Proposal to Create Two Departments from Current Department of Sociology/Archaeology:
Department of Sociology
Department of Archaeology and Anthropology
Submitted to the UW-La Crosse Faculty Senate
October 2014
Introduction
On August 27, 2014 the Department of Sociology/Archaeology voted in favor of splitting into
two departments (15 in favor, 1 against, 3 abstentions); one comprised of Sociology faculty
and one comprised of Archaeology and Anthropology faculty. This document outlines the
justification for this split along with a plan for implementing the formation of two new
departments, effective July 1, 2015, the beginning of the next fiscal year.
Description of Proposed Reorganization
The proposed reorganization is to create a separate Department of Sociology and a separate
Department of Archaeology and Anthropology. After carefully weighing the benefits and
disadvantages, the current Department of Sociology and Archaeology feels that such a move is
in the best interests of our students and respectfully petition the University to approve the
creation of a Department of Sociology and a Department of Archaeology and Anthropology.
Current Faculty Makeup in each Program
The current Department agrees that current faculty will be distributed between the
two new departments, as follows:
Sociology (12 faculty, 5 tenured, 7 tenure-track)
Nicholas Bakken (Assistant Professor)
Arch/Anth (8 faculty, 4 tenured, 3 tenure track, 1 IAS)
David Anderson (Associate Professor)
Laurie Cooper Stoll (Assistant Professor)
Enilda Delgado (Professor)
Adam Driscoll (Assistant Professor)
Timothy Gongaware (Professor)
Lisa Kruse (Assistant Professor)
Peter Marina (Assistant Professor)
Julia McReynolds-Pérez (Assistant Professor)
Carol Miller (Professor)
Dawn Norris (Assistant Professor)
Kimberly Vogt (Professor)
William Zollweg (Professor)
Connie Arzigian (IAS)
Katherine Grillo (Assistant Professor)
Jessi Halligan (Assistant Professor)
Vincent Her (Associate Professor)
Christine Hippert (Associate Professor)
Tim McAndrews (Professor)
Elizabeth Peacock (Assistant Professor)
1
The Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center (MVAC), currently a unit within the Department
of Sociology and Archaeology will become a part of the new Department of Archaeology and
Anthropology.
Office Personnel. Each department will request one Academic Department Associate (ADA)
at 0.92 FTE. The Department of Sociology and Archaeology currently has one ADA (0.92
FTE).
Background
Discussions regarding the formation of two distinct departments formally began
following a 2009 external Department review conducted by Dr. Don Wycoff (University of
Oklahoma). Dr. Wycoff’s recommendation was based on his assessment of recent faculty
growth in both sections, the strong but independent curricular growth of both sections, and a
need to clarify the identity of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University. Over the next
few years, each section hired yet more faculty and worked to further develop and refine their
curriculum. As each section made hiring decisions, they were based upon needs within each of
the individual sections to best serve the students of that section and the University as a whole.
The result has been the creation of two strong programs that independently maintain their own
track for growth. While the joint department model has worked well in the past, continued
growth will require more disciplinary focus and administrative efficiency than the current
model allows.
The departmental split proposed here is not without precedent at UW-L. Notably, the
Departments of Communication Studies, Theatre Arts, Biology, and Microbiology were each
created by splitting joint departments. The example of Speech and Theatre is particularly apt
as Theatre, the smaller section of that joint department, is a program that is more costly to run
and requires more resources to operate, as is the case with Archaeology and Anthropology
relative to Sociology.
Rationale for Organizational Change
Overall, three broad categories of positive outcomes will result from splitting into two separate
departments:
1) Improved efficiency and coordination for each program benefiting both
faculty and student development;
2) Facilitation of unified visions and goals within each section; and
3) Clarified identities within the university community of our disciplinary
programs - Sociology, Criminal Justice, Archaeology, Anthropology,
and MVAC.
The following is a list of specific outcomes relating to these three themes.
○ Forming two different departments will eliminate a level of bureaucracy
that currently exists within our joint department. The option of creating
two departments would increase the efficiency of basic procedures (e.g.,
curricular decisions, LX form approval, purchases, etc.), higher stakes
2
processes (e.g., promotion/tenure, faculty hiring), and longer-term goalsetting (e.g., Anthropology Major, 5th Year Option Master’s Program in
Archaeology, further development of the Criminal Justice minor,
developing an integrated focus on applied sociology). By taxing faculty
less, more energy can be invested in working with students, program
development and faculty research.
