Academic Program Review 2003 – 2004
Executive Summary
Psychology Department
The department of Psychology was included in the second cycle of academic program
review for the 2003-2004 school year. Based upon feedback from the first cycle, the
contents of the self-study were modified as were some of the implementation details. The
department of psychology was one of eight programs undergoing this process for this
cycle. Included in the process was the composition of a self-study document based upon
the faculty’s analysis, the visitation of an external reviewer, Dr.Dale Dinnel, professor,
and chair, Department of Psychology, Western Washington University. Dr. Dinnel read
the self-study, interviewed faculty, staff, administration, and students, and submitted his
analysis.
The Executive Summary and Dean’s report are intended so serve as a guide to the
faculty, staff and administration for the next several academic years as the department
addresses the recommendations and continues its record of excellence. The department
faculty and college administration will be expected to provide a summary of activities
undertaken during the 2004-2005 academic year as a consequence of the program review.
This report will be due to the provost in October, 2005.
Dean Miller’s response to the academic program review process for this department is
comprehensive and thorough. Therefore the commendations and recommendations are
drawn directly from her report. Also included are the action items she outlines to assist
the faculty and administration in addressing the recommendations.
COMMENDATIONS:
The external reviewer noted several hallmarks of the Psychology Department. It has
comprehensive and well-articulated objectives, goals and activities that support the
missions of the department, college and university. Pride in instruction is well earned.
Approximately half the faculty members participate in mentoring student research.
Selected graduate programs, the relationships to public schools, the provision of
psychological services, and community service are all areas of strength. In support of the
undergraduate programs, the department role at university centers, recent and progressing
efforts to strengthen advising, infusion of diversity in the curriculum, emphasis on
research methods and statistics, and the Major Field Test were also assessed as strengths.
Several of the graduate programs were noted for their particular strengths. Dr. Dinnel
discusses these topics in some detail.
Psychology is a professional department with a mature academic program. It represents
approximately 18% of the faculty in COTS, and generates 17% of the student FTE. The
faculty is deeply committed to students and to instruction at both the graduate and
undergraduate level. Its service to other programs, especially teacher education, occurs at
both the graduate and undergraduate levels. The department is deeply connected to the
local and statewide communities that it serves. Among the strengths of the department is
a coherent undergraduate program. Its varied graduate programs serve a cross section of
regional needs. Psychology faculty and their students generate some excellent and
nationally visible research.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The highlights of the recommendations are noted:
Faculty work, performance expectations and department culture:
 Probationary faculty members need support for establishing an instructional and
research program.
 Standards for tenure and promotion need discussion
 Addressing the sustainability of scholarly work over a career
 Problems with collegiality and making this an explicit part of the evaluation
process
Academic programs, curriculum and assessment, including the balance of resources:
Particular issues ranged across curriculum levels.
 Undergraduate curriculum:
o Assess the goals and success of the 45-credit major
o Add depth in targeted content areas with attention to currency in certain subdisciplines such as cognitive and physiological psychology
o Formalize the role of service learning
o SPSS (or similar) incorporated into curriculum
o Addition of global and international perspectives would further support the
infusion of diversity into the curriculum
o The assessment approach and its effectiveness in leading to refinement of
the curriculum need attention. .
o Enrollment in undergraduate major – the growth is at a lesser rate than that
of the university
o Targeted recruitment of undergraduate majors from community colleges
o Advising including equitable distribution of load
o Concerns about adding a major program at Pierce and Lynnwood
o Role of interdisciplinary programs: Gerontology and Primate Behavior and
Ecology
 Graduate curriculum:
o Students reported too many practica, as well as a need for standardization in
procedures used in practica
In addition, careful scrutiny of the role, viability, and allocation of faculty time to each
graduate program needs to be weighed against the compromises driven by undergraduate
enrollment growth. Close examination of these issues at the departmental level will
inform allocation of resources as all graduate programs across the college are evaluated.
In addition to the recommendations, Dean Miller’s action items are included here:
Department as a whole:
 Department planning efforts should focus discussion on niche definition and, in
particular, on the intertwined enterprises of instruction and research at CWU. In
the context of the profile of faculty expertise, better articulation of the role student
research could form a foundation for strategic planning.
 Respond to issues raised under “Niche definition” in revising department goals
and objectives.
Curriculum committee:
 Respond to issues raised under “Academic programs, curriculum and assessment,
including the balance of resources” through curriculum revision and assessment.
 Develop policies to regularize the practica.
Personnel committee:
 Review and strengthen policies for support for probationary faculty members,
especially in establishing a vital research program.
 Develop meaningful collegiality standard.
 Articulate policies that support publication of faculty-led and faculty-mentored
student research.
 Examine performance review policies, including post-tenure review, with special
attention to collegiality and career sustainability of research.
Department chair:
 Provide a written summary of the specific scheduling and facilities problems to
the dean.
 Develop a faculty staffing and enrollment plan consonant with department
strategic goals and the results of program review, in particular planning for
reallocation of targeted faculty expertise to support curriculum currency and
optimizing the size of graduate programs to support strategic goals.
 In the context of this plan, review allocation of effort to graduate and
undergraduate programs in light of shifting enrollment.
College:
 Work with Academic Facilities Planning Officer, scheduling, and the Director of
Multimedia Technology and Instructional Support to resolve problems with
access to computer/projection in classrooms and inappropriate numbers of
students in rooms with view obstructions.
 College level personnel committee will develop meaningful collegiality standard,
and advise the dean on increasing transparency as policies evolve.
 Examine performance review policies, including post-tenure review, with special
attention to collegiality and career sustainability of research at the college level.


Review the role, contributions, support for, and administration of graduate
programs in the college with the goal of providing better planning for resource
allocation and equitable support
Work with program directors to establish charters and support for
interdisciplinary programs.