Academic Affairs Newsletter - Message #7

Banded tuition was initiated in the fall of 2016 to encourage undergraduates to enroll in 15 or more credits each semester in order to graduate faster. Also called flat tuition, banded tuition is a single tuition amount that enables students to enroll in 12-18 credits. The Indiana Commission for Higher Education has found that 7 in 10 students at Indiana public institutions that charge banded tuition take 15 credit hours in a semester compared to 2 in 10 at institutions that charge by the credit hour. Ideally, by taking 15 credit hours, students graduate on time within four years, which helps reduce student debt.

With this new tuition structure, 60% of all full-time IUPUI undergraduate students attempted 15 or more credit hours in fall 2016, representing a significant increase for freshmen and sophomores, as well as juniors and seniors. In comparison, 68% of students at Indiana University Bloomington enrolled in at least 15 credit hours. The majority of first-year students (69%) enrolled in at least 15 credit hours, which should help improve 4-year graduation rates in the future. In the first semester banded tuition was implemented, although approximately 10% more undergraduate students enrolled in 15 or more credit hours, there was not a decline in overall academic performance.

It’s only been a month since Dr. Tabitha M. Hardy stepped foot on campus, but she has already been hard at work. Hardy is the new assistant dean for student development and academic affairs in the University Graduate School in the IUPUI Graduate Office. “One of my goals at IUPUI is to further our outreach to minority serving institutes for collaboration and exchange of best practices related to mentoring and graduate education,” said Hardy.

At IUPUI, Hardy will work with Dr. Gina Sanchez Gibau, the new associate vice chancellor for faculty diversity and inclusion, to ensure new and current faculty connect and participate in mentoring our diverse graduate and professional students on campus. “I hope to include campus faculty in exchanges and collaborations with our minority-serving institute partner institutions,” she said.

“I will be working to revitalize existing programs for graduate and professional student success such as Preparing Future Faculty and Professionals, and partnering with campus graduate and professional student organizations such as UPnGO and the Graduate and Professional Student Government,” Hardy said. Hardy will be quite busy across campus, reaching out to partner with Dr. Karen Dace and Wayne Hilson in the IUPUI Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to ensure our graduate and professional students maximize opportunities for career development and participation in national and local diversity-focused meetings such as the Southern Regional Board Institute for Mentoring and Teaching for doctoral scholars.

“I will be working with students and faculty to provide programming that will support student success,” said Hardy.

An alumna of the IU School of Medicine in Indianapolis, after completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Hardy held an appointment as an assistant professor of biology at Stillman College, a historically black college in Alabama.

You can reach Dr. Hardy at ude[dot]iupui[at]ydrahmat.

Have you ever wondered what real-time analytics could do for developing new teaching methods? IU eText innovations are opening new vistas of opportunity for faculty to do just that – and much more. Share notes with students. Check. Incorporate multimedia material into courses. Sure, why not? And integrate links and annotations into study materials are but a few of the benefits faculty find using e-textbook technology.

Brian McDonald, a lecturer in the School of Liberal Arts, is using eText for his classes, and the results have been eye-opening. In a video interview (see below), he said, “It’s simply an amazing tool with a lot of possibilities.” He also noted that eText saves students a lot of money, and they are able to email on-the-spot questions about a passage to instructors.

“Brian used the engage platform to add many annotations for the students to view in their copy of the text, “said Mark Goodner, a lead business analyst for IU eText. “This is a hugely positive, engaging, and interactive approach to communicating with students – and can return classroom time for other activities and discussions.”

McDonald also promotes sharing annotations among his students in class, as well as organizes readings in the online library to match the syllabus order – not groundbreaking, but incredibly meaningful and helpful. McDonald is also able to customize questions for students and post them in the text.

In the publishing industry, authors and publishers make money only when textbooks are sold. That doesn’t include used books sales for which they don’t earn a dime. To offset lost revenue, prices are inflated to “pass-along” to the next six or so people in the used book market. Another problem is that students continue to pursue used copies, which is one reason that drives publishers and authors to create “new editions” with minor changes to recover the cost. This creates a catch-22, a vicious cycle where no one really benefits.

