California State University, Fullerton
College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Dean’s Summary Report and Recommendations
Program Performance Review for the
Department of American Studies
B.A., Minor, M.A. in American Studies
October 18, 2008
During 2007-08, the American Studies Department engaged in the program performance
review process by conducting a self-study. In February 2008, two external reviewers, Dr.
Jay Mechling from the University of California, Davis, and Dr. Brett Mizelle from
California State University, Long Beach, and one on-campus reviewer, Dr. Nancy Fitch
from the CSUF History Department, conducted a day long site visit. After reviewing the
department self-study report and interviewing the department chair, faculty members, the
college dean, students and others, the reviewers prepared a joint report, to which the
department responded. After reviewing all of these documents, I have prepared the
following summary and recommendations.
To provide a context for this review, a 10-year history of the department’s enrollments is
provided below:
Year
FTES
FTES
1998-1999
1999-2000
2000-2001
2001-2002
2002-2003
2003-2004
2004-2005
2005-2006
2006-2007
2007-2008
Target
259
263
286
335
341
360
460
503
537
553
Actual
269.4
263.0
300.8
346.1
385.2
398.7
475.0
503.1
537.4
517.7
% Change
from 98-99
to 07-08
+113.5%
*Annualized Headcount
+92.2%
FTEF
8.9
9.0
9.9
11.8
12.0
13.0
17.0
18.4
20.0
20.0
SFR
28.9
29.2
28.9
28.4
28.4
27.7
27.1
27.3
26.9
27.3
Majors*
GraduateUndergraduate
MA
63.5
30.5
65.5
34.0
78.5
40.5
86.0
45.5
110.5
42.0
97.5
40.0
93.0
54.5
106.0
46.5
113.0
45.0
126.0
42.5
+124.7%
-5.5%
+98.4%
+39.3%
Source: Institutional Research and Analytical Studies
The American Studies Department experienced a noteworthy 92% increase in achieved
FTES over the past 10 years, outpacing the growth in the college. During the same
period the College of Humanities and Social Sciences increased by 40% in achieved
FTES. The remarkable 125% growth in the department’s FTEF is attributable to both
Dean’s Summary Report and Recommendations
Program Performance Review for the
Department of American Studies
October 18, 2008
Page 2
increased enrollments and to the intentional lowering of the SFR over the past several
years as part of a College plan to incrementally modify department/program SFRs toward
the goal of narrowing the differences among departments. The number of American
Studies majors has steadily and significantly increased over the past 10 years, with almost
twice as many undergraduate majors in 2007-08 as compared with 1998-99. During the
same period of time, the number of undergraduate majors in the college increased by
35%. The 39% growth in graduate students in this 10-year period represents a
significant, healthy increase which modestly exceeds the 30% growth in the college
during the same period of time.
Department Mission, Goals, and Environment
The Department of American Studies is a model for excellence in teaching and
scholarship. Despite the extensive growth in both number of majors and FTES, the
department faculty remains steadfast in its commitment to requiring extensive writing in
each class, including essay exams and research papers. The department values facultystudent community and has done a remarkable job of maintaining connections among an
expanding faculty and a growing body of students.
The SWOT analysis conducted for the self study is summarized below.
Strengths:
 Strong, well-balanced, nationally recognized curriculum. The undergraduate
major has a clear structure with identifiable courses in the beginning, middle and
end of the degree program. The undergraduate and graduate programs have
clearly defined learning goals.
 Outstanding teaching and research faculty. Recruitment and retention of
outstanding faculty is a top priority for this department. The faculty routinely
discusses teaching and assessment techniques, sharing innovative best practices
for providing excellent instruction. At the same time, the department culture
supports faculty research. The products of faculty scholarship, including books,
articles in prestigious journals, and conference papers, are numerous.
 Meeting university and community needs. The department serves the entire
student body with its excellent offerings in the General Education Program. It
actively participates in programs supporting teacher preparation and prepares
workers for Southern California and the nation. The faculty also supports the
university through participation in the Honors Program and through service on a
variety of university and college committees.
 Meeting student needs. Graduates of the American Studies degree programs
report that they are well prepared in their critical thinking, writing and research
skills. Alumni survey data indicate a high level of satisfaction with their
experiences in the program.
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Dean’s Summary Report and Recommendations
Program Performance Review for the
Department of American Studies
October 18, 2008
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Weaknesses:
 High SFR. The department SFR was 27.3 last year, one of the highest in the
college and in the university. Given the department’s commitment to writing and
individualized attention to students, achieving this level of enrollment is a
difficult challenge. The SFR has declined from 29.2 at the time of the last
Program Performance Review as a result of an intentional effort in the College to
incrementally narrow the gap between the highest and lowest SFRs.
