SACS Reaffirmation
| Objective | B.S. In History Degree | |
| The Department of History will bring to approval a History BS program for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Approval Of BS In History SHSU will receive a letter from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board indicating final approval of a BS in History |
| Criteria | Approval of BS in History The Texas Coordinating Board will approve a new BS in History program for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine. |
| Finding | Approval of BS in History SHSU received a letter from the Texas Coordinating Board indicating approval of a new BS in History program for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine. |
| Action | TCB Approves BS in History The objective to secure coordinating board approval of a BS in History was met in 2007. As the result, in 2007-08 the department needs to recruit students and establish procedures that will ensure the quality development of this new program. |
| Objective | Doctoral Program | |
| The Department of History will bring to approval a History doctoral program. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Doctoral Program SHSU will received a letter from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board indicating final approval of a History PhD Program |
| Criteria | TCB Approval of PhD Program The Texas Coordinating Board will approve a new History PhD Program |
| Finding | Doctoral Program The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has requested that SHSU resubmit the PhD program including more details to support the justification for the program. |
| Action | Doctoral Program In response to the THECB request, the Department is working with the SHSU administration in preparing a revised proposal that addresses the specific concerns of the Texas Coordinating Board concerning the PhD proposal. |
| Objective | Faculty Diversity | |
| The Department of History will recruit, maintain and development a faculty that represents the gender and ethnic diversity of the student body Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Faculty Diversity When hiring tenure track faculty, the Department of History will advertise widely and actively seek women and minority faculty |
| Criteria | Maintaining diverse faculty The Department of History will maintain and development a faculty that represents the gender and ethnic diversity of the student body. |
| Finding | Maintaining diverse faculty During 2006-07, the Department recruited and hired two Visiting Assistant Professors, one of whom was female and one of whom was male. This job search effort produced results consistent with our vision of maintaining a diverse faculty that reflects the profile of our student body. |
| Action | Faculty Diversity The two Visiting Assistant Professors hired during 2006-07 for academic year 2007-8 expanded the divisity of the department. In 2007-08, a national search will take place to hire tenure track faculty in these fields to replace these visiting one year appointments. Continuous efforts will be made to ensure that candidates from diverse gender and ethnic backgrounds will apply for these positions. |
| Objective | Faculty Scholarship | |
| The Department of History will increase faculty research and scholarly activities. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Faculty Research The History faculty will contribute to the field by presenting at professional meetings and by publishing in scholarly venues. |
| Criteria | Faculty Research At least 50% of the graduate faculty will publish a scholarly work each year. The total number of pages published by history faculty will average at least 30 published pages per graduate faculty member per year. |
| Finding | Faculty Research 15 of the 22 (68%) full time members of the faculty published some work during 2006. The total pages published by the 22 member department in 2006 was 1824 pages, which was an average of about 83 pages per full time faculty. |
| Criteria | Faculty Research At least 50% of the graduate faculty will present in scholarly venues each year. |
| Finding | Faculty Research 15 of the 22 (68%) full time faculty presented papers at scholarly venues during 2006. |
| Indicator | Grant Activity The history department will be involved in seeking grants to support student enrichment opportunities, professional development and scholarly research. |
| Criteria | Grant Activity At least 50% of the graduate history faculty will submit at least one grant proposal each year, and at least one of these proposals will be funded. |
| Finding | Grant Activity During 2006, 14 of 22 full time faculty (64%) and 14 of 21 full time graduate faculty (67%)submitted grant proposals. Nine of these submissions (41%) received some level of funding. |
| Action | Faculty Research Faculty data collected for 2006 indicated that more than 60% of the faculty were active in each of the three research benchmarks: grant activity, scholarly presentations, and peer reviewed publications. This level of activity exceeded our goals. To ensure continued progress in this area, during 2007-08 the department will guarantee $2500 per full time faculty member in research and travel funds. In addition, the department will revise upward the targeted benchmarks for research excellence in each of the three research indicators: grant activity, scholarly presentations, and peer reviewed publications. The criteria of excellence for each indicator will be increased from 50% faculty activity each year to 60% faculty activity. The per capita goal of research pages published also will be increased from 30 pages per faculty per year to 40 pages per faculty per year. |
| Action | Grant Activity The department exceeded in benchmark goals for grant activity during 2006-07. During 2007-08, the department will publish this positive accomplishment in a departmental newsletter that will be sent to alums and friends of the History discipline. |
