Academy of Scholars and Faculty Research Advisory Committee
Below is a summary of the discussion by the Academy of Scholars and Faculty Research Advisory Committee on December 5, 2005 who focused on the second goal in the current plan, pre-eminence in research and scholarship.
2. Pre-eminence in Research and Scholarship: Strengthen our performance as a nationally recognized research university by focusing on our competitive advantages, enhancing our scholarship, emphasizing a multidisciplinary approach to research, and collaborating with government, industry and other institutions to enhance economic growth and the quality of life.
- Implementation of revised strategic plan should include a matrix of accountability and tasks.
- Improve infrastructure to attract top talent including big ticket items such as research buildings, equipment and bridge funding for research teams.
- Continue to increase research ranking.
- Create culture of high expectations for research and scholarship at national level.
- Make competitive salary offers to graduate students with multi-year awards.
- Increase the number of endowed chairs and set a goal of obtaining 100 endowed chairs as part of the university’s capital campaign.
- Reprioritize strategic directions to make research number one goal and to drive other areas of the strategic plan.
- Create professional support for existing faculty.
- Maintain and strengthen WSU’s reputation as metropolitan, regional university.
- Examine the viability of a 40,000 student enrollment and examine more selective admissions standards because of low retention and graduation rates.
- Rely on community colleges to train poorly prepared students.
- Focus resources on academic units and PhD programs that have received national ranking or have the potential of receiving national ranking.
- Need for university conferencing center that can double as a performing arts center.
- Allow faculty release time from teaching to pursue research objectives, particularly for new faculty.
- Provide across-the-board clarity of campus mission specifically on the role of research and teaching.
- Create equity for faculty members who are part of a team of researchers on large grants, but not necessarily the principal investigator.
- Omit goal 2.2.3 of current plan since WSU’s promotion and tenure system is already based on national standards.
- Increase the participation of undergraduate students in research and scholarship.
- Emphasize the formation of collaborative multidisciplinary research teams to compete for multi-million, multi-year grants.
- Attract excellent teachers and researchers.
- Support and reward innovation.
- Recognize that excellence in some fields is not reliant on large external grant funding.
- Strike a balance between research excellence and our urban mission with the recognition that admission standards have increased in recent years.
- Examine the notion of promoting WSU as a metropolitan, internationally-focused university.