 Generational gap in the faculty. There are no associate professors in the
department. There are seven full professors, two FERP faculty, and four assistant
professors. This is a self-correcting problem, but it is important to provide strong
support and guidance to new and developing faculty and to continue to replace
retiring faculty.
Opportunities:
 High interest in American Studies. Interest in and demand for American Studies
courses is growing at the national and international levels. With most of the
American Studies programs located in the Midwest and on the East Coast, our
location on the West Coast provides an excellent opportunity for this program.
There is a growing international interest in American Studies; many recent and
current graduate students are from outside the United States.
 Relevant curriculum. The American Studies curriculum, which emphasizes
excellent writing skills, research, and analysis, is an excellent match for our local
economy focused on communications, media, and tourism. Many students double
major, using American Studies and the Communications degrees to prepare for
work in these areas.
 Teacher Preparation. Many students graduating from the American Studies
degree program become elementary and secondary teachers.
Threats:
 Rapid growth in FTES and FTEF. In its self study, the department cites
problems associated with the rapid growth experienced since its last review,
especially in view of the budget cuts for 2008-09 and anticipated for the years
ahead.
Department Description and Analysis
The American Studies Department is a vibrant, healthy department with strong
enrollments, enthusiastic and productive faculty, and a collegial environment. Since the
last program performance review, the faculty have “freshened” the curriculum by
introducing several new themes for the senior seminar variable topics course as well as
for the graduate level variable topics course. The recently hired assistant professors are
eager to create new courses reflecting their specialties.
Despite strong enrollments over the past ten years, during 2007-08 and again during fall
2008 the department failed to achieve its enrollment target. In 2007-08, the department
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Dean’s Summary Report and Recommendations
Program Performance Review for the
Department of American Studies
October 18, 2008
Page 4
achieved 93.6% of its annualized target; in fall 2008, the department reached 92.8% of it
semester target. Reversing this decline before it becomes a trend is important.
Documentation of Student Academic Achievement and Assessment of Student
Learning Outcomes
The department has identified clear learning goals and has taken steps toward assessing
the achievement of these goals. They have established an Assessment Committee and are
engaged in systematic review of student projects and papers from the intermediate level
course, AMST 350, and the senior capstone course, AMST 401. As a result of this work,
they have instituted discussion groups “made up of instructors who teach courses that
explore common problems” with the goal of evaluating course syllabi for AMST 201,
301, and 395 (Self Study, p. 23).
Further assessment of specific learning goals relies heavily on self-report survey data
collected from current undergraduate majors and minors, current graduate students, and
alumni from both the undergraduate and graduate programs. While survey data can have
value, such data are considered at best an indirect measure of student learning and no
longer sufficient as the sole or main measure of student progress in achieving the
department’s learning goals for the BA and MA. Greater weight is now placed on
direct assessment of student learning. Direct assessment is based on an analysis of
student behavior or products in which students demonstrate how well they have
mastered learning outcomes. Our regional accreditor WASC and the University itself
now require each degree program to be engaging in direct assessment of student
learning and in using the results to improve curriculum and instruction.
Faculty
The American Studies Department has built an impressive faculty team that meets high
standards of excellence in teaching and in scholarship. In addition to excellence in the
classroom, the department has developed a culture of “teaching outside the classroom”
with many opportunities for students and faculty to meet and interact at social occasions,
lectures, and annual events such as a walking tour of Los Angeles. During the period
covered by this program review, faculty members have published six books and a large
number of journal articles, essays, and book reviews. They are active participants in
scholarly organizations, frequently giving papers (often alongside their students) at
national and international conferences.
The faculty is currently comprised of nine professors, two of whom participate in the
Faculty Early Retirement Program (through the end of 2009-10), and four assistant
professors. A tenure-track faculty search is planned for 2009-10. With 20 FTEF, the
department currently fills 12 positions with tenured and tenure-track faculty (60%),
leaving 8 FTEF to cover salaries of lecturer faculty.
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Dean’s Summary Report and Recommendations
Program Performance Review for the
Department of American Studies
October 18, 2008
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Student Support and Advising
Each full-time faculty member serves as an advisor for undergraduates completing the
major or the minor in American Studies. Graduate students are advised by a faculty
member serving as Graduate Coordinator. Survey data from the alumni reveal that
students are satisfied with the academic advising they receive; however, students indicate
a desire for more extensive career advising. The department should give greater
attention to career advising by
 Helping students become aware of and be able to describe the skills they
develop through their program of study;
 Working with the Career Center to provide information and direct
assistance to students in exploring careers for which they are qualified;
 Involving American Studies alumni in talking with students about the
careers they have entered with American Studies degree; and.
