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Position Profile

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SEARCH FOR THE DEAN OF THE COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS
ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) seeks a dynamic academic leader who will be instrumental in leading the College of Liberal Arts at RIT, a world-renowned university with a strong focus on student centeredness, scholarship, and career-oriented innovation. As the chief academic officer for the College of Liberal Arts, the Dean will partner with the new Provost to implement the University’s vision of a Category-of-One premier innovation university.

Founded in 1829, RIT was an early pioneer in practice-based and cooperative education. Today, RIT is a leading career-oriented university that prepares students for success in a global, technology-based society.

Currently, the University is at an important juncture. A new president, William Destler, has just begun his tenure, and a new provost will be appointed in early 2008. RIT has experienced significant growth and change during the past 15 years. Enrollment has grown, jumping 13% since 1999 to nearly 16,000, and student quality and diversity are on the rise. The faculty continues to grow in number, diversity, and scholarly stature. The University has invested significant capital to improve its education, research, and technology infrastructure and added more than 40 new degree and certificate programs. RIT has grown its endowment to $650 million and recently concluded a successful $300 million capital campaign. RIT is among the 15 largest private universities in the nation in terms of full-time undergraduate enrollment and celebrates more than 100,000 alumni around the world.

Building on its strong foundation, RIT seeks to further its impressive trajectory and become the top university for career preparation in today’s technology-based world. In its strategic plan developed for 2005-2015—Category-of-One University: Uniquely Blending Academic Programs with Experiential Learning for Student Success—RIT has articulated ambitious goals for the future and defined its core strategic dimensions as career focus, student success, scholarship, global reach, and community. President Destler’s vision is that RIT become a center for innovation and creativity. The new Dean of Liberal Arts will help develop the College’s many capacities to contribute to this vision.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Dean should have a clear and innovative vision of the importance and centrality of liberal education and a liberal arts college at a technical university. We are seeking an individual who will help develop an evolving strategic direction which addresses the appropriate mix and integration of degree and non-degree offerings and who encourages collaboration among the programs and departments of the college and among other colleges of RIT. The Dean should be able to promote open and transparent communication and support a culture of shared governance and mutual respect between and among faculty, staff, administration, and students. The Dean should exemplify characteristics of strong leadership that emphasizes collaboration, trust, empathy, humor, and integrity.

The Dean is the chief academic, fiscal, and administrative officer, and has a key role in securing funds for the College’s initiatives. The Dean must be a strong advocate for the College in internal funding decisions.

Specifically, the Dean:

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CANDIDATE QUALIFICATIONS

The successful candidate should have an earned Ph.D. in an appropriate discipline for the College of Liberal Arts, and also be an accomplished scholar in his/her field, and have previous teaching and administrative experience.

LEADERSHIP

More specifically, he or she should have a passion for academic excellence, coupled with an established record of visionary, exceptional, and collaborative leadership in higher education in one of the CLA disciplines; the capacity to think strategically and to communicate persuasively the mission and aspirations of CLA and RIT; the ability to work effectively with the senior leadership of the university and with faculty and staff in further defining the unique role of the Liberal Arts at RIT; the ability to motivate and inspire others to strive continuously for academic excellence and to contribute to the success of the strategic plan and the research, teaching, and service mission of the university; strong management skills, including stewardship of fiscal and human resources; the ability to coordinate effective relationships with external constituencies and partners. Successful experience as a department chair, research center or institute director, dean or associate dean or vice provost will be deemed a valuable asset to an individual’s candidacy.

UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY RELATIONS

Experience as an effective advocate of the Liberal Arts both within and outside of the academic environment is paramount. Candidates should be able to attract the most accomplished and respected scholars to join RIT in the effort to continue raising the standards of excellence in teaching, research and service. Candidates should also demonstrate a high level of ethics and integrity as a university leader and citizen when working with the senior administration, faculty, students, staff, alumni, donors and other stakeholders.

FOCUS ON STUDENTS

A respect for students and a commitment to providing them with a high quality educational experience; an understanding of the integral relationship between undergraduate and graduate education, and a commitment to developing and enriching the research opportunities for undergraduates; an appreciation of the need for competitive graduate programs; a recognition of the importance of employing proactive and effective marketing and recruitment strategies in order to attract a high caliber of students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels; a capacity to foster an appreciation for the different ways students learn and, therefore, the different ways in which student achievement can be measured and recognized.

