Chairmanship Duties

This is my "Things To Do" list, partly done and partly yet to do.

In 2005 I created a relational Access Database that integrates these main tables:

1. Faculty data
2. Student data
3. Course data
4. Schedules

It's used for scheduling, advisement, curriculum review, assessment.

In the past few years faculty have met about 70 times to reassess and revise the programs. Because of their efforts (including full time Instructors) we revised requirements for all the programs -- so completely that the to majors were given new program codes.

With the guidance of a new hire Dr. Mihir, the department started two GIS Certificate Programs in Fall 2009. Now more than 50 students are working on their certificates with these 5-course programs.

The 5-year Program Review was due the year I became chairperson, and we took it as an opportunity to revisit and revise. It was more of a Strategic Plan than a report.

The Master Course list, which included many topics varies (e.g., G&ES 338f: Geography of Wine) needed a cleaning out. There were 175 courses, most of which had not been taught for decades. We combined some, revised some, and deleted almost 100. We added about a dozen new courses to fill important gaps and satisfy new University initiatives..

Also, we scrapped all the old prerequisites, which had not been enforced by Enrollment Services until 2007. In their place we set a new sequence of prerequisites which will better prepare our students for advanced work. It was a delicate task, because prerequisite holds can really slow a student's progress. But we established a good set, I think.

We hired two new faculty members -- one to head the Environmental Studies program and one to create and lead the GIS Certificate Programs. Dr. Abhijit Banerjee now leads the E.S. curriculum and advises most of the E.S. majors. And Dr. Monika Mihir teaches most of the courses in the GIS Curriculum, which she oversees, and also teaches statistics, and Physical Geography at the graduate level.

One of the most valuable efforts was during a faculty retreat, where we established a formal course sequence for each faculty member, which, when delivered over time lays out all out programs as efficiently as possible. This will help shorten time to gradation, increase enrollments and majors, and provide both students and faculty more ability to plan. Emily Good, our senior full time Instructor, is indespensible in drafting schedules each term.

Internship procedures are now formalized to require what has always been expected of interns: close supervision by employer-supervisor, fair assessment, continual feedback, and end reports which capsulize the experience for the benefit of the student him/herself, and for other students looking for their own internship. Internship reports, and independent studies, are cataloged and filed in the main office, with student access.

Summer rotation schedule had been very complex. A standardized one is now in place. This determines who has the opportunity to teach in the summer months -- constrained, of course, by curriular needs.

I'm quite proud of the 60-page undergraduate student handbook, in folded pamphlet form, which is indexed and (I think) quite useful to students. There's another one for graduate students. I update them regularly and print about 10 at a time so they stay current.

With the retirement of our long time secretary Lydia Sikat, we went through a period of temporary help and finally hired a new Administrative assistant Michael Partipilo, from Institutional Advancement/NEIU Foundation, who has become the new backbone of G&ES.

We've resumed the annual burning of the prairies on campus over the past three years, recently in cooperation with Steve Frankel of Biology. For what it's worth, I wrote a pamphlet to make all the permitting, announcements, equipment gathering, etc. easier for whomever takes this role on in the future.

Wild Things Conference came to NEIU twice in a row. This major conference drew more than a thousand to campus for concurrent sessions on all manner of environmental issues. Thanks to Emily Good, the Illinois Geographical Association had its annual meeting at NEIU in 2009.

The Department pulled together a picnic get-together at the end of summer, 2008, and it has become an annual event. Dr. Banerjee is spearheading some recognition awards for outstanding students.

With the support of Financial Affairs and Facilities and Management, our classroom (BBH202) received a ceiling projector linked to a computer at the podium. We took advantage of the update to move and organize cabinets, add attractive bulletin boards, and move the maps to a better location. We try to keep the room neat. It's not always easy, as it gets such heavy use. At the same time we cleared out out storage room -- and rearranged the map cabinets -- to provide students with a place to do group projects.

Several new display cases now show off the department's work. One, with a digital picture frame, rotates between several "advertisement" sequences. Another, in a larger case, accomodates a computer and monitor for video displays, alongside attractive posters.

All new computers were put in our two labs about 2008, with the support of University Computing.

In 2010-2011 the department was given a new hire, in the area of Appied Resource Management, Env. Ed/interpretation. Led by the Search and Screen chairman Dr. Banerjee, the screening process is underway (written Fall 2010). There are many excellent candidtates.

I have several goals and ideas for coming semesters:

Review department syllabi, particularly in prerequisite courses to improve the sequnencing of classes

Review curriculum in light of the University's Strategic Paln Goals, to articulate our efforts in the context of NEIU's

Get swipe card or combination lock access to the group project room

Clean the second storage room of unused roll-up maps and outdated equipment

Help the new faculty member integrate into the department and curriculum