SPNA RECOMMENDATION REPORT
DR. STEPHEN BORDERS
PROMOTION TO ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR WITH TENURE
On February 3, 2009, the faculty of the School of Public & Nonprofit Administration voted unanimously to support
Dr. Stephen Borders for promotion to associate professor with tenure The following presents a summary of the
rationale for supporting this recommendation based on Dr. Borders’s teaching excellence, scholarly activities, and
record of service.
Teaching. Dr. Borders has taught a variety of courses over the past six years, including undergraduate and
graduate research methods and health care finance, graduate strategic planning and management and health
policy, and an undergraduate course for political science. Faculty reviews of Dr. Borders’ courses (in class visits and
evaluations of course syllabi) reveal that the course content in all his classes is appropriate and meet course
objectives. For each course, Professor Borders prepares a variety of learning assessments for his students to gauge
their progress throughout the semester. These assessments range from assignments, projects, and exams.
Professor Borders supplies students with meticulous feedback on content, writing skills, and critical thinking skills.
In the classroom, Dr. Borders integrates learning checkpoints into his lectures. For example, he presents students
with additional examples, problems, and/or discussion questions to gauge their understanding. This approach
allows students to ask for clarifications where necessary. Overall, Dr. Borders is a diligent instructor and facilitator
with positive comments and reviews from students and faculty. In sum, he has met the criteria for promotion and
tenure in the area of teaching excellence.
Scholarship. Professor Borders is an active scholar in the areas of health care policy and finance. In the past six
years, Dr. Borders has authored numerous articles (4), reports (8), and conference papers (5). In addition, Dr.
Borders has generated over $200,000 from funded grant projects. The end products of these applied research
projects—research reports—typically become the property of the granting agencies, resulting in a limited number
of additional publication outlets. The faculty does not see this as a limitation to Professor Borders’ record of
scholarship; instead, the faculty understands the significant value grantors and their stakeholders place on these
research reports. Moreover, Professor Borders is providing an essential service to community organizations.
Finally, Dr. Borders funds a number of student researchers through these grants. Overall, Dr. Borders is one of the
most productive scholars in the unit and he has surpassed the required criteria for promotion and tenure in the
area of scholarship.
Unit & University Service. Over the past six years, Dr. Borders has served the unit and university in a variety of
ways. Currently, Professor Borders serves as the coordinator of the Master’s of Health Administration (MHA)
program where one of the major responsibilities includes developing, enhancing, and moving the program forward
such that it qualifies for accreditation. In addition, Dr. Borders serves on the admissions committees for the MHA
and MPA, and is a member of the Graduate Council and Graduate Program Directors Advisory Council, and a
reviewer for the Summer Scholars Program. Overall, Dr. Borders has met the required criteria for promotion and
tenure in the area of unit and university service.
Community Service. Dr. Borders has been active in the local and national communities by way of research and
board work. In fact, many of the research projects referenced above provide an essential service to the university
and community at large. Professor Borders’ expertise and applied research products assist board members and
stakeholders to enhance their decision making and planning and the grant monies fund research assistants, all of
whom are GVSU students. Overall, Dr. Borders has met the required criteria for promotion and tenure in the area
of community service.