S.00-29
SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
Office of the Vice President, Academic
?
MEMORANDUM
TO: Senate ?
FROM: J.M. Munro,
Vice President, Academic
SUBJECT:
Planning and Review Framework
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DATE: February 11, 2000
Action taken by the Senate Committee on Academic Planning Leads to
the following motions:
+e+Scp
lkIi3
Motion I
?
SCAP
recomme4s(hat
Senate approves the revisions to the
Senate Guidelines for Ext,rnaL Reviews contained in S.00-29
j V4
+D
S
' Cø.p
L0100
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Motion 2 ?
SCAP recommend that Senate approves the new Senate
Guidelines for Academic PIan,
/
contained in S.00-29
There are also several additions and explanations concerning the
material in SCAP 00-6 (now S.00-29).
1.
SCAP suggested that the "Senate Guidelines for Academic Plans" include
specific target dates rather than just refer to academic years in which plans
and plan progress reports would be prepared. This would serve to increase the
usefulness of plans and plan progress reports in budget discussions for the
forthcoming fiscal year. In response, completion dates for plans and plan
progress reports have been added as follows: November
1st
for units; January
15
th
for Faculties, and February 15
th
for the Vice President, Academic.
2.
The example of the Department-level Planning and Review Schedule
presented at the SCAP meeting contained errors; these have been corrected.
3.
It was suggested that the revisions to the existing "Senate Guidelines for
External Reviews" (5.96-23) be specified. The proposal includes the following
changes.
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a. "Planning for renewal of the unit's faculty resources" is added as a
topic in the self-study report.
2
b.
The representation of both genders on the review committee is now
"'shall" rather than "should".
c.
The review committee submits its report to the Vice President,
Academic who then circulates it to the unit, the President, and the
Deans of the Faculty and of Graduate Studies. This clarifies to whom the
report is to be submitted. Distribution to SCAP occurs later.
d. There is no longer provision for comments to the unit by
administrators or committees at the time of the initial submission of the
report by the review committee.
e.
The unit prepares a response to the external review report and this
plus comments by the Dean and Vice President, Academic are submitted
to SCAP and Senate. In the current Guidelines the external review leads
directly to a new academic plan. In the new integrated proposal this
occurs in the year following the external review.
f. Concerns expressed by some Chairs over lack of closure on
recommendations in external reviews have led to the inclusion of a new
section (13.) that follows Senate discussion of external review reports,
responses, and comments. This requires the Faculty Dean to outline
priorities for the unit and the resources required to address them.
g.
The reporting of progress in academic plan implementation is now in
the "Senate Guidelines for Academic Plans".
h. There are a number of editorial changes. Any Senator wishing to
review these can obtain a copy of S96.23 from the University Secretariat
office.
S 96-23 can also be accessed directly on the web at:
S.
SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
?
Office of the Vice President, Academic?
MEMORANDUM
TO: Senate Committee on Academic Planning
FROM:
J.M. Munro,
Vice President, Academic
SUBJECT:
Planning and Review Framework ?
DATE: February 7,2000
This is a proposal to integrate the frameworks for the external review of academic
departments and the three-year academic planning process. The rationale for this proposal
is that both external reviews and academic planning have been important and successful
initiatives for the assessment and development of the University's academic programs but
they need to be integrated to avoid unnecessary duplication.
This proposal has been discussed at two other SCAP meetings in the last six
months. Since the last discussion at the December, 1999 meeting I have consulted with
Chairs and Directors. While there was full agreement that the integration of these two
S
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procedures was desireable and that planning guidelines would be useful, there was
disagreement over the most suitable interval between reviews and plans. Chairs in the
Faculty of Arts preferred plans at five-year intervals and external reviews at ten-year
intervals. In the other Faculties the preference was for the proposed 3/6 interval. After
further consideration and consultation, I am proposing plans every three years and
reviews every six years because I believe a shorter interval will be better for the period of
substantial change that the University is about to enter. The process of replacing retiring
faculty over the next decade will introduce a large number of changes that cannot be
foreseen now but will emerge in the years ahead. Five years is simply too long a planning
period for this level of change. Since Faculty and University plans are built on department
plans, a choice of five years would mean plans written in 2000/01 would be in place until
2005/06.
