New changes in the Graduate College will attempt to re-align academic policies.
Starting in Spring 2011, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Ken Borland plans to revamp the academic agenda among the vice-provost positions.
“By elevating and refocusing the leadership, we can enhance BGSU’s undergraduate and graduate education programs,” Borland said.
The undergraduate and graduate academic colleges are currently divided into separate departments and are advised by two different vice provosts.
However, Borland plans to combine the outlined goals for both in what he hopes will effectively advance graduate education.
“Both (undergraduate and graduate outlined agendas) require very close collaboration with Enrollment Management and with the deans to support the success of the academic programs,” Borland said. “Both have resources to conduct similar work.”
In order to successfully make this transition, Borland appointed Timothy Messer-Kruse as interim vice provost for academics and graduate dean. Effectively, Messer-Kruse will oversee both the undergraduate and graduate colleges.
“Dr. Messer-Kruse will provide a singular focus on graduate and undergraduate education,” Borland said. “A vice provost for academics and graduate dean can better lead the development of both programs.”
Other benefits of the realignment would better prepare students for graduate education.
“We can achieve better preparation of teaching assistants and greater consistency in response to student concerns,” Borland said. “We will also develop greater expertise in academic program development at all levels.”
While the realignment phases are still being deliberated, Borland said the changes would especially enhance the University-wide research abilities of professors and graduate and undergraduate students.
“We need leadership to bring about sponsored programs so that we proactively match external funding opportunities with our faculty and student scholarly agendas,” Borland said, “to support grant writing and to constructively follow up with funding agencies.”
While the provost boasts the positive effects of the reorganization, Graduate Student Senate President Stephen Dinda said the changes being implemented at the graduate level are likely due to budget cuts.
“The administration wants to give more individual college deans (room) to do with their budgets as they will,” Dinda said.