Date:
November 6, 2007
To:
Tracy Pellett
Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Studies
From:
M. Meghan Miller
Dean, College of the Sciences
Subject:
2006-2007 Program review, Geography and Land Studies
You have asked me to provide commendations and recommendations as part of the
program review process for Geography and Land Studies. These observations consider the selfstudy and the external evaluator’s report, the department’s written response to the report, as well
as on the context and resource issues within the college.
The department prepared a self-study and hosted the campus visit of the external
reviewer. Dr. Martha Works provided a focused set of recommendations in her report. My
commendations and recommendations closely follow hers.
COMMENDATIONS:
The external reviewer notes several critical department strengths:

Geography engages its students and faculty with local communities and regional institutions,
and connecting them with research and professional opportunities.

The department’s focus on complex human-environment interactions is clear and well
aligned with the university mission.

The curriculum is diverse and solid, and includes several aspects that support its niche, such
as the GIS certificate and the strong contribution to interdisciplinary programs.

Faculty appointments have been deliberately structured to support the strengths and
uniqueness of the program. Annual retreat, ongoing review of curriculum and instruction,
and workload management are all aspects of a healthy departmental culture.

Research productivity and contract work that includes students are great strengths of the
program.
These areas reflect the broad strengths of Geography and Land Studies and deserve
commendation.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
The external review provided a focused set of recommendations. Because the list is
thorough and appears well-substantiated, I reproduce it below.
Curriculum
•Eliminate courses from the catalog that are not taught as part of a regular rotation, then take a
good look at the courses that are left and how well they serve the major.
•Develop manageable suite of courses that draws on faculty expertise and provides core
geographical concepts to students; make sure sequencing of courses offers students logical
progression through the curriculum and makes best use of faculty time and resources. Consider,
perhaps, program specialties (such as watersheds theme) that help focus course offerings for the
major and make for a more manageable repertoire of classes for faculty.
•Explore options (in consultation with the COTS Dean) about focusing more attention on the
majors and course offerings at the 300 and 400 level; find appropriate balance between
generating SCH with GenEd classes and providing advanced concepts to majors.
Program Planning and Assessment
•Establish a time line for tackling long-range strategic planning. The move to Dean Hall
provides a great opportunity to rethink physical space for the department and also how you might
reinvent the department with future hires, a refreshed curriculum, and new ideas about
departmental culture. How will department evolve and change with future retirements? What
kind of department do you want to be in 5 years? A strategic plan would facilitate decisions
about future hires and help communicate to administrators the direction the department intends
to take.
•Explore the option of bringing in an outside chair for the next hire; this would take some
pressure off currently overloaded faculty who might be selected for future chair duties and bring
new energy and vision to the department.
•Engage in assessment that results in meaningful, reflective changes to the program.
•The department, represented by the department chair, needs to effectively communicate with
administrators and tell the department’s story. It is the department chair’s responsibility to
represent the department in its best light; to use the chair position to advocate for the collective
good of the department, and to build and reshape the department in response to changes in the
discipline and in the university culture.
Faculty
•Continue to ensure work load balance for untenured faculty so that they are able to publish
enough to get tenure. Reinforce for probationary faculty the research and publication
expectations of the department, college, and university through an effective mentoring program.
•Work to resolve what appear to be gaps in collegiality among some of the faculty that might
affect departmental potential.
•Promote a department culture of lifelong professional engagement and work with tenured
faculty to encourage continued involvement in areas that increase the profile and reputation of
the department.
Students
•Continue good work at promoting a student-centered program that provides so many
opportunities for job training and placement.
•Rethink advising system to give credit to faculty who seem to already be shouldering much of
the responsibility for advising.
Library, information resources, facilities
•Continue good work of supporting technology intensive programs. Work with administration to
assure support of hardware and software in the time, money, and technology-intensive field of
spatial data analysis.
SUMMARY:
In summary, the Geography department has a strong student-centered identity with a well
defined disciplinary focus that positions it for strong niche identification in the region and nation.
Work is needed to streamline the curriculum, support faculty recruitment, professional
development, formal scholarship, and retention. This work will advance the program and
support its role within the university. Staying the course with the Dean Hall remodel is also
critical to redressing longstanding support issues.
C:
David Soltz, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Robert Kuhlken, Chair, Geography and Land Studies