The external review process has existed in various forms since the early 1970s. The
current document specifying the objectives and procedures for external reviews is S96-23
(Senate Guidelines for External Reviews of Academic Units, March 4, 1996). While no
formal approval was sought for the current academic planning process, it is described in
two documents. The first is an April 21, 1997 memorandum written by Vice-President,
Academic David Gagan entitled "Three Year Academic Planning Cycle, 1998/2001. A
document dated January 7, 1999 entitled "Planning Framework for SFU" proposed an
integration of the review and planning processes. The current proposal provides a more
detailed and integrated system of academic planning and external reviews.
The main elements in the revised proposal are as follows. (Please note that
I*
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"Departmental" includes Schools and non-departmentalized Faculties.)
1.
External reviews will be on a 6-year cycle instead of the current nominal
7-year cycle.
2.
Departmental 3-year academic plans will be prepared directly following external
reviews and three years after that.
3.
Departmental academic plans will be updated through an annual progress report. In
the year prior to an external review the self-study win serve as the progress report.
4.
Faculty academic plans will be prepared every three years. The next plan is scheduled
for the academic year 2000/01. These will be developed using Departmental academic
plans and progress reports. There will be a progress report each year to update the plan.
5.
The academic plan of the Vice-President, Academic will be prepared every three years.
The next plan is scheduled for the year 2000/01 using Faculty academic plans. There will
be a progress report each year to update the plan.
It is expected that the annual progress reports will be brief summary documents
highlighting changes and accomplishments since the plan was written. Guidelines will be
provided concerning the content of all plans and progress reports.
The Senate Committee on Academic Planning will review the following
documents.
1.
Reports from Departmental external review committees together with the Departmental
response to the report and the comments of the Dean and Vice-President, Academic.
2.
The academic plan of the Vice-President, Academic. The Faculty plans will be
appendices to this plan.
3.
The annual progress report on the academic plan of the Vice-President, Academic. This
will include a report on the allocation of strategic funding.
All documents reviewed by SCAP will be transmitted to Senate for discussion and advice.
The following attached documents are part of this proposal.
1.
Senate Guidelines for External Reviews of Academic Units. This is a revision of the
1996 Guidelines which reflects a new approach to integration of reviews and plans by
scheduling so that reviews guide plans. It also adds planning for faculty renewal as an
explicit component of the self-study process. There are also a few editorial revisions.
2. Senate Guidelines for Academic Plans. This document is based on the plans as they
were prepared in 1997/98 and has been written to be consistent with the Guidelines for
External Reviews and other planning documents prepared in recent years. These
guidelines also include a reference to the "Statement of Purpose" approved by Senate and
the Board of Governors in 1998 as 5.98-51. ?
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3.
Planning and Review Schedule. This document schedules the integrated process of
review and planning through the 2000/01-2005/06 period. It is recognized that
unforeseen events will necessitate future modifications of this schedule.
4.
Schedule of External Reviews of Academic Units. This identifies when each academic
unit was last, and will next be, reviewed. With reference to A. in the Planning and Review
Schedule, the review year is "Review Year 1" and "Plan Year 1" for each academic unit.
cc. J.P. Blaney
S. Roppel
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SENATE GUIDELINES FOR
EXTERNAL REVIEWS OF ACADEMIC UNITS
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•
All academic
units*
are reviewed every six years. The purposes of such reviews are to
enable units to conduct their own assessments of their strengths and weaknesses, to obtain
the views of external experts in the field, and to support academic planning. The review
process is intended to ensure that:
(a)
The quality of the unit's programs is high and there are measures in place to
ensure the evaluation and revision of the teaching programs.
(b)
The quality of faculty research is high and faculty collaboration and
interaction provides a stimulating academic environment.
(c)
Department members participate in the administration of the unit and take
an active role in the dissemination of knowledge.
(d)
The departmental environment is conducive to the attainment of the
objectives of the department.
Review committees should make their assessments taking into account the resources
currently available to the unit and the University.
Review Process
1.
