SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

S.10-14

Senate Committee on University Priorities

Memorandum

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Senate

FROM:

Jon Driver

Chair

,

SCUP and

Vice President, Academic

January

13,

201

~

RE:

Department of Philosophy

DATE:

~

The

Senate Committee on

University

Priorit

i

es (SCUP) has

revie

d

t~

External

Review

Report on the

Department

of Philosophy,

together

with

res

ons s

from the

Department, the Dean of Arts

& Social Sciences and input from

the

ss ciate Vice

President

,

Academic

.

Motion:

That Senate approve the recommendation from the Senate Committee on

University Priorities to implement the Action Plan for the Department of

Philosophy that resulted from

its

External Review.

Following

the

review

team's site visit

the report

of the

External

Review Team

*

for

the

Department of Philosophy was submitted

in

May 2009.

After

the

Report was

received

a meeting was held with

the

Dean of Arts & Social

Sciences, the

Department

of Philosophy and the

Director

of Academic Planning (VPA)

to

consider the recommendations. The Department

then

prepared an Action Plan based

on

the

Report and these discussions and submitted

it to the Dean

who endorsed the

Action Plan on

November

30

,

2009.

The

Rev

i

ew Team members stated that the

Department

of Philosophy has

long

been a

significant presence on the Canadian philosophical scene with a reputation

for its

work

in

philosophy of mind and

language,

logic

,

cognitive science and ethics

.

SCUP

recommends

to Senate that

Department

of

Philosophy

be advised to pursue

the

Action

Plan

.

Attachments:

1.

Department of Philosophy External Review - Action Plan

2.

Department

of Philosophy Externa

l

Review Report

External Review Team:

---

Samantha Brennan (Chair) - University of Western Ontario

Mark Rollins -Washington University in

St Louis

Bruce Hunter - University

of Alberta

CC

L Cormack - Dean, Arts

&

Social Sciences

L

Shapiro - Chair, Department of Philosophy.

2

---

EXTERNAL REVIEW - ACTION PLAN

Unit under review

Date of Review Site visit

Responsible

Unit person,

Faculty Dean

PHILOSOPHY

25-27 March 2009

Lisa Shapiro

Lesley

Cormack

..................................................................

................................................

.............................................................

....................................................

Note: It is not expected thot every Recommendation made by the Review Team needs to be included here. The majar thrusts of the Report should be

identified. Some consolidation of the Recommendations may be possible while other Recommendations of lesser importance may be excluded.

External Review

Unit's response notes/Comments

Action to be taken

Resource implications

Expected

Recommendation

(if any)

(if any)

completion

date

1

The Department agrees with this

none

none

The Department should

recommendation, and indeed already does

reconstrue its historic area

of

conceive of itself in this way. The

strength in cognitive science as

Department takes this recommendation,

'metaphysics/epistemology

along

with the reviewers' noting two other

plus'

- broadly construed to

departmental strengths, to support the

include philosophy

of cognitive

articulation

of our departmental identity in

Science, philosophy of mind, and the Three Year Plan as a tightly knit

philosophy

of language -- to

constellation of three strengths, evidenced

reflect departmental realities

in teaching (both undergraduate

and

better, and should target it as an graduate) and research: Ethics, History of

area to be solidified and

Philosophy, and what the reviewers term

enhanced, which still leaving the

Metaphysics/Epistemology

Plus. In our

Department in a position

to

recent three year plan, we articulate our

provide support

to the Cognitive

departmental identity in greater detail.

Science programme.

Briefly, our research focuses on the central

question

of how to reconcile key normative

dimensions

of human life with a scientific

understanding

of the world.

1

---

2 Staffing needs

The Department fully endorses this set of

(1) Should the targeted

(1) An LTD or/and CFL

(1) Fall 2010

(1) University administration

recommendations. We very much

hire

of

fail, we

or Fall 2011

should take advantage of

appreciate the limits of the financial

will ask for an L T A for

(2) LTD, followed by a CFL

the opportunity to secure

situation of the University, and we have

the 2010-11 academic

in

2012 (NOTE: CFL for

the promised foreign natural been and continue to be very willing to

year, with approval to

2012 has already been

(2)FaIl2012

spousal hires \

take advantage of the opportunity to make search for a CFL position

approved

as a spousal

, in addition

to its

spousal hires.

to start Fall 2011. [At

hire

of

I)

new hire (Andersen). This

the

time of this writing,

(3),(4) Upon

will secure the services of

While the Reviewer's Report is clear that

the hire of

has

(3),(4) Replacement

any

three junior scholars, all

Philosophy should have a continuing

failed, and we have

positions

for any

retirements

apparently very impressive

faculty complement

of 14, considering the

asked for a position.)

retirements.

within the

on paper, working

in areas

recommendations concerning the

department

close

to the department's

graduate, and to some extent the

(2) While we

wait for

traditional areas of research

undergraduate, programmes helps in

arrival in

Fall

and collaborative activity,

understanding why they so forcefully

2012, we request an lTD

and will bring the overall

recommend this.

to support programming

complement

of continuing

in the interim.

faculty

to 14, thereby

It is hard to articulate these reasons in this

allowing

it to deal with the

format, and so we append a larger

main problems

in the

discussion to this document in Appendix A.

delivery of its graduate and

undergraduate programs.

(2)

If the services of '

cannot be secured, the

Department should be given

a position, preferably

upgraded, in the area

we

call

'epistemology/metaphysics

plus,' thereby also bringing

its complement

to 14

continuing faculty.

(3) The Department should seek

to fill its next position, when

2

---

available, in the History of

Philosophy, preferably in an

area, e.g. the history of

ethics, which both

complements current

strength in

the history of

philosophy and its other

strengths, and strengthens

its position

for collaboration

in research and teaching

with other programmes in

the university.

(4)

Current faculty members

should be replaced, upon

retirement,

to maintain a

continuing

faculty

complement

of 14.

3 Graduate and Upper Division

The Department endorses

(5)

Implement

See (1)-(4) above.

See (1)-(4)

Course Offerings

recommendation (5), and will opt to limit

departmental policy

To successfully

above

(5) The Department

should

the number of directed readings any given

regarding number of

implement this

restrict

the number of

student can take. We also endorse

directed studies each

recommendation the

graduate student directed

recommendation (6).

In order for students

graduate student is

Department requires

readings extra

to load,

to complete their degrees in a timely way,

permitted

to take to

additional 2 CFL staff to

either to one per faculty

if we limit directed readings, we must offer

satisfy his or her degree

ensure

that both

member per year,

or to one

some additional graduate level courses,

requirements.

Undergraduate and

per graduate student during

i.e.,

400/800 level courses. Doing so will

Graduate courses

the course

of his or her

also serve our undergraduate majors,

as

(6) In order to achieve

offerings are at a

programme.

they now require a

400-level course to

the additional graduate

sufficient level to ensure

3

---

(6) The Department should use

satisfy the major requirements (while also

courses and 400-level

timely degree

some of the additional

satisfying their upper division W

undergraduate courses

completion.

teaching capacity

from its

requirement).

recommended, the

expected new appointments

It is important to note that these

department requires a

to put on more classes at

recommendations do not target the overall faculty complement of

the 400 and 800 levels.

quality of either the graduate or

14 CFL. At the very least

undergraduate programs,

but rather aim to

we need support in the

sustain that quality.

form of temporary

instruction budget to

In Appendix A, we provide additional

replace course release

discussion

of the challenges, and indeed

and study leaves, and

impossibility,

of meeting these

ideally we would be able

recommendations given

our current staff.

to hire LTDs until we

reach our full faculty

complement of 14.

The Undergraduate

Curriculum Committee

will review the

curriculum to see if

additional efficiencies

can be found

4

Research Productivity

(7) As the reviewers note, various

(7) The

Department will

(7) Fall 2009

(7) The

Department should

departures (Jeff Pelletier, Oliver Schulte)

define its 'identity' in its

and

Fall 2014

undertake a planning

and health issues have compromised the

3 year plan. The

Chair

process, under the guidance

research profile of the department. While

will mentor new faculty,

(8)

Fall 2014

of the Chair, to determine

some members do have active research

and work with

what it wants to be and do

programmes, a number of members'

continuing faculty

to set

in

five years.

research efforts

targets and develop

(8) The Department should set

need invigoration.

strategies

for achieving

itself a target for SSHRC

(8) The Department wants to emphasize

them. The Chair will

SRGs, e.g., 1/3 of graduate

that holding of research grants is but one

also aim to identify and

faculty, and the Chair should

of several equally valid measures of

nurture departmental

indicate to incoming junior

research success in our discipline (and

strengths that emerge

4

---

faculty Department

indeed, in many

disciplines in Arts and

or solidify.

expectations of application,

Social Science), and indeed grant holding is

assigning them mentors

not even typically taken to be the principal (8) Faculty will be

from successful grant

measure

of success. Nonetheless, the

encourage to apply for

applicants in the

Department supports this recommendation SSHRC grants, with a

department to advise them

as a way of strongly encouraging faculty to goal of having 1/3 of

on their applications.

apply for SSHRC funding, and notes that

faculty (currently 4)

preparing a

SSHRC application can help in

either hold grants or

focusing research aims. Additionally, it

apply.

notes

that younger scholars have an

advantage in applying for SSHRC funding,

and the Chair

will both encourage and

mentor new faculty on the application

process. However, since

the results of

competitions are not predictable, we want

to emphasize that the percentage of

faculty holding grants is a

target.