○ Separate departments will be able to: strive more efficiently towards the
individual goals that each section has worked to develop; will allow the
departments to better meet the identified needs of students.
○ As separate departments, resources can be targeted more appropriately and
more efficiently in pursuit of the goals that best meet student and faculty
needs in each new department.
○ As separate departments, promotion and tenure decisions can be more focused
and better reflect the needs and goals of the individual sections. Separate
departments will allow such decisions to remain in the hands of those best
qualified to make such judgments.
Contributions to the College and University Missions
The mission of the College of Liberal Studies states that the college is “dedicated to
providing quality instruction and learning experiences, which prepare students for
future education or careers and meaningful, responsible lives by fostering a climate of
intellectual curiosity and creativity.” We feel that the separation into two separate
departments will help us maximize and focus our efforts at fostering this type of
intellectual climate in our respective disciplines. The CLS mission further states that it
supports and “nurtures exceptional disciplinary programs” and we believe the
establishment of two departments will help our respective faculties work towards
targeted goals that will ensure that our disciplinary programs will thrive and promote
the lifelong personal and professional learning our college hopes of all its students.
Similarly, the Select University Mission statement indicates a desire to provide a
“challenging, dynamic, and diverse learning environment in which the entire
university community is fully engaged in supporting student success.” As stated
above, we believe the two new departments proposed here will allow us to separately
and more effectively pursue the specific goals most important to achieving excellence
in our respective disciplinary programs.
Job Responsibilities for the New Administrative Positions
This reorganization will include the identification of Department Chairs for both the
Department of Sociology and the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology. The
3
responsibilities of Department Chair are defined by the UW - La Crosse Faculty
Handbook. In the Archaeology and Anthropology section, some of these duties are
already being carried out by the Archaeology Studies Section Head, and an election
will be held among section members to select the new Department Chair. For
Sociology, Dr. Kim Vogt, who is currently in the second year of a three year term as
Chairperson for the Department of Sociology and Archaeology, will serve as the
Chairperson for the new Department of Sociology for at least one more year. Both
Chairs will need to coordinate the preparation of departmental bylaws and oversee
their implementation within their new departments.
Recommended Timeline for Implementation
October/November 2014: Submit proposal to Faculty Senate and Provost
December 2014: Forward descriptions for Department of Sociology and Department
of Archaeology and Anthropology for inclusion in the University Catalog.
July 1, 2015: Formally establish two separate departments.
Resource and Budget Implications
Space
With a departmental split there will be a number of practical concerns that the two
new departments will have moving forward regarding operations and budgeting. First,
faculty will continue to share the same space until there is an opportunity to fashion
two distinct spaces for each new department (e.g., with the Wittich Hall renovation
there will be space freed up in Wimberly Hall).
Academic Department Associate
The cost will be marginally higher with regard to becoming two mid-sized departments instead
of one large department. The most substantial cost is the addition of an Academic Department
Associate (ADA). While the two new departments will share an ADA following the split, an
additional ADA FTE (full-time equivalent) will be an ongoing request as the programs continue
their growth. Cost of a new ADA at 92%= $29,604.
One-Time Costs (Supplies/Equipment)
There will also be a series of one-time costs including the purchase of a second copier/scanner,
once new office space becomes available. New signage, stationary, marketing brochures,
business cards, etc., will need to be produced to represent the new departments appropriately.
Specialized equipment previously obtained for each program will remain with the program for
which it was purchased.
4
Chairperson Release Time and Stipends
The establishment of two new departments will impact Departmental Chair support and release
time. The Sociology Chair will be given ½ time reassignment (for a department of 10 or more
full time faculty positions), a nine-month chair stipend of $2700 ($300 x 9 months), and a
summer stipend of $3500. The Archaeology/Anthropology Chair will be given ¼ time
reassignment (for a department of fewer than 10 full time faculty positions), a nine-month
stipend of $2700 ($300 x 9 months), and a summer stipend of $2500.
Departmental Budgets
Representatives of each new Department have been working with Dean Benson to negotiate an
equitable distribution of the budget.
Conclusion
The programs housed within the Department of Sociology and Archaeology have been
extremely successful leading to dynamic developmental trajectories, and significant growth in
students, an increase in faculty resources, and the recent hiring of several new and outstanding
teacher-scholars engaged in exciting academic pursuits. The establishment of two new
departments is the next logical step in the formative trajectories of both programs as they
continue to grow and establish new and exciting goals for the future.
5