The review will be initiated by the Vice-President, Academic, after consultation
with the Dean of the Faculty and the unit involved. The Dean of Graduate Studies
shall be involved in external reviews in relation to graduate programs and graduate
student issues.
2.
The unit will engage in a period of self-study of one to two semesters, possibly
including a retreat, in which its members consider all aspects of the activities
included in its academic plan and prepare a report covering the following areas:
(a)
Institutional role, unit role and activities, goals and aspirations;
(b)
Quality of teaching demonstrated by student achievement, scholarships and
awards, degrees completed, post-graduate employment;
(c)
Quality of the programs indicated by student demand, access to courses,
student opinion on programs, educational experience including co-op and
exchange opportunities, experience and satisfaction of students after
graduation;
(d)
Quality of scholarship demonstrated through grants, graduate student
achievements; knowledge distribution and utilization, awards, citations,
honours, appointments;
Departments, non-departmentalized Faculties, Schools, Programs. Parallel procedures will be used for
periodic reviews of academic service units.
(e)
Service to the community demonstrated by public service activity,
involvement in related community groups, membership on boards or similar
bodies;
(f)
Collegial environment for
all
members of the unit;
(g)
Appropriate orientation and training, support for employee development;
(h)
Resources for unit activities; faculty, staff, operating budget, space,
equipment, library holdings (including the process for determining
collection strategies).
(i)
Planning for the renewal of the unit's faculty resources.
3.
Undergraduate and graduate students will be encouraged to participate in the
preparation of material for the departmental self-study and student input will be
sought throughout the process. The Chair/ Director should contact the student
union and student representatives on departmental committees, as well as
publicizing the review in classes and within the department. Student contributions
will be included or reflected in the self-study and students will have meetings with
the external review committee.
4.
The self-study report prepared by the unit shall be made available to all members
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of the unit (faculty, staff and students) prior to being forwarded to the external
review committee. The self-study shall include a standard set of data provided by
the Office of the Vice- President, Academic. The unit may supplement this if it
wishes.
5.
The external review committee will normally consist of three persons external to
the university who are senior members of the discipline, some of whom have had
administrative experience. The unit will be asked to provide the Vice-President,
Academic with a list of reviewers who represent a broad cross section of the
discipline and who are considered to be outstanding scholars and objective
reviewers. The Vice-President, Academic shall appoint the members of the external
review committee after consulting with the Dean of the Faculty, the Dean of
Graduate Studies and the unit involved. The external review committee will
primarily be composed of faculty members from Canadian universities outside
British Columbia. The Vice-President, Academic will also appoint an internal
member from the University community who will be a full member of the
committee. The internal member is to provide the review committee with
contextual advice about the environment and operations of Simon Fraser
University. Both genders will be represented on the committee.
6.
The Vice-President, Academic, will prepare the terms of reference for the review
committee in consultation with the Dean of the Faculty, the Dean of Graduate
Studies and the unit. At the conclusion of its visit, the review group is expected to
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submit a detailed report including a full and frank assessment of the unit's mission,
its various activities, the quality of the unit and its programs, and the resource
allocation to and within the unit.
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7. ?
The dates of the visit of the external review committee and the detailed schedule for
the visit will be arranged by the Office of the Vice-President, Academic in
consultation with the Deans and the unit.
8. ?
The committee will meet with the Vice-President, Academic and the Deans at the
start and at the end of the review to discuss guidelines for the review and the
preparation of the report. The committee will also meet with the unit's faculty and
staff members and graduate and undergraduate students as well as with others
with responsibilities affecting the unit. Members of the external review committee
should avoid informal social events with members of the unit during the site visit.
9. ?
If the review committee receives information or allegations regarding specific
individuals, these will be transmitted to the appropriate persons within the
University and handled in accordance with established University procedures.
These persons might include the Chair, and Dean and/or the Harassment Policy
Coordinator. If the review committee receives general comments or complaints
that the environment in the unit is not conducive to a high quality of teaching,
learning, research and working, the committee may comment and make
recommendations on this in its report, and the appropriate persons within the
Department, Faculty and University shall be advised.
