1 Academic Departments - Compact Planning Details

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Academic Departments -

Compact Planning Details

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Who: All academic departments and administrative units, schools and colleges, and vice presidential divisions

What: Create a series of compacts (memorandums of understanding) between subordinate and supervisory authorities that detail mission, perf ormance objectives, initiatives to be undertaken to realize objectives, perf ormance appraisal metrics, deliverables, and agreements on resource allocations

When: Sept 2005 through May 2006

Why: Establish priorities f or action by academic and administrative units, and other longer-term goals

How: An iterative series of meetings and eventual shared agreement on purpose

General Overview of Compact Planning

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Compact plans also used for:

1. Updating university-wide goals and priorities f rom the bottom-up, and aligning those with the budget process.

2. Updating long-range capital improvements plan and university master plan.

3. Creating comprehensive enrollment and marketing plans.

4. Budgeting f or 2006-07 and for 2007-08.

5. Establishing priorities f or a major capital campaign.

6. Soliciting advice and external validation f rom the university’s Board of Visitors.

7. Performance evaluations of vice presidents, deans, department chairs, and directors.

8. Annual meeting and reviews by the president and provost with the f aculties of each of the colleges.

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Academic Compacts:

1. Are developed by the department f aculty under the direction of the chair

2. Require extensive f aculty participation to f ully align university and unit goals

3. Get refined through f ormal interactions (e.g., f ace-to-f ace meetings, written f eedback) with the dean, which the f aculty then consider

4. Benefi t f rom consultation with university and school/ college governance bodies

5. Department compacts get bound together within the school or college compact

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Academic Compacts:

5. School/ college compacts also contain school/ college-wide objectives and initiatives

6. Deans prioritize initiatives

7. School/ college compacts get refined through f ormal interactions (e.g., f ace-to-f ace meetings, written f eedback) with the provost

8. School/ college compacts get bound together within the Academic Aff airs compact with the president

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DepartmentCompact

Academic Affairs Compact

School/College Compact

1st Round - department level

Focus on:

1. departmental vision/mission,

2. department goals, and

3. preliminary list of department initiatives to achieve objectives

2nd Round – school/college level

Focus on:

1. departmental compacts refined with dean’s formal input, and

2. school/college-level prioritization

3. initiate governance consultation

3rd Round – university level

Focus on:

1. school/college compacts refined with provost’s formal input,

2. deans finalize school/college priorities

3. provost prepares Academic Affairs compact, consults with faculty governance and the selective investment advisory committee

Compact Development and Negotiation Rounds

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DepartmentCompact

Academic Affairs

Compact

School/College Compact

DivisionalCompacts

University Compact

Administrative UnitCompacts

4th Round – president selects initiatives to fund

President creates a university compact from negotiations with provost and vice presidents -

1. based on discussions with vice presidents, provost, faculty governance, and selective investment advisory committee, president selects initiatives to fund

2. all compacts revised to reflect funding decisions, and

3. all compacts are then signed.

DivisionalCompacts

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DepartmentCompact Departmental Compact Instructions

See Handbook link at http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp/

All compacts will contain the following elements:

1. Introduction to the unit - mission, goals, core activities, national rankings or locally derived benchmarks

2. Initiatives clearly described – what they are, how they fit with unit and university goals, summaries of steps to be taken, schedule of activities and progress reports, resource needs, measures of outcomes and results. And specifically:

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DepartmentCompact

Departmental Compact Instructions…continued

Each initiative should contain:

1. a short title,

2. a clear, brief , description and what you want to achieve,

3. strategies and a logistics schedule consistent with the financial reality of :

a. the unit’s existing budget,

b. f unds provided by a supervisory or collaborative authority,

c. non-recurring special initiative funds,

d. new faculty line resources requested f rom the campus fi nancial plan, and

4. how specifi c initiative outcomes will be evaluated and (quantitatively) measured for progress, and a schedule for progress reports.

Each initiative 3 pages or less !!!

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DepartmentCompact


Points worth emphasizing/re- emphasizing:

1. not all initiatives require f unding,

2. many will require funding f or more than one year, or multiple revenue sources f or f ull implementation, and

3. do consider initiatives that may take 2 or 3 years to implement:

a. identif y them as such,

b. develop a f easible implementation schedule, and

c. develop specifi c measures to gauge their success

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Six categories of initiatives:

I . those supporting university goals,

I I . those arising from unit issues and priorities,

I I I . those related to enrollment management,

IV. those arising from a review of past performance or related to performance aspirations,

V. those supporting interdisciplinary programs and activities, and

VI . those designed to enhance revenue.

While initiatives need not be developed for each category, some categories carry stipulations beyond specifying initiatives that need to be addressed (e.g., enrollment plans in #3, assessment plans in # 4, unit fiscal context in # 6).

