A number of effectiveness and efficiency initiatives were implemented, resulting in more strategic use of institutional resources. The IDEaS initiative and the American Bureau of Shipping Engineering Center were launched to promote interdisciplinary education and research. A market-based compensation analysis for faculty, staff, and executive administration was initiated. Progress has been slow in significantly increasing faculty diversity.
Goal C1
From a baseline of 2011, our faculty will increasingly reflect greater diversity from multiple perspectives, including ethnicity and gender.
OWNER: PRESIDENT NARIMAN FARVARDIN
In AY15-16, 22 percent of new full-time faculty hires (6/27) were women, compared to 36 percent in AY14-15 (14/39). From AY14-15 to AY15-16, the percentage of women faculty among total full-time faculty remained at 23 percent. No or minimal changes occurred in the percentages of tenured, tenure-stream, and NTT faculty from AY14-15 to AY15-16. According to the American Society of Engineering Education, Stevens ranks 29th among 350 engineering schools in the percentage of women T/TT engineering faculty (27.3 percent) in Fall 2015. Faculty from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups remains low.Programming under NSF ADVANCE continues, introducing thought leadership, best practices, and resources to Stevens faculty members and administrators across three critical areas of focus (academic culture; leadership development; and hiring and faculty advancement) as determined by the findings of the Climate Study conducted in Year 2. Following the establishment of the Center for Faculty Engagement and Advancement, the ADVANCE Stevens team collaborated with the Center to co-brand and cross-promote workshops and resources open to all faculty members. Year 5: Continue programming under NSF ADVANCE. Launch the “Excellence Through Diversity” lecture series. Implement unconscious bias trainings for all members of the academic community, focusing on faculty who serve or will serve on search, nominating, and/or promotion and tenure committees, and those who conduct performance reviews.
Goal C2
Stevens will have identified the metrics by which we identify “exemplary faculty members.”
OWNERS: PROVOST GEORGE KORFIATIS AND FACULTY SENATE (YEAR 4) PROVOST CHRISTOPHE PIERRE AND FACULTY SENATE (YEAR 5)
Limited progress was made on this objective in Year 4. Year 5: Review the document adopted by the Board of Trustees in December 2014 and develop a plan for advancing this effort in its approved form or an alternate form that aligns with current priorities and opportunities.
Goal C3
A study of the organizational structure at Stevens will be completed to ensure clarity with regard to accountability, alignment with mission and enhanced effectiveness and efficiency in the use of resources.
OWNER: PRESIDENT NARIMAN FARVARDIN
Effectiveness and efficiency initiatives continued in Year 4 throughout the university, including the appointment of a new Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Christophe Pierre. This key appointment will provide critical leadership throughout the academic enterprise, which includes all education units and programs, research, graduate enrollment and a variety of academic administrative offices, in priority-setting, setting high standards and expectations, developing new approaches to increase the effectiveness and the ROI of the university, and resource analysis and allocation. Other specific initiatives that were launched during Year 4 toward this goal include: transitioning the University towards an incentive based budget model while incorporating best practices in the higher education field; continued optimization of the financial aid discount rate; a review of the School of Systems and Enterprises; planning for implementation of the Concur travel authorization, booking and expense report on-demand system; continued progress in implementation of Workday Student, a state-of-the-art student information system to launch in Fall 2017; and implementation of recommendations of Unit Review Committees for units with high dissatisfaction ratings. Year 5: Priorities in Year 5 will include: continued financial analysis and reforms to ensure strategic reallocation of university resources to highest priority needs; implementation of improved budgeting processes.
Goal C4
A faculty leadership development program will be established.
OWNER: PROVOST GEORGE KORFIATIS (YEAR 4) PROVOST CHRISTOPHE PIERRE (YEAR 5)
Limited progress has been made toward this goal in Year 4.Year 5: The priority and timeline for this initiative will be reassessed by the Provost with the Faculty Senate.