S Senior lecturer Replacement

The Department believes this issue neither

Upon

the retirement of

Upon the

The Department should consider

has to be nor

ought

to be addressed now.

Peter Horban, the

retirement of

a regular tenure track

As our senior lecturers retire, the

Philosophy Department

Peter Horban

replacement

for Dr. Horban,

Department can,

at those times,

consider

will require either an

when he retires, in

order to

what sort of replacement position would

Assistant

Professor or a

bring

it in line with other

best serve the long-term interests of the

Permanent Lecturer as a

research universities and

SFU's

Department. It should be noted that the

replacement position.

goal

of being a research

department

as a whole very much

intensive university.

appreciates the choice

SFU has made to

have teaching appointments. Permanent

lecturer positions provide a distinct

advantage not only

to the lecturers, who

have job security and full benefits, but also

to departments and students to whom

lecturers afford consistency in both course

offerings and high quality instruction.

5

---

6

The department will

December

The reviewers

mention a

undertake a review

of

2009

number of issues involving

its policies regarding

criteria used

in salary review

tenure, promotion and

(see

I(c), lI(i), lII(i), and IV(b».

salary review in Fall

2009.

Any revisions to

the expectations will be

applied in the biannual

review

of the cohort in

January

201l.

7

While not within

our purview, the

The reviewers recommend

that

department concurs with this

FASS should establish a number

recommendation.

of awards for undergraduate

teaching, and

the University

should consider establishing

teaching awards for

different

kinds ofteaching

and different categories of

teachers.

8

Funding for the proposed Surrey

Philosophy will propose

Coordination with FASS

Certificate

The external reviewers

programme was frozen, and so MA

an Undergraduate

and

other faculties to

Program will

found "the MA programme

programme there

has been put on hold.

Certificate in Ethics.

conceive

of and fundraise

be proposed

[proposed

for Surrey) in

However, we note that the VPA's recently

for a Centre for Ethics.

in 2009-10

professional and applied ethics

announced strategic plan emphasizes

the

Philosophy will work

academic

innovative and

well

place of ethics and citizenship, as well as

with the Dean of FASS

year.

thought

out, and the certificate

relevance and community involvement, in

to collaborate with

programme a good idea."

SFU's educational mission. A programme in

other faculties, including

Timeframe

Professional Ethics would

fit perfectly into

Business, FHS and

for Centre for

this part of the strategic plan. Additionally,

Environment,

to

Ethics will

this programme, and an associated Centre,

conceive and initiate a

depend on

6

---

would allow for a central core through

Centre for Ethics.

cooperation

which applied ethics courses associated

of others.

with the new Faculties (Le., Environmental

Ethics, Health

Care and

Biomedical Ethics, and Ethics and

Technology)

could be taught.

The above action

plan has been considered by the Unit under review and has been discussed and agreed to by the Dean.

Unit Leader (signed)

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Dean's comments and endorsement of the Action Plan:

The external review team assembled to evaluation the Department of Philosophy has done a full and exemplary job of appraising the strengths and

weaknesses

of the Department, as well as providing thoughtful suggestions for the future. I am in broad agreement, both with the external review and

~

with the Department's response. Let me take the main points in order.

1) I leave it to the Department to decide what areas of strength would best develop their research and teaching programs. The idea of a

'metaphysics/epistemology plus' area fits

well within the areas of strength already established in the Department and will provide a good focal point

for much of their research. I also agree with the external review team's assessment that history of philosophy is an area of strength for SFU and one

where we

could make a strong national and international showing.

2)-5) Staffing.

I have been delighted to facilitate the hiring of Holly Andersen in the past year. I know her participation will be significant to the

Department.

I am also pleased to have secured the funding for 2 spousal hires in the next 2 years.

J

have been working with the Chair and the

Department to

make these hires happen and I am hopeful that they will be successful. If

does not come, we will do our best to provide the

position in another form.

In the case of

. however, there is no funding available in advance of his taking up the position and so a Limited Term

may

not be possible.

6) and 7) Teaching capacity. I am in complete agreement with both the external review and the Department's response. However, FASS has no

7

---

temporary instruction budget and therefore is not able to replace faculty on study leave or administrative duties in any departments. This is also true

for replacing a course release for the graduate chair. At the moment, FASS does not have the resources to replace this teaching.

8) Research. The 3-year plan was a good first step in planning for the Department and I encourage them to take up the external review

recommendation to think carefully about their 5 year plan especially in research.

I also encourage the Department and the Chair to continue to think of

ways to reengage faculty members whose research programs have stalled.

9) Given that SSHRC funding is important not just for the researcher, but for the graduate students who can be funded and for research funding more

generally in the Department, I agree with this recommendation. In making this recommendation, I recognize that input measures are only one (and not

the best) measure of research productivity and success. FASS will be working with department chairs and directors to develop more robust output

measurements in the coming year.

10) Replacement for Dr. Horban.

I leave this to the Department, as the time approaches, to consider this recommendation and I neither agree nor

disagree. Much will depend upon circumstances at the

time of this decision, both in terms of funding and teaching capacity, and research directions

and productivity.

There are several recommendations

that speak to the need for a robust salary evaluation, taking into account all three areas of teaching, research, and

service. While

I believe that this is generally the case already, I applaud Philosophy's decision to work on this area, and will work with them to ensure

that excellence in all three areas is appropriately rewarded. After some delay, the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Teaching awards will be

proceeding in Spring, 2010, thereby fulfilling one of the other recommendations of the review.

Finally,

J

would

like to note that, although the funding for a Surrey program in applied ethics has probably disappeared for any foreseeable future, FASS

is working with Philosophy to conceptualize a centre for Applied Ethics, or Ethics in the professions. We will be working with the faculties of Business,

Health

Sciences, and Environment especially in order to make use of synergies in these areas.

Date

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8

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APPENDIX A

The External Review recommends strongly that Philosophy have a faculty complement

of 14, rather than our current 12. This Appendix aims to

explain that recommendation.

As evidenced

in the table below In order to mount

simply

a bare bones set of undergraduate courses (i.e., with any general education courses

offered only at

SFU Vancouver and Surrey where they can still be taught by scssionals), allowing for course releases to the Chair (2) and Grad

Chair

(I; see IV(a) below), and

not

allowing for any study leaves, we require a faculty complement of 12, two of whom are Senior Lecturers,

which

is our current size. At this size,

without allowing for study leaves,

we can add two graduate courses.

The problems begin to arise as soon as study leaves are allowed for. Allowing for one study leave a year, we require a complement

of 13, and

allowing for two study leaves a year (reasonable enough

in a department this size), we require a complement of 14. And again, this is teaching

only a

12 bare bones undergraduate curriculum and adding only two graduate courses.

The reviewers recommend we add additional graduate and

400-level courses, both to relieve the pressure on faculty of offering mUltiple directed

studies

in addition to load and to improve the graduate program. Currently, we do not have the capacity to offer additional graduate level courses.

To add an additional 1-2 graduate courses a year, as the reviewers recommend in their more detailed discussion, would require a faculty

complement

of 15.

These data reveal just how thinly stretched the department is: we are operating at super-maximal efficiency, and have absolutely no room for

expansion. With our current faculty complement it is

unavoidable

that a significant number of graduate students will have to complete directed

reading courses simply to complete their degrees

in a timely manner while focusing on an area of interest.

We anticipate the loss of budget for temporary instruction to impact us quite hard, in terms of being able to allow both for well-deserved study

leaves and regular offerings of undergraduate courses. Indeed, the reviewers note that this is a 'source of stress' and 'seriously jeopardizes the

vitality and diversity

of the programme.' To try to manage this pressure, and to see if there is a way to offer additional graduate courses with

current staff, while allowing for study leaves, the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee will review the curriculum to see

if additional efficiencies

can be found.

Moreover, it is worth noting that any new course ofTerings must be viable ill terms of enrolments. But to have sufficient students registered in the

3-4 additional graduate courses the reviewers recommend, we would need to increase the number of students in our graduate program, and be able

to support them financially. Second, as already noted above, our current faculty complement (even with the arrival

of Andersen) is insufficient to

our graduate program as it currently stands.

In order to mount two additional graduate courses, we would need not only the two additional faculty

required to maintain a program

of ollr current size but also at least one morc, for a complement of 15. See the table below for further detail.