DepartmentCompact


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I. Initiatives Supporting University Goals/Priorities

Nine DRAFT goals/priorities for enhancing the university on the whole through the compact planning process have been identified as:

DepartmentCompact


1. Transform the student educational experience by expanding the size of the tenure line f aculty by 100…

2. Strengthen the recruitment, retention, graduation, and placement of a diverse and appropriately prepared student population …

3. Enhance graduate programmatic excellence in disciplines which are already at the top tier, and further develop programs with the potential to join that tier...

4. I nternationalize the University by …

5. Develop successful athletic, recreational, alumni, and public relations programs to help build University identity and spirit.

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I. Initiatives Supporting University Goals/Priorites …continued

DepartmentCompact


6. Foster new partnerships that permit the University to be engaged with the City of Albany, with K-12 public education, with other institutions of higher education in the region, and with supporting f oundations.

7. Target private philanthropy, and a stronger fl ow of dollars f rom the f ederal government and f or-profi t corporations, as means to expand and diversif y revenues...

8. Launch and complete a comprehensive capital …

9. … each and every academic and administrative unit is responsible and accountable f or re-examining the centrality of its f unction and the quality of its deliverables.

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DepartmentCompact


I I . I nitiatives Arising from Unit I ssues and Priorities

Develop initiatives based on your review of :

a. your unit's aspirations and recent progress toward its goals,

b. results of recent program evaluations such as accreditation reviews, assessments, survey results, or

c. program and curriculum reviews.

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DepartmentCompact


I I . I nitiatives Arising from Unit I ssues and Priorities - Unit I ssues and Priorities to Consider

a. changes in academic degree programs,

b. developing or enhancing honors programs,

c. improving the quality, eff ectiveness, and effi ciency of programs, and services,

d. f aculty and staff development activities to improve productivity or eff ectiveness,

e. recruitment and retention of students, f aculty and staff ,

f . advancing technology to extend the reach of your programs and services,

g. opportunities f or interdisciplinary and cross-functional activities,

h. the diversity of faculty, students, or staff ,

i. eff orts to promote external partnerships,

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DepartmentCompact


I I I . I nitiatives Related to Enrollment Management and the Detailing of Enrollment Plans

“Enrollment management” includes

1. recruitment eff orts, and

2. retention eff orts

designed to achieve planned enrollment levels.

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DepartmentCompact


I I I . I nitiatives Related to Enrollment Management and the Detailing of Enrollment Plans…continued

Enrollment Planning Component

Each academic department must detail its historical, current, and planned enrollment levels in the following categories, as applicable:

Graduate headcount by degree level

Undergraduate majors

Undergraduate minors

Courses, student credit hours, and enrollments generated in General Education and other service courses

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DepartmentCompact


III. Initiatives Related to Enrollment Management and the Detailing of Enrollment Plans…continued

Enrollment Planning FormSee the Forms link at http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp/

Five-Year Enrollment Planning Form

Department of ____________________

Estimated

Fall 2003 Fall 2004 Fall 2005 Fall 2006 Fall 2007 Fall 2008 Fall 2009 Fall 2010

Undergraduate:Majors (headcount)Minors (headcount)

General Education:Number of courses offeredTotal student enrollmentTotal student credit hours

Other Service Courses:Number of courses offeredTotal student enrollmentTotal student credit hours

Graduate Headcount:Master'sDoctoralGraduate CertificatesAdvanced CertificatesNon-degree

Graduate Total

Enrollment PlanHistorical

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DepartmentCompact Departmental Compact Instructions…continued

III. Initiatives Related to Enrollment Management and the Detailing of Enrollment Plans…continued

Screen shot of Data page available from http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp/

Replace w/Data page

http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp/



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III. Initiatives Related to Enrollment Management and the Detailing of Enrollment Plans…continued – Screen shot of Enrollment Plan page available from http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp/



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Important Points Regarding Enrollment Management I nitiatives

1. Provost and deans to negotiate expected school/ college contributions to undergraduate enrollment targets

2. Enrollment management initiatives should include measurable anticipated outcomes such as:

a. changes in enrollment,

b. changes in entering student characteristics,

c. changes in graduation rate, or

d. changes in student satisf action

3. Assistance in developing enrollment initiatives is available f rom the Offi ce of Provost


III. Initiatives Related to Enrollment Management and the Detailing of Enrollment Plans…continued –

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DepartmentCompact


I V. I nitiatives Addressing Performance Review and Aspirations

1. Each department is asked to address its academic, research, and service performance.

2. Each department required to monitor its eff ectiveness and effi ciency and implement strategies for improving perf ormance.

3. Each department required to develop an assessment plan that addresses student learning outcomes.

4. The end goal is to:

a. I mprove.

b. Demonstrate UAlbany as a responsible steward of the public investment made by the citizens of New York State.

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DepartmentCompact


IV. I nitiatives Addressing Performance Review and Aspirations …continued

Addressing performance, effi ciency, and eff ectiveness

1. Common metrics available on the Data link at the compact planning website <http:/ / www.albany.edu/ academic_aff airs/ cp/ >

2. Departments invited to add other measures

3. Where possible, compare your unit's performance to peers' perf ormance on the same measures (e.g., NRC, U.S. News, etc.)