10. The report of the review committee will be a public document. Any supplementary
reports concerning confidential matters will not form part of the public record but
will be made available to the appropriate University officers. Any individuals
named will be apprised of the information and provided with an opportunity to
comment.
11.
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The external review report will be submitted to the Vice President, Academic and
circulated to:
(a)
the unit involved (including faculty, staff and students)
(b)
the President
(c)
the Dean of the Faculty
(d)
the Dean of Graduate Studies
12. ?
The unit will review the external review report and prepare a response. The
response and the external review report together with the comments of the Dean
and the Vice-President, Academic will be presented to SCAP for review and to
Senate for discussion and advice.
13. ?
The Dean shall consider the advice of Senate and prepare a report for the unit
outlining the priorities for the unit and the resources required to address them. A
copy of this report shall be sent to the Vice President, Academic for information.
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SENATE GUIDELINES FOR ACADEMIC PLANS
1. Each academic
unit*
shall prepare a three-year academic plan in the year following its
external review and in the year in which the first plan ends. Academic plans are
intended to guide the operation and development of the academic unit and will be
considered by the Dean and Vice President, Academic in making decisions on
allocation of resources.
2. Each Faculty Dean will prepare a three-year academic plan on the same schedule.
These will utilize the three-year academic plans of academic units within the Faculty
and the progress reports on those plans.
3. The Vice-President, Academic will prepare a three-year academic plan on the same
schedule as the Faculty plans. These will utilize the three-year academic plans the
Faculties and of academic service units.
4. Academic plans should give consideration to the elements in the Statement of Purpose
for the University approved by Senate and the Board of Governors in 1998.
5. Academic plans should include the following information. The unit will determine the
organization of the plan.
(a)
A statement of objectives.
(b)
A brief overview of the undergraduate and graduate programs offered by
the unit.
(c)
An assessment of achievements during the previous plan period.
(d)
The adequacy of resources available to the unit in relation to their situation
and objectives. This will include faculty complement, other instructional
resources, operating budgets, equipment, and space.
(e)
A summary of the research activities of the unit's members.
(f)
A plan for the renewal of the unit's faculty resources.
(g)
Recruitment and support issues for undergraduate and graduate students.
(h)
Participation of the unit in other University programs including Continuing
Studies and Co-operative Education.
6. The Office of the Vice- President, Academic, will provide statistical information for use
in academic plans and an annual budget outlook.
Departments, non-departmentalized Faculties, Schools, Programs. Parallel procedures will be used for
plans of academic service units.
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7.
Academic plans will be used by the next highest level in preparing their own academic
plan. Departmental plans will be used by the Faculty Dean in preparing the Faculty plan
and Faculty plans will be used by the Vice President, Academic in preparing the plan of
the Vice- President, Academic.
8.
Each unit will provide an annual progress report except in the year when a Department
is preparing a self—study for its external review when the self-study will serve as a
progress report.
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PLANNING AND REVIEW SCHEDULE
A.
DEPARTMENTS (example for units next reviewed in 1999/00,2005/06, etc.)
The schedule below applies to the following Departments:
Geography
Humanities
Gerontology
Political Science
Molecular Biology and Biochemistry (no 1999/00 review)
Plans for these Departments are prepared in the academic years 2000/01,2003/04, & 2006/07.
I
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Academic
Review
Plan
Year
Year
Year
Activity
Transmission Details
1999/00
6
3
• Self-Study for External Review
to External Review Team
• External Review
to Department
• Response to External Review
to SCAP with External
Review
2000/01
1
1
• Departmental Plan
to Dean
2001/02
2
2
• 1st Progress Report on Plan
to Dean
2002/03
3
3
• 2nd Progress Report on Plan
to Dean
2003/04
4
1
• Departmental Plan
to Dean
2004/05
5
2
• 1st Progress Report on Plan
to Dean
2005/06
6
3
• Self-Study for External Review
to External Review Team
• External Review
to Department
• Response to External Review
to SCAP with External
Review
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B. FACULTIES
The schedule outlined below applies to all Faculties. Faculty Plans are prepared in the
academic years 2000/01,2003/04, and 2006/07. They will be based on a combination of
Department Plans, 1' year progress reports and 2nd year progress reports, depending on the
planning and review schedule of the various Departments in the Faculty.