9

---

Bare Bones Course Offerings with Assessment of Staffing Requirements

Total number of courses at Burnaby

Total

number of tt faculty and no admin release

Adjustment for senior lecturers ( 2 Senior lecturers

=

3.25 tt faculty)

Total

number of faculty and admin release ( Chair

2,

Grad Chair

1)

Addition of 2 Graduate courses

Allowance

for

1

faculty study leave per year

Allowance for 2 faculty study leaves per year

Addition of

1

Graduate courses,bringing total to

3

Adding yet another Graduate course, bring total to

4

001 Critical Thinking Q

100 Knowledge & Reality W

47.5

49.5

frequ

ency

3

3

enrol/yr

900

72S

11.875

(10.625 tt faculty plus 2 SR

10.625

Lee)

(11.375 tt faculty plus 2 SR

11.375

lee)

(11.875 tt faculty plus 2 SR

11.875

Lee)

(12.875 tt faculty plus 2 SR

12.875

Lee)

(13.87S It faculty plus 2 SR

13.875

Lee)

(14.125 tt faculty plus 2 SR

14.125

Lee)

14.375

(14375 tt faculty plus 2 SR Lee)

tt faculty

0.75

0.75

10

---

110

Intro to Logic Be Reasoning Q

3

425

0.75

120

Facts and Values W

3

525

0.75

144

Intro Phil 01 Natural

&

Soc. Sci B

2

150

0.5

150

Hist 01 Philosophy I B

2

90

0.5

151

Hist of Philosophy II B

1

35

0.25

201

Epistemology

2

70

0.5

203

Metaphysics

2

70

0.5

210

Natural Deductive Logic Q

2

85

0.5

214

AKiomatic Logic

1

10

0.25

~

220

State and the Citizen

231 Selected Topics

240 Philosophy of Religion

0.5

35

0.125

241

Philosophy in literature

1

35

0.25

242

Philosophy of Art

280

Intro to EKistentialism

1

35

0.25

300

Intro to Philosophy

-- --

-

11

---

lower division totals

26.5

3190

6.625

302 Topics in Epistem and Meta

1

35

0.25

314 Topics in LoCic I

1

5

0.25

320 Social

& Political Philosophy

1

35

0.25

321 Moral Issues and Theories

1

35

0.25

322 History of Ethics

0.5

17.5

0.125

331 Selected Topics

1

35

0.25

332 Selected Topics

1

35

0.25

333 Selected Topics

1

35

0.25

.........

!lJ

341 Philosophy of Science

1

35

0.25

343 Philosophy of Mind

35

0.25

344 Philosophv or language I

1

35

0.25

350 Ancient Philosophy

1

35

0.25

352 17'" Century Philosophy

1

3S

0.25

356

lSi"

Century Philosophy

1

35

0.25

357 Topics in History of Philosophy

0.5

17.5

0.125

12

---

300 lellel totals

14

460

3.5

421 Ethical Theories

0.5

10

0.125

435

Selected Topics

15

0.25

444 Philosophy or language

II

0.5

7.5

0.125

451 Kant

O.S

7.S

0.125

455 Contemp Issues ;n Epist

&

Meta

0.5

7.S

0.125

467 Seminar

II

2

30

0.5

477 lionours Tutorial

478 Honours Tulorial

II

I

8XX

2

25

0.5

400 plus

grad tolals

7

102.5

1.75

47.5

3752.5

11.875

13

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Report of The External Review Team

Department of Philosophy

Simon Fraser University

I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

I

We, the members of the External Review Team, visited Simon Fraser University from

March

25-27,2009, and, together with Gordon Myers, Chair of the Department of

Economics at Simon Fraser University, met each member of the academic and non-

academic staff individually, as well as groups (self-selected)

of undergraduate students

and graduate students. In addition, we met the Chair of the Department of Philosophy at

the University of British Columbia, the Director of the Cognitive Science Programme,

SFU library representatives, and senior administrative staff at Simon Fraser. We very

much appreciated the friendliness and cooperation we received from everyone we met, as

well as the help we received from Dr. Myers and Bal Basi throughout our visit.

The Philosophy Department at Simon Fraser has long been a significant presence on the

Canadian philosophical scene, relative to its small size, with a reputation for its work in

philosophy

of mind and language, logic, cognitive science, and ethics. More recently, it

has acquired distinction in the history

of philosophy.

It

has also been a leader within

Simon Fraser

University itself, e.g. in developing the programme in cognitive science,

and in stepping up to develop courses satisfying university breadth, quantitative, and,

especially, writing, requirements. Creating and fine-tuning courses satisfYing these

requirements have clearly been a major focus

of department efforts

in

recent years, along

with more than doubling the size

of the graduate programme. Thriving enrolment in both

its undergraduate and graduate programmes testifies to its success in these endeavours

and to the overall quality

of its teaching

However, recent retirements and health issues have seriously affected its research,

teaching, and service capacities and performance. In addition, although we recognize

that there will always be differences in research productivity among faculty members,

there has been a recent tailing

off in research performance by too many mid-level faculty

due to a multitude

of factors, some of which may be solved by modest increased faculty

numbers, some changes to department and institutional procedures and practices, and a

more explicit overall department plan with reference to which individual department

members reinvigorate careers. Although we

don't see the department as "at risk" at this

point, it has the potential to be "at risk" if its position were to further deteriorate. At the

same time, we think that very little, beyond what seems to be already in the works

or

promised, may be needed, to restore its historical prominence, and, indeed, bring it to

even greater institutional, national, and international prominence.

We have ten main prioritized recommendations, together with a number

of specific

prioritized recommendations under each area on which we were asked to comment, all

of

which we discuss in context in the main body of the report.

IL{.

---

2

(1) The Department should reconstrue its historic area of strength in cognitive science

as 'metaphysics/epistemology

plus'~~~~broadly

construed to include philosophy

of cognitive science, philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, and philosophy

of

language~~~to

reflect departmental realities better, and should target it as an

area to

be solidified and enhanced, while still leaving the Department in a

position to provide support to the Cognitive Science programme.

(2)

University administration should take advantage of the opportunity to secure two

promised foreign national spousal hires (Begby and Nanay), in addition to its

new hire (Anderson). This will secure the services

of three junior scholars, all

apparently very impressive on paper, working in areas close to the department's

traditional areas

of research and collaborative activity, and will bring the overall

complement

of continuing faculty to 14, thereby allowing it to deal with the main

problems in the delivery

of its graduate and majors programme.

(3)

If

the services ofNanay can't be secured, the Department should be given a

position, preferably upgraded, in the area we call "epistemology/metaphysics

plus", thereby also bringing its complement to 14 continuing faculty.

(4) The Department should seek to fill its next position, when available, in the

History

of Philosophy, preferably in an area, e.g. the history of ethics, which both

complements its current research strength in History and its other research

strengths, and strengthens its position for collaboration in research and teaching

with other programmes in the university.

(5) Current faculty members should

be replaced, upon retirement, to maintain a

continuing faculty complement

of 14.

(6) The Department should restrict the number of graduate student directed readings

extra to load, either to one per faculty member per year, or to one per graduate

student during the course

of his or her programme.

(7) The Department should use some

of the additional teaching capacity from its

expected new appointments to put on more classes at the

400 and 800 levels.

(8) The Department should undertake a planning process, under the guidance

of its

Chair, to determine what it wants to do and be in five years.

(9) The Department should set itself a target for SSHRC SRGs, 'e.g.

113 of graduate

faculty, and the Chair should indicate to incoming junior faculty Department

expectations of application, assigning them mentors from successful grant

applicants in the department to advise them on their applications.

(10) The Department should consider a regular tenure track replacement for Dr.

Horban, when he retires, in order to bring it in line with other research

universities and

SFU's goal of being a research intensive university.

I~.

---

II. SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS IN ORDER OF PRIORITY

WITIDN TOPIC:

Undergraduate Programme and Teaching

(a)The Department should agree on rough expectations for normal 2-2 teaching with

respect to numbers

of students (within a range) and kind of classes, including

equivalences when some teaching is large class lecture/tutorial instruction.

(b )In the absence of any agreement on the latter, department expectation should be that

every regular faculty member will be rotated over time through some large

100 level

class or other, in the absence

of volunteers.

3

(c) Receipt ofa major teaching award should be a ground,

ceteris paribus,

for extra

incrementation, and, even in the absence

of an award, outstanding teaching over an

extended period

of time should be rewarded with extra incrementation, even if not on

a biannual basis.

(d)FASS should establish a number

of awards for undergraduate teaching, and the

University should consider establishing teaching awards for different kinds

of

teaching and different categories of teachers.

(e) The department should seek to ensure that some additional capacity that expected

new faculty members bring is devoted to the

400 level, with at least one 400 level

class per year that isn't cross listed, and 3-4 400/800 cross listed classes each term.

(f) The department should seek to retain the services of a Lecturer with at least part time

responsibilities for mentoring and supervising tutors.

(g) Instructors in

100 level classes should forward the names of their best students

(perhaps

B+ and above) to the Undergraduate Advisor, and signed letters should be

sent to these students

by the Advisor, inviting them to consider a major in

Philosophy, and to consult with him or her (if this is not already done).

(h) Academic departmental undergraduate advisors should have ready access to the files

of students whom they are advising.

(i) The department should consider reducing and streamlining its logic offerings,

department and university constraints permitting, with content adjusted (moved up

or

down), and an appropriate requirement for majors found in the streamlined sequence.

(j) The department should discuss the pros and cons of moving its History of Philosophy

1 and II to the 200 level.

(k)The department should consider the possibility

of encouraging current or new faculty

members to develop courses in Feminist Philosophy and Environmental Philosophy,

perhaps to

be taught alternatively with other non-core courses.

lb.

---

(1) The SFU undergraduate student association should be encouraged to stage an

undergraduate conference with UBC students,

or to participate in the Prairie

Undergraduate Student Association conferences.

Graduate programme and teaching:

(a) So long as the graduate programme remains at its current size, the department should

maintain its planned continuing faculty complement

of 14, with current members

replaced, upon retirement, to maintain that number.

4

(b)The department should institute one of the following rules: (1) a faculty member may

offer only one extra to load directed reading course for graduate students per year, OR

(2) a graduate student may take no more than one directed reading during his or her

programme.