Enter digital books. While they may not be the panacea for publishers or authors, universities like Indiana University are helping to create a better deal for students, the creators and producers of e-textbooks, wrote IU Vice President for Information Technology Brad Wheeler in his article, “Rebooting the Academy: 12 Tech Innovators Who Are Transforming Campuses” for The Chronicle of Higher Education. At IU, he wrote, the new model, which gives students access to e-textbook material while they attend university, collectively saved them about $100,000 compared to Internet pricing for retail e-textbooks. The agreement IU works out with publishers is similar to the terms arranged with software companies such as Adobe and Microsoft.

IU’s eTexts initiative is growing rapidly with a year-over-year increase of 85 percent between 2015 and 2016. Because textbooks have become a luxury for some students, those who can’t buy new books do the best they can with old or out-of-date editions. Some opt for nothing at all! But why? Well, textbooks cost too much. IU’s eTexts initiative is a direct response to this issue.

Learn more about IU’s eTexts initiative here. 

Purchasing a home or making repairs to an existing home just got easier. Working with the Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership (INHP), the university developed the IUPUI Anchor Housing program. “The idea behind this housing program is to encourage home ownership generally, and to assist qualified full-time employees to purchase or improve homes in the neighboring communities of River West, Riverside, and Ransom Place,” said Teresa Bennett, assistant vice chancellor for community engagement. Full-time employees who want to buy a single-family residence, townhome, condo or duplex qualify for the homeowner benefit and should plan to live in the house as their primary residence.

“At IUPUI we care about the quality of life of our employees and of our community – so bringing them together makes good sense,” said Bennett. “We are thrilled to have this opportunity to encourage our full-time employees to enjoy the important health and emotional benefits of living near work while we all help our neighborhoods to thrive and grow.”

Full-time employees who earn up to 120% of the area median Income (currently $80,040 for a family of four) and are either purchasing a home or making exterior renovations to a home in the designated area around the IUPUI campus qualify. The new housing program offers down payment assistance or home improvement assistance in the form of a five-year forgivable loan. If employees remain employees of the campus and stay in their home, each year on the anniversary month of when the loan closed, 20% of the loan balance will be forgiven.

“If full-time employees already own a single-family home or duplex in the designated neighborhoods and qualify for funding, they will qualify for home improvement grants under this program,” said Bennett.

Home improvement projects could include replacing a roof, restoring masonry, repairing or replacing windows, restoring the exterior which includes painting and installing new lights. Gutters and downspouts could be repaired, as well as siding and trim – landscaping, fencing, and walks too.

Informational meetings are scheduled for the following dates:

• Monday, April 24, noon to 1 p.m., IUPUI Campus Center Room 308
• Thursday, April 27, noon to 1 p.m., IUPUI University Library Room 1126

Should you want more information, the INHP will be launching a website after April 6, 2017. Access that information at INHP.org/IUPUI.

If you have questions, call Ken Hall at INHP at 317-610-4641.

The funds are limited and will be available until April 31, 2018. Applications will be taken starting on May 1, 2017. Download the IUPUI Anchor Housing information flyer.

You may have heard Margaret Ferguson was appointed as the new senior associate vice chancellor for academic affairs. You can read the official press release here.

Instead of rehashing what you probably already know, we shot a video of Margie and asked her more fun, and sometimes personal questions. We asked her about whether she believed in Big Foot. Her answer may surprise you.

Ferguson first joined IUPUI in 1996 as an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science within the School of Liberal Arts. She served as department chair from 2008 to 2012 and as acting associate dean for academic affairs in 2011. She was promoted to professor in 2014. Her teaching interests within the field of American politics include state and local politics as well as executive and legislative politics.

"Faculty members are key to the success of this campus as a learning and research institution," Ferguson said. "As a member of the leadership team at IUPUI, I will work to make sure IUPUI is attracting and retaining high-quality, diverse faculty and providing them the resources and support they need to succeed."

She earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Southern Mississippi and a master's and doctoral degrees in political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Margie Ferguson can be reached at ude[dot]iupui[at]osugrefm.

Open Office Hours with the EVC

Friday, April 21, 2017

9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. – University Hall 5022

What’s on your mind? Meet with EVC/CAO Kathy Johnson during open office hours. IUPUI faculty can drop in with no appointment to share your thoughts, ideas, and concerns. Kathy brings snacks! See our website for more dates.