Academic
Review
Plan
Year
Year
Year
Activity
Transmission Details
1999/00
6
3
• 2' Progress Report on Plan
• to VPA
2000/01
1
1
• Faculty Plan
• to VPA
• Comments on 1999/00
• to SCAP*
Department External Reviews
2001/02
2
2
• 1" Progress Report on Plan
• to VPA
• Comments on 2000/01
• to SCAP*
Department External Reviews
2002/03
3
3
• 2' Progress Report on Plan
• to VPA
• Comments on 2001/02
• to SCAP*
Department External Reviews
2003/04
4
1
• Faculty Plan
• to VPA
• Comments on 2002/03
• to SCAP*
Department External Reviews
2004/05
5
2
• ?
Progress Report on Plan
• to VPA
• Comments on 2003/04
• to SCAP*
Department External Reviews
2005/06
6
3
• 2' Progress Report on Plan
• to VPA
• Comments on 2004/05
• to SCAP*
Department External Reviews
* Comments by the Dean on Departmental External Reviews are transmitted to SCAP with
copies of the External Review, the Response to the External Review by the Department, and
the Comments by the Vice- President, Academic.
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C. VICE-PRESIDENT, ACADEMIC
The academic plan of the Vice-President, Academic is prepared in the academic years 2000/01,
2003/04, and 2006/07.
Academic
Review
Plan
Year
Year
Year
Activity
Transmission Details
1999
/00
6
3
• 2 ?
Progress Report on Plan
• to SCAP
• Comments on
1999/00
•
to Department
Department External Reviews
2000/01
1
1
• VPA Plan
• to SCAP for approval,
Senate for discussion
• Comments on 2000/01
• to Department
Department External Reviews
2001/02
2
2
• 1' Progress Report on Plan
• to SCAP
• Comments on 2001/02
• to Department
Department External Reviews
2002/03
3
3
• 2 ?
Progress Report on Plan
• to SCAP
• Comments on 2002/03
• to Department
Department External Reviews
2003/04
4
__
1
• VPA Plan
• to SCAP for approval,
Senate for discussion
• Comments on 2003/04
• to Department
Department External Reviews
2004/05
5
2
• ?
Progress Report on Plan
• to SCAP
• Comments on 2004/05
• to Department
Department External Reviews
2005/06
6
3
• 2
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Progress Report on Plan
• to SCAP
• Comments on 2005/06
• to Department
Department External Reviews
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SCHEDULE OF EXTERNAL REVIEWS OF ACADEMIC UNITS
Last Review
Next Review
Continuing Studies
1990/91
2000/01
Economics
1992/93
2000/01
Linguistics and Cognitive Science
1992/93
2000/01
Psychology & Clinical Psychology Centre
1991/92
2000/01
Education
1992/93
2000/01
Chemistry
1993/94
2000/01
Engineering Science
1995/96
2001/02
Centre for Canadian Studies
1994/95
2001/02
Criminology
1994/95
2001/02
History
1994/95
2001/02
Master of Publishing
2001/02
Philosophy
1993/94
2001/02
Women's Studies
1994/95
2001/02
Kinesiology
1996/97
2002/03
Resource & Environmental Management
1995/96
2002/03
Sociology & Anthropology including Latin
1995/96
2002/03
American Studies
Contemporary Arts
1995/96
2002/03
English
1996/97
2002/03
Earth Sciences
2002/03
Communication
1997/98
2003/04
Archaeology
1997/98
2003/04
Graduate Liberal Studies Program
1996/97
2003/04
Mathematics & Statistics
1997/98
2003/04
Physics
1997/98
2003/04
Computing Science
1998/99
2004/05
Community Economic Development
2004/05
Asia Canada Program
2004/05
French
1998/99
2004/05
Business Administration
1998/99
2004/05
Biological Sciences
1998/99
2004/05
Geography
1999/00
2005/06
Gerontology
1999/00
2005/06
Humanities
1999/00
2005/06
Political Science
1999/00
2005/06
Molecular Biology and Biochemistry
2005/06