(c)The department should ensure that some

of the additional teaching capacity its

expected new faculty bring is devoted to graduate level seminars, so that each major

term 3-4 cross listed

400/800 level seminars are offered, and two in the summer term,

in addition to the pro-seminar and two pure graduate joint seminars with UBC.

(d)The department should set a target for students supported

by SSHRC research

assistantships, e.g. 3-4, and seek to direct

RA funding to students over the summer

when possible, depending

on researcher needs.

(e)The department (especially its Graduate Chair) should monitor graduate student

programmes, and mentor students appropriately, to ensure that M.A. students take

no

more than 2 years to complete their programmes.

(f) The department should ensure that graduate student programmes contain a research

component that satisfies university expectations for significant research project,

whether that be a

MA Project, or in some cases, a Thesis project, while still ensuring

that students have a polished writing sample for application to

Ph.D. programmes.

(g)On an annual or bi-annual basis, the Chair should formally solicit suggestions from

graduate faculty for graduate (and senior undergraduate) seminars, and make decisions

in consultation with the Graduate and Undergraduate Chairs, with input from the

Department Manager concerning scheduling and time tabling issues.

(h) The Graduate Chair should advise students about possibilities

of supervision for their

research project, while recognizing that (normally) students (and supervisors) must be

free to make these decisions.

(i) The Department Chair should recognize extraordinary supervisory duties or other

teaching duties over time,

ceteris paribus,

in increment recommendations or

occasional adjustments to teaching load.

---

5

(j)

Graduate students must

log

the hours they work as a TA to determine whether they are

working more

than

the

210 hours in order to allow instructors, and the Graduate Chair,

to monitor

their workload

Research:

(a)

The

Departm

e

nt

should reconslrue its historic area

of strength

in

cognitive sc

ience

as

'metaphys

ic

s

/

ep

i

ste

mol

ogy

plus'

so

as

10

reflect departmental

realitie

s

better, and

should

target

it as an area to be

solidifie

d

and enhanced, while still

leaving

the

Department

in

a position to provide support to the

Cogn

it

ive

Science programme.

(b) The department and university

should

capitalize

on the opportunity

to

secure

the

spousal recruitment

of

,

in the

thought

that

severe constraints

on university

resources make

it important to

act strateg

icall

y,

as long

as

the

candida

t

e

has a

s

trong

research

profile and fits well, as

appears to do, and the department should be

granted a position,

preferably

upgraded,

in

'metaphysics

/

epistemology

+

'

iflhe

targeted

hire of

fails.

(c)The department and university

should

capitalize on

the opportunity

to

secure

the

spousal

recruitment

of

,

and

cons

id

er ways

of developing its strength in ethics

funher, partly for the sake

of

university wide interdisciplinary initiatives, but

also

as a

way

of

devel

oping

an area which is underrepresented

i

ll

UBes

philosophy department.

(d)

The department should capitalize

on

its resea

rc

h

strengt

h

in the history ofphilosophy

by adding a position

in

this area, e.g. perhaps a position in the history of

e

thics,

when

retirements pennit, that complements

current

strength

in the history of philosophy as

well

as

otber

strengths

in the department,.

(e)

The

Department should undertake to form a plan, under the guidance

of

ils

Chair,

laying out what

it

wants to

d

o

and

be

in

five years, with reference

to whi

ch

individual

faculty members may

reinvigorat

e

their careers.

(f)

The

Department

should set

itself a

target

for SSI

-

IRC

Standard

Research Grants held

in the department at any given time,

e

.

g.

1/3 of graduate

faculty, indicate

expectations

of SSHRC

appl

i

cation

to

incoming faculty, and usc

sllccessfu

l

departmental applicants

to

menlor new applicants.

(g)

The

Chair

should

make clear to

new

faculty

members expectations of

re

search

in a

research

int

ensive

university, and mentor---or appoint mentors

---

appropriately.

(h)The

Chair

,

with the

Dean's

support, should

use

the

increment

system

to reward

research

that exceeds

expectations,

and

indi

cate

with increment recommendations less

than 1 where research

over a period of time doesn't meet

expectations, even

when

overall perfonnance in other areas

i

s

clearly satisfactory

or

better.

(i)

10

cases where research seems permanently stalled, the Chair, wiih the Dean's support,

might suggest that a faculty member consider a more teaching

intensive

workload.

---

Administration:

(a)The Graduate Chair should be given course release of one semester course per year

(for a

2-1 load).

(b )Just as outstanding teaching demonstrated over a substantial period of time, even in

the absence

of teaching awards, should be recognized cumulatively in increment

recommendations, so should administrative service that is well over and beyond the

norm, when it

isn't otherwise compensated for.

(c) Responsibility for student advising and course offerings ought to

be made clear to

students and faculty members.

(d)The Department should undertake to revise its webpage and keep it up to date, under

the direction

of the department manager.

Environment and atmosphere:

(a). Although the Senior Lecturers are doing an excellent job currently, the Department

should consider replacing them, as they retire, with regular tenure track faculty

members for whom research is an expectation

(b )The Chair should seek to make clear to department members the principles at work in

decisions at the departmental level, routine and otherwise, and, when possible, in

decisions at the higher levels of administration, that affect all members of the

department.

6

---

III. RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATIONS:

UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMME AND TEACHING

The overall quality of undergraduate education is clearly high, and the department has

been active

in

extending its undergraduate teaching reach beyond the SFU campus to

Fraser International and plans for the Surrey campus.

Enrolments at the

100-300 level are clearly thriving, a testament to the overall quality of

teaching. A great deal of care has gone into the construction of its 100 level classes,

including those that meet university writing, breadth, and quantitative requirements.

7

Philosophy develops, in part, by responding to and critically reflecting on developments

in the sciences and other areas of culture and society, and this allows it to be a bridge

between Arts departments and between the Arts and Sciences. However, philosophy is

also a Humanities discipline that is defined, in part, by critical reflection on a very long,

constantly renegotiated history

of texts, and that accordingly prizes and cultivates

especially rigorous forms

of critical reading, analysis, and written and oral expression.

All philosophy classes, apart from Logic classes, therefore involve writing argumentative

essays and essay exams. This is a key element

of Philosophy's teaching mission and is

intrinsic to the discipline, not

just a desirable "add-on".

The problem is how to satisfy student demand, given these requirements and the

constraint

of limited faculty numbers. The department has chosen to combine

intermediate sized classes, mostly at the 200-300 level, taught and graded entirely by

their instructor, with large classes, mostly at the 100 level, with an instructor taught

lecture component and a tutorial component, taught and graded

by teaching assistants

who are mentored and supervised by course instructors and

by a Lecturer shared with

F

ASS who specializes

in

tutorial instruction.

This is a reasonable solution, with the work

of the tutorial specialist Lecturer position

especially noteworthy

in

comparison with other universities. Philosophy 100 level classes

are among the toughest in F

ASS, but this is typical in other universities as well, and

probably shouldn't be an excessive concern. Somewhat surprisingly, none

of the majors

we interviewed complained about the size of the 100 level classes. Although future

majors hardly form a representative sample

of these classes, this is still some testament to

the quality of the teaching in these classes, and to the care which is put into their design

and delivery.

RECOMMENDATION:

The department should seek to retain the services

of a Lecturer

with at least part time responsibilities for mentoring and supervising tutors

The requirements for a major in philosophy are demanding, with respect to both number

and breadth

of courses required. That clearly prepares students well for placement in

graduate school. Yet, overall majors numbers are very solid, more than some even larger

philosophy departments,

but smaller than others.

---

8

(i) Mentoring

Students also seemed a bright, reasonably content group, who felt that their teachers were

approachable and cared about them. There is merit in having majors' progranunes

reviewed by continuing non-academic personnel who often understand the requirements

for a major, and overall degree requirements, better than frequently changing academic

advisors, and can advise students appropriately, and this was appreciated by

undergraduates. However, there is also an important place for regular academic advising

by academic staff, as part of overall academic mentoring for undergraduates. Certainly,

academic advisors need to have ready access to undergraduate records to do so.

RECOMMENDATION:

Instructors in 100 level classes should forward the names of

their best students (perhaps B+ and above) to the Undergraduate Advisor, and signed

letters sent to them from the Advisor inviting them to consider a major in Philosophy and

to consult with

him

or her (if this is not already done).

RECOMMENDATION'

Academic departmental undergraduate advisors should have

ready access to the files of students whom they are advising.

(il) Curriculum

Majors students did express some concerns about the number and variety of 400 level

classes available and expressed some desire for 400 level classes of their own that

weren't cross listed. Cross listed classes are inevitable in a programme

of SFU's size, but

new faculty members might help the Department address both these concerns.

RECOMMENDATION:

The department should seek to ensure that some of the

additional capacity new faculty members bring is devoted to the 400 level, with perhaps

one or even two pure 400 level classes per year that are not cross listed, and 3-4 cross

listed classes each term.

Students suggested that

400 level course descriptions were publicized late, but that was

contradicted by department administrators. We were also given the impression that, on

rare occasions, what was being taught under a course title in a class bore little relation to

what was normally thought to

be the subject matter of the course and to what students

might reasonably expect to

be taught. If so, this needs to be looked into and corrected. In

addition, some students complained about the logic requirement. This

isn't an unusual

complaint

in

other universities as well. Nonetheless, there did seem to be some

peculiarities about the

SFU logic offerings. There are two courses at the 100 level or

below (Critical Thinking, Introduction to Logic) that seem to

be non-formal or mostly

non-formal, and so below the level typically required for a major. However, the two

classes at the

200 level (210, 214) seem more advanced at this level, at least

in

the way

they are often delivered,

e.g.