Goal C5 (Revised)
We affirm the interdisciplinary educational and research programs that are underway and seek opportunities for additional such programs. We will review the academic organization and university policies and practices to remove or mitigate barriers to the successful development and execution of interdisciplinary programs and efforts.
OWNERS: PROVOST GEORGE KORFIATIS AND FACULTY SENATE (YEAR 4) PROVOST CHRISTOPHE PIERRE AND FACULTY SENATE (YEAR 5)
The IDEaS program has been transferred from the Office of Innovation & Entrepreneurship to the Schaefer School of Engineering and Science to ensure full integration into the core engineering and science curricula and through this encouragement of interdisciplinary projects. The resources of the PROOF Lab and the Design & Prototyping facilities associated with IDEaS have been made broadly available to encourage interdisciplinary innovation and collaboration.Year 5: The new ABS Engineering Center will further promote interdisciplinary design activities associated with IDEaS. A new general engineering undergraduate degree will be proposed that has a strong interdisciplinary focus with tracks in 1) Design (across the spectrum from architectural design to product design) and 2) Sustainability and Resilience. Both tracks will have a significant systems thinking focus and incorporate international experiences to promote global perspective.The current plans call for the Hanlon Financial Systems Center governance to move to the School of Business with a goal to enhance both its research and educational enterprise. Many of the Finance programs in the School of Business and Financial Engineering use the FSC and provide excellent learning experience to students.Integrate systems science and engineering principles appropriately throughout the Schaefer School of Engineering and Science, the School of Business and the College of Arts and Letters.
Goal C6 (Merged with I1)
A review methodology will be established to assess all undergraduate and graduate programs. Annually: assess program alignment with Stevens' strategic and fiscal plans. Every five years: assess program currency and relevancy to our students and possible employers.
OWNERS: PROVOST GEORGE KORFIATIS, VICE PRESIDENT LOUIS MAYER AND FACULTY SENATE (YEAR 4) PROVOST CHRISTOPHE PIERRE, VICE PRESIDENT LOUIS MAYER AND FACULTY SENATE (YEAR 5)
Unit reviews were conducted for Humanities and Social Sciences within the College of Arts and Letters and the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the Schaefer School of Engineering and Science. Due to the departure of the Dean of the Schaefer School of Engineering and Science in Fall 2015, the unit reviews originally scheduled for the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics and the Department of Mathematical Sciences were postponed.Furthermore, the Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) and Computing Accreditation Commission (CAC) of ABET conducted an evaluation of programs in engineering and computer science during 2015-16. All 10 programs evaluated (Biomedical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Engineering, Engineering Management, Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science) were fully accredited until September 30, 2022.In addition, an extensive analysis of the School of Systems and Enterprises was conducted during the Spring 2016 and Fall 2016 semesters, and a recommendation about the organizational structure of the School will be made in late 2016.Year 5: Reviews of the Mathematical Sciences unit, Physics department, Civil, Environmental & Ocean Engineering department, and Electrical & Computer Engineering department will take place.
Goal C7
All salaries (faculty at all levels and disciplines, administrative and staff positions) at Stevens will be benchmarked against an appropriate peer group to ensure quality and ability to attract the very best talent.
OWNER: VICE PRESIDENT LOUIS MAYER (YEAR 4) VICE PRESIDENT WARREN PETTY (YEAR 5)
During FY16-17, Stevens retained a nationally-recognized human resources and benefits consulting firm, Sibson Consulting, to perform a market based compensation analysis for faculty, staff, and executive administration. For staff salaries, Sibson has developed a new compensation administration program, which allocates all positions to their respective salary bands, with separate salary ranges for each (including min, max, and midpoint). For faculty salaries, Sibson has analyzed Stevens’ salaries, by school, against market benchmarks. The same process has been done for executive administration salaries. The Sibson work is expected to be completed by December 2016 and will be presented to the Board of Trustees Human Resources and Compensation Committee for their review and approval. Year 5: The results of the Sibson Consulting work will be reviewed and evaluated for appropriate implementation, with reference to the Stevens Compensation Philosophy Statement.