 Encouraging participation in internships (such as the CSUF Washington,
DC, Scholars Program) in which majors can use what they are learning in
the major in career-relevant ways.
Paying greater attention to this student need will not only provide important support
students are requesting, but could also attract new and additional students to the
American Studies major.
Resources and Facilities
The department reports that it has benefited from recently purchased on-line library
resources. They note that since the last program performance review the department
moved from the Education Classroom Building to University Hall—and in the move lost
access to a convenient conference room. The department should work with other
departments in University Hall (Politics, Administration, and Justice; English;
Comparative Religion) to identify a suitable conference room for joint use. In fact, a
conference room was included in the original design of University Hall and intended to
be shared by the academic departments located in the building. This room, UH-317,
was converted into a classroom by the English Department, and should be re-converted
into a conference room for shared use.
Reviewers’ Report
The reviewers’ report praises the quality of the American Studies degree program,
emphasizing the strengths of the department faculty as excellent scholar-teachers. “The
integration of scholarship into teaching has produced high quality students who are
competitive in getting into the best American Studies Ph.D. programs in the country.” To
accomplish this, the department, with the support of the college and university, must
maintain the balance between teaching and scholarship.
The reviewers agree that the undergraduate program is well-organized, with a clear
beginning, middle, and end. Students majoring in American Studies are exposed to a
cutting edge curriculum and receive ample individual attention. Most students majoring
in American Studies become majors after taking a General Education course—few have
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Dean’s Summary Report and Recommendations
Program Performance Review for the
Department of American Studies
October 18, 2008
Page 6
ever before heard of the degree. The reviewers recommend that the faculty make an
effort to make the degree more widely known to both high school and community college
students.
The reviewers were impressed that the current graduate students in American Studies
were from a wide variety of institutions—both nationally and internationally. One
quality indicator is the fact that a substantial number of M.A. graduates go on to Ph.D.
programs. The reviewers agree with the untenured faculty and graduate students that the
M.A. reading list needed refreshing.
Dean’s Recommendations
The American Studies Department continues to provide students with an excellent
education provided by outstanding scholar-teachers. The faculty offer courses that
challenge and intrigue students while promoting the development of excellent critical
thinking and communication skills. Both the undergraduate and graduate programs have
excellent reputations in the field. With its many strengths, the department can focus on
the following, few, recommendations:
1. Work with Associate Dean Claire Palmerino in examining class schedules,
individual faculty assignments, and enrollment patterns to identify factors
contributing to the failure to meet FTES target in 2007-08 and fall 2008 so that
this trend does not become permanent to the detriment of the department.
2. Take steps to update assessment practices. The department’s current assessment
practices heavily emphasize surveys that produce student self-report data. At one
time, such indirect assessment of student learning was considered to be adequate,
but that is the case no longer. For example, students report that the degree
program increased their critical thinking and communication skills, but what is the
evidence that this is so? Direct assessment of student essays in AMST 201, 350
and 401, using a rubric developed by the faculty, would provide powerful
evidence to document whether desired growth in knowledge and skills is taking
place over the course of the program.
3. Encourage faculty to participate in advisor professional development. Since
each faculty member serves as an academic advisor, an admirable practice, the
department should intentionally provide or seek out professional development
opportunities to ensure that all faculty have the up-to-date information they need
in advising students, for example, current General Education requirements, other
information students need to navigate the academic bureaucracy, and how to use
DARWIN to assess students’ progress toward the degree.
4. Increase awareness of the American Studies degree. Make connections with
University Outreach and with the Academic Advisement Center to increase
awareness of the degree program. Another suggestion: prepare academic plans
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Dean’s Summary Report and Recommendations
Program Performance Review for the
Department of American Studies
October 18, 2008
Page 7
that show students how the major can be coupled with other majors in an eightsemester plan.
5. Update the department website. Review the various pages associated with the
site to ensure the information is up to date and accurate. For example, the last
issue of The Bone Pilgrim posted on the site is dated Fall 2005, and listings of
various student scholarship winners do not include names from 2007-08. Sample
academic plans and 1st semester transfer recommendations are available at the
Academic Advisement Center website. A simple link to these could be very
useful to students.
Conclusion
I offer my sincere thanks to the Chair, faculty, staff, and students of the American Studies
Department for devoting their time, energy, and thought to this Program Performance
Review. The department’s self study and the report of the external reviewers have led to
the identification of worthwhile goals and priorities. The American Studies Department
is a vital and vibrant program in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, often
cited when we mention our best departments. As the self study and the responses to it
indicate, there are challenges the department needs to meet during the coming years in
order to maintain the high quality it has achieved and rise to even higher levels of
achievement. I encourage the department to use the outcomes of this review as the
foundation on which to build a stronger program.
Tom Klammer, Dean
October 18, 2008
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