210 often including meta-logic, than those typically required

for majors in other universities, but one

of which (210) is required by SFU.

We also were somewhat surprised by dedicated History of Philosophy classes at the 100

level that were also required for the major. We can understand the rationale of

background in the history of philosophy for other 200 and 300 level courses, but the

d/.

---

9

relative difficulty

of dedicated history of philosophy classes in comparison to other

introductory classes might make them better placed at the 200 level, while being retained

as majors requirements. Finally, although we were impressed

by the broad and interesting

variety

of courses at the 200 and 300 level, and recognize the limitations faculty numbers

put on deparbnent offerings, we noted two omissions of courses that are common

nowadays in other universities

and that might help to broaden Philosophy's role in the

university: feminist philosophy and philosophy

of the environment.

RECOMMENDATION:

The department should consider reducing and streamlining its

undergraduate logic offerings, department and university constraints pennitting, with

content adjusted (moved up

or down), and an appropriate requirement for majors found in

the streamlined sequence.

RECOMMENDA TION:

The department should discuss the pros and cons of moving its

History

of Philosophy I and II to the 200 level.

RECOMMENDATION:

With additional faculty numbers, the department should consider

the possibility of encouraging current or new faculty members to develop courses in

Feminist

Philosophy and Environmental Philosophy, perhaps to be taught in alternative

years.

One source of stress for the undergraduate programme, due to the current financial

situation at

SFU and universities more generally, is the decision to cut temporary

instructor budgets, even, it seems, when these funds are simply replacing regular faculty

members on leave. This is certainly unfortunate. In the short run, it can be coped with

by

teaching non-core courses at the 200-300 level less frequently. However, in the long run,

this seriously jeopardizes the vitality and diversity of the programme.

It

eliminates

classes that often appeal to seniors from other disciplines. Thus, it eliminates courses that

allow students from those disciplines to engage in philosophical reflection on issues that

bear

on their disciplines and that foster intellectual interaction between philosophy

students and students in other disciplines in ways that can impact eventually on ways that

philosophy students, instructors, and researchers conceive

of their own discipline.

(iii)

Student

Activities

Students expressed considerable appreciation for Professor Jennings' assistance in

staging undergraduate student colloquia at

SFU. However, they also expressed some

desire for the opportunity to present in a wider forum to undergraduates from other

universities.

Student conferences can be both educational and fun for undergraduates.

RECOMMENDATION:

The SFU undergraduate student association should be

encouraged to stage an undergraduate conference with

UBC students, with support from

SFU and the Department, or contact philosophy undergraduate groups in the Prairies to

arrange participation in the Prairie Undergraduate Student Association conferences.

---

(iv) Workload and Reward

Concerns about equity in teaching responsibilities were raised by the Self-Study and in

our interviews. These can seriously affect department morale. There are several issues

here, some

of which are addressed in our discussion of graduate programmes and

teaching, and in our discussion

of administration and environment.

10

However, an issue that directly concerns undergraduate teaching are variations in the

number

of undergraduate students taught and the kinds of classes taught. To address

these, the Department needs to reach some agreement, with Chair advice, about what

constitutes the normal expectations for those on a 2-2 load teaching classes they

themselves grade entirely, with respect to student numbers (within a broad but acceptable

range) and kinds

of classes. Then it should determine rough equivalents---again within a

range---for those whose teaching includes some large lecture/tutorial classes, with

responsibility for mentoring tutors.

If an agreement proves impossible, then department

expectations for teaching need to include the expectation that each faculty member will

be rotated over time through the large

100 level classes in the absence of volunteers.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Department should agree about what constitutes normal but

rough expectations

of teaching with respect to numbers and kind of classes for 2-2 faculty

teaching classes they alone grade, and then determine rough equivalences when some

teaching is large class lecture/tutorial instruction.

RECOMMENDATION'

In the absence of any agreement about the latter, department

expectation should be that every regular faculty member will be rotated over time

through some large

100 level class or other, in the absence of volunteers.

In addition, several faculty members indicated that teaching didn't really matter in faculty

evaluation or factor into incrementation awards, but others denied this claim

or expressed

skepticism about it. This is something that needs to be made clear to faculty members by

the Chair (and Dean). In any case, it is clear to us that outstanding teaching, all other

things being equal, needs to be recognized.

RECOM:MENDATION: Receipt of a major teaching award should be grounds, all other

things being equal, for some extra incrementation, and, even in the absence

of an award,

outstanding teaching over

an extended period of time should be recognized with extra

incrementation, even

if not on a biannual basis.

Finally, we noted with some dismay the absence ofteaching awards at the Faculty level.

These can be a valuable source

of recognition for teaching. Even if they carry no

monetary stipend themselves, they can be a basis for recognizing outstanding teaching in

incrementation decisions, and serve as steps

in

identifying candidates for university and

eventually national awards. As well, it might be useful for the university to consider a

variety

of awards at the university level that recognize different kinds of teaching.

RECOMMENDATION'

FASS should establish a number of teaching awards, perhaps

recognizing differences between regular tenure track faculty, permanent lecturers, and

temporary instructors, and the

University should consider establishing teaching awards

;23

---

different kinds of teaching in addition to regular tenure track faculty, e.g. large class

teachers or lecturers or graduate student tutors.

GRADUATE PROGRAMME AND TEACHING

11

The graduate programme has grown dramatically in recent years in overall numbers, with

the main growth at the M.A. level, through a conscious department decision

to

concentrate its efforts at that level rather than on the Ph.D. The department is right to

keep its Ph.D. progamme for the reasons it indicates, but, so long as graduate faculty

numbers remain below 13-14, it

is probably wise to concentrate on the M.A.

The M.A. programme is well designed, with strong area requirements that prepare

students well for further Ph.D. studies. The quality

of the students is high, as evidenced

by several external indicators. Application numbers are excellent, especially for a small

programme. Professor Margaret Schabas, Chair

of Philosophy at UBC, praised the

quality

of SGU graduate students and their performance in joint SFUIUBC seminars,

comparing them well with UBC students, as did Professor

Jeff Pelletier, fonner CRC at

SFU, in informal comments to a member of the Review Team. Their views certainly fit

the impression we gathered from our own conversations with SFU graduate students.

Finally, the record

of placement ofM.A. graduates in leading Ph.D. programmes is very

strong, as

is the record for Ph.D. and M.A. SSHRC fellowships.

Nonetheless, there are some serious problems with the delivery

of the programme, as

noted in the

Self-Study and conversations with the Review Team.

(i)

Graduate Seminars and Directed Readings

The chief problem is the shortage of graduate seminars,

in

particular the shortage of

cross-listed

400/800

seminars in a suitably wide range of areas, in addition to the two

pure graduate seminars taught with UBC, and the pro-seminar.

The other side

of the problem is the number of graduate course credits given through

Directed Readings. (We do not know the extent to which graduate student culture at

SFU

might bear partial responsibility for this side of the problem, in addition to the shortage of

seminars.) Graduate students do need to have the option to do some independent study in

directed readings that allow them to pursue special research interests, but within limits,

and without allowing graduate students to have ''tailor-made'' programmes.

UWO and U

of A, for example, normally restrict the number of permitted directed readings to one

during the course of the programme. What is clear is that in a research intensive

university, it

is simply unacceptable that one third of graduate course credits is granted

through directed readings, whether one-on-one, undergraduate lectures with extensive

additional meetings with instructors,

or small

pro bono

mini-seminars, all of which is

extra to load for faculty members and takes away from their time for their own research.

Fortunately, a new hire and two planned spousal hires should put the department in a

position to address these problems easily, so long as the new complement

of 14

continuing faculty (12 graduate faculty plus 2 senior lecturers) isn't reduced by

---

retirements. Meanwhile, the department should consider putting on more graduate

seminars even at the short term cost of putting on some 200-300 level classes less

frequently.

RECOMMENDATION:

So long as the graduate programme remains at its current size,

current faculty members should be replaced, upon retirement, to maintain a continuing

faculty complement

of 14.

12

RECOMMENDATION:

The department should ensure that some of the additional

capacity its expected new faculty members bring is devoted to graduate level seminars, so

that each major term 3-4 cross listed

400/800

level seminars are offered, and 2 in the

summer tenn, in addition to the pro seminar and 2 pure graduate joint seminars with UBC.

RECOMMENDATION:

The department should institute one or other rule: (1) a faculty

member may offer only one graduate student directed reading

per year OR (2) a graduate

student may take no more than one directed reading in the course

of his or her

programme.

We recognize how last minute contingencies can affect graduate offerings and thus think

it appropriate for exceptions to be made occasionally to these last two recommendations.

Graduate instruction also serves a valuable role in fostering faculty research projects, and

the assignment

of graduate courses should be made with this in mind, as well as helping

graduate and senior undergraduates satisfy their requirements.

RECOMMENDATION:

On an annual or bi-annual basis, the Chair should formally solicit

suggestions from graduate faculty for

800 and

400/800

level assignments, and make

decisions in consultation with the Graduate and Undergraduate Chairs, with input from

the Department Manager concerning scheduling and time tabling issues.

We also think that these recommendations should make it unnecessary for graduate

students to take more than the one

300 level class they are currently permitted, unless

they are clearly

"qualifying" students needing extra course work for their M.A, and think

that these classes shouldn't

be turned into "directed readings" courses.