FOCUS ON FACULTY

A demonstrated strong commitment to academic excellence and a commitment to ensuring that this excellence is promoted and sustained through the faculty recruitment, tenure and promotion process; a commitment to, and appreciation of interdisciplinary scholarship; an understanding of, and respect for the diversity of disciplines in the College of Liberal Arts, including awareness of the different challenges and opportunities for external research support; a demonstrated commitment to faculty mentoring and development across all the ranks and at all career stages; an understanding of the challenges of recruiting and retaining academic dual career couples, as well as the challenges of balancing the research, teaching and service demands of a tenure track academic career with family responsibilities, and creative ideas to address these challenges.

DIVERSITY

A commitment to the importance of diversity among faculty, staff, and students in terms of gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, religion, and intellectual perspective is imperative. Candidates demonstrating success at implementing concrete ideas and strategies for continuously improving the diversity of the faculty and student body, and a record of creating, fostering, or implementing successful programs to increase diversity will be especially welcome.

COMMUNICATION

Proven record for communicating strategy, objectives, and vision as an academic leader to a wide variety of stakeholders and members of the academic community. Communication in both written and verbal form must be compelling, eloquent and inspiring to the audiences in articulating the values, purpose and mission to both RIT and the College of Liberal Arts.

PERSONAL QUALITIES

The highest standards of professional integrity will be critical in being a credible academic leader at RIT. Their personality and ability to work with people should intrinsically inspire and engender a sense of trust and collegiality, facilitate partnerships, a healthy and respectful work environment and bring a genuine level of enthusiasm to the College and RIT. Humility, a sense of humor, and the ability to keep the issues in context will be important.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE NEW DEAN FOR THE COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS

With a new president, RIT is striving to become a university that not only educates its students for successful careers, but also reinforces America’s greatest competitive advantage by supporting and developing student capacities for ongoing, rigorous, and innovative learning. In making this bold vision a reality, there are many opportunities that are emerging for the new Dean of the College of Liberal Arts They include:

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College Profile

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The College of Liberal Arts

RIT is unique among institutes of technology because of the breadth and depth of the College of Liberal Arts. The College has more than 140 highly credentialed full-time faculty representing all of the traditional liberal arts disciplines. While the College provides liberal arts courses for students seeking degrees in the other colleges of RIT, more than 700 students are currently enrolled in a number of B.S. and M.S. degree programs in liberal arts. The Dean of the College of Liberal Arts will have the opportunity to build on the remarkable teaching and scholarship strengths of the College in the context of a large private university.

The College of Liberal Arts (CLA) is central to the intellectual and cultural life of RIT, and it provides the core of an Institute curriculum that contributes substantially to every program of the university.

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Academic Departments

The College of Liberal Arts contains the following academic departments plus the RIT Exploration Program for undeclared majors.

Communication Department
Criminal Justice Department
Economics Department
English Department
Fine Arts Department
Music at RIT
Foreign Language Department
History Department
Material Culture Science Department
Philosophy Department
Political Science Department
Psychology Department
RIT Exploration Program
Science Technology and Society/ Public Policy Department
School Psychology Department
Sociology & Anthropology Department
International Studies Program
Urban & Community Studies Program

Administration

Glenn J. Kist, Interim Dean, was appointed to lead the College in December 2006. Dean Kist, also a Professor of History, brings 37 years of experience to the position. In January 2007, Dean Kist appointed Anne C. Coon, Professor of English, as Senior Associate Dean, and John Capps, Associate Professor of Philosophy, as Associate Dean.

Endowed Chairs

Mary Lynn Broe, Caroline Werner Gannett Professor in Humanities For the 2007- 08 Gannett Lecture Series, “Visionaries in Motion,” Professor Broe will bring to RIT 21st century thinkers and scholars in the arts, sciences and technologies who “work at the crossroads of several disciplines…and take risks to change worlds.”

Amit Batabyal, Arthur J. Gosnell Professor in Economics “Recognizing the importance of good teaching in economics and facilitating research into public policy questions,” Professor Batabyal leads departmental research efforts and presents an annual lecture series bringing distinguished speakers to RIT. He is also a recipient of the Trustees Scholarship Award, RIT’s highest research award.

Wade Robison, Ezra A. Hale Professor in Applied Ethics, Department of Philosophy “The Chair is devoted to research and teaching in ethics within and about the professional disciplines, and to developing curricular partnerships across the Institute.” In addition, Professor Robison sponsors the Hale Ethics Lecture Series and conferences throughout the academic year.

Diane S. Hope, William A. Kern Professor in Communications Professor Hope directs the bi-annual William A. Kern conferences on Visual Communication: Rhetorics and Technology and, on alternate years, a Kern conference on Communication and Social Change.

Professional Staff Members of the College

The College of Liberal Arts also includes a Grants and Contracts Officer, Development Officer, ITS Support Professional (all funded by other units in the Institute), as well as a Budget Officer, Deans’ Office Assistants, the Office of Student Services, and Department Staff Assistants. This talented and diverse group of professionals plays an integral role in the work of the College and contributes significantly to the success of RIT students and faculty.

Facilities

The College of Liberal Arts is located at the center of the campus, across from the Institute’s library. Its Administrative Offices are located there, as are the departments of English, Fine Arts, History, and Philosophy, and the RIT Exploration program, along with 48 faculty offices, classrooms and two auditoria. The following department offices are in the Eastman Building, the central administration building of the Institute: Communication, Criminal Justice, Economics, Foreign Language, Material Culture Sciences, Political Science, Psychology, School Psychology, Science, Technology, Society/Public Policy, and Sociology/Anthropology. Approximately 124 faculty offices are located in the Eastman Building. As an expanding college, Liberal Arts continues to seek additional space to better fulfill its central mission at the Institute.

Academic Departments and Profiles: (please see department/program websites for additional details)

Department of Communication
Bruce Austin, Chair

The Department of Communication has 15 full-time faculty, a number of adjunct faculty, two Staff Assistants, and several student workers. The Department is home to three degree programs: since 1986, a B.S. degree in Professional & Technical Communication (PTC), since 2001, a M.S. degree in Communication & Media Technologies (CMT), and, starting Fall 2005, a B.S. degree in Advertising & Public Relations (APR). These degree programs and other departmental activities introduce students to communication scholars and professionals, engage students in quality research projects, invite students to participate in various discipline-related activities, and create a learning environment that motivates students to strive for excellence.

The Department also serves RIT students enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts Communication Minor, the College’s Communication Concentration, and all RIT students who select junior and senior level communication Liberal Arts electives. The Department advises students preparing Liberal Smarts, the twice annual newsletter about the College of Liberal Arts. In addition, the Department organizes the Institute's Public Speaking Contest, an event held twice a year. Finally, in 2004 the Department initiated an annual Undergraduate Research Conference in Communication.

One of four endowed chairs in the College, the William A. Kern Professor, is based in the Communication Department; and she has regularly organized nationally recognized conferences and subsequent publications in the area of “Visual Communication”. The Department was recently chosen as one of two universities to receive the National Communication Association’s Rex Mix Program of Excellence Award.

Department of Criminal Justice
John Klofas, Chair

The Department of Criminal Justice has 8 full-time faculty, professionally distinguished adjunct faculty, and one Staff Assistant. The Department is home to a B.S. degree program in Criminal Justice. This degree program’s objectives are three-fold. First, the program offers students a broad education with a curriculum designed to prepare them for a wide range of careers in criminal justice. Second, the program provides continuing education for those already employed in the criminal justice system. Finally, the program provides a strong academic foundation for graduate school in criminal justice and other related fields.

The Department’s approach to the study of criminal justice combines theoretical perspectives with practical experience. As students study crime, criminal behavior, social control mechanisms, administration, planning, and management, they learn to solve problems using techniques based on the rapidly growing body of research in the field and on their own guided research. The Department’s program is unique because of its broad core curriculum, the scope of professional course offerings, and an intensive field experience in which students blend knowledge gained in both required and elective courses with a career-oriented internship.

Through several external grants and through the Center for Public Safety Initiatives, faculty and students in the Department have a unique opportunity to work closely with the city of Rochester and New York State on initiatives focusing on violence reduction, curfew evaluation, and gang research.

Department of Economics
Michael J. Vernarelli, Chair

The Economics department has 12 full-time faculty, a number of adjunct faculty, and one Staff Assistant. The Department is home to a B.S. degree program in Economics. This program focuses on the development of critical thinking and decision making skills. More specifically, the Department’s degree program emphasizes the quantitative analytical approach to dealing with economic problems in both the public and the private sectors. In addition, the program provides students with marketable skills and the intellectual foundation for career growth.

The distinguishing feature of RIT’s economics program is the curriculum. The Department trains students by developing communication, computer, and management skills in addition to economic reasoning and quantitative abilities. In addition to course work, the department actively encourages the conduct of guided research by students. Students in the program can continue for a fifth year and obtain, in addition to their B.S., either a MBA or a MS in Public Policy. Graduates of the program have pursued a wide range of employment opportunities and they have also gone on to graduate school in economics and in other fields.

The Department has the highest number of “double-majors” in RIT and it has also developed RIT’s first pre-approved double-major in Economics and Finance. One of four endowed chairs in the College, the Arthur J. Gosnell Professor—Amit Batabyal, is based in the Economics Department. The only College recipient thus far of RIT’s highest research award, the “Trustees Scholarship Award” is a member of the department. Finally, the Gosnell Lecture Series is organized under the auspices of the Department.

Department of English
Barbara Heifferon, Chair

The English Department is made up of 15 tenure-track faculty, 10 lecturers, 21 part-time instructors, and one staff assistant. The faculty is diverse and delivers a rich array of courses. It administers the Institute's Writing Seminar and teaches a selection of courses that expand students' abilities to express themselves in a range of written genres, as well as the capacity to read and critically interpret texts across multiple media and disciplines. The Department offers minors in Creative Writing, Literary and Cultural Studies, Writing Studies, and Science Writing. Members of the faculty are currently at work on a new B.S. degree in Science Writing that will require core professionalization in a branch of science, yet remain grounded within a humanities.tradition.

The Department is motivated by a strong dedication to excellence and innovation in teaching. It regularly teaches collaboratively beyond the Department and the College, working with colleagues in Philosophy, History, Physics, and, even, Mathematics. A number of their courses are cross-listed within other minors and programs such as Urban and Community Studies, Women's Studies, and Philosophy. Members of Department consistently receive Provost Learning Innovation Grants and College grants to develop new courses. In addition, a number of faculty have been nominated for the prestigious Eisenhart Teaching Award. The Department is also committed to teaching beyond the classroom in various ways, including the publication of RIT's student-edited literature and art journal, Signatures, writing clubs, and poetry-readings.

English faculty are also active in scholarship and writing. Its work ranges from poetry to postcolonial theory, and this work is woven back into the teaching environment. To this end, members of the faculty work in directions such as cultural analysis of new media, digital poetry, the rhetoric of science, and literary history of science. Three members of the faculty have been awarded the highly competitive Paul A. and Francena L. Miller Fellowship within the past three years. Publications include memoirs, poetry chapbooks, as well as scholarly monographs on post-colonial theory, linguistics, British and American Literature, and edited volumes on working class literature. The faculty publish regularly in peer-reviewed journals and are active members of international scholarly organizations.

Department of Fine Arts
Tina Lent, Chair

The Department of Fine Arts is comprised of 11 full-time faculty and a number of adjunct faculty from the disciplines of art history, film history, music, and theatre. The Department offers a wide range of art courses, from historical surveys to theory to performance, at the lower-division, upper division, and graduate levels. The Department’s goal is to provide students with knowledge of the tools, vocabulary, styles, history, concepts, and values that characterize the arts, and to do so in a way that engages the otherwise technical and professional thrust of their education.

The Department’s curriculum emphasizes analysis, interpretation, and practice as ways to develop intellectual breadth and to promote awareness and appreciation of the diversity of human experience and expression. The faculty is committed to the study of the fine arts as a way to enrich, challenge, and empower students to use technology in creative and innovative ways, both with regard to their studies and in their future careers.

The Department supports a Degree in Cultural Resource Studies, Minors in Art History, Music, and Theatre Arts and Concentrations in American Artistic Expression, Art History, Music, and Theatre Arts, in which over 140 students are enrolled. It also participates in a cross-disciplinary program in Women’s and Gender Studies, as well as sponsoring a wide and ambitious range of musical and theatrical programming that attracts and involves both students and the wider Rochester community; and it is in the process of developing two new minors: one in Visual Culture and another in Film Studies, in collaboration with the School for Film and Animation. In addition, the Department supports five Instrumental groups, five Choral ensembles, the RIT Players—a student organization—and sponsors two major dramatic performances each year.

Department of Foreign Languages
Hiroko Yamashita, Chair

The Foreign Language Program is comprised of 8 full-time faculty and some 30 committed adjunct instructors. The Program strives to prepare students for living and working in a global and multicultural society both at home and abroad. The program helps students gain a global perspective by infusing culture into each course. Foundation skills in ASL, Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish include rigorous training in expressive and receptive communication. Currently more than 700 students are enrolled in a Foreign Language concentration, over 170 in a minor, and over 2,280 will take a foreign language course this academic year—a figure that has risen 5% each year over the past several years.

Students acquire skill, knowledge, and an appreciation of and sensitivity to commonalities and unique differences of culture and belief systems through the reading, viewing, and discussion of assigned materials. By the discussion of literature, culture, history, and current events pertaining to the target country, students also gain a deeper understanding of the role of the United States in an ever-changing world. Learning a new language and culture hones the students' critical thinking skills. They learn to compare and contrast what they know to what they are learning, and they draw new conclusions and gain new insights. The result is not only a deeper understanding and appreciation of the host culture but also of one's place in the world, and of one's own language and culture.

This is especially critical for those who enter the international job market and/or wish to be successful applicants to the best graduate programs. In this regard, Foreign Language plays a leading role in internationalizing the Institute's curriculum by supporting the new International Studies major, and by coordinating summer study abroad programs in Japan, Germany, and Italy. This role is confirmed by additional extracurricular programming--language fairs, speech contests, and weekly conversation tables—and its being the recent recipient of a NSF grant to host an international conference in which over 50 international scholars participated.

Department of History
Rebecca Edwards, Chair

The History Department is comprised of 10 full-time faculty and supports 3 minors—in European History, American History, and History of the Modern World—and several concentrations. The Department is committed to promoting inquiry into the origins, character, and significance of various stages in human history, throughout the ages and across the globe. In addition, students learn the methodologies that historians use in studying the past, present, and future as interrelated parts of a time continuum. The History curriculum is devoted to ensuring that students will gain proficiency in the discipline of historical thinking, learn how to select, read and evaluate an array of historical sources, and learn how to compose and communicate their findings successfully through written and oral presentations.

The Department approaches history from a global perspective, which includes cross-disciplinary and joint-appointments, especially in relation to the history of science, technology, and environmental thought. This facilitates the Department’s capacity to prepare students to succeed in their professional careers. The skills they acquire in their history courses – broad perspectives on human experience, critical appraisal of sources, effective expression of ideas, and identification of comparisons and contrasts – are essential in a wide range of professions, including business, education, journalism, law, politics, government, and public service. Cultivating these skills also prepares each student for a lifetime of meaningful contributions as a citizen of local, national, and world communities.

In service of these goals, the History Department maintains an active scholarly profile and research agenda, including participation in NEH seminars, the regular publication of books and articles, and sponsorship of “history roundtable” discussions of current issues that involve historians and others from the wider academic community.

Department of Material Cultural Sciences
William Middleton, Interim Chair

CLA’s newest department is developing a minor and degree program, and plans to hire a chair in the near future. In support of its future development, the department has submitted several grant proposals.

Department of Philosophy
David Suits, Chair

The Department of Philosophy has 10 full-time faculty, several adjunct faculty, and one Staff Assistant. The Department offers a large variety of popular undergraduate courses plus graduate courses in Philosophy of Art/Aesthetics and Philosophy of Mind. The Department also supports a Minor (with 55 students), a Concentration (with 255 students), and provides a rich array of electives for students across the Institute. In any given year nearly 3,000 students will elect to take a Philosophy course. The Department also develops an annual program of outside speakers (virtually one per week), symposia and colloquia; the symposia are international in scope and regularly supported by external grants. The Department is home to an Endowed Chair in Applied Ethics; and it is also in the process of developing a unique BS Degree in Philosophy that requires each student to have a core competence in some discipline chosen from across the entire Institute outside of Philosophy, as well as a specialization within Philosophy (Philosophy of Science & Technology, Philosophy of Art & Aesthetics, Philosophy of Mind & Cognitive Science, Applied Ethics, and Philosophy of the Social Sciences & Political Philosophy).

The Philosophy Department is motivated by a strong dedication to excellence in teaching. Most of our faculty have received teaching awards, and some of our faculty have received multiple teaching awards. The Eisenhart Award for Outstanding Teaching is RIT’s highest tribute to successful pedagogy, and the Department of Philosophy is home to seven of these awards.

The Philosophy Department is also motivated by a strong commitment to scholarship, as evidenced by the scholarly activities of the individual members of the Department, by the Department’s speaker series and colloquia, and by the scholarship awards which have been won. The Department of Philosophy has been the home of four prestigious and highly competitive Paul A. and Francena L. Miller Fellowships. And in the last year alone members of Department have been the recipients of 4 research grants and had 4 books published, with several more under contract.

Department of Political Science
Paul H. Ferber, Chair

The Department of Political Science has 8 full-time faculty, some adjunct faculty, and one Staff Assistant. The Department offers a broad curriculum surveying major domestic governmental functions as well as comparative analysis across countries and international relations. Courses build intellectual bridges with disciplines such as history, environmental studies, criminal justice, peace studies, economics, women’s studies, the humanities generally, military service, and science and public policy.

The Department supports the general education of all RIT students by offering two introductory-level courses titled “American Politics” and “Introduction to International Relations.” In addition, the Department offers a three course concentration and a five course minor in American Politics and in International Relations. The Department contends that understanding “how things get done” and the complexity of politics are valuable lessons for all students, irrespective of their career choice after graduating from RIT.

The Department periodically sponsors lectures on subjects such as “Shakespeare and Politics”, the emerging field of Biotechnology and, on an ongoing basis, a Constitution Day event at which external and/or internal speakers discuss some aspect of the US Constitution. The Department also maintains an active scholarly profile and research agenda.

Department of Psychology
Kathleen Chen, Chair

The Department of Psychology has 8 full-time faculty and a Staff Assistant. The Department is home to two degree programs and, in addition, the Department also offers a minor and a concentration in Psychology. The Department’s educational programs are unique because they combine strong academic training with a career focus. The B.S. degree provides a general foundation in psychology with specialized training in one of four tracks: visual perception, information processing, biopsychology, and clinical psychology. In addition, the Department also offers a M.S. degree in Engineering Psychology.

The Department’s B.S. degree program provides a strong background in psychology with substantial training in a technical/professional field. The program’s curriculum trains students in a way that leads to the achievement of definite career goals. No area B.S. program in psychology has this integrated career focus that increases chances for an advantageous placement after graduation. In addition to this career focus, the Department also provides co-op/internship experiences for students.

The Psychology Club has conducted an exploration program for high school students who wish to learn about alternate career paths. As well, to benefit undergraduate and graduate students, the Department maintains collaborative relationships with other departments at RIT such as Imaging Science, Information Technology, and Industrial Engineering.

Department of School Psychology
Scott Merydith, Chair

The Department of School Psychology has 4 full-time faculty members, a number of adjunct faculty, and one Staff Assistant. The Department is home to a M.S. degree and an Advanced Graduate Certificate program. The latter program was established in 1986 and is accredited by the National Association of School Psychologists and the New York State Department of Education. The Department takes pride in preparing students for employment in school systems and in related work settings by providing them with a variety of practical classroom and field-based experiences.

After taking a specified sequence of courses, students complete the M.S. degree program in the third year by working as paid interns in a school setting. Graduates receive provisional certification in school psychology in New York State and can apply for permanent certification after two years of work experience. Students frequently present their research at the National Association of School Psychologists conference. A blend of theory and practice, the Advanced Graduate Certificate program offers a solid foundation in psychoeducational assessment, counseling, and consultation. Students are placed in a school or agency setting one day per week over the first two years of study.

The Department recently undertook a comprehensive exercise to enhance its system for assessing student performance and program effectiveness. As a result of this exercise, several changes have been instituted. Recently, the Department has begun work on a proposal for the creation of a doctoral degree program in School Psychology.

Department of Science, Technology, and Society/Public Policy
James Winebrake, Chair

The Department of Science, Technology, and Society/Public Policy has 12 full-time faculty, some adjunct faculty, and two Staff Assistants. The Department is home to four degree offerings: a BS in Public Policy (PP), a MS in Science, Technology, and Public Policy (STPP), a BS/MS in PP/STPP, and a novel BS/MS with Mechanical Engineering/STPP., The Department also offers five minors, three concentrations, and five “4+1” degrees with Business, Criminal Justice, Economics, International Studies, and Urban and Community Studies (with more in the works).

The Department includes the Science, Technology, and Society (STS) Program and the Public Policy Program. The Department’s objective is to explore science and technology in their social content and contexts. As such, the Department emphasizes interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary collaboration, teaching, and scholarship in order to improve society, protect the biosphere, encourage good citizenship, and prepare students for a variety of careers and advanced degrees. The faculty help accomplish the Department’s objective by providing a high quality teaching and learning environment.

The Department is actively involved in externally funded research and in facilitating community-based service learning experiences. It formed and now co-directs the RIT Laboratory for Environmental Computing and Decision Making. Finally, it hosts the North East Neighborhood Alliance (NENA)-RIT Partnership. The mission of this partnership is to support and propel the implementation of the NENA Strategic Neighborhood Action Plan while broadening and deepening the educational experience of RIT students.

RIT Exploration Program
Andrea Walter, Chair

The RIT Exploration Program is an academic program designed to allow students to complete required courses in Liberal Arts, mathematics, and science, while actively pursuing career exploration and receiving individualized academic advising. Students may stay in the program for up to three academic quarters. The program offers the following to students who are “undecided” about a major: a Career Exploration Seminar, Advising from faculty in the College of Liberal Arts, Introductory courses from many RIT degree programs, and Liberal Arts required core courses in Humanities and Social Sciences.

The Exploration Program concentrates on several key components for Student Success: the RIT Exploration Seminar, Liberal Arts Courses, an opportunity to enroll in Program Courses in prospective majors, and Individual Faculty Advisors. The Program is available to High School Seniors: who have competitive grades, who have disparate areas of interest, who may have no clear major in mind but who are interested in RIT, and/or who do not yet have the necessary portfolio or math/science background necessary for entrance into art or engineering programs.

Program statistics demonstrate that the Exploration Program is attractive to incoming Freshmen and of value to Internal Transfers, as well as serving to help RIT retain students who are initially attracted to RIT but “undecided” about their academic future.

Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Murli M. Sinha, Chair

The Department of Sociology and Anthropology has 10 full-time faculty, some adjunct faculty, and one Staff Assistant. The Department is home to interdisciplinary B.S. degree programs in International Studies and in Community and Urban Studies. In addition, the Department offers minors and concentrations in Sociology/Anthropology. The Department is unique in its focus on global, urban, and community change.

The B.S. program in International Studies focuses on interdisciplinary approaches to global problems. The core curriculum is integrated and it is effectively combined with three years of language study. The B.S. degree program in Urban and Community Studies focuses on interdisciplinary approaches to the challenges confronting our communities. Students learn about a wide range of issues through a core curriculum that is supplemented with training in qualitative and quantitative methods and the application of Geographic Information Systems techniques in urban and community studies. Both degree programs prepare graduates for advanced study and for careers that demand an understanding of the social, economic, and environmental issues of our communities, and how they play out in the different regions of the world.

Departmental faculty are active in research. The Department actively encourages students to utilize the many arrangements currently available at RIT to study abroad and it also sponsors a student club.

Non-Academic Departments:

The Office of Student Services of the College provides outstanding academic advising, registration, and scheduling services for students, faculty, and staff from across the entire Institute. The Office is made up of one Director, one Scheduling Officer, one Scheduling Assistant, two Academic Advisors, one Records and Registration Assistant, and one Receptionist/Staff Assistant. Students from all eight colleges including students in CLA degree programs are advised on their liberal arts General Education requirements through the Office of Student Services. The office is also responsible for scheduling approximately 1,000 liberal arts courses on an annual basis and evaluating liberal arts transfer credit for all prospective and current students at RIT. The Office also participates in and helps coordinate a wide range of events, such as Open Houses, Orientations, and other related events. In recognition of its work, The Office of Student Services was recipient of the Staff Recognition Award in 2005 for "Excellence in Satisfying Customers." Individual staff members in the office have also been nominated on numerous occasions for various Staff Recognition Awards.

The Office of Sponsored Research is a relatively new and increasingly significant and successful contributor to the overall success of the College. Over the past five years, the faculty in the College of Liberal Arts have been awarded over $5,000,000 (FY 2003 $570,471; FY 2004 $797,840; FY 2005 $1,252,627; FY 2006 $1,599,385, FY 2007 to date $1,200.000). These grants range in size from $1,000 to $749,546 and are disciplinary, multi-disciplinary, and cross-college in scope. They involve the disciplines of Archaeology, Communication, Criminal Justice, Economics, English, Foreign Languages, History, Music & Theatre, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Public Policy, School Psychology, Social Work, and Service Learning. The figure of $5 million compares very favorably to grants received by other colleges. It represents not only a significant increase for the College; it is a clear sign of the growing research interests and success of the faculty.

Beyond the Classroom: Co-Curricular Highlights

The educational mission of the College involves working to integrate the work of the classroom with a wide range of other related activities:

Selected Conferences, Symposia, and Lecture Series Organized by CLA Faculty

“Creativity: Technology: Invention” Symposium, organized by Anne Coon and the RIT Creativity and Invention Working Group

Conference for Undergraduate Research in Communication, Department of Communication (DOC)

“The Fate of Romanticism: From Faust to the Present,” organized by Katie Terezakis, Department of Philosophy

Department of Communication Symposia Lecture Series by the Gannett, Gosnell, Hale, and Kern Endowed Chairs (see above)

College of Liberal Arts Forum on Faculty-Student Research

Selected Student Productions, Performances, and Contests Directed and Advised by CLA Faculty and Sponsored by CLA

Directed by members of the Department of Fine Arts (2006-07): Experimental production “OurFaust” by Peter Ferran “Ives Tales” directed by Roger Freeman Kaleidoscope Concert with all of the RIT Ensembles (RIT Singers, RIT Orchestra, RIT Concert Band, RIT Jazz Ensemble) Holiday Concert with all of the RIT Ensembles

Fall Concert with Concert Band and Jazz Ensemble Concert, directed by Jon Kruger, and RIT Singers, directed by Ed Schell

Halloween Concert, RIT Orchestra w/Brighton Symphony

Spring concert of the World Music Ensemble, directed by Carl Atkins

Kearse Awards Ceremony, now in its 27th year, recognizes outstanding writing produced in courses throughout the liberal arts disciplines

Institute Public Speaking Contest, now in its 19th year, offered each fall and spring quarter by the Department of Communication

Signatures student literary and arts magazine, advised by John Roche, Department of English

Ethics and Communication Award, recognizes outstanding work in the study of ethics and communication by an undergraduate Communication degree student.

Future Directions

The College has been collaboratively engaged for over two years in developing a far-sighted and ambitious Strategic Plan. It was unanimously approved by the Faculty of the College on February 1, 2008. The College intends to play an increasingly central role in the intellectual and cultural life of RIT, both through a vibrant, innovative, and distinctive General Education program as well as through an increasing number of unique majors, double-majors, and cross-disciplinary initiatives. The College is seeking new leadership to continue to improve and more fully realize its strategic ambitions. With the help of this leadership, the College will also be seeking additional space and support for its present and future commitments.

Recent Student Data

Enrollment Summary (Fall 2007)

CLA Headcount for Fall 2007

Undergraduate

606 students

Graduate

+ 116 students

722 total students (up 6.5% from Fall 2006)

CLA FTE for Fall 2007

Undergraduate

581.7 FTE

Graduate

+ 91.3 FTE

673 total FTE (up 6.0% from Fall 2006)

Incoming Students (Fall 2007)

Undergraduate Programs

Freshmen

Transfers

Criminal Justice

17

11

Economics

4

2

RIT Exploration

48

2

Public Policy

5

3

Psychology

19

7

Advertising & PR

11

10

Prof. & Tech. Comm.

3

1

International Studies

11

1

Urban & Comm. Studies

0

0 (new degree)

Total Undergraduates:

118

37 = 155

Graduate Programs

School Psychology

16

Science, Tech., PP

2

Applied Exp. Psych.

4

Comm. & Media Tech.

12

Total Graduate Students:

34

Concentrations and Minors (July 2007)

4,756 students from throughout the Institute are currently enrolled in the 37 CLA Concentrations.

1,606 students are currently enrolled in the 42 CLA minors.

CLA Participation in and Support of RIT Honors Program

There are approximately 400 Honors students at RIT. Although individual colleges offer Honors courses to their own students, the majority of Honors courses are taught by CLA.

This year CLA will offer 22 Honors sections to approximately 300 students. We will also have 20 CLA Honors Students, and at least 2 who are double majoring in CLA. There are also 73 Honors students minoring in CLA departments (as of fall 2007).

Credit Hours Generated

In AY 2005-06, CLA generated 135,373 undergraduate credit hours and 3,141 graduate credit hours. The approximate number of undergraduates for AY 2005-06 was 13,000.

In AY 2006-07, CLA generated 137, 974 undergraduate credit hours and 3,329 graduate credit hours, for a total of 141,303 total credit hours.

Search Process

The search for RIT’s next Dean of the College of Liberal Arts is being assisted by a Search Advisory Committee appointed by President William Destler. The members of the Search Advisory Committee are listed on the decanal search website, which can be found at http://www.rit.edu/cla/deansearch/search_committee.html. Professor Joan Stone will be chairing the search and the Search Advisory Committee is being assisted by Paul H.L. Chou, member of the Higher Education Practice for Russell Reynolds Associates.

All materials submitted by, or on behalf of, candidates and nominees will be considered in strict confidence. Persons amenable to being considered are asked to submit an electronic version (Microsoft Word preferred) of their curriculum vitae/resume and an optional letter highlighting their administrative accomplishments and qualifications for the position. Materials should be submitted as soon as possible to:

Dr. Joan Stone Chair, Search Advisory Committee rit-liberalarts@russellreynolds.com

Questions about the search should be addressed to Paul H.L. Chou, Consultant to the Search Advisory Committee at 202-654-7830 (East Coast Time).

RIT is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer and invites and encourages applications from women and minorities. Review of applications will begin immediately.