Programs, Curricula & Courses (PCC) Manual

Introduction
 Table of Contents
Programs
Departments
Approval Routes and Times
Centers and Institutes
College Contacts

The Design of Academic Programs

Curriculum Changes
Faculty Governance
Off-Campus and
Distance Learning
Minors
Bachelor's Degrees
Honors Programs
Master's Degrees
Doctoral Degrees
Certificates
Combined Bachelor's /
Master's Degrees
Dual Master's /
Doctoral Degrees
Credentials
Master and Graduate Certificate of Professional Studies

bullet Approved Programs

bullet 2007-08 Academic Planning and Programs Calendar (Please contact the Graduate School for information about Graduate PCC and Graduate Council meetings.)

 

II. Academic Departments

An academic department is a campus unit officially recognized as such. Ordinarily a department offers one or more academic programs, maintains a separate budget, and may serve as the home unit for tenure track faculty. Units satisfying these criteria that are not officially recognized as such are not academic departments.

IIA. Establishing or Renaming an Academic Department

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The required on-campus steps include review by APAC, by the Senate PCC Committee, and by the Senate. There is no specific format required for the necessary documentation. Issues that will arise when a new department is proposed will include the academic maturity of the programs offered, national norms for the existence of similar departments, and the adequacy of available resources. Issues that will arise in relation either to a proposed new department or to a proposed new name will include potential conflict with the mission or the name of existing departments and programs. Upon Senate approval, and if he concurs, the President sends the proposal to the Chancellor. Although formal approval by the Board of Regents is required, the Board has delegated its approval authority to the Chancellor. This is pro-forma in most cases. In potentially contentious cases the Chancellor is likely to consult with the Board before acting.

IIB. Merging or Splitting Academic Departments

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The required steps are the same as described in IIA above. However, the proposal must respond to questions concerning the tenure home of affected faculty, the unit that will be responsible for offering affected academic programs, the unit affiliation of affected staff, and the advising and support arrangements for affected students. All members of the department(s) involved must have the opportunity to vote on the action, and the votes must be reported in the proposal. In particular, when departments are to be split, each tenure track faculty member will be allowed to choose the department that will become his or her tenure home, and appropriate budget arrangements will be made to enable this choice.

IIC. Closing a Department

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A proposal to close an academic department may be non-adversarial, arising from a College as part of a planned reconfiguration of its academic structure. In that case, the considerations of Section IIB apply.

A proposal to close down an academic department may also be adversarial, imposed upon the Department or College by the Office of Academic Affairs, based on programmatic, quality, or fiscal considerations. In this case, special discontinuation procedures have been established allowing for full participation by the campus community in the decision. No specific formats are required for the extensive documentation needed in these cases.

 

 

Office of the Associate Provost for Academic Planning & Programs
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