4. Develop compact initiatives that will lead to improved performance.

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DepartmentCompact


I V. I nitiatives Addressing Performance Review and Aspirations …continued

Addressing student learning outcomes

All departments:

1. required to evaluate their eff ectiveness in achieving desired student learning outcomes,

2. encouraged to develop initiatives that will contribute to improved teaching and learning, and

3. may utilize existing assessment plans and describe how assessments are used by the program to improve teaching and learning.

Departments without existing assessment plans:

1. work with the Director of Assessment, Ms. Barbara Wilkinson, to:

a. develop an assessment plan, and

b. implementation schedule

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IV. Initiatives Addressing Performance Review and Aspirations …continued

Assessment resources available at http://www.albany.edu/assessment/

DepartmentCompact


http://www.albany.edu/assessment/

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DepartmentCompact


V. I nitiatives Supporting I nterdisciplinary Programs and Activities

1. Strongly encourage initiatives that support interdisciplinary programs and interdepartmental collaborations (across the University mission)

2. I nitiatives with an interdisciplinary focus will receive high priority consideration in each round of negotiations.

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DepartmentCompact


VI . I nitiatives Designed to Enhance Revenue

1. Lacking a responsibility-centered or incentive-based budgeting model, use initiatives (business models), to develop revenue enhancing activities such as:

a. distance learning,

b. continuing education,

c. corporate partnerships,

d. public-public partnerships, and

e. other external funding opportunities

2. These initiatives describe incentives and rewards for entrepreneurial activities that generate new revenue, and which:

a. are consistent with university goals and priorities,

b. do no harm to other units, and

c. are permitted within the scope of SUNY and Middle States’ regulatory oversight.

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DepartmentCompact


VI. Initiatives Designed to Enhance Revenue…continuedRequired Component for all Units: All-Funds Budget

TemplateSee the Forms link at http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp/

Other revenue/expenditure categories solicited are: DIFR, UAS, UAF, and Restricted Current Fund

Data available from:1. departmental records, 2. school/college budget officer, 3. All-Funds reporting system, and4. other University offices

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DepartmentCompact


Completing the First Round

First round of compact development completed through:

1. Departmental f aculty meetings,

2. Meetings between the chair and the dean

3. Formal written f eedback f rom deans

4. Additional departmental dialogue

Provides a f orum for department chairs and deans to identif y important issues f acing the institution and propose action steps

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Subsequent Rounds - Compact Instructions

Second and Subsequent Round Negotiations

1. Similar to fi rst round, but greater attention to identif ying discrete, alternative initiatives that will move each unit and the university as a whole toward their goals.

2. Deans required to initiate formal f aculty governance consultation with school/ college and university governance bodies f or (unfunded as well as f unded) initiatives.

3. Emerging school/ college compact draf ts will also have three parts:

Part One - I ntroduction

Part Two - I nitiatives

Part Three –

4. Deans prioritize departmental and school/ college initiatives

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General Procedures Governing Subsequent Rounds

1. Following each compact meeting: the supervisory authority (deans to chairs; provost to deans) will provide a written response to draf t proposals and oral arguments as guidance on refining and improving the draf t compact.

a. Responses may cover issues not directly related to any particular initiative but that bear instead on the general operation of the unit.

b. I n most cases, these supplemental reports and communications will answer questions raised in an earlier response letter.

2. Most important, the process of written communication means that the bases upon which the parties are negotiating about initiatives and resources are clearly stated.

3. These written communications provide information and context supporting compact discussions, but do not belong in the final compact.

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Points worth emphasizing/re- emphasizing

1. Chairs and deans are expected to consult with their f aculty and staff in the development of their overall department and school/ college compact.

2. Deans are expected to negotiate department compacts with their chairs.

3. Department compacts will continue to be negotiated with the dean as the school or college compact is being developed.

4. Department compacts should be near final as the school/ college compact nears its final stages.

5. A complete set of departmental compacts signed by both department head and dean must accompany the final compact to be co-signed in the spring by the provost and the dean.

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School/College Initiative Resource Summary

See the Forms link at http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp/

This form should be included with all school/college and divisional compacts.

At their discretion, deans may require their departments to use this form in creating department compacts.

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Compact Planning Timeline

Sept 8

Nov 4

Dept’l draft compacts due to dean

Oct Nov 23

School/college draft compacts due to provost

Chairs and faculty develop department compacts

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Proposed initiatives to Selective Investment Committee

Provost’s recs to president

Provost provides written feedback to deans

Compact Planning Timeline…continued

Jan 23 Mar 31Feb 28 Apr 28 May 5

Deans finalize their priorities

President selects initiatives to fund

After provost’s feedback, copy of school/college drafts also sent to UPC

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Resources to Help

1. Compact Planning Handbook

2. Website: http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp

3. Provost’s Office: All senior staff

4. Director of Assessment

5. Institutional Research

6. Other University offices, as needed

http://www.albany.edu/academic_affairs/cp

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End

Documents

1 Academic Departments - Compact Planning Details