On March 13, the IUPUI community began participation in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s Great Colleges to Work For program. This is a national survey designed to recognize institutions that have built great workplaces. “We aim for IUPUI to be perceived as a wonderful place in which to work by both faculty and staff, and we seek to continuously improve in this regard,” said Kathy Johnson, executive vice chancellor and chief academic officer. “Regardless of whether or not we are recognized, the summarized feedback we receive will be helpful as we continue the process of creating the best workplace possible.”

Should the survey arrive in your inbox, it is voluntary to participate. However, by taking the survey you will be representing not only yourself but all your colleagues, so your feedback is invaluable! This is a chance to make your voice heard, and a high response rate helps ensure an accurate representation of our community. At the close of the program, we will receive reports that summarize the organizational competencies and relationships that most directly impact and influence our culture.

The study provides vital data about employee engagement at colleges and universities across the United States. Last year, 281 institutions took part in the program which surveys faculty and staff to determine the key factors that distinguish great colleges. Of those participants, 93 achieved acknowledgment in one or more of 12 recognition categories, reflecting essential themes of great workplaces such as shared governance and senior leadership.

You are welcome to contact Karen Lee at ude[dot]iupui[at]2eelk with any questions. Or, you are welcome to visit www.ChronicleGreatColleges.com to read more about the study and download the results from last year.

March is Women’s History Month and IUPUI recognized and congratulated these women -- both faculty and staff -- for their contributions to the university. On Tuesday, March 28, the following women were presented the 2017 Women’s Leadership Award in the Campus Center, Room 450C.

Outstanding Woman Leader Staff Awards:

• Vicki Daugherty, Program Manager and Diversity Coordinator, School of Informatics and Computing
• Susannah Gawor, Director, Graduate Business Programs in Medicine, Kelley School of Business
• Kimberly Lewis, Associate Registrar, Office of the Registrar
• Brandi Rund, Support Services Team Lead, IUPUC

Outstanding Woman Leader Faculty Awards:

• Leslie Ashburn-Nardo, Associate Professor, Psychology, School of Science
• Janice Blum, Associate Vice Chancellor for Graduate Education
• Elaine Cooney, Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology, School of Engineering and Technology
• Robin Hughes, Executive Associate Dean, School of Education

Inspirational Woman:

• Jane Schultz, Professor, English, School of Liberal Arts

Other student winners across the IUPUI include:

• Melanie Scheive, School of Science  
• Gabriela Mazur, School of Science
• Amber Kriech, Kelley School of Business
• Lyla Mahmoud, School of Liberal Arts
• Melanie Wiseman, School of Medicine
• Jacquelyn Fletcher, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences

Congratulations to these outstanding women leaders!

IU and the Unizin consortium seek your input on the needs and desires of faculty to guide their work on tools and services to support teaching and learning through technology.

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• Commencement: Apparel is FREE to rent for faculty. Order yours by
  Friday, March 31, at midnight. Place order here.
• Textbook order due date for fall is April 15. You can send these orders directly to sazebaC [dot]C anA, textbooks department manager, at the Barnes & Noble @ IUPUI.
• Chancellor’s Academic Honors Convocation, Friday, April 21, 3 p.m., Hine Hall Auditorium.

• Painful Hope: A Palestinian Activist and an Israeli Settler Rabbi Talk Peace at the IUPUI Campus Center Theater, Tuesday, April 4 at 1:30 p.m.
• Critical Conversation: Modern Myths about HIV/AIDS: Wednesday, April 5, 12 noon - 1 p.m., IUPUI University Library, Room 1126.
• IUPUI Faculty Council Meeting: Tuesday, April 4, 3 p.m. - 5 p.m., IUPUI Campus Center Theater.
• LEAPIndiana Faculty Collaboratives Conference:  Friday, April 7, 9:30 a.m. - 3 p.m., Ivy Tech Conference Center.
• Reading at the Table: Tuesday, April 18, 11:30 a.m., IUPUI University Club – “Unraveling Gender, Race, and Diaspora” – Register here.
  
• Academic Affairs Events Listing: Use this link to view and register for upcoming Academic Affairs workshops, training, and important events that pertain to YOU!