These recommendations would go far to resolve what we see as the main issue

concerning faculty teaching workload and equity

in the department.

(li) Supervisory Load and Reward

A less important issue, but a more difficult one to solve, concerns extra to load

supervisions and differences in the numbers of supervisions. Sometimes, students may be

unaware

of supervisory possibilities in the department, and here the Graduate Chair may

advise students. However, there will always be differences in supervision in universities--

-reflecting a number

of factors, such as research prominence, charisma, the variable

interest and trendiness

of research areas, etc.---and students, ultimately, must be free to

choose their supervisor.

In

universities with more than a 2-2 load, some of this extra

work can be recognized with formalized procedures for course reduction, but part of the

J.s.

---

justification for a 2-2 load is the recognition that graduate supervision is part of the

normal responsibility

of graduate faculty in research intensive universities.

13

Nonetheless, differences in supervisory load can and should be recognized over time by

the Chair,

ceteris paribus,

in cumulative increment recommendations or adjustments to

teaching, looking back

at the record of a few years, but without formal rules.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Graduate Chair should advise students about possibilities of

supervision for their research project, while recognizing that (normally) students (and

supervisors) must be free to make these decisions

RECOMMENDATION:

The Department Chair should undertake to recognize

extraordinary supervisory duties

or other teaching duties over time, all other things being

equal, in increment recommendations or occasional adjustments to teaching load.

(iii)

Graduate Student Funding and Workload

Concerns were raised in the Self-Study and by graduate students about graduate student

funding, and teaching assistants expressed concern to

us about their tutor workload.

However, we note that the

per term rates cited by graduate students (roughly $3000 plus

tuition) seemed roughly equivalent to that provided

by UWO and U of A and other

Canadian universities to their M.A. students---but

not to their Ph.D. students. (Moreover,

M.A. students in some Canadian universities with large Ph.D. programmes receive

limited funding.) However, cost

of living in Vancouver may make the rates inadequate in

ways

we are not able to judge.

The more striking concern for graduate students thus was tutor workload, especially for

writing intensive, W, courses.

The number of tutorial students whom teaching assistants

were responsible for marking

per term seemed to be in the range of 50-60 students, which

is higher than that for section leaders at

UWO or U of A. However, it does seem SFU

students are contractually required to work 15 hours per week as opposed to the 9-10

hours at UWO or U of A. We take this to be an issue for contractual negotiations

between the

SFU graduate student association and SFU administration and thus beyond

our purvIew.

Students seemed unclear

how many hours they were supposed to be working. They were

convinced they were working many more hours than the

210 per semester for which they

were paid. They also said they were afraid to formally complain since

they'd be

complaining to the people who would decide whether they

got a T A-ship the next

semester.

Obviously this is not a happy situation. However, faculty members teaching the

W courses were not convinced that TAs worked more than 210 hours a semester. Faculty

told us that TAs were given log books in which to record their hours and that they

expected students to let

them know when they were close to running out of hours. Yet,

none of the students we talked to actually kept track of their hours.

RECOMMENDATION:

Graduate students must be required to log the hours they work as

a T A to see whether

or not they are working more than the 210 hours so that instructors

and the Graduate Chair

may monitor workload.

---

14

(iv) Times to Completion, Programmes, and Funding Mix

What is clear is that teaching assistant duties lead students to take 2 courses per term

typically, rather than three, as a result of which their M.A. degree takes more than a year,

even when they are not in the thesis stream, and in some cases cases, more than two.

At

first, this struck us as defeating the point of a non.thesis M.A. stream. However, we were

convinced by faculty members and officers of the reasonableness of taking a second year

for a M.A., even without a thesis, as a way of putting students in a strong position for

further Ph.D. studies in other departments. Moreover, if students usually take only two

courses

per term, the department needs to offer fewer graduate seminars each term to

provide students with adequate choice. (Three to four cross listed seminars together with

one or two pure grad seminars, plus the pro-seminar, should be plenty.)

Yet, we do think the department should perhaps recognize more strongly that the M.A. in

Canada often plays an important role in professional education as a stepping stone to

careers outside academe.

(Of course, the proposed Surrey M.A. programmes in

professional ethics clearly recognize this role.) Moreover, for these students, among

others, a thesis might be desirable as an indication of the ability to carry out research in

public service or government, for example.

The problem

of students taking more than two years to complete a M.A. is aggravated by

the limited availability of teaching assistantships over the summer. The department needs

to find a better mix of support from teaching assistantships, scholarships, and, especially

research assistantships, while recognizing that teaching assistantships will remain the

chief source of support, given the limitations of SSHRC funding for Philosophy

According to senior administration, the awarding

of university fellowships to

departments takes into account a number

of factors: (a) total enrolment (b) the degree to

which student programmes contain a significant research component, as part of the SFU

goal of being a research intensive university (c) times to completion, and (d) meeting

modest enrolment increase targets.

It

is important that the department takes these

considerations into account in its graduate programmes,

but we also think it feasible for it

to do so while maintaining the overall character and vitality

of its programmes.

RECOMMENDATION:

The department (especially its Graduate Chair) should monitor

graduate student programmes, and mentor students appropriately, to ensure that M.A.

students take no more than 2 years to complete their programmes

RECOU\1ENDATION:

The department should set a target for students supported by

SSHRC research assistantships, e.g. 3.4, depending on the number of graduate faculty,

recognizing that this figure

is subject to fluctuation, and seek to direct RA funding and

scholarships to students over the summer when possible.

RECOMMENDATION'

The department should ensure that graduate student programmes

contain a research component that satisfies university expectations for significant

research project, whether a Thesis stream or a M.A. Project stream ..

:11.

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15

Finally, the Ph.D. programme is well thought out and allows for considerable individual

attention, appropriate to a small programme. However, it does strike us that it could be

streamlined in ways that hastened times to completion.

For example, the department

might consider requiring only six courses (rather than seven) beyond graduate courses

previously taken for graduate credit at the M.A. level or equivalent. In addition, two

attempts at each

of three comprehensive examinations, and four for the Dissertation

Prospectus, seems to allow for a very long programme. (This concern may be more

potential than actual, and the Department may have a better sense

of this than we do.)

RESEARCH

(i) Research Areas, Strengths, and Potential Directions

The department identifies three areas in which research is concentrated currently: (a)

cognitive science related;

(b) history; and (c) value theory.

It

should be noted that there

are existing and potential connections across these areas that enhance them as defining

Joci

for this department, for instance, in moral psychology and topics in the history and

philosophy

of science. In addition, history and value theory are generally recognized as

essential areas of teaching and research in good philosophy departments. History figures

less often than value theory as an area of particular strength. However, the solid research

of faculty here make it a genuine pillar of the department and puts SFU in a position to

achieve some distinction in this regard.

Philosophy at

SFU also has an important history of work in cognitive science. Among

other things, the Cognitive Science programme was founded

by a member of the

department, and Akins' expertise and potential was acknowledged by the substantial

Mcdonnell Centennial award that has benefited

SFU enormously in terms of graduate

student support, visiting speakers, visiting professorships, and research connections with

other universities.

However, various factors have conspired to weaken the connections to Cognitive

Science, including departures and health problems. In addition, faculty on the ground in

this area have not been very active in research in recent years.

As a consequence, the

department

is not now in a position to provide leadership in the area, and the description

of it as an area of current research strength is no longer as valid as it once was, We

believe that, as Philosophy moves forward, this area should be redefined as

"metaphysics/epistemology plus"---- broadly construed to include the philosophy of

cognitive science, philosophy of science, philosophy of language, and philosophy of

mind-- and it should be targeted as an area to be solidified and enhanced.

RECOMMENDATION: The Department should reconstrue its historic area

of strength

as 'metaphysics/epistemology plus' and target it as an area to be solidified and enhanced.

There are three reasons for this recommendation. (1) With this reconstrual, the

department's profile becomes more consonant with the view held by many philosophers

that strong departments are those with active faculty in Metaphysics and Epistemology.

(2) At the same time, however, with cognitive science as a prominent aspect

of the area,

---

16

the department remains in a position to provide substantial support to Cognitive Science

now and to reclaim its leadership role

in cognitive science in future years. Finally, (3) the

recent appointment

of Holly Anderson, who works on the causal structure of conscious

agency, and the possible appointment

of Bence Nanay, whose research is on perception,

opens the door to developing a cohort

of faculty whose work on certain aspects of

knowledge, action, and mind overlaps, extends to other areas of strength in the

department, and gives SFU a distinctive identity.

In particular, the importance of

questions about the foundations and methodology of cognitive science link it to

philosophy

of science in profitable ways, and, in addition to the fact that Nanay's interests

in perception could complement that

of Akins and Hahn, Nanay applies his research on

this topic to issues in aesthetics, giving the department a resource that it does not

presently have.

RECOMMENDATION:

We thus encourage the department to capitalize on the

opportunity to recruit Nanay, without wishing to specify

how this area be built, in the

thought that severe constraints

on university resources make it important to act

strategically, as long as the candidate has a strong research profile and fits well, as Nanay

appears to do, and encourage the university to grant the department a position, preferably

upgraded, in 'epistemology/metaphysics+'

if the targeted hire ofNanay fails.

Moral philosophy is

an area of considerable research strength at Simon Fraser University,

with three philosophers working in his area. Zimmerman is a senior scholar with a solid

and steady record

of publication over a long period who works centrally in meta-ethics

and theories

of free will and moral responsibility and whose work is well known to other

scholars in ethics.

SFU also has two mid career scholars. Black works in social and

political philosophy,

and the history of ethics and political philosophy, as well as in

ethics, and has a book length project on reasons to

be moral. Tiffany works on human

agency and reasons to

be moral and a book length project in that area. With the

pUblication

of both books, SFU will establish itself as an important centre of research in

ethics. Given the overlapping areas

of research interest by these mid career scholars, they

might consider submitting a

joint application to SSHRC for research funding.

The overlap

of the work of all three ethics researchers with the work of colleagues in

philosophy

of mind and moral psychology is a real strength of the department. As well,

Shapiro's interests in feminist philosophy connects her teaching and research interests to

the ethics stream. The links here might

be developed further, should retirements occur,

with an appointment in the history

of ethics. In addition, an already slotted spousal hire

in three years (Begby) works in the field

of communicative ethics and draws on

philosophy

of mind and language to connect to traditions in continental ethics and

political philosophy tradition. This will broaden further the department's research (and

teaching strengths)

in the area of ethics broadly construed, as well as adding to its

strength in moral psychology. These are potentially exciting developments.

One area in which the department lacks strength in ethics is in normative ethics proper.

However, the university recently hired an ethicist (Snyder) in the faculty

of health

sciences with a Ph.D. in Philosophy and publications in leading applied ethics journals---

Black from Philosophy was on the hiring committee. Snyder's research

on the nature of

---

ethical obligations to vulnerable populations broadens SFUs expertise in ethics

considerably, and his connections with Philosophy should be strengthened for both his

benefit and that

of the Department.

17

RECOMMENDATION:

The Department should seek to have Snyder cross appointed to

Philosophy so as to be available to work with Philosophy graduate students, and explore

the possibility

of having Snyder teach a cross listed graduate seminar to enhance

offerings for philosophy graduate students at

SFU and UBC.

This strength in ethics allows

SFU to bring something of considerable value to graduate

level cooperation with the philosophy department

ofUBC. Ethics is central to a graduate

level education

in our discipline, and currently UBC is not in a position to offer ethics

courses,

or supervision in ethics, to its doctoral students. Moreover, it puts Philosophy in

a strong position to contribute to research and teaching initiatives across campus that

involve normative ethical and political issues.

RECOMMENDATION:

The department should consider ways to develop its strength in

ethics further, both for

its ability to contribute to university wide teaching and

interdisciplinary research initiatives, and as a way

of developing an area which is

underrepresented

in

UBCs philosophy department, as the UBC Chair independently

confinns.

Black, we note, put considerable effort in developing a plan for developing applied ethics

at the

Surrey campus of SFU, including novel M. A. programmes

in

professional ethics.

We applaud his work in this area and were sorry to hear that those plans have been

shelved in the current financial climate.

Should funding re-emerge for this plan, we

encourage the department to follow through.

The department has recently gained considerable research strength and profile in the

History

of Philosophy, in particular ancient philosophy and early modern philosophy,

with two scholars (Macpherran,

Shapiro) who have very strong records of well placed

publication and international conference participation. Although the history

of philosophy

may never be an area where most graduate students will be doing their primary research,

SFU's profile in this area should over time increase the number of applicants wanting to

work in this area. Moreover, instruction in the history of philosophy is widely regarded as

essential for a strong undergraduate and graduate education.

In

addition, strength in the

history

of philosophy will put Philosophy in a position to engage with other units in the

university concerned with cultural history, including the history

of science, and issues

about cross-cultural understanding.

RECOMMENDATION:

The department should capitalize on its research strength in the

history

of philosophy by adding a position in this area, when retirements permit, that

complements current strength in the history

of philosophy, as well as other strengths in

the department, e.g. a position in the history

of ethics perhaps.

Finally,

we applaud the Chair's efforts to secure funding for a Chair in Asian Philosophy,

and hope the department and university continue

to pursue possibilities here in the future.

30.

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18

(ti)

Research Grants and Funding

Research in philosophy centres largely on the individual researcher and single authorship,

albeit in conversation with colleagues inside and outside one's department and university,

and in critically testing

one's ideas at colloquia and conferences, and will continue to do

so. Nonetheless,

SFU has a striking history of co-publication and joint research with

departmental colleagues and with colleagues elsewhere, as well as collaborative research

grants (e.g. Jennings, Akins). With respect to interdisciplinary research, the philosophy

department has genuine ambitions and potential in this area but given how thin the

current faculty ,are spread, it may be difficult for the department to make good on all its

ambition and potential.

Akins' Mcdonnell Fellowship is especially striking for its size and its ability

to enhance

the research environment at

SFU, despite a rather small official departmental visiting

speaker budget.

RECOMMENDATION:

The university and department should seek to boost the Visiting

Speaker budget at SFU to $6000 per year, when fmances permit.

Nonetheless, the McDonnell was not only unusually lucrative grant for a philosopher,

it

is winding down, and SSHRC will have to become the main source of external funding

for conferences, individual research, and interaction with colleagues from other

universities, as well as graduate research assistants. The Department's record with

SSHRC Standard Research grants is good by national standards, with two of9 or 10

eligible graduate faculty holding SSHRCs, with a further application pending. This is a

sign

of the regard with which these faculty member's research is held outside the

university, but nonetheless, given

SFU's reputation, SFU's record could reasonably be

better. What matters here

isn't the value of awards---the character of most philosophical

research means that

it

rarely requires expensive equipment or teams of research

assistants, and granting agencies can hardly be expected to be fooled by "padded"

requests ---but what does matter is the

number

of such awards held in the department.

RECOMA1ENDATION:

The Department should set itself a target for SSHRC Standard

Research Grants at any given time, e.g.

113

of graduate faculty, recognizing the

contingencies of success.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Chair should clearly indicate to new faculty members

departmental expectations that they apply for

SSHRC grants, including funds, where

feasible, for graduate research assistants, workshops, etc., as well as grant holder travel

and research costs.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Chair should ask successful applicants to mentor new

applicants.

(iii) Research Productivity and Reward

Finally, we note that though some researchers have continued to be highly productive, the

overa111evels

of publication and international conference participation seem to have

3f.

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19

tailed

off somewhat over the past four or five years. Doubtless, there are complicated

reasons for this, some

of which were relayed to us. Nonetheless, it is a disturbing

development, especially in the case of mid career faculty whose earlier records were quite

impressive, and was raised as an issue with us by many faculty members, including ones

who were critical

of their own efforts. There are no easy answers here, and restored

faculty numbers with promised hires over the next few years, the end

of the time

consuming process

of first year curriculum development, and some of the workload

recommendations made above, may help. Nonetheless, we make a number of further

suggestions.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Department should undertake to form a plan, under the

guidance of its Chair, laying out what it want to do and be in five years, with reference to

which individual faculty members may reinvigorate their careers.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Chair should make clear to new faculty members

expectations

of research in a research intensive university, and mentor---or appoint

mentors---appropriately.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Chair, with the support of the Dean, should use the

increment system, if this isn't already done, to reward research that exceeds expectations,

as well as indicating with increment recommendations less than I where research over a

period

of time doesn't meet expectations, even when the overall performance in other

areas

is clearly satisfactory or better; and, in the case of some department members, if

research activity has been lacking for a considerable period of time, the Chair should

consider suggesting a change to a more teaching intensive workload.

ADMINISTRATION

The Department has two non-academic staff ---a department secretary and a department

manager --both of whom are busy but neither of whom complained of being overworked

or in need of assistance---except perhaps for some temporary help during the fITSt week

of term. Faculty members and students seemed satisfied with computing and library

resources. Discussion with SFU Library staff confirmed that library support for research

and teaching in Philosophy was strong.

Students and faculty praised the department manager for his efficiency, his knowledge of

department and university rules and regulations, and his ability to answer administrative

questions promptly and correctly.

However, there seemed to be some misunderstanding about the role

of the department

manager. For example, some faculty members seemed to think that only the department

manager, not faculty student advisors, had access to student files, and others seemed to

think that the department manager was in charge

of determining course offerings. On

examination, it was determined that faculty advisors had the primary responsibility for

academic advising, and the Chair determines course offerings. We were also struck by

the students' perception of the extent to which the department manager has responsibility

for scheduling classes, advising, and other aspects

of the life of the department that affect

32..

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20

them. They seem to accept this as a matter of course, although there also seemed to be

some discomfort here. Again, other evidence indicated that the students' view should be

qualified. Nonetheless, it is clear that the department manager identifies with the

department and expresses views about its academic directions that are ordinarily outside

the scope

ofa manager's responsibilities, and this may have encouraged students' view

that the manager's role in the department is atypically large, and created some

discomfort.

RECOMMENDATION:

Responsibility for student advising and course offerings ought to

be made clear to students and faculty members.

During the course

of our review, we spent a lot oftime using the department's website.

While generally attractive and easy to use, some aspects

of the website need revision. The

department's status as a research intensive department, competing for the best

MA

students, would be enhanced by keeping its website up to date. For example, the website,

under

"Employment", lists a faculty position with an application deadline of November

2008 that has since been filled, and the link to research papers by faculty members

includes only papers

by Swartz and Bradley, two long retired faculty members. Finally,

most faculty members

don't seem to have their own websites, on-line CVs, or links to

papers and publications. This might make it difficult for potential grad students to find

out more about the people they will

be working with or taking classes from.

RECOMMENDATION: The Department should revise its webpage and keep it up to

date, under the direction

of the department manager.

The department has a large number

of committees, though no more than most philosophy

departments, and a large number

of administrative tasks to be performed by faculty

members within the department. The most onerous departmental administrative task after

department Chair is that

of Graduate Chair, and we were surprised that there is no course

reduction for that job, especially

in the light of the substantial increase, and current size,

of the programme.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Graduate Chair should be given course release of one

semester course

per year (for a 2-1 load).

In

addition, some department members have been active in administrative work for the

university as a whole, e.g. in planning for the Surrey campus.

In

the past few years,

thanks to sick leaves

and other absences, administrative responsibilities have likely been

onerous

on remaining faculty. There seemed to be some feeling that administrative duties

weren't recognized in faculty evaluation, as there seemed to be some feeling that teaching

wasn't recognized.

RECOMMENDATION:

Just as outstanding teaching demonstrated over a substantial

period

oftime (e.g. three to four years), even in the absence ofteaching awards, should

be recognized cumulatively in increment recommendations, so administrative service that

is well over and beyond the norm should be recognized cumulatively, when it

isn't

otherwise compensated for.

33.

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21

There also seemed to be some frustration expressed at the time spent in committee

meetings, even in the normal course

of affairs. This is common in small and medium

sized departments. However, to some degree, the problem at SFU seems to be somewhat

self-imposed, the result

of a longstanding departmental culture at SFU, indeed an

institutional culture across

SFU, emphasizing a highly democratized, bottom-up, decision

making process, and the need for consensus, that isn't content to trust the Chair and other

administrative officers with most decision making.

ENVIROMl1ENT AND ATMOSPHERE

Faculty members seem to feel themselves under considerable stress. Some faculty

members even give the impression that they have lost confidence in their ability to solve

their problems as a department, even

if they haven't lost confidence in themselves. Part

of the problem seems to be a lack of transparency about procedures and decision making,

e.g. concerning course scheduling, who has access to files, whether teaching and

administrative service are taken into account in incrementation, or even whether research

is. Even

if in some cases this is simply inexplicable ignorance of longstanding practice,

there is a problem here for the Chair to address.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Chair should seek to make clear to department members the

principles at work in decisions at the departmental level, routine and otherwise, that

affect all members

of the department.

Faculty members also seem to feel squeezed between two conflicting demands from

senior administration: an apparent need to increase the size

of the graduate programme

and the need to increase the amount

of service teaching they do to support graduate

students with teaching assistantships, despite cutbacks that limit growth in faculty

numbers and growth in funds for tutors. We aren't convinced that senior administration in

fact expects a department like Philosophy, which is highly efficient in its undergraduate

teaching and has grown its graduate programme considerably in recent years,

to continue

to grow significantly. Moreover, we have made some suggestions, e.g. about

SSHRC

supported research assistantships, that would increase its graduate student support

without increasing its undergraduate numbers and allow some modest growth in the

graduate programme. In any case, it would be good for the morale

of the department for

senior administrators to

m~e

their expectations clear to ordinary faculty members, either

directly or through department administrators.

Although faculty all feel overburdened due to colleagues on sick leave and parental leave,

as well as diminished faculty numbers, we note that, for the most part, the actual

individual faculty work load is well within the normal range for Canadian research

universities. A 2-2 teaching

load, consisting of large classes in which all the marking is

done

by T As and of classes marked by the instructor that are

in

the 20-40 student range,

should be manageable, and is comparable to that in many other large public institutions.

What is important for department morale, however,

is that faculty members feel that there

is relative equity in the distribution

of course assignments, and that outstanding service

in

teaching or administration over the long run, all other things being equal, is recognized

3Cf.

---

22

eventually in incrementation, even

if not on a biannual basis. What is crucial here is

arriving at some idea

of normal expectations of teaching for faculty in terms of numbers

of students and kinds of classes, and equivalences when varied,

in

terms of which the

Chair can make clear to faculty members that course assignments are being made on an

equitable basis.

We have made some recommendations above in discussing

undergraduate teaching.

Nonetheless, what is clear is that many faculty members are burdened with directed study

courses and extra to load seminars to an extent that is unacceptable in a research intensive

university. These courses currently play an important role

in the graduate programme,

but they are an unsustainable relic of a much smaller graduate programme, and faculty

members need to rethink how many they teach and how many students can take. We have

made some suggestions to that effect above in discussing graduate teaching.

On one matter, the department was unanimously positive, the senior lecturers. They do

much

of the department's undergrad teaching and are much respected by students and

faculty members. Both of them are skilled and enthusiastic teachers, and valuable

contributors to department administration, and, indeed, to university wide administration.

Nonetheless, senior lecturers are

not the norm in research intensive philosophy

departments with graduate programmes. The more people who are around not doing

research, the harder it can

be to handle graduate level teaching and maintain a research

intensive atmosphere. As well, lecturers themselves are often people who want to be

doing research,

or who are doing research, and take these teaching-only positions because

they are all that is available. This can lead to resentment as well. Neither

of the current

senior lecturers feel this way, but with different personnel the situation might change.

RECOMMENDATION:

As Senior Lecturers retire, the Department should consider

replacing them with regular tenure track faculty members.

We heard the phrase "disrespect" many times, more than a dozen, in our interviews about

departmental atmosphere. Tension between senior colleagues has affected the interactions

between all of the colleagues in philosophy. For example, many people seem not to work

in the department, arrive only to teach and then leave,

or work with their doors closed.

We understand there might be reasons, sometimes longstanding, for conflicts in the

department, and clearly these conflicts

haven't undermined the department's ability

altogether to engage

in

joint research, administrative tasks, and new departmental

initiatives

in

teaching. However, managing them, if not dissolving them, and securing

the department's confidence in its ability to solve issues it faces

will be a major task for

the incoming Chair.

Nonetheless, it should be noted that, during the course

of our visit, we encountered no

concerns about discrimination

or disrespect toward women

in

the department from

faculty or students, despite

our raising the issue on several occasions. The ratio of women

among undergraduates is about average for Canadian departments, and that among

graduate students a bit below average, although it has been higher in the past and is

highly subject to annual variations in the acceptance

of offers. The department should

consider ways to increase further its numbers for female students, although it should be

3S'".

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23

recognized, in the light of the national patterns, this is easier said than done. What bears

emphasis, however, is that the department has a ratio

of women among continuing faculty

(4

of 12) that, while subject to improvement, exceeds the Canadian average for

philosophy departments (22.6%, according to CAUT figures), and provides enough

critical mass to help create a good climate for women around the department.

IV PARTICULAR ISSUES WE WERE ASKED TO COMMENT ON:

A: An evaluation of faculty teaching loads in relation to the Department's

expanding undergraduate and graduate programs; advice on how to maintain

equity in the areas of TA supervision, thesis supervision, directed studies, committee

work, and manage stress in the face of constrained resources:

We have addressed these issues, sometimes at length, in the sections on Undergraduate

Programmes and Teaching, Graduate

Programme and Teaching, and Environment and

Atmosphere, with recommendations.

B. An evaluation of the undergraduate programme, particular with respect to

future recruitment and retention of majors/minors, and the feasibility of using a

mentorship programme for majors, using faculty and alumni.

We addressed the undergraduate programme, including issues of recruitment and

retention in the section on Undergraduate Programmes and Teaching, and made some

suggestions concerning invitations to outstanding students and academic faculty advising.

No one discussed the mentorship programme with

us, although faculty mentoring (seven

students per faculty member, roughly) is an idea worth thinking about. We suspect it

might be much appreciated by undergraduates, so long as it is well understood that the

mentoring is strictly academic. (Faculty members lack qualifications in broader

counseling, and engaging in such counselling could get them and the university into legal

problems.) Even

so, faculty members sometimes get confused about exact degree

requirements, so that the mentoring system would still require majors to check with

department and university administrators. We suspect that alumni mentoring is

impractical.

C. An evaluation of the graduate programme, particularly with respect to

maintaining and improving quality, the numbers and kinds of course offerings, and

the assignment of supervisors.

We addressed these issues in the section on Graduate Programme and Teaching.

D. An assessment of the research strengths of the Department and suggestions

regarding possible new strategies or initiatives for the future.

We addressed these issues in the section on Research.

E. Advice on how to maintain and strength ties with SFU's Cognitive Science

programme.

3(P.

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24

We addressed this issue in the section on Research.

F.

An

Evaluation of the Planned SFU Surrey Programmes

There was little discussion of the Surrey Philosophy programme

t

chiefly because it has

been put on hold indefmitely. We find the M.A. programme in professional and applied

ethics innovative and well thought out, and the certificate programme a good idea. The

Surrey programme is a unique opportunity to add substantially to the SFU Philosophy

faculty complement, which the Department was correct to seize on. The Department

should ensure that,

if Surrey goes ahead, that Surrey faculty are integrated with Burnaby

faculty, and participate in the graduate programme. With the added faculty members

Surrey would bring, the Department might wish to consider increasing its

Ph.D.

emolment again.

Team Members:

Samantha Brennan, Chair, Department of Philosophy, University of Western Ontario,

Mark Rollins,

Chair

t

Department of Philosophy, Washington University in St. Louis,

Bruce Hunter,

Chair

t

Department of Philosophy, University of Alberta