| Objective | Faculty Teaching | |
| History instructors will be rated above the national average on the Individual Development and Educational Assessment (IDEA) instrument. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | IDEA Student Ratings History students will use the IDEA student evaluations |
| Criteria | IDEA Student Ratings: % Classes At least 60% of the classes taught by History faculty will have IDEA Student ratings at or above the national average among professors of history at institutions using the IDEA system. |
| Finding | IDEA Student Ratings: % Classes In Spring 2007, the IDEA Center Report indicated that 73% of the classes taught by History faculty were at or above the national average on the adjusted summary score. In Fall 2006, the IDEA Center Report indicated that 72% of the classes taught by History faculty were at or above the national average on the adjusted summary score. In both semesters these scores were higher than the 66% of classes that reported above average evaluations in Fall 2005. |
| Criteria | IDEA Student Ratings: Average The average adjusted student evaluation of all SHSU History teachers as measured by the IDEA Center will place the History faculty in the top one-third among History teachers in the nation. |
| Finding | IDEA Student Ratings: Average In Spring 2007, the IDEA Center Report indicated that the adjusted average of History faculty was 55 (mean=50; SD=10), which placed the department in the 69th percentile among schools in the nation. In Fall 2006, the IDEA Center Report indicated that the adjusted average of History faculty was 56 (mean=50; SD=10), which placed the department in the 72th percentile among schools in the nation. Both semesters exceeded the results of Fall 2005 when the History Department ranked in the 62th percentile of History Departments in the nation. |
| Indicator | Students Taught By PhD Faculty Undergraduate students will be taught by faculty holding the PhD. |
| Criteria | PhD faculty The number and the percentage of history students taught by faculty holding the PhD will exceed the number and percentage of history students taught by faculty holding the PhD during the previous year. |
| Finding | PhD Faculty During 2006-07, 5539 of 7033 students (78.8%) took classes from History faculty with the PhD degree, whereas in 2005-06, 5026 of 6791 (74.0%)history students took classes from faculty holding the PhD. |
| Action | Adding PhD faculty We are on target increasing the number and percentages of students taught by PhD scholars. In 2006-07, however, 1494 undergraduate students were taught by instructors without the terminal degree. Efforts need to be continued at increasing the ratio of PhD to non-PhD teaching faculty. |
| Action | IDEA National Ranking In 2006-07, the department exceeded its target related to national percentile ranking based upon student evaluations of instruction. As a result, in 2007-08 the department will raise its targeted benchmark for teaching excellence from an overall departmental ranking in the 67th percentile nationally to an expectation of an overall departmental ranking in the 70th percentile nationally. |
| Action | IDEA ratings above national average In 2006-07, the department exceeded its target related to the percent of classes with higher than average student evaluations of instruction. As a result, in 2007-08 the department will raise its targeted benchmark for teaching excellence from an expectation of 60% of its classes at or above the national average to an expectation of 65% of its classes at or above the national average. |
| Objective | B.S. In History Degree | |
| The Department of History will bring to approval a History BS program for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Approval Of BS In History SHSU will receive a letter from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board indicating final approval of a BS in History |
| Criteria | Approval of BS in History The Texas Coordinating Board will approve a new BS in History program for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine. |
| Finding | Approval of BS in History SHSU received a letter from the Texas Coordinating Board indicating approval of a new BS in History program for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine. |
| Action | TCB Approves BS in History The objective to secure coordinating board approval of a BS in History was met in 2007. As the result, in 2007-08 the department needs to recruit students and establish procedures that will ensure the quality development of this new program. |
| Objective | Careers In History | |
| History graduates will reach their career objectives Associated Goals: Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Alumni Publications The History Department will prepare its graduates to publish in their respective fields. |
| Criteria | Alumni Publications At least once every two years, a SHSU history graduate will publish a scholarly work within his/her field that was begun while he or she was a student at SHSU. |
| Finding | Alumni Publications During 2005-06, NYU Press published Glenn Shuck''s MARKS OF THE BEAST. This monograph was an expansion of Mr. Shuck''s MA thesis. During 2006-07, the Naval Institute Press published Harold Wise''s INSIDE THE DANGER ZONE: THE US MILITARY IN THE PERSIAN GULF. This work is an expansion of Mr. Wise''s MA thesis. |
| Indicator | Future Teachers Teacher education students who major or minor in History will pass the TEXES examination. |
| Criteria | Future teachers 80% of all teacher education students who major or minor in History will pass the TEXES examination. |
| Finding | Future Teachers During 2006-07, 15 of 17 of teacher education students registered as SHSU students passed the Social Studies Composite TeXes Examination, and 12 of 17 of teacher education students registered as SHSU students passed the History TeXes Examination. Thus, overall 79.4% received passing scores. |
| Indicator | Post Graduate Student Progress Each year at least two History graduates will be admitted into a graduate program in pursuit of a higher degree |
| Criteria | Pipeline into graduate programs At least two history graduates will be accepted into a graduate program each year |
| Finding | Pipeline into Graduate Program In 2006-07, at least 11 former history students matriculated into a graduate program, 8 of which entered an MA program and 3 of which entered a PhD program. |
| Indicator | Student Professional Growth The History Department will create and launch a systematic plan that is designed to monitor the professional and career advancement of former history graduates. |
| Criteria | Surveying Student Professional Growth At least 80% of history students five years after graduation will report on the survey instrument that the degree skills they acquired as a student has enabled them to meet their career goals. |
| Finding | Graduate Survey During 2007, the History Department created a survey instrument designed to monitor the professional progress of former history graduates, and compiled a list of names and addresses of students who graduated in 2003. |
| Action | Alumni Publications The data collected during the previous two year period indicated that at least two former MA students published major works drawn from their graduate work at SHSU. The department will publicize this positive accomplishment in a departmental newsletter during 2007-08. |
| Action | Gradudate Survey The department made the decision to mail the survey to former graduates in March 2008. The results of this survey will be analyzed in 2007-08. |
| Action | Post Graduate Progress After reviewing the findings regarding the number of history graduates accepted into graduate schools, the department published its successes in university and departmental brochures and publications. |
| Action | TeXes Scores With a 79.4% passing rate on the TeXes exams, we narrowly missed our targeted goal of 80% passing. However, on one of the two TeXes exams, only 71% of our students received passing scores. This was the only benchmark the department failed to reach during 2006/07. Increasing the TeXes passing rates of history education students has been a concern of the department for several years. To address this concern, several years ago the department proposed a new course, Conceptualizing History Education, specifically designed for our history education students. The course was approved by the Texas Coordinating Board and offered for the first time in Spring 2007. Data indicates that the passing rate on the TeXes exam is directly related to the number of history education students taking HIS 390: Conceptualizing History Education. Specifically, whereas only 25% of the history education students who took the practice TeXes during the semester passed the practice test,12 of 15 students (80%)enrolled in HIS 390 passed the practice TeXes exam at the end of the Spring 2007 semester. These figures document the need to continue the department''s policy of encouraging education majors with a history emphasis to enroll in HIS 390 before attempting the TeXes Social Studies or History examinations. Currently only one full time instructor in the department has the skills to offer HIS 390. Recruiting or developing another faculty member as an instructor for this course must to raised to a high departmental priority. |
| Objective | Doctoral Program | |
| The Department of History will bring to approval a History doctoral program. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Doctoral Program SHSU will received a letter from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board indicating final approval of a History PhD Program |
| Criteria | TCB Approval of PhD Program The Texas Coordinating Board will approve a new History PhD Program |
| Finding | Doctoral Program The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has requested that SHSU resubmit the PhD program including more details to support the justification for the program. |
| Action | Doctoral Program In response to the THECB request, the Department is working with the SHSU administration in preparing a revised proposal that addresses the specific concerns of the Texas Coordinating Board concerning the PhD proposal. |
| Objective | Faculty Diversity | |
| The Department of History will recruit, maintain and development a faculty that represents the gender and ethnic diversity of the student body Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Faculty Diversity When hiring tenure track faculty, the Department of History will advertise widely and actively seek women and minority faculty |
| Criteria | Maintaining diverse faculty The Department of History will maintain and development a faculty that represents the gender and ethnic diversity of the student body. |
| Finding | Maintaining diverse faculty During 2006-07, the Department recruited and hired two Visiting Assistant Professors, one of whom was female and one of whom was male. This job search effort produced results consistent with our vision of maintaining a diverse faculty that reflects the profile of our student body. |
| Action | Faculty Diversity The two Visiting Assistant Professors hired during 2006-07 for academic year 2007-8 expanded the divisity of the department. In 2007-08, a national search will take place to hire tenure track faculty in these fields to replace these visiting one year appointments. Continuous efforts will be made to ensure that candidates from diverse gender and ethnic backgrounds will apply for these positions. |
| Objective | Faculty Scholarship | |
| The Department of History will increase faculty research and scholarly activities. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | Faculty Research The History faculty will contribute to the field by presenting at professional meetings and by publishing in scholarly venues. |
| Criteria | Faculty Research At least 50% of the graduate faculty will publish a scholarly work each year. The total number of pages published by history faculty will average at least 30 published pages per graduate faculty member per year. |
| Finding | Faculty Research 15 of the 22 (68%) full time members of the faculty published some work during 2006. The total pages published by the 22 member department in 2006 was 1824 pages, which was an average of about 83 pages per full time faculty. |
| Criteria | Faculty Research At least 50% of the graduate faculty will present in scholarly venues each year. |
| Finding | Faculty Research 15 of the 22 (68%) full time faculty presented papers at scholarly venues during 2006. |
| Indicator | Grant Activity The history department will be involved in seeking grants to support student enrichment opportunities, professional development and scholarly research. |
| Criteria | Grant Activity At least 50% of the graduate history faculty will submit at least one grant proposal each year, and at least one of these proposals will be funded. |
| Finding | Grant Activity During 2006, 14 of 22 full time faculty (64%) and 14 of 21 full time graduate faculty (67%)submitted grant proposals. Nine of these submissions (41%) received some level of funding. |
| Action | Faculty Research Faculty data collected for 2006 indicated that more than 60% of the faculty were active in each of the three research benchmarks: grant activity, scholarly presentations, and peer reviewed publications. This level of activity exceeded our goals. To ensure continued progress in this area, during 2007-08 the department will guarantee $2500 per full time faculty member in research and travel funds. In addition, the department will revise upward the targeted benchmarks for research excellence in each of the three research indicators: grant activity, scholarly presentations, and peer reviewed publications. The criteria of excellence for each indicator will be increased from 50% faculty activity each year to 60% faculty activity. The per capita goal of research pages published also will be increased from 30 pages per faculty per year to 40 pages per faculty per year. |
| Action | Grant Activity The department exceeded in benchmark goals for grant activity during 2006-07. During 2007-08, the department will publish this positive accomplishment in a departmental newsletter that will be sent to alums and friends of the History discipline. |
| Objective | Faculty Teaching | |
| History instructors will be rated above the national average on the Individual Development and Educational Assessment (IDEA) instrument. Associated Goals: Image And Exposure, Quality Programs |
| Indicator | IDEA Student Ratings History students will use the IDEA student evaluations |
| Criteria | IDEA Student Ratings: % Classes At least 60% of the classes taught by History faculty will have IDEA Student ratings at or above the national average among professors of history at institutions using the IDEA system. |
| Finding | IDEA Student Ratings: % Classes In Spring 2007, the IDEA Center Report indicated that 73% of the classes taught by History faculty were at or above the national average on the adjusted summary score. In Fall 2006, the IDEA Center Report indicated that 72% of the classes taught by History faculty were at or above the national average on the adjusted summary score. In both semesters these scores were higher than the 66% of classes that reported above average evaluations in Fall 2005. |
| Criteria | IDEA Student Ratings: Average The average adjusted student evaluation of all SHSU History teachers as measured by the IDEA Center will place the History faculty in the top one-third among History teachers in the nation. |
| Finding | IDEA Student Ratings: Average In Spring 2007, the IDEA Center Report indicated that the adjusted average of History faculty was 55 (mean=50; SD=10), which placed the department in the 69th percentile among schools in the nation. In Fall 2006, the IDEA Center Report indicated that the adjusted average of History faculty was 56 (mean=50; SD=10), which placed the department in the 72th percentile among schools in the nation. Both semesters exceeded the results of Fall 2005 when the History Department ranked in the 62th percentile of History Departments in the nation. |
| Indicator | Students Taught By PhD Faculty Undergraduate students will be taught by faculty holding the PhD. |
| Criteria | PhD faculty The number and the percentage of history students taught by faculty holding the PhD will exceed the number and percentage of history students taught by faculty holding the PhD during the previous year. |
| Finding | PhD Faculty During 2006-07, 5539 of 7033 students (78.8%) took classes from History faculty with the PhD degree, whereas in 2005-06, 5026 of 6791 (74.0%)history students took classes from faculty holding the PhD. |
| Action | Adding PhD faculty We are on target increasing the number and percentages of students taught by PhD scholars. In 2006-07, however, 1494 undergraduate students were taught by instructors without the terminal degree. Efforts need to be continued at increasing the ratio of PhD to non-PhD teaching faculty. |
| Action | IDEA National Ranking In 2006-07, the department exceeded its target related to national percentile ranking based upon student evaluations of instruction. As a result, in 2007-08 the department will raise its targeted benchmark for teaching excellence from an overall departmental ranking in the 67th percentile nationally to an expectation of an overall departmental ranking in the 70th percentile nationally. |
| Action | IDEA ratings above national average In 2006-07, the department exceeded its target related to the percent of classes with higher than average student evaluations of instruction. As a result, in 2007-08 the department will raise its targeted benchmark for teaching excellence from an expectation of 60% of its classes at or above the national average to an expectation of 65% of its classes at or above the national average. |