. However, in some cases, the change in designation may imply that the unit is beginning a transition to being a free-standing college. Any proposal for a change from a department to a school should clearly indicate whether this change is perceived at this time to be one step in the process of becoming a free-standing college or not.

5. * The senior executive leader of a department holds the title of chair. Each department is responsible for many activities, including those in the areas listed below:

   1. recruiting and retaining a distinguished faculty, including tenure and promotion, as well as developing and implementing a faculty evaluation process that documents teaching excellence, scholarly and creative activity, and professional service, using the results of these evaluations for effective professional development of faculty;

   2. conducting successful scholarly research, including research supported by external grants and contracts in pursuit of goals developed in cooperation with the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs; and

   3. conducting successful activities in support of the university’s goal of creating a more dynamic campus community.

6. In some cases, degree and certificate programs are determined to be units without departmental status, as defined by the THECB guidelines for critical mass of faculty and students. The senior executive leader of administrative programs holds the title of program chair. Administrative programs are responsible for the same activities as departments.

7. Under guidelines of the THECB, proposals to create a new unit or to modify an existing unit are categorized as “administrative changes.” Administrative change proposals are prepared according to the THECB format in the Administrative Change Request form.

PROCEDURES FOR PROPOSAL ROUTING

1. Administrative change proposals may be submitted for review and recommendation by any of the following: faculty, chair or director, dean, or other segments of the university. Generally, administrative change proposals are submitted for a fall effective date.

2. The approval process normally takes one year, including approximately six months for on-campus approvals and six months for off-campus approvals. Because administrative change proposals are typically effective in a fall semester, proper planning should include the necessary approval and implementation procedures as indicated in Section 03.09.

3. After consultation with faculty, the program chair, department chair, or school director will submit administrative change proposals to their college dean for review by the college council.

4. The originating dean will submit proposals to the director of Curriculum Services. The director will review the proposal for compliance with applicable rules and regulations and then forward to the associate vice president for Academic Affairs and the provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs for preliminary review. If the provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs denies a proposal, the originating college dean and the provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs will discuss the request and decide the next steps.

5. With provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs’ approval, the director will submit proposals for final review by the Academic Affairs Council, and in cases where the administrative change proposal is accompanied with curriculum change proposals, the director will submit for final review by the university curriculum committee, the Faculty Senate, and the Academic Affairs Council.

6. Upon approval of the president, the director will prepare an executive summary of the proposal for submission to The TSUS Board of Regents.

7. Upon approval from the TSUS Board of Regents, the director will submit the proposal to the THECB via the online proposal system.

8. Throughout the process, the director will work with appropriate college deans to verify format and content of the proposal along with any necessary changes.

9. After approval of the administrative change proposal, the director will work with designated university staff to update database systems that will be associated with the request for an administrative change, such as to assign new administrative unit codes, changes of course prefixes, major, minor, certificate codes, and related matters.

10. In the event that a proposal receives a negative vote or is denied at any level, the proposal will be returned to the faculty and program chair, department chair, school director for review and possible revision.

REVIEWERS OF THIS PPS

1. Reviewer of this PPS includes the following:

   Position	Date
   Director, Curriculum Services	March 1 E5Y

CERTIFICATION STATEMENT

This PPS has been approved by the following individuals in their official capacities and represents Texas State Academic Affairs policy and procedure from the date of this document until superseded.

Director, Curriculum Services; senior reviewer of this PPS

Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs

Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs